Aside from it being deeply irritating and disrespectful when your employees don’t show up to work on time, it can affect your business in other ways, too. Of course, there is the potential for a loss in productivity, especially if the employee (or employees) shows up late on multiple occasions, but the reputation of your organization is also at stake and at risk of being tarnished.
Here are a few reasons why employee punctuality matters so much, and why as a business owner or manager, you shouldn’t ignore it:
- It can affect team morale and productivity:
Punctuality leads to a higher morale among a workforce, no matter how big or small the force is, and when someone is repeatedly late or leaves earlier than they are permitted, the natural flow of work is disrupted as other team members step in to cover the individual’s workload. This can become particularly disruptive to a workforce when shifts are involved, as who wants to work an 8 hour shift only to be told that you must stay even longer until your replacement decides to show up?
When punctuality is a continuing problem, tension and resentment can quickly arise among a team, and where there is tension and ill feeling, there is naturally a loss of morale and potentially a loss of productivity, too.
- Punctuality can affect public perception of your organization:
You may think that punctuality affects only those working for an organization, or running it, but customers are often able to spot when employees are late, and this can easily and quickly lead to an overall sense of distrust, particularly if your staff deal directly with customers. A workforce who are punctual, are usually viewed as a workforce that can be trusted to complete their job to the best of their ability.
Never forget that every employee reflects upon a company, and if you want to be reflected well as an organization, then you need to focus on making sure your staff are punctual and responsible.
- Employees who are late or leave early may not take your company where you want it to go:
Promoting staff and encouraging them to take a greater role in an organisation, is what most bosses want, and one employee who is consistently late or leaves before the end of their shift, will probably not help take your company where you want it to go.
Encouraging punctuality and timeliness in the workplace should always be considered a priority, whether you have just a handful of staff or multiple large teams, and its’ importance should never be underestimated.
To help you employ successful strategies to promote punctuality, and to help you better record staff timeliness, speak to your local payroll specialists about their time management solutions.