Overworking your employees: Avoid too much staff overtime

Cashmanager | 8 years ago

One of the tribulations for small businesses can be meeting the workload of their clients, especially if their staff numbers are less than they would hope. This can often lead to people pulling longer hours in order to get the work done - a practice that should be avoided if possible. 

A recent survey released by Hays Recruitment found that 31 per cent of employees were working increased overtime, while 65 per cent of employees said their overtime was unpaid. Managing Director of Hays in Australia & New Zealand Nick Deligiannis said the desire for less employees to do more was causing problems across a number of industries, and could ultimately have negative consequences for organisations. 

"When we surveyed employers as part of our Hays Salary Guide, two-thirds (66 per cent) said they expect their levels of business activity to increase in the year ahead, and a similar number (63 per cent) have already seen an increase in business activity," said Mr Deligiannis in a June 30 statement. 

"To cope with this increase, it seems that many are increasing the workloads of existing staff.  But pressure to increase productivity without increasing headcount has the potential to cause workplace stress and employee burnout, which will cost a lot more in the long run."

The importance of avoiding burning out your employees cannot be overstated. While there may be a lot of work to be done in a small period of time, it is vital to balance this with staff retention and maintaining morale. If you find yourself slipping behind, perhaps it's time to check some of your internal business processes? 

For example, working with outdated small business software is one way to potentially get behind on your workload, especially if there are repeated complications occurring. It could be worth investigating new software solutions to help facilitate the growth and development of your organisation.