Charity uses software to ensure staff don’t work too hard 5

IT | Gareth Jones | 8 Mar 2011

In an announcement which will shine like a beacon of hope to the country’s overworked masses, human rights charity Christian Solidarity Worldwide has revealed that it has taken action to prevent staff from working too many hours.

The charity had become concerned that staff members were too dedicated and were working well over and above the hours they are paid for, so it implemented Holiday Scheduler, an excel-based system developed by Hertfordshire-based software company MTIS.

The software give managers and HR staff simple and accurate updating of employee holiday and absence records within a customisable interface.

PA Jane Bave said: “We have very dedicated people who regularly give many more hours than they probably should do. Unlike regular business organisations, we actively encourage our staff to take holidays, to take time off.”

She added: “As well as being able to track where advocates are at any one time, I can instantly see whether there are employees who should have taken time off, but didn’t.”

Place a comment

Doug Jenner
24 Mar 2011

Agreed - fantastic that a human rights group are practising what they preach. Sounds like a fantastic resource.

[Reply]

Peter Munro
11 Mar 2011

Unfortunately it'll be useless for many.

The very staff who are too dedicated and working well over and above the hours they are paid for, will probably not record some or all of the extra hours they work, so the unrecorded time won't show up in the Holiday Scheduler system. Even those that conscientiously record their working time accurately, will stop doing that, if they're instructed to take leave.

[Reply]

Geoff Sloan
10 Mar 2011

But can this spreadsheet wave a magic wand and cure the resource issues that result in charity staff working overly long hours and not taking their full holiday entitlement? If so, where do I sign?

[Reply]

Rosie Barrett
Commmunications
Kudos Software
8 Mar 2011

Well fantastic! We've been banging on about this for ages. Long before the blessed Mary Queen of Shops in fact. But well done them for introducing not just efficient business practice and treat your volunteers like professionals but... Wait for it... Human Rights. Of course charities should use up to date tools. This is the 21st century!

[Reply]

Bob
8 Mar 2011

"OMG" (Oh my God - pun intended) - a voice of reason at last.

Good for them !

[Reply]

Comments

[Cancel] | Reply to:

Name *

Email *

Organisation

Job Title

Comments *

Verification *

* Please read our Community Standards

Close »

Community Standards

The civilsociety.co.uk community and comments board is intended as a platform for informed and civilised debate.

We hope to encourage a broad range of views, however, there are standards that we expect commentators to uphold. We reserve the right to delete or amend any comments that do not adhere to these standards.

We welcome:

Robust but respectful debate
Strongly held opinions
Intelligent relevant discussion
The sharing of relevant experiences
New participants

We will not publish:

Rude, threatening, offensive, obscene or abusive language, or links to such material
Links to commercial organisations or spam postings. The comments board is not an advertising platform
The posting of contact details for yourself or others
Comments intended for malicious purpose or mindless abuse
Comments purporting to be from another person or organisation under false pretences
Gratuitous criticism, commentary or self-promotion
Any material which breaches copyright or privacy laws, or could be considered libellous
The use of the comments board for the pursuit or extension of personal disputes

Be aware:

Views expressed on the comments board are left at users’ discretion and are in no way views held or supported by Civil Society Media
Comments left by others may not be accurate, do not rely on them as fact
You may be misunderstood - sarcasm and humour can easily be taken out of context, try to be clear

Please:

Enjoy the opportunity to express your opinion and respect the right of others to express theirs
Confine your remarks to issues rather than personalities

Together we can keep our community a polite, respectful and intelligent platform for discussion.