From Burden to Advantage: How Automating HR Compliance Can Benefit Your Organisation

Imagine HR compliance as a massive, tangled ball of yarn. Untangling it can seem like an impossible task, with countless threads weaving in and out, crisscrossing each other, and creating chaos. Just like a skilled knitter can transform that mess of yarn into a beautiful, intricate garment, employee onboarding solutions like Wrkr Ready can streamline HR compliance processes and turn that chaos into order through automation.

In this blog, we will explore the following:

1. The term: HR Compliance 
2. Key areas of HR compliance
3. The Importance of having a compliant workforce
4. Six benefits of automating HR compliance processes
5. Automating your HR and workplace compliance processes with Wrkr Ready

What is digital onboarding?

Digital onboarding is introducing and integrating new employees into a company’s culture, policies, and systems through digital solutions. The goal is to;

• Make new employees feel welcome.
• Familiarise new employees with the business processes, company culture, and policies.
• Gather employee information and verify it in real-time
• Track the progress of new employees through the onboarding process
• Ensure new employees receive the support and resources they need 

What is HR compliance?

Human Resources (HR) compliance refers to an organisation’s adherence to laws, regulations, and industry standards related to employment practices. It ensures that an organisation operates legally and ethically and helps mitigate the risks of lawsuits, fines, and reputational damage.

Key areas of HR compliance

Australian organisations can avoid legal issues and create a safe, fair, and productive workplace for their employees by understanding these critical areas of HR compliance:

1. Pre-employment checks, including identification verification, background check, rights to work, drug testing 
2. Providing employment agreements and onboarding handbooks
3. Collecting and verifying tax file numbers, banking details, superannuation, and other payroll documentation ensure accurate and complete information.
4. Workplace policies and procedures encompassing data protection and privacy, anti-harassment, anti-discrimination, health and safety training, and performance management.

Importance of having a compliant workforce

A compliant workforce is crucial for the success of any organisation, especially in today’s highly regulated environment. Here are some of the key reasons why having a compliant workforce is essential:

• Avoiding legal and financial penalties: Non-compliance with laws and regulations can lead to hefty fines, lawsuits, and even criminal charges. A compliant workforce ensures that your organisation follows all applicable laws and regulations, which can help you avoid costly legal and financial penalties.
• Protecting your brand and reputation: Compliance violations can damage your brand and reputation, leading to lost customers and revenue. Maintaining a compliant workforce can demonstrate to customers, investors, and stakeholders that your organisation is ethical, trustworthy, and committed to doing the right thing.
• Ensuring employee safety and well-being: Many compliance regulations are designed to protect the safety and well-being of employees. For example, workplace safety regulations require employers to provide a safe working environment and to take steps to prevent accidents and injuries. Following these regulations can help ensure that your employees are safe and healthy.
• Improving productivity and efficiency: Compliance requirements can often be complex and time-consuming to implement. However, having a compliant workforce can streamline your operations and improve productivity and efficiency. For example, compliance with data protection regulations can help you better manage and protect your data, thus increasing stakeholder trust and reducing risks.
• Enhancing customer trust and loyalty: Customers increasingly demand transparency, accountability, and ethical behaviour from the organisations they do organisations with. Maintaining a compliant workforce can demonstrate your commitment to these values, enhancing customer trust and loyalty.

Six benefits of automating HR compliance processes

HR compliance is essential for employers to ensure that their practices and policies align with legal requirements and industry standards. However, traditional methods can be time-consuming, complex, and prone to errors. With technology, organisations can automate HR compliance processes which can bring several benefits, including:

• Increased Efficiency: HR teams can save time by reducing the manual workload of handling compliance tasks. So they can focus on more strategic tasks that add value to the organisation.
• Reduced Errors: Ensure compliance tasks are completed accurately and consistently, reducing the risk of errors that could result in non-compliance and costly penalties.
• Cost Savings: By automating compliance processes, organisations can reduce the cost associated with manual labour and avoid costly compliance violations.
• Better compliance tracking: Track compliance with various regulations and standards in real-time, helping employers to stay up-to-date with the latest laws and regulations, reducing the risk of non-compliance.
• Improved data management: Collect and store data electronically, making it easier to access, analyse, and report. Therefore, employers can quickly identify trends and patterns, which can help them make informed decisions.
• Increased transparency: Provide a clear and understandable trail of all HR compliance activities. HR staff, management, and stakeholders can easily access and review these activities, thus building trust and credibility.

Automating your HR compliance processes with Wrkr Ready

To automate the HR process, employers must choose a digital solution, such as Wrkr Ready, that is all-encompassing in meeting their compliance needs. Here are a few features that help HR teams to make their processes more efficient:

• Real-time verification: Conduct IDs, identity, work authorisation, visas, industry-specific credentials & certification checks instantly.
• Internal compliance checks for reporting: Manage, track, and administer internal compliance s across all systems to ensure the policies comply with regulatory laws.
• Contractor entity checks: Verify a contractor’s credibility instantly and mitigate the potential risks before entering a business relationship.
• Expiry notification for credentials: Send automated reminders to employees to renew their credentials and ensure the compliance standards are met.
• Centralised & secure data storage: Improve employee data privacy standards by managing their data in an easy-to-access, centralised and safe space.

If you’re interested in learning more about Wrkr READY, book a demo here.