Seeking Ideas for Implementing an Early Going/Late Coming Policy Without Flexi Time

Respected All, we want to start an early going/late coming policy. Kindly give a suggestion or format for the same other than Flexi time. Look forward to your reply.

Thanks & regards,
Dipti

Early Going and Late Coming Policy

Early going and late coming policies vary from organization to organization. For example, we have a system where one short leave of 2 hours is allowed every month. After that, going early results in half a day being marked as absent for the employees. As for late coming, we allow a maximum of two authorized/sanctioned regularizations by the Head of the Department. Those who have exceeded the two regularizations are marked as half-day absent.

See, there should be a system for everything. While you may have alternative ways to handle early going and late coming, tasks and work become more manageable when performed within a structured system.

Best Regards,
DK Sharma

The Importance of Timeliness in the Workplace

It's very simple and is always top-driven. There is no fun in overstaying if you are coming late in the morning. You are spending net hours in an undisciplined way. It looks very good if a staff member is following, but if the same thing starts at the operator level or at a lower staff level, it becomes irritating. It's better to change the habit of being on time. You must arrive in the morning on time and leave the office in the evening on time. An occasional late sitting may not be an issue, but regular late sitting practices can spoil your family life and affect your work performance as well.

It is simply a mindset. Calculate your effective efficient working hours; it will always be less than 4-5 hours in a day.

Dear Dipti, keep a 15-minute grace period for every employee. If your regular office timing is 9:30, then allow a grace period up to 9:45 (15 minutes) for every employee. After that, you can count late comings. If somebody is late 10 times in a particular month, then you can count ½ day for every 3 late marks. (You should ignore the first 3 late marks.)

Regards,
Rajendra V.

As Rajendra said, you can keep a 15-minute grace period. After that, you can mark someone as late if they arrive after the grace period. Every third or fourth instance of being late can be treated as half a day's leave.

Similarly, you can allow for a two-hour relaxation period in the evening. For example, if your office hours are from 9:30 AM to 6:30 PM, leaving after 4:30 PM can be marked as leaving early. Every third or fourth early departure will also be considered as half a day's leave.

I hope this information is helpful to you.

Regards,
Nishu

Handling a 15-Minute Grace Period in Office Timings

What if a 15-minute grace period is considered as office timings? My staff doesn't come before 9:45 now. Even my office boy doesn't open the office before 9:45. How should I handle this situation?

Regards,
[Your Name]

Firstly, please instruct your office boy to open the office at 9:30 am. Kindly send an email to all staff members regarding the office timings. Clearly state the office hours and issue a strict warning as mentioned above. Additionally, inform them that deductions may be made if necessary to enforce compliance.

Everyone is expected to adhere to the office hours within the next two to three months.

Thank you.

Good one, Boss! Well, for me, I don't believe in having a strict policy on log-in and log-off timing. Generally, it happens only in IT/BPO companies. It's not very effective to have such a strict policy for sales/marketing-oriented companies. If we expect employees to come in on time, they will also expect to leave on time, which is rarely possible. So, I believe it's better to restrict employees with their job/tasks rather than with timings. If an employee has been assigned some work with a certain TAT (turnaround time), the employee will automatically arrive and depart on time.

However, there are always exceptions. If you find anyone going out of hand, you can counsel them or warn them with a positive circular.

Regards,

Dear Mr. Singha, Regarding morning timing, it is essential to arrive on time or before the working hours commence to maintain discipline. In the evening, punctuality reflects the staff's dedication and involvement in their work. When these two aspects are combined, it is akin to mixing drink and drive, which should not be done.

The staff members are expected to complete the tasks assigned to them before they can leave for home at the end of the stipulated work hours.

Thank you.

Dear Bhaskar, I appreciate the comment, and I agree as well, but only partially. I didn't mean that there should not be any policy on incoming and outgoing timings; rather, I was referring to the strictness of it.

Imagine a salesperson who works until 9 pm most of the time... that is more than 3 hours beyond their actual working hours. If we reprimand them for being just 10 minutes late, what impact would it have on their morale? Sometimes, certain flexibilities can motivate employees to contribute more, but it should be within reasonable limits, as I mentioned before.

I have observed some companies that mark employees as absent if they arrive 20 minutes late from their log-in time. Such strictness may not be advisable, especially for sales or marketing-oriented companies.

Regards,

Latecoming should be penalized monetarily; only then can this habit be eradicated. If a staff member arrives late by 10 minutes, they should incur a penalty equivalent to 30 minutes, totaling 40 minutes counted as late, with a fine imposed based on their earnings per minute, as each minute costs the company. The funds collected should be utilized for staff welfare by the management. In one of my group companies, this policy was implemented, resulting in 98% of the 125 office staff becoming regular.

Thank you.

Boss 2966, you rightly said such rules should not be for sales and marketing staff. They spend more than working hours convincing the customers about the products you mentioned...

Positive Motivation Over Negative Motivation

Instead of relying on negative (threatening) motivation, why can't we try using positive motivation instead? How about setting up a monthly reward system where a gift of your choice (to be determined with management) is given to those who consistently maintain timely attendance and willingly put in extra hours when needed. This approach could be implemented at the worker level to encourage dedication and commitment.

Thank you for your message. Let me know if you need any further assistance.

Regards,

It's a common trend, but I strongly recommend a 15-minute grace period and then count lateness. First, talk to your employees about the importance of time and take action if somebody is repeatedly late so that others will follow suit.

Friends, it's okay for the grace period, but what about continuously coming in during the grace period? Is it tolerable? Please provide your valuable reply. Waiting for it.

Regards,
Snitu

You rightly mentioned that instead of negative motivation, the management should go the other way round. However, what we experienced in our group company, as I mentioned above, was that this system was implemented after trying all options. We followed this system for nearly one year, and after achieving regularity in 98% of the staff, it was withdrawn with a note that if late coming resumes, the policy would be re-implemented. The result - we have not yet re-implemented the policy.

In short, a negative threat for a short period could have long-term impacts.

Regards,
Minesh Bhatt

Policy on Late Arrivals and Early Departures

Here I would like to share with you all regarding coming late and leaving early. This is a habit that some people have developed. For those individuals, we can implement a policy of cutting half a day's salary for every three instances of arriving late or leaving early. By enforcing this policy, they will be encouraged to be more punctual.

A grace period of 10 minutes should be sufficient. Providing a 15-minute grace period would be too lenient, as it may result in employees settling at their desks half an hour later than the regular start time. Therefore, it is advisable to stick to a 10-minute grace period.

Regards,
Nirmala

Give a 15-minute grace period to your employees. If they enter into the 16th minute, deduct 16 minutes for every minute late. Additionally, there is another option: deduct 1 day's salary for every 4 instances of late arrival. This approach will effectively help in managing tardiness and reducing absenteeism rates.

It is important to inform employees when their leave balance is fully consumed. They should be made aware that deductions will commence if they continue to arrive late or are absent moving forward.

Greetings for the day! Please, can anybody help me with their HR policy on coming late, leaves, etc?

Can anyone help me draft a policy for early departures?

You may draft suitably after giving due consideration to the number of employees in the organization and put it up on this forum. Senior members of CiteHR shall fine-tune the same after reviewing the information supplied by you.