Since I’m most likely under the influence of some amazing pain killers right now and spending all my time writing career-limiting e-mails, we’ve pre-arranged for the second part of the mini-series on Global Leave Administration to be posted today. (I know, are we not just the bees’ knees?!) Earlier we shared on the Global Leave Administration portion (check that out here, if you missed it); now let’s turn our attention to the other side of this coin: Compliance.
Absence compliance systems actually guide HR through the leave process, initiating actions for each leave type. The system determines eligibility, not HR. The system enforces local regulations based on rules determined by attorneys specialized in this service. The vendor sets up all the rules to track leave balances, capture audit trails, alert HR and employees of missing documentation and deadlines, update the system when new regulations are enacted, as well as store and auto-populate required documents. These vendors provide the employer with a library of leave regulations, so the employer can get answers to their questions at the touch of a button. The problem is that there doesn’t seem to be much available outside of the US and Canada.
Although it has been said that leave laws in other countries are not nearly as stringent or complex as the leave laws in the US, someone in the UK may beg to differ. From what we’ve gathered, it appears less difficult to comply with global leave laws as long as someone is able to leave their US-centric thinking behind. Managing leave balances seems to be the biggest concern, which is why a time and attendance system may work for some employers. For the other companies out there who are consistently opening new offices in other countries or who have existing offices operating in multiple countries─ making it difficult to track all the various laws─ the need for a global absence compliance system is invaluable. A couple of vendors, Presagia and Optis, have offered to pave the way, but for a pretty penny, I’m sure. Your firm can hire them to go ahead of you into each country for a full discovery of the regulatory environment so you can program your Leave Administration technology or inform your services provider. However, whichever of these vendors gets to the tipping point first may open the doors for a flood of companies who have been searching long and hard for a solution to this dilemma.
This reminds me of a funny story (in a disappointing way – which isn’t that funny come to think of it.) I was at a vendor’s annual customer conference earlier this year when the Executive VP of International told me that they were indeed offering true Global Leave Administration. However, the devil is always in the details! It turns out that the global system can be used for these purposes – but it’s all on the employer to program the software or write the reports needed. That’s sort of like pointing at a pile of iron ore and plastic and telling me my new motorcycle is here! (With some assembly required!) That’s why compliance support is so essential to most employers. Few have HR IT folks just sitting around ready to drum up code on demand.
We will keep monitoring this situation and hitting up all the tradeshows, seeking this elusive snipe. Have you heard of any other companies offering global leave solutions? Any vendors want to weigh in on this topic and offer your wares? Please share them with @HRTechKaiser or by commenting below. We’d love to hear your war stories and who knows, if we get enough comments to this blog posting, perhaps we’ll spur some vendor’s Product Management teams into Global Leave action!