Is Your Small Business or Company World Cup Ready?

With Only a few days left for kick-off, the World Cup 2014 countdown is in full effect! The Forum of Private Business wants to make sure business owners are ready for the possible surge of employee absences when the games begin on June 12th – July 13th.

Business advisor at the Forum, Jo Eccless, says that “summer 2014 is set to be a busy time for the licensed trade, with football fans flocking to locals up and down the country to cheer on their favorite team. Many landlords will be hoping to cash in on the uplift trade, which comes with any major sporting event, but it’s important to make sure their best laid plans don’t land them in trouble later, particularly when it comes to temporary staff and the all-important big screen.”

The Forum has listed several options for employers to avoid a sudden rise in employee absences:

Hiring temporary staff

•    If you’re hiring temporary staff, make sure they’re properly trained for all manual handling and are familiar with all company health and safety issues. This will prevent many work-related injuries and can avoid any workers’ comp claims.
•    Keep in mind that all staff, including temporary hires are entitled to minimum wage, as holiday and possibly sick pay
•    Be clear with your temporary hires and make sure they know what their responsibilities are and what is expected from them.
Manage Employee Absences
•    Ask your staff to use their vacation time and to put in their request with sufficient notice so that you can be prepared for their absence. This way, you can plan ahead and have other staff members take over any important tasks instead of scrambling at the last minute.
•    Be flexible.  Allow your staff to leave early so they can watch their favorite team play. Just ask that they let you know ahead of time, and have them come in early or work late at a later date.  This will cut back on “sick” calls or employees taking a full day off.
•    Screen the World Cup at work. Install a television or projector screen so employees can watch the game. This will cut back on people taking days off or calling in sick, and you can use this occasion as a team-building event.
•    You can also decide to do nothing and hold employees accountable if they choose to not show up to work without taking the proper steps. Make sure to go over your company’s policy before the games begin.

Manage World Cup festivities in the work-place

•    Keep in mind that employees may decide to watch the games online or be constantly updated on news and social media during business hours. Whether this is okay or not is completely up to you. If this is an issue, you may want to communicate this to them and remind them of your internet and monitoring policies.

So, how does your business or employer measure up? Are you planning on watching the World Cup at work? Let us know in the comment section below.