K3 Business Technology Group (K3) has now released the latest version of its Equator human resource management system amid changes to flexible working law.

The Manchester-based company has launched the system to give companies the right IT software to successfully administer and manage flexible working processes.

UK law recently changed, extending the right to request flexible working to an extra 4.5 million employees. The changes mean that parents with children under 16 now have the legal right to request flexible working arrangements. Previous legislation catered only for parents with children under six-years-old.

Flexible working is part of the solution for many manufacturing and distribution companies facing shrinking order books to maintain the nucleus of their skilled staff. Businesses realise the value of the skills, knowledge and experience of a loyal workforce. Without them, they will not be able to react fully to an economic upturn. K3’s Equator human resource management system is aimed at providing the right user-friendly, automated and time-saving tools to make this happen and to properly administer the processes.

Equator’s Time & Attendance (T&A) module allows for all types of shift patterns, including standard, rotational, flexi, continental and night shifts. Uniquely, the software supports flexible pay methods, annualised hours, time banking option and flexi time. Equator also provides easy to read graphical weekly, monthly and yearly calendars allowing managers to quickly identify shift patterns and attendance for the entire workforce. This information is clearly broken down by company division, shift, department, job title, cost centre or individual employee and shows planned shift working, holidays and absences. The T&A module also features a fully integrated roster that provides an instant view of available staff.

The T&A module links seamlessly with Equator’s Payroll module to provide a detailed payment record for each member of staff. This module also features a new graphical interface and the software is regularly updated to account for changes in PAYE, NIC, etc. An extremely useful feature of the Payroll modules is electronic filing of “In-Year Returns” for HMRC. Electronic filing is statutory for companies with 50 or more employees and this Equator feature makes light work of this new requirement.

Getting a view of the true cost of each individual within an organisation cannot be made by reviewing Payroll data alone. This is where the new Benefits Summary within Equator’s Personnel Module comes into play. This provides a total view of precisely what each individual is receiving and includes details of salary, pension, company car, and any other benefits. The Benefits Summary can be linked to Payroll to automatically calculate the approximate additional costs for NIC.

“With companies scrutinising their workforces to identify potential savings while balancing the need to retain skilled people it is critical that they act on up to date and detailed information. Collecting together staff information could be an onerous task but Equator provides HR information at the touch of a button and enables managers to make the right decisions for their businesses,” said Kevin O’Donnell, HR Development Director, K3 Business Technology Group.