Q. We’re installing a timeclock system in a department that has never had timeclocks before. We’re concerned about our employees’ reaction to them. Do you have any suggestions on how to explain the system?

A. Honesty is the best policy. Tell your employees why you’re doing it. If it’s to stop employees from cheating, you could say, “We believe some employees are taking advantage of their co-workers and the company by misstating the hours they work. We don’t want to be hovering over you, watching every move you make, so this timeclock system will simply record when you start work and when you finish. It levels the playing field for everyone, and ensures everyone gets paid fairly for the work they do.”

You can also mention that the system will save the payroll department hours of work every two weeks (depending on how often you pay your employees) and that at other companies, employees have ended up liking the system because with it there is an electronic record of when an employee started work and when he or she finished.

Q. I have just added a new overtime policy but I cannot figure out how to apply this new overtime policy to employee’s profiles. How do I do that?

A. It’s easier than you’d think. First you create the new policy (as you’ve already done). Next, you apply the new policy to a Pay Type (Setup > Pay Type Setup). You can create a new Pay Type that contains the new policy, or you can “Edit” an existing Pay Type and change the OT policy there.

If you edit an existing Pay Type, and the employees who have that Pay Type will be the ones affected by the new OT policy, you’re done.

If you have created a new Pay Type to accommodate the new OT policy, open the profile of each employee who will be covered by the new policy (double-click their name in TimePilot Central’s Employee List) and change their Pay Type to the one you just created.

Slower is better: It's playoff season for pro hockey and pro basketball, and after a player sinks the winning basket or scores the winning goal, you'll probably hear him say that it felt like time was slowing down as he took the shot. Obviously, time doesn't actually slow down, but that feeling illustrates that our minds have the ability to control our sense of time.

Scientists have found that when preparing to perform a movement, the brain kicks into high performance mode, processing more visual information and creating a more vivid mental picture than it does when the body is at rest. “That makes time be perceived as longer and slower,” a researcher said.

The brain also creates a more vivid mental picture when you see things you haven't seen before. This is one explanation for why time seems to speed up as we get older: If you've seen Fourth of July fireworks for 60 years, they aren't as vivid as they are to someone who is seeing them for the first time. Therefore, if you asked a 60-year-old and a 6-year-old how long a fireworks show lasted, the 60-year-old would probably give the shorter answer.

Source

Welcome!
TimePilot newsletter No. 26

Whether you're a current or future TimePilot customer, we're glad to see you.

Every month we'll offer news about TimePilot products, tips on how to use them more efficiently, some of the "cool stuff" our employees have come across and a special deal available only to those who receive this newsletter!

In this issue:

  • TimePilot Q&A: Introducing a timeclock to employees; new OT policies.
  • Lead Story: New product: Vetro Power Over Ethernet Kit.
  • Cool Stuff: Gator Grip.
  • The Deal: $5 off the new Vetro Power Over Ethernet Kit.

Extend the Power
of Your Vetro Clock

We have a new product that can make life easier for our customers who use their Vetro clocks on their local area networks.

Our Power Over Ethernet Kit eliminates the need to have a power outlet near your Vetro clock. The kit turns your network cable into an “extension cord”—transmitting power from an outlet at your server or at your PC through the network cable to the clock.

Besides convenience, there is another possible benefit: Most servers are used with an Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS), and the Vetro power supply can be plugged into the UPS. This will keep the clock from losing the correct time during a power outage as long as the UPS is functioning.

The kit consists of two 7-inch-long adaptors. Each has a network cable connector at one end and two leads—one with a network jack and the other a power lead—at the other. The kit will work with network cables up to to 75 feet in length. 

In the photo at right, the adaptor shown on the left is used at the clock; the one on the right is used at your server or PC.

Here's how it works:


At the Vetro clock

You'll plug the two leads at the top of the adaptor into the network jack and the power jack on your Vetro clock. The network cable that connects the clock to your LAN is plugged into the network jack at the bottom of the adaptor.

At the server or PC

The network lead at the top of the adaptor is plugged into your router/switch/PC. The lead from the Vetro power supply is plugged into the power jack at the top of the adaptor. Your network cable plugs into the network jack at the bottom of the adaptor.

The list price of the TimePilot Vetro Power Over Ethernet Kit is $29.95. However, for a limited time we're offering readers of this newsletter $5 off the list price. For details, please see below.


This month’s special offer
to TimePilot newsletter readers:

Vetro Power Over Ethernet Kit!

To learn all about our newest product,
see the story above.  

Special price for newsletter readers:

Just $24.95!

(save $5 over list price)

To learn more about the deal, click here, visit www.TimePilot.com/newsletter/newsletter4.htm or call us at 1-630-879-6400.

Every once in a while, our employees come across “cool stuff.”
This is where they share their finds.

Gator Grip Universal Sockets

Anyone who does small repairs around the house knows that choosing the right socket from a 50-piece socket set often takes longer than making the repair itself. The Gator Grip eliminates the need to choose exactly the right size.

Just push it on and start turning. It fits virtually anything that isn’t round: hex nuts and bolts from ¼-inch to 3/5 inch, eyebolts up to 2 inches, wing nuts, square nuts broken nuts, hooks, etc.

Inside the socket are 54 spring-loaded rods. When you push the socket over a nut, some of the rods retract and the others surround the nut, giving you a good grip.

The Gator Grip comes in several versions: You can buy just the socket or the socket, a ratchet and power driver adaptor (so it can be used on a power drill).

This might be just the thing for a great Father’s Day gift!

Gator Grip Universal Sockets