As the caregiver shortage continues to challenge homecare providers, it’s more important than ever for agencies to take every opportunity to improve their workplace experience. One unexpected way of boosting caregiver retention is by streamlining the HR and payroll process. While outsourcing HR and payroll can help providers increase operational efficiency, spend less time on administrative tasks, and scale their business quickly, many are surprised to learn that it can positively impact employee job satisfaction as well. 

Here we explore how an efficient system can improve the lives of your caregivers and help you keep your valued employees happy. 

Spend Less Time on Administrative Tasks and More Time on Your Business 

You spend hours staying compliant with the latest state regulations, completing administrative duties like payroll, HR, scheduling, and billing, and ensuring your caregivers and members are happy. Is there even enough time in the day to get it all done? Juggling all these tasks can be overwhelming, but thankfully there are tools that can take some of them off your plate. An HR and payroll solution can give you time back in your days to focus on priorities, like caregiver retention, that will help your business thrive.

A solution like ADP processes your payroll in minutes, which lets you take the hours you might spend frustrated at your computer and use them to create innovative caregiver retention programs instead.

With the time saved on payroll, you can consider starting up new initiatives, such as the following: 

  • A mentorship program- Starting a mentor program provides career advancement opportunities for experienced workers and supplies training and support to newer caregivers. 
  • Employee satisfaction surveys- Use surveys to better understand how your employees feel about their careers, determine what additional resources they may need, and take action to improve your workplace. 
  • Implement office hours- Make yourself available to your employees. Having a set period of time when you’re accessible and available to answer their questions is a great way to facilitate trust and communication. 

Ensure Your Caregivers Get Paid Properly 

Payday should be exciting, not frustrating. Managing payroll for an entire agency is overwhelming, and it’s not surprising that mistakes can occur. If these mistakes happen, caregivers may feel they need to check that their paystub is correct every payday. Not only is it tedious for them to double check their employers’ calculations, but when they catch accidental errors, it can lead to feelings of distrust. According to SHRM, trust is one of the five leading contributors to employee job satisfaction. When caregivers aren’t correctly paid for their hard work, this trust can start to erode, and it won’t be long before they will question the professionalism of their agency. 

Our integration with ADP ensures that the hours tracked within HHAeXchange are input properly into ADP. That way when payroll is calculated, it’s done accurately. Plus, with built-in error detection, alerts and calculations, you can rest easy knowing mistakes will be caught and resolved quickly. Furthermore, knowing that direct deposits and live checks will be processed and delivered on time gives peace of mind to agency owner and caregiver. 

Easily Coordinate Your Benefits Packages 

According to Home Care Pulse, in 2021, 89% of homecare agencies provided some form of caregiver benefits, up 5% from the previous year. And for good reason, benefits are a great way to supplement base pay and show your caregivers that you care about their well-being and quality of life.

If you’re interested in offering employee benefits, but you’re unsure where to start, consider outsourcing your HR. ADP’s expert team of HR Consultants can recommend a benefits package that works best for your agency and provides your caregivers access to competitive benefits. Offering the benefits is just the first step. Administratively, ADP will track eligibility, waivers, and correctly produce your 1094/1095-C filings for your employees and IRS submittals. Having to do this manually can lead to errors and omissions. Failing to track, and provide the necessary forms opens your agency up to audits and fines. 

Increase HR and Payroll Transparency and Accessibility

Consider this scenario: It’s the weekend and Alice, one of your caregivers, is applying for a new apartment. She needs proof of income. She’s already stressed and is trying to reach the agency office to get the information, but all the lines are busy. She’s getting frustrated. If Alice had access to an online HR system, and efficient mobile app, she could simply log in and pull up her paystub in minutes.

It’s safe to say you don’t want to be constantly answering questions about payroll status, or benefit elections, and your caregivers don’t want to have to reach out every time they run into an issue. By using a payroll and HR system you will increase the visibility and accessibility your caregivers have into items like their paystubs and benefit elections.

ADP puts the data and decisions at the caregiver’s fingertips. They can change their benefit elections, 401k contributions, dependents, address, and even add a pay card, all on their own without having to call in to HR. Having the ability to see and act on this vital information whenever they want — and without having to reach out to the office — increases the trust they have in their agency, decreases frustrating errors, and saves everyone precious time.

Technology That Cares for The Caregiver 

Technology has revolutionized the homecare industry. Solutions like HHAeXchange decrease time consuming administrative tasks, connect the complex homecare ecosystem, and help agencies keep qualified caregivers. And now with access to ADP’s home healthcare division, your agency can give caregivers access to benefits and resources that will show them how much you prioritize their wellbeing. 

To improve your caregivers’ lives and your employee retention with ADP and HHAeXchange contact us today.