It can be a minefield trying to figure out how to reduce employment costs without downsizing your business. Economic factors come into play. And there are some concerning issues around at the moment. So, here are some of the most popular methods that can save company money.
Hire Foreign Workers
Hiring workers from other countries is controversial. However, it can be a great way to reduce costs when it comes to salaries. Some foreign workers are willing to work for less money than someone in your country might expect. Of course, you need to meet national minimum wage requirements. And in countries like the UK, you need a skilled worker sponsor licence to employ people from outside the nation, including EU nationals, since Brexit came into play in 2021.
Temporarily Stop Overtime
Stopping overtime is a good way to cut costs, especially if it’s not needed for business. But if you ban or limit overtime, you need to talk to your employees about it carefully and explain that it’s a way to avoid having to lay off people. You should also be careful about stopping overtime for staff members who have come to depend on the extra money they get from it. Perhaps you could stop it in higher-paid departments to keep extra hours open for lower-income staff.
Outsource to Reduce Employment Costs
You can make considerable savings across the board by outsourcing specific jobs that usually cost. For example, you can save around 25% on your networking and cybersecurity by using a managed IT service. This is because IT employees are typically expensive to hire full-time. However, you can use an outsourced service at a fraction of the cost. This also applies to other departments such as legal and financing, administration and janitorial and cleaning services.
Make One Day Shorter
Modern workers have a lot of freedom at work. So, some companies cut costs by negotiating with their employees to change the hours they work. For instance, you could let them choose to work longer hours for a shorter work week. This way, almost as much work will be done for a little less money. This could be a good option for workers who have families or other responsibilities and could use the extra time to save some money on children’s day care.
Introduce Job-Sharing
Asking volunteers to share jobs is another popular way to cut down on work and save money on staff. With this plan, your workers can share a full-time position between them. So, they can decide among themselves when they will work and what each of their jobs will be. This is a good way for the business to save money without letting someone go. This arrangement can also work well for people who rely on benefits that could be cut if they go over permitted hours.
Summary
As a responsible business owner, it helps to look for ways to reduce employment costs without downsizing. You can hire foreign workers, outsource some jobs and try a job-sharing scheme.