Have your staff been working from home? Here are your EOFY obligations

The world has changed significantly in the past few years and for small businesses, managing their staff remotely has become a new challenge to navigate. There are several challenges that the employer now has to overcome, both managerial-wise and with professional tax obligations. 

Are your staff set up for success to be working from home?

One big question ensure your staff are set up for success and can independently work at home is: do they have the tools they need?

For someone who has a job that is predominately online, you’ll need to ensure they have access to the right documents, tools and systems to have all of the information that they need to complete their tasks.

Is the work being completed to a high standard, or are there too many distractions in the home environment?

Does the employee have a suitable home environment for the type of work that is being undertaken? For example, a quiet space and IT requirements, a desk and chair that supports their back.

For your staff to be successful working from home, you need to make sure they are in an environment where they can easily access the information they need to get their job done. Cloud software may be worth investing in if your current system makes it hard for staff to access information. They also need to be in an environment that is not distracting. If you are findinga staff member is not meeting their requirements, speak to them about their home office environment and how you can help improve it. Even invite them in to work from the office if they need to, or invest in a desk at a shared workspace for them if they can’t commit to a quiet space at home.

You may also consider investing in ergonomic chairs, desks and monitors for your staff as many people are suffering from aches, pains and niggles since they have started working from home due to working with poor posture. Alternatively, you could have an ergonomic specialist assess their work set-up.

Do they understand what they need to achieve?

When it comes to working from home, your staff need to understand what they are responsible for or you may struggle to get the same level of quality of work that you would get in the office. 

While there are definitely pros to people working from home, it may be less distracting and more cost effective, but for those used to being micromanaged, working unsupervised may be more difficult. Clear instructions on who is responsible for each tasks, project deadlines and expectations should be outlined in advance. Speak to individual staff member about their key roles and responsibilities and regularly check-in with video meetings so everyone is on the same page. It’s hard for a team to work succinctly if they are unaware of the full picture. 

Do you have a system for the flow of information?

If your work handles sensitive information or items that are difficult to discuss over an email or a phone call, you will need put systems into place to ensure staff have a way to communicate with you.

If your staff need some guidance, make sure they are aware of how and when to get in touch with you so they are not sitting around doing nothing while they wait for the information

Having some procedures in place to manage workflow, deadlines and queries is also important so you can keep tabs on where everyone is up to. Having a clear picture will help relieve some of the stress

Look at some online managing tools, such as Slack or Asana if you don’t already have a system in place. Shared documents on a Cloud service also work well to keep staff and managers across the business and ensure deadlines are being met.

Staff training

The next thing to consider is the impact on staff training and development. You always want your staff to be inspired and upskilled. Every business will be different with this, but as a rule of thumb, consider meeting with your employees in person or online at least each month or two for an educational session. Book some online courses or organise a webinar to help motivate them. 

For new staff when it comes to training and development, depending on how in depth their task is and how experienced they are, you may want to consider in-house training for the first few weeks or introduce regular video calls scheduled. If you don’t have an office, book out a room in a shared workspace.

Mental health and wellbeing

When you are not seeing your staff in person as much, it is harder to monitor their WFH habits and mental wellbeing. Be an employer who encourages staff to get out for a walk and not be sedentary for long periods of time. Also, take in to consideration their mental health and wellbeing. Working from home can be quite isolating, and office relationships formed with colleagues, managers and supervisors play an important role in good mental health.

Ensure you regularly review their work hours and organise teaml meetings on Zoom for a catch up. You could host an online trivia night or BYO glass of wine. Alternatively, organise some staff outings during working hours allowing colleagues to socialise and continue to build rapport with their colleagues?

Finances

An important aspect of working from home is to keep your staff informed about their tax entitlements. If you are reimbursing them for their internet, phone and electricity expenses, it would be more beneficial to them than claiming a portion through tax. However, those employees who are getting extra money for working from home, should be aware that anything they are compensated for can not be claimed on their tax return.

If employees are paying for their own internet, phone, heating and cooling as long as they track the hours they work from home, they can claim the work-related portion back. They can also deduct depreciation for office equipment and furnishings they haven’t been reimbursed for and even claim back the cost of hiring an accountant to file their EOFY income tax.

Occupancy, either rent or mortgage can be included if your employer does not provide an office you can attend. For example, if your staff live in Glebe and there’s office space in Bankstown where you can work, there’s no provision for them to claim for the days that work at home. If staff don’t have an office or you have asked staff to work from home, they may be eligible to claim a portion of the rent. Alternatively, if they have a side hustle and an ABN, they may be able to claim for the hours they spend working from home on their money-spinner.

When working remotely, you can’t claim for child care, morning or afternoon tea, biscuits, coffee or tea, or travel unless it’s from client to client. You will also raise a few eyebrows from the ATO if you are working from home but try and claim for laundry expenses.

individuals who buy or pay for a COVID-19 test to ascertain whether or not they should attend work due to being positive are eligible to claim for this on their tax return.

To claim the above, educate your staff on the importance of keeping receipts and recording expenses so they can be deducted this tax time.

Here is an overview from the ATO to review if you are a sole trader or your employees are looking to make a claim.

For employers

Fringe Benefits Tax (FBT) may apply to you if you provided your employees with benefits in addition to their while they worked from home.
Any business providing a cash incentive or non-cash rewards, or paid leave for getting the vaccine or booster, should be aware that tax and super may need to be applied to that payment.

If you provided your employees with equipment to work from home, most of those items will be exempt from FBT if they were using the items to help them work. For example: laptops, office chairs, computer peripherals etc. Make sure you keep the receipts and claim these items to reduce your business tax.

Providing rapid antigen tests or COVID-testing at work is considered a fringe benefit, however, work-related tests are exempt from FBT.
You may require your employees to undertake COVID-19 testing before attending the workplace. Your employees may also be required to have COVID-19 tests if they are travelling for work. This may include polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests, and/or rapid antigen tests.Where you provide a test to your employee or reimburse the cost of a test, you may be providing a fringe benefit to your employee.