While keeping accurate timesheets for staff as per Department of Labour requirements was already a challenge for many SMMEs, COVID-19 has added a new element of risk to paper-based or fingerprint systems. The latest facial recognition technology could solve both, however, with employees now able to use their own cellphones to clock in and out for work.
Maintaining paper-based clock-in and -out systems has always been a headache for many SMMEs and businesses where installing an electronic attendance management system has not been financially viable. “Apart from ensuring employees sign in and out each day, accurate record-keeping is usually a challenge,” notes Jithoo Daya, director of Animon InfoTech Solutions. “Because the system is inconvenient, employees often sign in for each other, or report the time they should check in or out rather than the actual time.”
He notes that clock-card systems have proven similarly ineffective in terms of accuracy in many instances, with employees getting their colleagues to swipe their cards for them. “While biometric systems using fingerprints or other facial recognition have solved this, COVID-19 has added a new challenge as these systems are touch-based, creating health and safety risks.” Despite all of this, the Department of Labour’s record-keeping requirements remain firmly in place, creating pressure on SMMEs to find alternate and safe ways to log their employees’ attendance.
The latest facial recognition technology available on cellphones could provide the answer. “By combining a selfie with location tracking, the new SmartFace app is now able to accurately record when employees clock in and out in real time,” explains Daya. “The reporting data goes directly to the cloud. It is completely digitalised and safe, accessible only for the purpose of attendance. All international standards for security and confidentiality have also been met through Microsoft Azure. This is in line with POPIA which came into effect on 1 July.”
Daya notes that cost is an additional driver, with SmartFace priced at a rate that makes it a very appealing and effective alternative to traditional hardware and software solutions. “It’s particularly helpful now with more and more employees required to work from home or remotely. This allows for record-keeping to continue and, most importantly, for employers to check in with their staff; making sure that they are okay. If an employee hasn’t reported for work by a certain time, for example, an alert is sent.”
© Technews Publishing (Pty) Ltd. | All Rights Reserved.
printer friendly version