KPMG to fine staff £100 for late time sheets

KPMG has angered UK staff by threatening them with £100 fines if they submit their paperwork late.

The accounting firm said it would impose the penalties if staff were late to file their time sheets, which record how long employees spend on tasks.

KPMG has not fined anyone yet over late filings but said if it issued a penalty, it would come out of an employee’s bonus – leaving more in the bonus pot for other people.

KPMG, which audited the collapsed construction group Carillion, said: “Like any professional services business, it’s important that all of our people complete their time sheets on time, so that we can accurately track our revenue, record our work for clients and plan our resource effectively.”

However, it stressed that there would be flexible deadlines for staff who were unwell or out of the office for other reasons.

The company added: “We are aiming for a 100% on time completion rate and have informed all colleagues why time sheets are important. Our partners who run our individual business areas are in charge of making sure their teams meet their responsibilities and in all areas do or will impose financial penalties for colleagues who breach the policy.”

KPMG said it was a new UK-only policy and was being rolled out now. The company said it would be seeking feedback from staff.

Two other companies, EY and PricewaterhouseCoopers – who along with Deloitte and KPMG make up the world’s four biggest accounting firms – said they did not issue fines.

EY said: “EY has a culture where people understand the importance of submitting time sheets. In the event that people do not submit their time sheets, EY takes steps to reinforce its policy; this does not include a monetary fine or locking people out of the system.”

PricewaterhouseCoopers said that if time sheets were not submitted within a certain period they would have to be authorised by the employee’s manager.

Last year, KPMG, which said it encouraged home working, dropped a separate policy of charging staff for certain lost IT equipment such as computer privacy screens and laptop locks. It abandoned the plan after complaints from staff.

The company said: “We may charge colleagues for a small range of IT consumables, like mice, laptop cables and tablet pens if they lose them, but any equipment that breaks or is stolen is replaced and paid for by KPMG.”

This article was written by Julia Kollewe, for theguardian.com on Thursday 20th December 2018 10.25 Europe/Londonguardian.co.uk © Guardian News and Media Limited 2010