Over half of UK Employees use personal devices for basic HR admin

Over half (56%) of UK employees are completing basic HR admin tasks on their own device rather than a work device. These are the results of a survey from leading provider of global payroll and HR services, SD Worx, which looks into the extent of the digitisation of the workplace.

The survey found that employees’ working and personal lives are increasingly merging. In fact, 65% of employees request sick leave through their own devices, making it one of the most frequent tasks to be completed using personal technology. Submitting a sick note (64%) and submitting certificates such as government holiday certificates (62%) followed as the tasks most regularly completed in this manner. In comparison, the least frequent task to be carried out on a personal device is reserving a mobile workstation (43%).

Not a surprise: young people prefer personal devices

Using a personal device for admin tasks at work is far more common amongst employees under 30. Regular tasks such as reserving a parking space at work (53%) and submitting a sick note (80%) are completed by those in this age group on their own tablets, laptops or smartphones. Just over two fifths (42%) of those under 30  complete the least popular task for this age group, reserving a mobile work station, on their own device. On the other hand, over 50s are considerably less likely to use anything other than a work device for such tasks. For instance, 53% usually request a change in working time on a work device, compared with only 30% for 30 years and under.

Austria leads the way on use of personal devices at work for HR administration

Out of the countries surveyed, there are significant differences between what each country prefers to do on a personal device compared to a work device.

Overall, in terms of completing HR admin tasks on a personal device, Austria scored the highest with 67%, followed by the Netherlands with 65%. The UK scored the same as Germany and France at 56%. Belgium scored the lowest out of the countries surveyed with only 45% of employees choosing to complete these HR admin tasks on a personal device.

Blurred lines between work and life

“Work and life are increasingly intermingled. In our company, there is no nine-to-five mentality. We use our personal devices to communicate with our colleagues, via apps that we also use privately. In addition, there is a demand for more flexibility, both from our employees and the company itself. The Digital Assistant of SD Worx supports this interaction. A day working from home,  requesting a few hours of vacation or registering an illness: it happens in no time. It reduces administration for our HR department “, says Lore Berden, HR Manager at GfK Belgium.

Brenda Morris, MD of SD Worx UK and Ireland: “As technology becomes even more ingrained in our personal lives, it’s not surprising that the lines may blur between personal and work devices. Demand will vary from country to country and across age groups, but what organisations must ensure is that they give their people the opportunities to work how, when and where suits them best, if their role allows that, of course. Businesses have to make efforts to make the personal and working lives of their employees easier. If they do not, engagement levels will suffer and people will leave for a company where their expectations are met.”