The Defense Contracting Auditing Agency, or DCAA, is known for its insistence on following the rules. When it comes to a DCAA timesheet, there is certainly no exception. The level of importance associated with DCAA time keeping requirements can't be overstated. The overall goal is quite straightforward, eliminate fraud and waste the to greatest extent possible.

It requires vigilance by management and an effective timekeeping system in to satisfy the DCAA requirements. The reason that employee work hours get so much scrutiny is that there is frequently no reliable paper trail available. In contrast, if a product or service is purchased from an outside organization, there are receipts and documents that can demonstrate the fact that the transaction took place. The same is true of many other types of transactions. When it comes to employee work hours, dependable documentation is just as important.

The U.S. Congress had so much fun messing around with taxes in 2010 that state and local governments decided to keep on making changes right into 2011. It’s now well into February and a few final updates are still trickling in, so be patient with your accounting and/or payroll vendors! Fortunately the nice folks in Washington extended certain deadlines to help make up for it, so now you just have to convince your employees to wait that long for their first paycheck of the year (we’re kidding, please don’t try this). 

At the heart of the delay is the fact that many states base their taxes on a percentage of the Federal tax - sort of. When Federal taxes change, states don't necessarily want it to impact their revenues, so they simply change the percentage basis used in the calculation.  The more the Feds monkey with the tax code, the more state legislators must scramble to compensate, and the longer we - as in all of us - wait to see what the new code dictates. 

Payroll fraud comes in many forms, and is well documented in the Construction industry. In a business where labor is often the largest cost on a project, this problem can really handicap a company's ability to be competitive and profitable. According to the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners, the average payroll scheme goes undetected for over two years. Even once detected, cases are less likely to be reported and prosecuted in the construction industry, often due to a lack of evidence. 

The two most common types of payroll fraud that occur on the job site are falsified time and phantom employees, both part of the construction time and attendance process.  Over the last decade, more technologies are now available in the field to combat payroll fraud.  While it's possible to prevent certain kinds of fraud altogether, it is often even easier and more cost effective to deter the majority of cases. 

ACS Connect is pleased to announce this joint webinar with Viewpoint Construction Software on November 11.  Paul McCormack from Viewpoint will present an over of the partnership between the two companies, after which Debbie Bradley will provide an overview of how Resource Commander automates the construction time collection process.  David Moore, VP of Finance for Tarlton Corporation, will share his perspective as a user of both Resource Commander and Viewpoint V6.  

This free eBook examines the time and attendance process within the Construction industry, and draws on lessons learned from real construction companies.  At 21 pages, this eBook provides a road map for a contractor that wants to streamline time collection, job costing and payroll. In addition to discussing the challenges unique to our industry, the eBook also outlines the steps necessary to evaluate the current process and drive change effectively within your organization. 

Download the Construction Time & Attendance Playbook here