FAQ - Should we provide an acting allowance?
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Q. Â We have an employee who is assuming the role
of "acting manger" until another manager is hired. Â I am trying to determine if we should provide this employee with
an acting allowance, and the best method to determine what the allowance should
be. Â Â I am also concerned about the
legalities of providing this acting allowance.
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A. Â There are a
number of different factors you should consider when determining whether or not
to offer this employee an acting allowance. Â
I will include some information on the various factors, which should
assist you with making your decision.
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If you
have concerns about the legalities of providing an acting allowance you should
contact an expert on labor laws in your area.
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For
managerial/professional jobs there is usually no problem legally or otherwise
with providing and acting allowance. Â
Generally the allowance is usually based on meeting individual
objectives. Â
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However if
a more senior person is away and someone has to step in, then it''s just part of
the day-to-day life of being a professional and doing what needs to be
done. Â The only area where you would get
into trouble is if the "acting role" goes on for a long time.
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Some
companies do pay an acting allowance but this is generally in organizations
where the job boundaries are well defined and unchanging. Â Other organizations encourage people to do
what needs to be done, rather than saying, "it''s not my job, and I need a
special allowance to do it".
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It is
important to remember that someone who is an "acting manager" is not
in as big a job as the regular manager. Â
An acting manager is unlikely to take the most important strategic
decisions that the job would perform in a year; rather they take over the more
routine part of the job.
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In
blue-collar jobs, the jobs are typically well defined and paid at an hourly
rate. Â If a worker is temporarily doing
higher paid work than they would get paid the higher rate.
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