Electronic ROEs ease farm manufacturers’ payroll paper burden

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One of the more mundane aspects of running a company—whether the company is a farm or one that makes the tools to farm with—is filling out Records of Employment (ROEs) when employees leave.

Human Resources Manager Candice Brooks is responsible for payroll at Supreme International in Wetaskiwin, Alberta. Supreme International, a manufacturer of vertical feed processors, employs 80 people. The company doesn't have a high staff turnover but, for a variety of reasons, people do leave, some permanently and some temporarily. Brooks says they file an average of about six ROEs a year, which also covers apprenticeship leave.

Eight years ago, Supreme International decided to start filing electronic rather than paper ROEs and registered for ROE Web. Brooks found ROE Web relatively easy to use and noted a particular increase in accuracy and efficiency with the online application.

"I like the fact that ROE Web prompts you if there is an error," Brooks says. "It helps you fix it right away. Whereas with paper, you do it and send it in and, if there is an issue, they’re going to call to question it, or it’s just not going to go through."

"As an employer, if it’s someone going on apprenticeship or maternity, you don’t want to be delaying them at all," she adds. "And you’re getting the ROE in electronically, so they’re actually able to go home that day and submit their EI application—not waiting for their ROE to come in the mail."

Jane Klyn, office manager with Salford Farm Machinery, in Salford, Ontario, agrees.

"It’s faster," Klyn says. "You just hit the button, and it goes right to Service Canada."

Salford Farm Machinery has 130 employees, and Klyn issues about 20 ROEs a year. Having issued paper ROEs for 20 years, she found the electronic forms themselves quite familiar.

In 2010, Klyn Registered Salford Farm Machinery with ROE Web. She says that a Service Canada representative came to her office and went through the process with her, step by step.

"We signed some paperwork, and from there it was a go," she says.

Both Klyn and Brooks use a payroll program that produces the ROE information, which can be simply uploaded to complete the ROE form. They don’t have to manually enter the information.

"I just upload and go. I don’t actually have to type up anything from scratch," says Brooks.

As a result, Brooks says the top benefit of using ROE Web is its accuracy and efficiency. She cites an employee going on an apprenticeship leave as an excellent example.

"If someone is going on apprenticeship leave, I’m able to process it [the ROE] the last day they are here and give it to them," she says. "They are able to process it immediately. So less wait time for them."
Klyn agrees. "We would not go back to paper filing," she says.

For her, the paper and mailing-cost savings and the reduced number of calls from Service Canada are the biggest benefits. With ROE Web, employers are no longer required to print a copy of the ROE for the employee or mail a copy to Service Canada.

"But I still keep a paper copy for my files—I’m a visual person," Klyn says.

However, for companies that issue a large number of ROEs, not having to print and store copies of the forms on site is a huge benefit. ROES can be backed up and saved on a computer or external hard drive. As well, Service Canada keeps a copy on its system, which employers can always access to make amendments, if required.

When asked what she would say to employers who are not yet using ROE Web, Brooks says: "Why aren’t they?"

For Brooks and Klyn, ROE Web’s accuracy and efficiency means not going back to paper forms.

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