How do I handle expense reports from union and non-union workers differently?

The Current Problem

Construction companies often struggle to manage expense reports for both union and non-union workers. Union employees have strict per diem rates and expense policies that must be followed, while non-union staff follow your company's own expense guidelines. This can lead to confusion, inconsistencies, and delays in the expense reporting process.

• Union workers may submit claims that exceed allowable per diem rates, requiring manual review
• Non-union workers may interpret expense policies differently, leading to incorrect reimbursements
• Approvals and reimbursements can get held up when the workflows for each group are not clearly defined

The Recommended Workflow

1. Establish clear expense policies for both union and non-union workers. Communicate these policies and train staff accordingly.
2. For union workers, require pre-approval of per diem expenses based on union-negotiated rates. Automate expense report review against these rates.
3. For non-union workers, set up a streamlined approval workflow based on your company's expense guidelines. Consider using expense management software to enforce policies.
4. Sync approved expense data from both groups into your construction accounting system or ERP to ensure accurate job costing and payroll.
5. Regularly audit a sample of expense reports to identify training gaps or policy tweaks needed for either group.

Tips for Construction Teams

• Provide mobile expense reporting tools to make it easy for field staff to submit claims on the go
• Empower field supervisors to pre-approve union per diem expenses to speed up the process
• Enforce your expense policies through software rather than relying on manual reviews
• Integrate your expense management system with your construction ERP to streamline data flow
• Train both office and field staff on expense policies and reporting procedures
• Consider using a construction-focused expense management platform like Vergo to automate this workflow

How Vergo Helps

Vergo is a card-agnostic expense management platform built for construction. Connect any corporate or project credit card and get full visibility and control over field spending.

• Job-cost coding at the point of capture — field teams assign job number, cost code, and cost type from their mobile device before the receipt leaves the job site.
• Per-job spend controls — set card limits by project, cost code, or cardholder so spending stays within approved budgets.
• Mobile receipt capture — superintendents and PMs photograph receipts on-site with automatic data extraction.
• Role-based approval workflows — route expenses through project managers, job-level approvers, and controllers based on your org structure.
• Vergo integrates natively with major construction ERPs, syncing coded expenses directly into job cost and general ledger without manual re-entry.

Related Questions

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