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Canadian Council to conduct time study on unpaid labor, not-included operations

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The Canadian Council of Collision Repairers (CCCR) has decided to focus a time study among its members on shops’ issues with unpaid administrative time.

Concerns over administrative time include labor for certain necessary procedures and operations that shops aren’t getting paid for as well as those that are considered not-included operations.

The decision was made by the council to conduct the study after reviewing results from a recent member survey that showed the Canadian collision repair industry’s top three issues — unpaid administrative time, material costs, and repair versus replace. The survey was conducted on March 17 and had 114 respondents.

CCCR Co-Chair Kelvin Campbell told Repairer Driven News the council chose to focus the study on unpaid administrative time because more than 85% of respondents viewed it as their most pressing concern. Also, “Since this is a new council, it was decided to focus on one topic rather than trying to address many things at once. The other topics will be discussed by Zoom meetings and addressed later.”

The council also wrote on its website that, “[Labor] rate was not a specific question, but referred to by many as a priority. It was decided that the insurance companies are the least likely to discuss that at this point and the most productive strategy is to be paid for the tasks that are currently unpaid.

Information Gathering Survey results: 

“Should more information about member shops be collected? For example, ‘rough’ details about sales volume, employee size, certifications etc.?”

    • Yes, 84 (73.7%)
    • No, 21 (18.4%)
    • Other, 9 (7.9%)

“If yes to the above question (more information should be collected), what should be required?”

    • Approximate sales volume, 60 (52.6%)
    • Number of shop employees, 71 (62.3%)
    • Number of administrative employees, 68 (59.6%)
    • Posted labour rate, 56 (49.1%)
    • Network affiliation, 46 (40.4%)
    • DRP affiliation, 40 (35.1%)
    • OEM certifications, 63 (55.3%)
    • Shop size in square feet, 54 (47.4%)
    • Number of cars processed monthly, 45 (39.5%)
    • Other, 5 (4.4%)

“What are the THREE most pressing issues you would like discussed and worked on? Please pick only three.”

    • Materials, 76 (66.7%)
    • Administration costs, 99 (86.8%)
    • Parts, 20 (17.5%)
    • Repair vs. replace, 33 (28.9%)
    • Payments cycle, 21 (18.4%)
    • Storage, 8 (7%)
    • Rentals, 10 (8.8%)
    • Supply chain issues, 30 (26.3%)
    • EV repair, 23 (20.2%)
    • Other, 29 (25.4%)

To conduct the study, group members are asked to research and use any existing guides that define the duties and times needed to properly process a claim from start to finish. Then, a survey or worksheet will be developed and shared to be filled out on the council’s “Time Study Info Sharing Group” website. After the results are gathered, they will be prepared for public presentation.

CCCR will develop a survey or worksheet for members to share their data via the council website’s “Info Sharing Group.” CCCR will then compile all the unpaid steps involved in getting a vehicle mapped out for repair, and the results will be prepared for public presentation.

“We are pleased with the participation of our members in this survey and are committed to addressing the issues that matter most to them,” Campbell said. “The time study will provide us with accurate data to understand the extent of the unpaid administrative time issue, which will help us to develop effective solutions.”

Max DiFelice, also a CCCR co-chair, added: “The CCCR has grown significantly since its inception, and this survey is a testament to our commitment to working together for the common good of the collision repair industry. We are excited to continue our progress by conducting this time study and addressing the issues that matter most to our members.”

CCCR invites interested members and other Canadian shop owners/managers to sign up to participate at www.collisionrepaircouncil.ca. Members will gain access to the website firewall and the CCCR Action Groups.

The council has updated its website with additional fields for registrants to complete to gain access to private discussion groups behind the website firewall. These chat rooms will be accessible by invitation only to ensure confidentiality among group members. CCCR’s first in-person meeting will be held sometime in early summer.

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Featured image credit: Constantinis/iStock

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