Workforce Management Overview

Appello's workforce management system is purpose-built for ICI (Institutional, Commercial, and Industrial) trade contractors who manage unionized and non-union field workers. It handles the full complexity of multi-trade, multi-local operations — union halls, Collective Bargaining Agreement wage tables, travel zones, apprenticeship progression, certifications, and crew management — in a single integrated platform.

Why Workforce Management Matters

ICI trade contractors face unique workforce challenges that general-purpose HR software doesn't address:

Challenge	How Appello Solves It
Workers belong to different union locals with different CBAs	Employment Agreements — multiple concurrent wage tables
Travel pay varies by distance from union hall to job site	Travel Rate Cards — automated zone-based travel calculations
Apprentice wages are a percentage of journeyman rates	Trade Classifications — CBA-aligned progression hierarchy
Workers need current safety certifications to work	Certification Matrix — real-time compliance tracking with expiry alerts
Crews are dispatched from different geographic halls	Union Hall Management — geographic dispatch tracking
Multiple trades work under different collective agreements	Multi-agreement support — each trade has its own wage structure

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Appello is the only workforce management platform in the ICI construction space with native support for union halls, CBA wage tables, and travel zone calculations. Competing platforms require manual tracking in spreadsheets or disconnected systems.

How Everything Connects

The workforce management modules work together as an integrated system:

Worker Profile
├── Department (Mechanical Insulation, Sheet Metal, etc.)
├── Trade Level (Journeyman, Apprentice 3rd Year, Foreman, etc.)
├── Union Hall (Local 95 — Hamilton, Local 473 — London, etc.)
├── Employment Agreement (Local 95 CBA, Office Agreement, etc.)
│   ├── Wage Table → base rate, vacation, benefits, pension
│   └── Travel Rate Card → zone-based travel, board, parking
├── User Groups / Crews (Crew A, Crew B, etc.)
├── Certifications (Working at Heights, WHMIS, First Aid, etc.)
└── Leave Types (Vacation, Sick, Union Business, etc.)

When a foreman submits a timesheet for a worker:

1. The system looks up the worker's trade level and employment agreement
2. It finds the correct wage rate from the active contract
3. It calculates travel allowance based on the worker's union hall vs. the job site
4. It applies overtime rules from the agreement
5. The total cost (wages + travel + OT) posts to the job's financial summary

All of this happens automatically — no manual lookups, no spreadsheets.

Feature Matrix

Feature	Description	Page
Union Halls	Configure local union halls and geographic branches	Union Hall Management
Employment Agreements	CBA wage tables with versioned contracts	Employment Agreements
Travel Rate Cards	Zone-based travel, board, and parking allowances	Travel Rate Cards & Zones
Trade Classifications	Apprentice-to-superintendent progression hierarchy	Trade Classifications
Departments	Organizational divisions by trade or function	Departments
User Groups & Crews	Reusable crew definitions for scheduling and time entry	User Groups & Crews
Leave Types	Configurable leave categories with approval workflows	Leave Types
Certifications	Safety and trade certification tracking with expiry alerts	Certifications

Getting Started

For a new Appello instance, configure workforce management in this order:

1. Departments — Set up your organizational structure
2. Trade Classifications — Define the progression hierarchy for each trade
3. Union Halls — Add your local union halls and geographic branches
4. Employment Agreements — Create CBA wage tables linked to halls
5. Travel Rate Cards — Configure zone-based travel allowances per agreement
6. Leave Types — Set up time-off categories
7. Certifications — Define the certifications your workforce needs
8. Users — Add workers with their department, trade level, hall, and agreement assignments
9. User Groups — Build crews from your workers for scheduling

Related Modules

• Timesheets — Where workforce data is consumed for time entry and payroll
• Scheduling — Schedule crews and individuals to jobs
• Dashboard — Company metrics including workforce KPIs (accessible from the sidebar home page)