When should I review labor costs each week?
A weekly quick look
A short weekly review keeps labor from drifting. Compare scheduled hours to actual hours, and note any shifts that ran long. Look at labor as a percentage of sales for the week, since a busy week and a slow week need different reactions.
Use the same calculation every time so the numbers are comparable. If you change the method, write down the change so next week's figures are not misleading.
A monthly deeper dive
Once a month, review the trend across four weeks. Look at overtime, meal breaks, and any weeks where extra staff were added for events or training. Check whether the schedule matches the sales pattern you expected when you wrote it.
Use the monthly review to plan the next month's schedule. If the same shift keeps running over, adjust the start times or the number of staff rather than waiting for the problem to fix itself.
Pick a fixed time, such as Monday morning, so the review happens before the next schedule is posted and changes are still easy to make.
- Compare scheduled to actual hours weekly
- Track labor as a percent of sales
- Review overtime and extra shifts monthly
- Adjust next month's schedule from the trend
Common mistakes
- Checking labor cost only at the end of the month, when the overspend has already happened.
- Comparing a holiday week to a normal week without adjusting expectations.
