We have one timeclock onsite, not super old fashioned, but not the new web subscription. Employees have a pin, they press their pin and then IN or OUT. Simple as that.
Still, every week there are multiple employees that consistently just can’t get it right. Sometimes I can see it and correct it before payroll, even though I have nothing to go off of for corrections other than their memory, which we’ve proven is bad.
Worse is when I can’t tell there’s a problem, and I have people coming into my office on Friday at 4:52 while I’m packing up complaining that they were shorted hours on their paycheck. Hours for which there was no record, and they’ve informed zero people. (I guess it’s assumed I’m omniscient?)
We have a QR code posted next to the timeclock for when someone realizes they’ve made a mistake. They can scan it and within about 15 seconds shoot a message to the office so we have it on file and correct it. I’d say the use rate of that is mid single digits and dropping weekly.
Does anyone else have tips/tricks on how to keep timeclocks accurate and to keep employees accountable for keeping their own time? Is there a better timeclock tool, or location, or standard use procedure?
Any ideas are appreciated. Probably not switching to a cloud managed monthly subscription where I still have to buy my own device though.
I’m not trying to punish people or get away with not paying them. I want my employees to get paid correctly, and to get paid on time. I just need to accomplish that without adding to my workload every week by having to redo stuff at the last possible minute.
The time clock is the employers ultimate responsibility. Not the employees. I use a pay system that accounts for the day. 8 hours automatic pay, 8+ is just automatic calculation to 12 hours. I use spreadsheets that have been around for decades that make it easy. Pay east, taxes easy, overtime tracking easy, employee morale with extra pay, easy. The ROI I get from the morale is worth not looking at employees as a cost, but a vital required asset. In my history if I come into a business and I see wages being worried about, I will take a second thought before consulting. It’s so insignificant in the total of things that the time and energy can be spent elsewhere in the company rather than getting rid of the most valuable cog of the business machine.
They are humans too and federal and state law specify that it is ultimately 100% legally my responsibility to handle it and not the employees. If you research case law you will see that you are heading down a path of labor disputes and ultimately insolvency. But that’s just free internet advice and I wish you the best!