Time tracking
What is timesheet?
A timesheet is the record of hours an employee worked in a pay period, used to calculate pay and to prove compliance if you are ever audited.
Federal recordkeeping rules require employers to keep hours worked each day and total hours each workweek, among other fields. Payroll records generally must be kept three years, and the underlying time records two years.
A timesheet built from punches beats one filled in from memory, and a review-then-approve step catches errors while people still remember the week. When an edit is needed, keep the original: an audit trail showing who changed what and why is what makes a corrected timesheet defensible.
Source: 29 CFR 516.2 (records employers must keep)
Handle this automatically
Kloqk is a free employee time clock for small business. It records the punches, applies your rules, and does this arithmetic for you.
Related terms
Pay period
A pay period is the recurring stretch of time you pay for at once: weekly, biweekly, semimonthly, or monthly.
Punch rounding
Punch rounding adjusts clock times to a set interval, commonly the nearest 15 minutes, and is only lawful if it is neutral and doesn't shortchange employees over time.
Time and attendance
Time and attendance is the practice and software of recording when employees work, then turning those records into payable hours.
General information for US employers, not legal advice. Wage and hour rules change and vary by state, so confirm specifics with your state labor agency or counsel.