Clock In/Out Missouri

[MINDYM]

Hello. I have a question regarding the time someone clocks in and the laws regarding how they should be paid. If the work day begins at 8 a.m. and someone clocks in before that, how does that affect their pay? If they clock in at 7:45, are employers required to pay for that 15 minutes? Should it be somewhere in company policy that we pay in 15 minute increments and no one should clock in before 7:46? Is there a law regarding this?

[cbg]

If they clock in at 7:45 and sit down and go to work, yes, you have to pay them for it.

If they clock in at 7:45, go get coffee, check their personal e-mail, chat with their co-workers and start working at 8:00, no, you do not have to pay them for it.

There's a certain amount of rounding permitted but Patty is better at explaining it so I'll leave it to her.

[ChristopherStjo]

some of this can also depend on the employer's accounting system...many employers use the quarter hour system...which means for example that if you clock in at 7:45 it is rounded up to 8:00.... many employers also get themselves into trouble using this system because it not only strips the employee of the time for that day but any overtime that would have been accumlated for the week.

Here is another trap .... many employers call employees at their homes when they are off duty to discuss work related subjects or they will require their employees to do "special projects" at home, off the clock. I had this happen to me once; I spent 40 hours working on a "special project" at home and yet, when I called the wage and hour people and they said the employer was under no obligation to pay me...I filed suit in small claims and the employer settled out of court; paying me for all 40 hours....so much for what the wage and hour folks told me.

[turbowray]

Originally Posted by ChristopherStjo

some of this can also depend on the employer's accounting system...many employers use the quarter hour system...which means for example that if you clock in at 7:45 it is rounded up to 8:00.... many employers also get themselves into trouble using this system because it not only strips the employee of the time for that day but any overtime that would have been accumlated for the week.

Here is another trap .... many employers call employees at their homes when they are off duty to discuss work related subjects or they will require their employees to do "special projects" at home, off the clock. I had this happen to me once; I spent 40 hours working on a "special project" at home and yet, when I called the wage and hour people and they said the employer was under no obligation to pay me...I filed suit in small claims and the employer settled out of court; paying me for all 40 hours....so much for what the wage and hour folks told me.

It can also work to an employees advantage. We use this system at my job, and I am supposed to get off work at 2:00, I work until 2:08-2:10 alot because it is neccesary, and they pay me until 2:15 anytime I work until 2:08 or after, up to 2:15. It is not a trap, it is a system that helps the employee and the employer both. If on the quarter rounding system, they clock you in at 8 when you start at 7:45, then if you get off at say 2:45, they would HAVE to clock you out at 3:00, thus benefiting the employee also.

[robb71]

Rounding works both ways. Sometimes to the advantage of the employee and sometimes to the advantage of the employer. Normal protocol is rounding to the quarter hour.

I don't see how 7:45 would round to 8:00. The only thing that comes to mind is what cbg already mentioned. Is the employer under the impression that you are not working from 7:45 to 8:00 (i.e. restroom break prior to shift starting)? If this is the case, then the issue is not rounding; instead the employee is clocking in prior to actually performing any work. Correcting the punch is legal in this example.

There are no laws that specifically address usage of timeclocks. The law says that all non-exempt workers must be paid for all time worked. DOL has made allowances for rounding adjustments. I'm just not sure that rounding is the issue here.

[MINDYM]

I will provide more details.

I am the HR manager. We are getting a timeclock. Until now, we have been using a very inefficient time sheet. The employees have been instructed that the workday does not begin until 8 a.m. They aren't working before then, so no problems there. From what I've read here and in some other threads, i think It would be best to tell them that we will round up from the last 10 minutes, so if they clock in at 7:51 and later it will count as 8:00. But then how do you work out later in the day? If they clock out at 5:01, I'm sure the owners will want that to be 5:00.

[robb71]

Originally Posted by MINDYM

I will provide more details.

I am the HR manager. We are getting a timeclock. Until now, we have been using a very inefficient time sheet. The employees have been instructed that the workday does not begin until 8 a.m. They aren't working before then, so no problems there. From what I've read here and in some other threads, i think It would be best to tell them that we will round up from the last 10 minutes, so if they clock in at 7:51 and later it will count as 8:00. But then how do you work out later in the day? If they clock out at 5:01, I'm sure the owners will want that to be 5:00.

Many companies use the 8 minute rule when rounding. If an employee works 8 minutes of the 15 minute increment, the employee receives pay for the full 15 minute increment.

In the example where the employee has clocked-in at 7:51 for a 8:00 start time, the clock-in time would be rounded backwards to 7:45. In the example where the employee has clocked-out at 5:01, the clock-out time would be rounded backwards to 5:00; but if the employee clocked-out at 5:11, his time would be rounded forward to 5:15.

[Pattymd]

And even if you do use the 7:51-8:00 method, you would have to use the 5:01-5:10 method to be consistent and thus compliant with FLSA.

[JennLull04]

Hello,

I work in HR and I believe there is something called the 7 minute law that helps you govern clocking in and out.

Here's how it works at my company. In each quarter hour, if an employee clocks in in the first 7 minutes of the quarter hour, it will round their time backward; i.e. 8:06 punch is counted at 8:00. If they punch in afer the first 7 minutes, the employee's time is rounded forward; i.e. 8:11 punch is counted at 8:15. This works the same way with punching out. You'll find if you "audit" and study these punches over time, that it actually works out quite fairly and neither the employee nor the employer really has an advantage.

Jenn Lull

Dyson- the only vacuum that doesn't lose suction

[cbg]

The 7 minute rule is not a law.

It is PERMITTED under the FLSA. It is not required that employers use it.