The five mistakes
Where time and attendance goes wrong
This guide is for the people who live with the results: HR and payroll teams, operations and site managers, and the directors who sign off the wage bill. For each mistake we cover what goes wrong, what it costs and how to fix it. New to some of the terms? Our time and attendance glossary explains them.
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1. Recording hours by hand
Paper timesheets, signing-in books and spreadsheets still feed payroll in plenty of UK businesses. Each one relies on somebody writing the right time down, somebody else reading it correctly and a third person adding it all up. Every handover is a chance to get it wrong.
A handwritten 8:00 also tells you nothing about whether the person actually arrived at 8:00 or at 8:12. Hours get written up at the end of the week from memory, and odd entries only come to light when someone’s pay is wrong.
What it costs
How to fix it
Capture the time when it happens, at a clocking terminal, on a phone or in a web browser, and let software turn clockings into hours. Set your rules for rounding, breaks and overtime once, so they apply to everyone the same way and nobody needs a calculator.
In ClockRite Cloud
Every clocking is recorded to the minute, and each shift’s rules for rounding, breaks and overtime are applied automatically. Late starts and missed clockings are flagged, and each week becomes a timesheet you check and approve for payroll.
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2. Letting time theft and buddy clocking go unnoticed
Most people are honest about their hours. A system that runs purely on trust still makes it easy to round a start time down, stretch a break or clock in for a friend who is running late, which is often called buddy clocking.
Each case looks small. Across a team and a year it adds up to real money, and the people who play by the rules notice when others don’t.
What it costs
How to fix it
Make every clocking prove who made it, and make patterns easy to see. Biometric clocking ties each clocking to the person standing at the terminal. Reports that pick out repeated lateness let managers have a quiet word early, based on facts rather than impressions.
In ClockRite Cloud
ClockRite terminals confirm who is clocking in by face, by fingerprint or both at once, so nobody can clock in for a colleague. The dashboard marks each clocking as on time or late against the person’s shift, and a daily Tardy Report can be emailed to the managers who need it.
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3. Leaving remote and mobile staff out
Engineers, carers, drivers and site teams rarely walk past a clocking terminal. When their hours arrive by text, by phone or on a sheet filled in at the end of the week, they are the least reliable hours in the business.
You also lose the live picture. Nobody in the office can say who is on site right now, which matters for cover, for lone working and in an emergency.
What it costs
How to fix it
Give mobile staff the same way of recording time as everyone else, on the phone they already carry. Keep the location with each clocking, and set the places where phone clocking is allowed, so a clocking from a car park two miles away doesn’t count as arriving on site.
In ClockRite Cloud
Staff clock in and out on the ClockRite app on their own phone, with the location kept for each clocking. Geofencing sets the areas where phone clocking is allowed, such as each site. Phone, terminal and browser clockings all arrive in the same account and on the same live dashboard, and staff can see their rota on their phone too.
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4. Re-keying hours into payroll and HR
When attendance, HR and payroll are separate systems, someone has to carry the numbers between them. New starters get set up twice, hours are typed from one screen into another, and every pay run carries the risk of a slipped digit or a missed line.
The job usually falls to one person, which becomes a problem the week they are off.
What it costs
How to fix it
Connect the systems so the data moves on its own. Enter employee details once, and send approved hours to payroll already split into the pay codes your payroll uses, with nothing typed in between.
In ClockRite Cloud
ClockRite Cloud links directly with People HR and Sage HR, bringing employees in and sending timesheets back. Approved hours export for Sage Payroll Line 50, or to CSV for other payroll software, and the REST API connects anything else.
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5. Not watching how long people work
Long weeks, skipped breaks and back-to-back shifts build up quietly, especially when overtime is popular or a team is short of people. Tired staff make more mistakes and have more accidents.
The Working Time Regulations set limits that apply whether or not anyone is counting, and a pattern of short, repeated absences can be an early sign that someone is struggling.
What it costs
How to fix it
Look at hours per person, not just per team, and check them while you plan the rota as well as after the week is over. Build breaks into each shift, make sure people take their holiday, and treat repeated short absences as a reason to talk about wellbeing. These are the main limits to plan around:
| Rule | What the Working Time Regulations say |
|---|---|
| Weekly hours | No more than 48 hours a week on average, normally over 17 weeks, unless the worker has opted out in writing |
| Rest break | 20 minutes without interruption when the working day is longer than six hours |
| Daily rest | 11 hours in a row between working days |
| Weekly rest | 24 hours without work each week, or 48 hours each fortnight |
| Paid holiday | 5.6 weeks a year for most workers, which is 28 days for someone working five days a week |
| Under 18s | No more than 8 hours a day and 40 a week, a 30-minute break after 4.5 hours, and 12 hours’ rest between working days |
A summary of the main limits, not legal advice. Some jobs and sectors have different rules, so check your own position with an HR or employment law adviser.
In ClockRite Cloud
The Schedule Planner shows each person’s shift hours and labour cost as you build the rota, so a long week shows up before it happens. Shifts can deduct breaks automatically, timesheets show the hours each person worked, and holiday balances and Bradford Factor scores sit on every employee profile.
Where to start
Fix the foundations first
You don’t have to change everything at once. Every other fix depends on accurate clockings, so start with how hours are recorded, then connect payroll, then use what you learn to plan better.
1. Record time at the source
Replace paper and spreadsheets with clockings on a terminal, phone or browser, with your shift rules doing the maths.
2. Connect payroll and HR
Send approved hours straight to payroll and keep employee details in step with your HR system.
3. Plan with the data
Use hours, lateness and absence to build fairer rotas and spot problems while they are still small.
Why ClockRite
Accurate hours, from clocking to payroll
More than 5,000 businesses trust ClockRite, and we have helped UK businesses with time and attendance since 1999. You get the software, the clocking terminals and a UK-based team to help you set up your shifts and rules, then support you afterwards.
5,000+
Businesses trust ClockRite
55+ years
Combined experience of our current team
Since 1999
Helping UK businesses with time and attendance
UK based
Support team and UK hosted software
4.8
Average rating on Google reviews
5 ways
To clock in, all feeding one account
FAQs
Time and attendance questions
Can’t see yours? Call our sales team on 01246 948451 or email [email protected].
What are the most common time and attendance mistakes?
Recording hours by hand, letting time theft and buddy clocking go unnoticed, leaving remote and mobile staff out, re-keying hours into payroll and HR, and not watching how long people work. Each one leads to wrong pay, extra admin or compliance risk.
What is buddy clocking?
When one employee clocks in or out for another, usually to cover lateness or an early finish. It is easy with paper sheets, cards and PINs, because nothing checks who is actually there. See our glossary for more terms.
How do I stop buddy clocking?
Use a clocking method that confirms who the person is. Facial recognition and fingerprint terminals tie each clocking to the person at the terminal, and multi-factor terminals check two ways at once. Reviewing lateness reports regularly also makes unusual patterns easier to spot.
Can we use fingerprint or face recognition for clocking in?
Yes, but biometric data is special category data under UK GDPR. You need a clear lawful basis, should carry out a data protection impact assessment and should offer an alternative, such as a card or key fob, to staff who would rather not use it. This is general guidance, not legal advice.
How can remote and mobile staff clock in?
On an app on their own phone, or in a web browser. With ClockRite, the location is kept with each phone clocking, and geofencing lets you set the areas where phone clocking is allowed. See time tracking for the five ways to clock in.
What is geofencing?
A boundary drawn around a place, such as a site or an office. With geofencing switched on, staff can only clock in by phone when they are inside the area you have set.
How long do we have to keep working time records?
Records that show you are keeping to the 48-hour weekly limit must be kept for two years. Pay records that show you are paying at least the National Minimum Wage must be kept for six years. Check the current rules on GOV.UK or with an adviser, as this is general guidance.
What are the main Working Time Regulations limits?
For most adult workers: an average of no more than 48 hours a week, normally over 17 weeks, unless they opt out in writing; a 20-minute break when the day is longer than six hours; 11 hours’ rest between working days; 24 hours off each week; and 5.6 weeks’ paid holiday a year. Younger workers have tighter limits.
Can time and attendance software send hours to payroll?
Yes. ClockRite Cloud exports approved hours for Sage Payroll Line 50, or to CSV for other payroll software, and links directly with People HR and Sage HR. See integrations for the details.
Do we need a clocking terminal?
Not always. Staff can clock in on their phones or in a web browser. Terminals suit fixed sites where you want proof of who clocked in, and ClockRite terminals keep recording clockings if the internet drops, sending them once the connection is back.
How can we keep an eye on how long people work?
Look at each person’s hours, not just the team total. In ClockRite Cloud the Schedule Planner shows each person’s shift hours while you build the rota, and timesheets show the hours they actually worked. See scheduling.
How does ClockRite help with all five mistakes?
ClockRite Cloud records clockings from terminals, phones and browsers, applies your shift rules, flags late starts and missed clockings, links to HR and payroll, and shows hours, holiday and Bradford Factor scores for every employee. Our UK-based team helps you set it up. Book a demo to see it.