Time tracking — what fits your company?
Time tracking is mandatory in the EU since the EuGH ruling in 2019 and the BAG ruling in 2022. How you record times is up to you — but the system must be reliable, objective and accessible.
To meet legal expectations you must capture the full working time of employees (including breaks) via a system that is reliable, objective and accessible. Many methods comply; the right one creates real value beyond compliance.
Basic methods
Excel sheets
Simple — but easy to manipulate and not “reliable” in the legal sense. Hard to aggregate at scale.
Paper timesheets
Long-established. Each employee logs times on a sheet (paper or digital), watching for exact times, including their name, date and personnel ID. Records must be created within 7 days. Works for small companies; gets unwieldy fast.
Time clocks
Classic clock cards have been replaced by electronic readers that recognise cards or RFID. Minute-precise capture, easy compliance. Modernised into stationary terminals.
Advanced methods
Attendance tracking
Online check-in/check-out — software-based capture, often paired with a mobile app for on-the-go entries. Data is centralised and useful for controlling.
Terminal system — modern evolution of time clocks. Check in/out via touchscreen or RFID. The same terminal can serve as access control — combining attendance tracking with door entry.
Project time tracking
When you also want to know what someone worked on:
Time cubes — rotate the cube to a side that represents an activity to start a timer. Six sides = six activities. Fun for solo workers; not for larger teams.
App trackers — passively measure how long employees spend in specific applications.
All-in-one: ERP system
To combine working time and project time recording with customer data, invoices, leave and more in one place, use an ERP like teamspace. Time tracking integrates with employee data, projects and contracts — saving organisational effort while staying compliant.
Conclusion
Time tracking is mandatory and a real efficiency, transparency and fairness factor. The right method depends on your size, requirements and work models. Investing early saves time, cost and frustration — and is the basis of a modern and fair work culture.
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