Round It

“I’ve heard I can use the approximate time an employee clocks in or out. How does that work?”

Your HR Survival Tip

What you’re talking about is called rounding. In fact, there was a court decision in December that clarified what is legally allowed.

HR JungleThe way rounding works is that when the employee clocks in, the actual time is rounded up or down to the nearest tenth of an hour. This court case determined rounding to the nearest tenth of an hour (6 minutes) is the legal standard. For example:

  • Clock in at 7:57 and your time is rounded down to 7:54.
  • Clock in at 7:58 and your time is rounded up to 8:00.
  • Clock out at 5:15 and your time is rounded down to 5:12.
  • Clock out at 5:04 and your time is rounded up to 5:06.

Rounding works if both your policy and the application of your policy is “neutral.” This means it must be fair to the employee. The assumption is that, over time, the employee does not lose any money when compared to not rounding their time.

This recent court decision specifies that rounding should be to the closest 6 minute mark (one-tenth of an hour) … not 10 minutes, not 15 minutes. If you’ve been rounding to anything but one-tenth of an hour, change your policy and payroll system now.

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