Similar language is also found in Labor Code section 226 pertaining to the information required to be provided to employees on pay stubs: As set forth below, the Wage Orders require time records “shall be kept on file by the employer for at least three years at the place of employment or at a central location within the State of California.” Therefore, employers should consider maintaining a copy of employee time records, either electronically or on paper, within the State of California. In addition, these two Opinion Letters contradict each other. Thus, employers need to be careful about relying too heavily on these opinions. The DLSE issued another Opinion Letter on Novemadvising employers that the electronic time record data could be maintained outside of the State of California “as long as a hard copy of the records was maintained at a central location within California.” While the DLSE’s opinion letters are not binding legal precedent, they are given pervasive authority in court. The Division of Labor Standards Enforcement (“DLSE”) issued an Opinion Letter on Jstating that “storage of records by electronic means meets the requirements of California law if the records are (1) retrievable in the State of California, and (2) may be printed in an indelible format upon request of either the employee or the Division.” Can time records be kept electronically?Ĭalifornia Wage Orders require that employers maintain the employees time records “in the English language and in ink or other indelible form.” Most timekeeping software today will also help monitor meal break compliance and will automatically flag any violations for a manager’s review.Ģ. Moving towards an electronic time keeping system can reduce mistakes in the recording and calculation of time worked, make it easier to track changes, and could make a review of the time entries easier should there ever be a challenge by the employee about their pay. However, even with just a handful of employees, many employers find it more efficient to use an electronic timekeeping system. As explained below, the records should be “indelible,” meaning that the time entries cannot be erased, removed, or changed. Employers may elect to use paper and pen in recording an employee’s time. Are employers required to use a particular type of timekeeping system?Ĭalifornia law does not require the use of any electronic type of timekeeping system or time clocks. This Friday’s Five covers five key obligations employers should consider when setting up time keeping systems:ġ. Yet, there are some governing principles employers can review in making the decision on what practices are best for their business. Surprisingly (or maybe not so surprisingly depending on your views on how slow the law is in adapting to technological advances), the Labor Code does not address this issue right on point. However, these inquiries raise good questions about employers’ obligations under the Labor Code to create and maintain time records. I received a few questions this week that I have not heard asked in a while: In what manner do employers need to keep time records? Can they be kept electronically, or do they have to be written? A follow-on question was: Do employers need to have a computerized timekeeping system to comply with their requirements under California law? With technological advances, it is hard to remember that just 10 years ago these questions were on top of everyone’s mind, but today it is sometimes assumed that it must be legal to keep these records electronically.
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