🔓 Access level in Planday: Administrator
🌐 Subscription plan: All
⏱️ Set up time: 5 min. Reading time: 2 min.
✅ Required steps: Download the Planday app or Kiosk app
What is Punch Clock?
In Planday, you have two options for recording employee attendance and punctuality using the Punch Clock feature.
You can create a centralised clock-in station using an iPad, Android tablet, or a web browser via kiosk.planday.com. Employees can clock in and out directly on-site without needing personal devices, GPS, or IP-based restrictions.
Alternatively, you can allow employees to clock in and out using the Planday app on their mobile devices. This method can be combined with approved WiFi access and specific locations where your business operates.In Planday, you have two options for recording employee attendance and punctuality using the Punch Clock feature.
Configure mobile app access
Here's how to proceed if you want to give your employees access to the Punch Clock via the Planday app:
Go to Settings > Punch Clock section > Access (2.).
Turn on mobile access by sliding the toggle switch (3.).
Under Enable use of Punch Clock on the mobile app from:
Select the option that suits your needs. (4.)
To use Geofencing, choose Specified location(s).
Set up geofencing for access through the mobile app
Geofencing is used so employees can only punch in and out if they are physically present in an area. Employees must stay in a predefined workplace; otherwise, they will not be allowed to punch in or out of their shifts.
To set up, go to Locations and click Add.
Go to the map. Enter your address in the search bar or drag and drop the location pin to the suitable place of your location.
Set up your geofencing radius by dragging the arrow icon. Planday recommends a radius of at least 100 meters, as a smaller radius may be affected by the smartphone's GPS accuracy or GPS interference in the area.
Add the departments whose employees are allowed to punch in and out of this location.
Give the location a name. Confirm by clicking Save.
Give employees unrestricted access to clocking in and out from anywhere
If clocking in from a physical location is not important for your business, you can set the Punch Clock to let your employees clock in without being present at a location or connected to your WIFI.
To enable this option, under Mobile access, select Anywhere.
Please note: Once your location is set up, employees can only clock in and out if they are within the specified radius and have GPS enabled on their smartphone. For the Punch Clock to function through the app, Planday requires GPS or Location access. This access is solely used for punching in and out and not for any other purposes.
Limit the use of Punch Clock to a specific Wi-Fi network
It is also possible to allow the Punch Clock to be used via the app when employees use the WiFi at their workplace without relying on geolocation. To enable this option, follow these steps:
Configure WiFi Access for the Punch Clock.
Under Mobile access, select When connected to WiFi. To be even more specific, you can select From WiFi & specified location(s).
Note: If your employees are using iOS devices running iOS 14 or later, the Planday app will require location services to be enabled to punch in and out.
Record and display Punch Clock Location
This feature is only available to customers with the Pro plan and above.
Enabling this feature allows you, as said in the title, to record the ID of the GPS location radius used or the name of the profile of the Kiosk App and display the information on the associated shift.
Before enabling this feature, please be aware when employees clock in/out using their device, the ID of their GPS location radius will be recorded at that moment. Because this involves processing personal data (location data), the use of the feature requires valid, informed consent from each employee to comply with the GDPR and the e-Privacy Directive.
To ensure compliance, you, as the Data Controller, must also provide a genuine choice between using a Kiosk app function (non-tracking alternative) or this Punch Clock tracking feature.
Once you have the consent of your employees, if you wish to enable this feature, please go to Settings>Punch Clock>Access. Find the feature at the bottom of the page and toggle it on.
When enabled, each punch-in and punch-out record stores the ID of the associated GPS radius, profile or IP range and the mode of communication. (app, kiosk web, kiosk app). The result will be displayed in the shift under the total of hours on the top right corner:
The same information can as well be viewed on the Timesheet page.
If “Punch in from anywhere” was selected when setting up the geofencing, the system will only record the method of punching (app or kiosk) but won’t record the radius.
When the feature is disabled by toggling off the setting, all data previously registered will become unavailable: they will no longer appear on the shifts they were linked to.
If you enable it again, recording will resume and all previously recorded data will remain available. However, no data will be captured during the period between disabling and re-enabling it.
FAQs
What should I do if my employees can’t clock in or out?
What should I do if my employees can’t clock in or out?
You can check that you have the right punch clock configurations. Go to Punch Clock - FAQs and troubleshooting for admins.
You can check that your employees have the right settings enabled on their phones. Go to Punch Clock - FAQs and troubleshooting for employees.
Read next:
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