Attendance Tracking and Working-Time Records
Built around Mexico's Federal Labour Law (LFT)
Designed to make it easier to comply with articles 58 to 68 of the Federal Labour Law and to respond to requests from the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare (STPS). Mobile digital time clock for crews with one-off GPS, no sensitive biometric data and a monthly report ready for payroll and IMSS.
What the Ley Federal del Trabajo (LFT) requires in Mexico
Mexican labour law requires the employer to prove the length of the working day. A reliable digital record helps reduce the risk of claims and penalties.
Accurate clock-in and clock-out record
Accurate evidence of working hours, meal breaks and end of the working day in accordance with the contract.
Employer's burden of proof (Art. 784 LFT)
It is up to the employer to prove working hours. Without records, the overtime claimed is taken as true.
Legal cap and overtime calculation
Strict control of double overtime (first 9 hours per week) and triple overtime (any excess), respecting legal limits.
Minimum retention of 1 year
Employer's obligation to keep and present attendance records to the authorities for at least one year.
Personal data protection (LFPDPPP)
Compliance with the LFPDPPP by avoiding the collection of sensitive biometric data when secure digital options exist.
Support for IMSS audits
Reliable backing to justify employer-employee contributions and the Salario Base de Cotización in audits.
STPS and Labour Court Criteria: The Burden of Proof for Overtime
Under article 784 of the LFT, it is up to the employer to reliably prove the agreed working hours. If you do not have tamper-proof digital records, the labour authorities and courts presume the overtime claimed by the worker to be true.
Paper, Excel, Fingerprint Clock or WorkLogTracker: What Is Legal in Mexico?
Many traditional methods expose your company to costly labor liabilities before the STPS and to personal data protection penalties.
| Criterion | Paper Sheet | Excel Spreadsheet | Fingerprint Scanner | WorkLogTracker |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Evidential value before the STPS and Courts | ✘ Easily challenged in overtime lawsuits (LFT art. 784) | ⚠ No traceability: easy to tamper with and no change history | ✘ Valid, but with a risk of penalties relating to the protection of sensitive data | ✔ Unalterable: timestamp, change history and one-off GPS |
| LFPDPPP Compliance | ✘ Privacy risk: lists with names exposed on notice boards | ⚠ Risk of internal staff data leaks | ✘ Serious infringement: risky handling of sensitive biometric data | ✔ Full protection: zero biometric data, individual credentials |
| Operation for crews and off-site services | ✘ Useless for services outside the workshop or fixed premises | ⚠ Impossible for technicians to update on their phones | ✘ Unworkable outside fixed offices (wired time clocks) | ✔ Mobile time clock on every technician's and supervisor's phone |
| Works with no mobile signal or data | ✘ Works, but paper notes keep getting lost | ⚠ Fails because it requires a permanent internet connection to save changes | ✘ Fails if it depends on a landline network connection or local server | ✔ 100% Offline Mode: clock in without data and sync once the signal is back |
| Monthly report for payroll and the IMSS | ✘ Whole days of admin work adding up hours and late arrivals by hand | ⚠ Formulas that break, causing payroll errors | ✘ Plain text files that require expensive payroll systems | ✔ 1-click download of the monthly report with regular hours and overtime |
| Integrated service orders and field reports | ✘ Paper delivery notes that take weeks to reach the office | ⚠ Completely disconnected from technical field work | ✘ Disconnected from the services and spare parts supplied to the customer | ✔ Time clock and service order with customer signature in the same app |
| Monthly and implementation cost | ✘ Apparently free but with a huge cost in lost payroll hours | ⚠ High cost of payroll disputes and labour lawsuits | ✘ Costly equipment from $8,000 to $30,000 MXN plus installation | ✔ $55 MXN/month + VAT up to 10 employees; minimum two seats. For 11–100: $50 MXN/month + VAT for everyone. Over 100: negotiated contract. |
Why fingerprints are a risk for your company
Fingerprints and facial features are biometric data that the LFPDPPP treats as sensitive personal data: they require the express written consent of each employee and enhanced security measures.
Storing workers' fingerprints in time clocks exposes the company to multi-million-peso fines for leaks, breaches or mishandling of sensitive data.
Secure and private mobile time clock with WorkLogTracker
Each employee clocks in with their own username and password from their own mobile phone. Location is checked only at the moment of clocking in, with no invasion of privacy and no biometric storage.
STPS Fines and Labor Contingencies in Mexico
The Secretaría del Trabajo y Previsión Social (STPS) and the LFT framework provide for severe penalties for failing to record or falsifying working hours.
STPS Fines for Failing to Track Time
Up to 5,000 UMAsFines of up to 5,000 Unidades de Medida y Actualización (UMAs) imposed by the STPS in ordinary or extraordinary inspections for failing to prove legal working hours.
Orders to Pay Double and Triple Overtime
Arts. 67 and 68 LFTWithout tamper-proof records, the company loses labor lawsuits before the Centro de Conciliación, paying overtime at 100% and 200% extra plus back pay (salarios caídos).
IMSS Audits and Contribution Adjustments
SBC Salary CalculationThe IMSS cross-checks information on regular overtime to determine differences and capitales constitutivos in the Salario Base de Cotización.
The LFT Monthly Attendance and Working-Hours Report
Monthly report that WorkLogTracker automatically issues for each worker, fully structured with RFC, CURP and NSS for payroll or STPS reviews.
| Day | Clock In | Break | Clock Out | Regular | Overtime | Incident / Audit Trail |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | 08:00 | 13:00 – 14:00 | 17:00 | 8:00 | — | Clock-in verified by a point-in-time geofence check |
| 02 | 08:00 | 13:00 – 14:00 | 18:30 | 8:00 | 1:30 | Overtime authorized for urgent intervention |
| 03 | 08:10 | 13:00 – 14:00 | 17:00 | 7:50 | — | Traffic delay justified and approved |
| 04 | 08:00 | 13:00 – 14:00 | 17:00 | 8:00 | — | Regular shift at assigned facility |
Up and running in under 10 minutes
No hardware terminals to purchase, no complex server installations, and no lock-in.
Register sites and employees
You create your WorkLogTracker account, add your workplaces or construction sites, configure the agreed working hours and register your workers in minutes.
Team downloads the app
Each worker downloads the free mobile app on iOS or Android and logs in securely. They clock in with a single tap, with or without coverage.
Compliance reports & peace of mind
Administration supervises working hours in real time, resolves incidents with dual traceability and downloads the official monthly template whenever the authorities request it.
Tailored to field work outside traditional offices
Specially adapted for businesses with mobile technicians, worksite crews, and distributed personnel.
Construction & Renovation
Your crews clock in at the job site even without coverage. Daily reports with materials, machinery, progress photos and the developer's signature are ready instantly.
See compliance in Construction & RenovationInstallers & Assembly
Your technicians carry out multiple jobs per day. With WorkLogTracker they clock in and out for their full working day and generate each installation report with materials and signature on site.
See compliance in Installers & AssemblyMaintenance & Field Service
Eliminate the gap between your maintenance technicians' field visits and back-office management.
See compliance in Maintenance & Field ServiceCleaning & Facility Services
Manage dozens of work locations and mobile teams with a tool built for working-time records that does not invade privacy.
See compliance in Cleaning & Facility ServicesMobile Workshops & Roadside Assistance
For mechanics, mobile workshops and on-site assistance: track on-call hours, call-outs and service reports signed on the spot.
See compliance in Mobile Workshops & Roadside AssistanceTransport & Logistics
Your drivers and couriers are constantly on the road. With WorkLogTracker they clock in at the start of their shift and log driving breaks and waiting times at loading docks, with delivery reports signed by the customer on the phone.
See compliance in Transport & LogisticsFrequently Asked Questions (México)
Legally grounded answers for business owners, HR managers, and payroll specialists.
Is attendance and working-hours tracking mandatory in Mexico?
Yes. The Ley Federal del Trabajo (LFT), in articles 58 to 68 and 784, establishes the employer's obligation to set and prove the length of the working day and to keep an accurate attendance record. Moreover, in any labor dispute or STPS inspection, the burden of proof falls 100% on the employer: if the company does not have reliable records, the law presumes the overtime claimed to be true.
What legal problems do sign-in books or WhatsApp check-ins have in Mexico?
Paper sign-in books are easily challenged before the Labor Courts and the STPS, as they do not prove the actual time or that the signature has not been altered. WhatsApp messages or screenshots are not a valid time-tracking system. A reliable system such as WorkLogTracker records the exact time and the one-off GPS geofence check, and generates numbered monthly reports that are valid for IMSS and STPS audits.
Why is it better to avoid fingerprint time clocks in Mexico?
Fingerprints and facial features are biometric data, which Mexican law on the protection of personal data held by private parties (LFPDPPP) treats as sensitive personal data: they require the employee's express written consent and enhanced security measures, and a leak or misuse can lead to penalties from the federal data protection authority. WorkLogTracker does not store biometric data.
What does the Secretaría del Trabajo (STPS) inspect regarding working hours?
The STPS checks that the maximum legal working week is not exceeded (48 hours for day shifts, 42 for night shifts, 45 for mixed shifts), that overtime does not exceed 3 hours a day or 3 times a week, that it is paid at 100% or 200% extra under articles 67 and 68 of the LFT, and that employees enjoy at least one paid day of rest per week.
What are the STPS fines for failing to track working hours?
Under the amended LFT, fines for violations of labour standards range from 50 to 5,000 UMAs (Unidades de Medida y Actualización) per affected worker. In addition, the lack of records can lead to labour lawsuits with orders to pay retroactive overtime and IMSS capitales constitutivos (liability assessments).
How do field crews, technicians and staff on the road clock in?
With the WorkLogTracker mobile app on their own Android or iOS phone. On arriving at the branch, site or customer, the technician taps "Start working day". The app validates their location once via GPS with no continuous tracking. If they are in a basement or on a road with no mobile signal, they clock in in offline mode and the data syncs once the connection is restored.
How are hours worked integrated with service orders?
In the same app, the technician can create the service order with the materials used, travel expenses, photos of the installation and the customer's digital signature on the screen. This links the crew's hours to billable work, speeding up the issuing of CFDI invoices in the back office.
How long must attendance records be kept in Mexico?
Article 804 of the LFT requires the employer to keep payrolls (listas de raya) or attendance records for at least one year and until the labour limitation periods or IMSS and SAT tax audits have ended.
Protect your business against Secretaría del Trabajo y Previsión Social (STPS) fines starting today
Minimum of two billed seats per company. The owner is not billed; all other active roles count. The tier combines monthly and annual seats. For 11 to 100 employees, $50 MXN/month + VAT or $600 MXN/year including VAT applies to everyone. Over 100: negotiated contract.