When Workforce.com is unable to connect to a time clock, the time clock will display as offline on your dashboard.
Troubleshooting an offline time clock
If your Time Clock has gone offline, an error will appear at the bottom of the Time Clock App. Click the arrow to expand the error and see the full message.
Follow the steps below to resolve your time clock connection issue, or if the error message displayed on your time clock matches one of the below, skip straight to that step:
1. Check your Wifi
Check the wifi connection of your device to ensure that you are connected to the internet.
You can double check by opening the web browser on the device to navigate to some web pages to confirm the internet is working as expected.
If your Time Clock has access to the internet, move to the next troubleshooting step.
2. Restart the Device
Restart your tablet, and check if your Time Clock is now online.
3. Check for updates to the app
Workforce.com regularly makes updates to improve the reliability of the Time Clock.
When there is an update available it will show at the bottom of the Time Clock to any staff member. Click the message and then follow the prompts.
4. Reauthenticate your time clock
You may have an authentication error when this message appears in your app:
'Authentication problem. Clock-ins will be sent after this problem is resolved.
Go to 'Reauthenticate' in the Manager Settings to fix.'
To re-authenticate your Time Clock:
1. Enter the passcode of an Admin user
2. Navigate to the Menu in the top right
3. Select Settings
4. Select App Details
5. Select Reauthenticate
6. Select Continue on the modal and confirm your Time Clock setup code. (for more information on where to find your time clock setup code, see Installing the Workforce.com time clock app)
Note: If the Time Clock is still online but times have not transferred to timesheets, check to see if any clocked times are pending on the Time Clock.
If there are any times listed in Pending Clock Ins on your time clock, they will be re-synced once the internet connection is fully restored.
Troubleshooting and FAQs
The Time Clock App attempts to send the clock-in data to Workforce.com's servers the moment the clock-in is completed. Usually this means a clock-in recorded on the Time Clock App will appear on timesheets within seconds of the clock-in.
As a safeguard, the Time Clock caches all clock-ins on the device locally until the device is able to send the data to Workforce.com's servers.
If you think it might be taking longer for clock-ins to be received, you can confirm if there is a delay by viewing the Timesheet Audit History. (note: the audit history is visible to account Admins).
How to interpret the Timesheet Audit History:
1. Shows time the clock-in was received by the server in the 'time' column
2. Shows time the clock-in was recorded on the Time Clock in the 'changes' column
In most cases, there will be no difference between these two times as clock-in times are usually sent to the server within seconds of occurring. However if the device had internet connection issues at this time, you might see a difference between these two times.
What does the time clock warning on a timesheet mean?
A warning appears on timesheets if the time clock status changed to offline during the current timesheet period.
These warnings disappears once:
The time clock is reconnected (see the below troubleshooting steps for assistance)
The time clock is deleted:
To delete a time clock, navigate to Settings > Time Clocks
Note: This warning won't prevent you from approving or exporting timesheets.
Why are Clock In times coming through to timesheets incorrectly?
Sometimes when a time clock is using the incorrect time zone you will notice a difference on the timesheet. When this happens, you should check that the time and time zone on your device is set correctly. If you make any changes to these, you should then check that the timezone set on the time clock has also been updated. You can do this by logging in with the Admin passcode and then navigating to Settings > About Time Clock
Will Pending Clock-ins be deleted if I Re-authenticate?
No, the re-authentication process will not delete your Pending Clock-ins.
Though when a connection is re-established the Time Clock will try to upload them to Workforce.com, if successful they will no longer show in the Pending Clock-in list.
Will Pending Clock-ins be removed if I delete the Workforce.com Time Clock app?
Yes, deleting the app will delete any stored Pending Clock-ins.
They will not be recoverable.
What determines whether 'start', 'break' or 'finish' is selected on the time clock?
Workforce.com automatically selects the most suitable time clock action (start, break or finish) for an employee after they enter their time clock passcode based on the factors listed below.
The break option on the Time Clock is only visible when Allow staff to clock breaks is turned on.
If Workforce.com selects the incorrect action, the employee can override the selection by clicking on the correct action when clocking in.
Scenario | Time Clock Action Selected |
The employee is clocked-out | Start |
The maximum shift length has been exceeded since the shift was commenced | Start |
When an employee is clocked-in and there is more than one hour until the scheduled finish time and no break has been taken | Break Start |
When an employee is clocked-in and there is less than one hour until the scheduled finish time | Finish |
When an employee is clocked-in and a break has already been taken during the shift | Finish |
When an employee is working an unscheduled shift and less than 5 hours has elapsed since the shift start | Break Start |
When an employee is working an unscheduled shift and either (a) more than 5 hours has elapsed since the shift start or (b) Allow staff to clock breaks is turned off. | Finish |
Article keywords: time clock, timeclock, tablet