Time Tracking: Is Your Company Using It, Too?

The recent “Parcel Act” introduces a number of specific requirements to improve the working conditions of mail and parcel delivery workers. Under this law, effective August 1, employers are required to track the time couriers spend delivering packages. As a result, employers in the sector will need to record a wide range of data related to working hours. These changes raise the question of whether mandatory time tracking will also spread to other sectors. Will time tracking become mandatory in your company as well, and what rules regarding time tracking must you already comply with? We’d be happy to outline a few key principles for you.

A “time tracking system” ensures that an employee’s working hours are tracked in one way or another. This time tracking can take various forms. The time clock is perhaps the best-known form of time tracking, although “punching in” has since often been replaced by electronic “badge scanning.” But other forms of time tracking are also possible. For example, some companies have employees record their working hours in specific software, while others have employees report their own working hours (digitally or on paper).

The European Court of Justice assumes that compliance with European rules on working time cannot be guaranteed without a system that tracks working hours on a daily basis. However, under Belgian law, there is currently no general obligation to use a time-tracking system. There are, however, exceptions.

Does your company have employees who work on a flexible schedule? If so, you are required to implement a time-tracking system. This system must, at a minimum, allow you to retain certain data for five years: - The employee’s identity, - The duration of the employee’s work each day, - For part-time employees with a fixed flexible work schedule, the start and end times of their work and their rest breaks each day. The chosen system must be accessible to the employee so that he or she can verify the exact number of hours worked in excess of or short of the weekly working hours.

For part-time employees, it is mandatory to maintain a record of deviations whenever there is a deviation from the normal work schedule.

So, for the time being, there is no general requirement to use a time-tracking system, but implementing one can offer many benefits. In 2020, the Brussels Labor Court handed down a well-known ruling. A dismissed employee claimed payment for a certain amount of overtime, even though the company did not have a time-tracking system in place. One might think that this meant there was no evidence of any overtime, but the Labor Court ruled that if the employer does not have a time-tracking system, it is up to that employer to demonstrate which hours were worked. The lack of a time-tracking system thus placed a heavy burden of proof on the employer. In any case, there are growing calls to require employers to implement a time-tracking system—not only to monitor employees but also to safeguard their well-being (which is also the purpose of mandatory time tracking under the Parcel Act). There is therefore a good chance that mandatory time tracking will soon become a reality in your sector as well. If you choose to implement a time-tracking system in your company now, clear agreements and selecting an appropriate system are essential. It will also be necessary to amend the employment regulations. Could you use some help implementing a time-tracking system in your company? The team at Crauwels Advocaten is here to assist you.