Overview

In When I Work, employees can be allowed to clock in or clock out from anywhere, or you can limit where employees are allowed to clock in or clock out based on where they’re physically located. You might want to set up location-based restrictions to increase accountability and make sure employees are clocking in or clocking out from where they’re scheduled to work.

If you need to set up time-based clock-in restrictions, check out Restricting When Employees Can Clock In.

How location-based clock-in restrictions work

Location-based restrictions determine where employees need to be in order to clock in or clock out. They can be applied to mobile app and personal computer clock ins and clock outs.

Mobile app

When location-based restrictions are enabled, you can set how close employees must be to their scheduled location to clock in or clock out. The distance you set creates a radius around a schedule or job site’s address. When I Work uses the GPS signal on employees’ phones to determine where they’re located when they try to clock in or clock out:

• If an employee is within the radius, they’re able to clock in or clock out.
• If an employee is outside the radius, they’re prevented from clocking in or clocking out.

Depending on the type of business you’re running and where it is located, you might want to set up a smaller or larger clock in / clock out restriction. For example:

Personal computer

When location-based restrictions are enabled, When I Work verifies that employees are clocking in or clocking out from their scheduled location by checking the IP address of their internet connection. An IP address is similar to what your house number is on your street, but to your internet connection.

• If an employee is connected to the IP address set for their scheduled location, they’re able to clock in or clock out.
• If an employee isn’t connected to the IP address set for their scheduled location, they’re prevented from clocking in or clocking out.

Considerations

• Location-based restrictions can be applied to the When I Work mobile app and personal computer clock in / clock out methods.
• Location-based restrictions do not apply to time clock terminals.
• Schedules and job sites need validated addresses to make location-based restrictions work.
  • If a job site lacks any address, the schedule address is used for location-based restrictions.
  • If both job site and schedule lack any address, location-based restrictions are not implemented.
• Managers and Admins can clock themselves or employees in from any location regardless of the Attendance Settings.

Enable location restrictions

1. Hover over , then select  Attendance Settings.

2. Under Clock In With Mobile App or Clock In With Personal Computer, check the Clock In box to enable clock in restrictions. Check the Clock Out box to enable clock out restrictions.
   
3. In How Close Must Employees Be to the Scheduled Location?, configure how close employees must be to the address (in meters) in order to clock in or clock out.
   • The minimum radius allowed is 100 meters.
   • If employees are having trouble clocking in or clocking out, try entering a larger number to extend the radius around the address. For more information, check out Troubleshooting Mobile Time Clocks.
4. When you’re finished, click Save in the top-right corner of the screen.

Prepare your schedules

When I Work uses the physical addresses for your schedules to make sure employees clock in for shifts from the correct place.

Perform these steps for each of your schedules to make sure that clocking in works correctly:

1. Hover over , then select  Schedules.

2. Click a schedule to edit it.
3. In the Address field, start typing the schedule’s physical address, then select the address from the list.After you select an address, make sure the map displays a pin in the correct location.
   • If your employees need to clock in from a location that doesn’t match a mailing address, you can enter latitude and longitude coordinates from Google Maps.
4. If you allow employees to clock in using their personal computers, enter your IP address in the IP Address field.
   • If you’re currently at the schedule location, click  to set the IP address automatically.
   • If you’re not at the schedule location, have a user at the location click here to gather their IP Address.
5. Click Save Schedule.

Prepare your job sites

If you do not use job sites, skip this step.

When I Work uses the physical address for your job sites to make sure employees clock in for shifts from the correct location.

Perform these steps for each of your job sites to make sure that clocking in works correctly:

1. Hover over , then select  Job Sites.

2. Click a job site to edit it.
3. In the Address field, start typing the job site’s physical address, then select the address from the list. After you select an address, make sure the map displays a pin in the correct location.
   • If your employees need to clock in from a job site that doesn’t match a mailing address, you can enter latitude and longitude coordinates from Google Maps.
4. Click Save Job Site.

FAQ

Will employees be automatically clocked in and out when they arrive and leave the scheduled location?

Employees will not be clocked in and out automatically when they are at or leave the scheduled location. The employee must clock in and out using one of the time clock methods.

Does When I Work track employee’s location throughout their shift?

When I Work captures the employees location upon clock in and clock out if location restrictions are enabled. Employees’ locations are not gathered throughout their shift.

Can I set the clock in radius to less than 100 meters?

On average, geolocation is only accurate down to 100 meters. If you require your users to clock in at a specific location at your workplace, try setting up a time clock terminal for employees to clock in and out.