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Understanding Timesheets

Ryan Fiedler
  • Updated
This article covers the New Timesheet experience. If what you're seeing does not match this experience, click here for help with the legacy timesheet experience.

This article explains what a timesheet is, how timesheets are created, and the information you can find in your team's timesheets, from the timesheet list to the detailed view of an individual timesheet.

Before you read

  • Target audience: This article is for users with System Administrator, Location Manager, and Supervisor access.
  • Plan restrictions: This feature is available on all Deputy plans.

This article covers:

What is a timesheet?

A timesheet records the time a team member worked or the leave they took for a shift. Managers review timesheets before approving them and, where applicable, exporting them to payroll.

Timesheets can be created automatically or manually, depending on how work is recorded.

How are timesheets created?

Timesheets are created in one of the following ways:

  • Clocking in and out when a team member starts and finishes a shift using Deputy.
  • From a scheduled shift, where Deputy automatically creates a timesheet even if the team member doesn't clock in.
  • Added by a manager from the Approve Timesheets page when a timesheet doesn't already exist.
  • Submitted by a team member, if your organisation allows team members to manually create their own timesheets.

Depending on how a timesheet was created, you may need to review, edit, or approve it before it's ready for payroll.

What can I find in the timesheet list?

The timesheet list gives you an overview of your team's timesheets. Depending on how you've grouped your timesheets, each row can include:

  • Date or team member name
  • Timesheet status
  • Start and end time
  • Break duration
  • Total hours
  • Area worked or leave
  • Pay, if you have permission to access it
  • Comments
  • Warnings

When scheduled shift information is available, you may also see the scheduled time and hours below the recorded timesheet details. This helps you identify differences between what was scheduled and what was recorded.

Timesheet statuses

A timesheet's status tells you where it is in the timesheet workflow.

You may come across the following statuses:
  • Upcoming: The scheduled shift has a future start time.
  • In progress: The team member is currently working the shift and no end time has been recorded.
  • Absent: The scheduled shift has ended and the team member didn't clock in or out.
  • Late: The scheduled shift has started but the team member hasn't clocked in.
  • Pending: The timesheet is waiting for approval.
  • Time approved: The time component has been approved, but the pay component hasn't.
  • Approved: Both the time and pay components have been approved.
  • Auto-approved: The timesheet has been automatically approved based on your organisation's settings.
  • Discarded: The timesheet has been removed from the approval workflow.

Timesheet warnings

A warning can appear alongside a timesheet when recorded information may need your attention.

Hover over the warning icon to find out what triggered it.

Warnings can include:

  • Clocked in outside of a particular radius: The team member clocked in outside the configured distance from the work location.
  • Automatically closed after 24 hours: The team member clocked in but didn't clock out, so Deputy automatically closed the timesheet after 24 hours.
  • Rest break shorter than scheduled.
  • Scheduled rest break not taken.
  • Meal break shorter than scheduled.
  • Scheduled meal break not taken.
  • Actual differs from schedule.
  • Shift question responses flagged for review.

What can I find in an individual timesheet?

Select a timesheet from the list to open the detailed timesheet view. This provides additional information about the shift and, depending on your permissions, allows you to edit or approve the timesheet.

Understand the timesheet details

The main panel contains the recorded information for the shift, including:

  • Date
  • Start and finish times
  • Area worked
  • Breaks
  • Shift question responses
  • Hours and pay
  • Approved by
  • Manager comments

Depending on your permissions, different parts of the timesheet can be edited. Some information can be updated directly from the timesheet, while other sections include an Edit option that opens a separate window.

View additional shift information

The right-hand panel provides additional information captured during the shift.

This can include:

  • Clock in and clock out times and photos.
  • Clock in location, where location data was captured.
    • Click Show map to display the recorded clock in or clock out location.

(Click to expand)

(Click to expand)
  • Employee comments and shift notes.

Approve or take action

The footer of the timesheet contains the actions available for the selected timesheet.

Depending on the timesheet and your permissions, you may be able to:

  • Approve the timesheet.
  • Approve the timesheet and continue to the next one.
  • Convert the timesheet to leave.
  • Open the additional actions menu.

Where can I find timesheet history?

Timesheet history records the changes made to a timesheet throughout its lifecycle.

You can open View history from:

  • The three-dot menu in the timesheet list.
  • The three-dot menu at the bottom of the individual timesheet.

Each history entry includes:

  • The action performed, such as creating, approving, or updating the timesheet.
  • Who performed the action and when.
  • The details of the change, where applicable, including the values before and after the update.

At the bottom of the history window you'll also find the unique Timesheet ID for the selected timesheet.

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