Time tracking: also required in your company?

The recent ‘Parcel Law’ introduces specific obligations to improve the working conditions of parcel delivery workers. Since the 1st of August , this law requires tracking the time couriers spend delivering parcels. As a result, employers in the sector must now record a significant amount of data related to working hours.

This change raises the question of whether mandatory time tracking will extend to other sectors. Will time tracking become compulsory in your company, and which time tracking regulations are you already obligated to comply with today? We shall outline some key principles for you below.

1. What is time tracking?
A ‘time tracking system’ ensures that an employee’s working hours are monitored somehow. Time tracking can take various forms. The traditional punch clock is perhaps the most well-known form of time tracking, though “punching” is now often replaced by electronic “badging.” Other forms of time tracking are possible, such as companies using specific software to record working hours or employees reporting their working hours themselves (either digitally or on paper).

2. Is time tracking mandatory?

The European Court of Justice assumes that you cannot guarantee compliance with European rules on working hours without a system that tracks working time daily. However, Belgian law does not yet have a general obligation to use a time tracking system. There are, however, exceptions.

3. Exception: flexible working hours
Are there employees in your company working flexible hours? In that case, a time tracking system is required. This system must always allow for the storing of certain data for a period of five years:
• The identity of the employee,
• For each day, the duration of the employee’s work,
• For part-time employees with a fixed flexible working schedule, the start and end times of work and rest breaks for each day. The chosen system must be accessible to the employee so that they may track the exact number of hours worked above or below the weekly working hours.

4. Exception: derogations from the usual schedule

It is mandatory for part-time employees to maintain a register in case of derogations from the normal working schedule.

5. Implementing a time tracking system in your company?

While using a time tracking system is not currently a general obligation, implementing one can offer significant benefits.
In 2020, a notable ruling was issued by the labor court in Brussels. A dismissed employee claimed payment for several overtime hours in a company where no time tracking system was implemented.

One might think that the lack of a time tracking system meant there was no evidence of possible overtime, but the labor court ruled that if the employer does not have a time tracking system, it is up to the employer to prove which hours were worked. The absence of a time tracking system thus placed a heavy burden of proof on the employer.

Regardless of any specific cases, there is a growing call for mandatory time tracking systems for employers—not solely to monitor employees but also to safeguard their well-being (which is also the aim of the mandatory time tracking under the Parcel Law). It is, therefore, likely that mandatory time tracking will soon become a reality in your sector.

If you wish to implement a time tracking system in your company today, making good arrangements and selecting an appropriate system is crucial. An amendment to the working regulations will also be required.

Do you need assistance with implementing a time tracking system in your company? Our Crowe Spark Legal team is here to help.