Geofencing
Geofencing is the use of a virtual boundary around a real-world location. In time and attendance, a clock-in is only accepted, or is flagged, based on whether the device is inside that boundary.
Geofencing — definition
Geofencing draws a virtual boundary around a real-world location — a site, a depot, a venue. In time and attendance, it uses the device’s GPS position to confirm whether a clock-in happened inside that boundary, so you can tell on-site hours from off-site ones.
At a glance
Why geofencing matters
A clock-in tells you when someone started — geofencing tells you where. For a multi-site or mobile workforce, that difference is the whole point: it is how you separate hours genuinely worked on site from clock-ins made on the bus, at home, or at the wrong location entirely.
It also gives you a live register of who is physically present, which matters well beyond payroll. On a construction site or in a warehouse, being able to say exactly who is on site right now — for a fire roll-call or a visit from an inspector — is a safety and compliance requirement, not a nicety.
Geofencing is only as trustworthy as the location data behind it. GPS accuracy varies indoors and in dense areas, so a sensible system records the reported accuracy, sets a proportionate radius, and treats a borderline reading as something to review rather than silently accept. It works best alongside a verified identity at clock-in, so you know both who clocked in and where.
In practice
How TempClock relates
Geofencing is built into every TempClock clock event. You set a centre and radius per site; when a worker clocks in, their distance from the centre is recorded alongside the face-match score, and an off-site clock-in is flagged so a manager sees it straight away.
- Set a geofence per site with a radius that suits the location.
- Distance from the site centre is recorded on every clock-in and travels to the timesheet.
- Off-site clock-ins raise an alert, and the live board shows exactly who is on site now.
Each clock-in records its distance from the site centre, so an off-site attempt is flagged the moment it happens — not discovered on the timesheet.
Related terms and pages
Terms that sit alongside this one, and the parts of TempClock that put them into practice.
Buddy punching
When one worker clocks in or out on behalf of another, inflating recorded hours.
Read the definition →Time and attendance
The practice of recording when staff start, break and finish, ready for payroll.
Read the definition →Agency Worker Regulations
UK rules giving agency temps equal basic conditions after 12 weeks in the same role.
Read the definition →TUPE
UK rules that protect employees’ terms when a business or service transfers.
Read the definition →Live geofencing & attendance
How on-site presence is recorded and shown live.
See the feature →Construction
Geofenced, multi-site registers ready for a roll-call.
See the industry →Know who turned up — and pay every hour right.
Face-verified clock-ins, live geofencing and payroll-ready timesheets in one system. Tell us how your shifts run and we will show you how it fits.
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