If your company uses a timekeeping system, how confident are you that the time employees record is the same time they are paid for?
For business owners and HR professionals, the difficult part is that a timekeeping problem may not be visible during the normal payroll process. You may believe the system is working correctly because employees are clocking in, managers are approving timecards, and payroll is being processed on schedule.
But even when everyone follows the intended process, rounding settings or system integrations can change the data before wages are calculated.
This issue is receiving renewed attention because of Camp v. Home Depot U.S.A., Inc., a case currently before the California Supreme Court. The Court is considering whether employers may use neutral time-rounding practices to calculate employee work time.
As of September 1, 2026, the Court has not issued its decision. While employers wait for further guidance, this is a good opportunity to understand how employee time moves through your systems and whether recorded time matches paid time.
What Is Time Rounding?
Time rounding occurs when a system adjusts an employee’s recorded clock-in or clock-out time to a predetermined increment.
For example, an employee may clock in at 7:58 a.m., but the system may process the start time as 8:00 a.m. A rounding policy might adjust time both up and down, depending on when an employee punches in or out.
The challenge is that rounding may not always be obvious. The timekeeping system might display the original punch while the payroll system uses an adjusted figure. An employer reviewing only one side of the process may not see the difference.
California employers are required to maintain records showing employees’ daily hours worked under Labor Code Section 1174. Employers must also provide accurate itemized wage statements containing specified information under Labor Code Section 226.
The practical question is not simply whether your business has a timekeeping policy. It is whether the systems carrying out that policy produce accurate results.
What Is Camp v. Home Depot About?
In Camp v. Home Depot, the employer’s system captured employees’ actual punch times but used rounded figures when calculating compensation.
The California Supreme Court accepted the case to consider a specific question: Are employers permitted to use neutral time-rounding practices to calculate employee work time under California law?
That question matters because California courts have historically evaluated neutral rounding practices under certain circumstances. At the same time, modern technology often allows employers to record employee time more precisely than older systems did.
The California Supreme Court’s official case information shows that the case remains fully briefed and undecided as of September 1, 2026.
Until the Court issues its opinion, employers should be cautious about treating predictions concerning the outcome, retroactivity, or the legality of every rounding practice as settled law.generated people before approval, document that disclosure, and confirm who will add and test any required label.
How Timekeeping Errors Can Occur Between Systems
An employee’s time may pass through several platforms before wages are paid.
A punch might begin in a time clock, scheduling application, mobile app, or point-of-sale system. It may then move through an integration before reaching the payroll platform.
During that transfer, one system might round to the nearest minute, remove recorded seconds, or apply a setting that is not visible on the employee’s standard timecard. A software update or configuration change may also affect how the data is processed.
This is why employers should compare the original punch with the final payroll record. Reviewing the written policy alone may not reveal what is happening within the technology.
A Practical Timekeeping and Payroll Review
You understand your workforce and how your business operates. Koegle Law Group’s role is to help you evaluate the legal considerations, ask the right questions of your providers, and understand whether your timekeeping practices support accurate payroll and California compliance.
A timekeeping review does not have to begin with a complete system overhaul. Employers can start by tracing a representative sample of time records from the original punch through payroll.
Koegle Law Group’s Employment Advice and Counseling services include wage-and-hour guidance, payroll and timekeeping reviews, compliance audits, policy development, and practical training for business owners, HR teams, and managers.
Consider including these seven steps in your review:
- Map the process. Identify every system used to record, edit, approve, transfer, and pay employee time.
- Locate the original punches. Confirm whether your organization can access the time recorded before any adjustment, conversion, or rounding occurs.
- Compare recorded and paid time. Review sample shifts to determine whether original punches, approved timecards, payroll records, and wage statements align.
- Check system settings. Ask your timekeeping and payroll providers whether their platforms round, truncate, or otherwise modify partial minutes or seconds.
- Review work outside scheduled shifts. Consider whether employees perform recurring opening, closing, login, security, or communication tasks before clocking in or after clocking out.
- Test meal-period records. Confirm that meal-period punches, edits, and automatic deductions accurately reflect the organization’s practices.
- Train and revisit. Educate managers and payroll personnel about off-the-clock work, document the review, and repeat it after material system or policy changes.
The goal is to understand how the process works in practice. A policy may appear clear while the technology, manager practices, or payroll workflow produces a different result.
What If You Find a Discrepancy?
A difference between recorded and paid time does not automatically explain why it occurred or what response is appropriate.
The issue may involve a system setting, integration, manager edit, written policy, or recurring workplace practice. Employers may need to evaluate which employees and pay periods were affected, whether the issue is ongoing, and whether related records require review.
Before changing historical records, communicating conclusions to employees, or making broad policy changes, employers should consider consulting qualified California employment counsel.
If a timekeeping concern has already become a wage claim, class action, Private Attorneys General Act matter, or other dispute, Koegle Law Group’s Employment Litigation and Dispute Resolution team represents employers in wage-and-hour matters, administrative proceedings, pre-litigation resolution, and state and federal courts.
Frequently Asked Questions About California Time Rounding
Can California employers round employee time?
The California Supreme Court is currently considering whether neutral time-rounding practices remain permissible in Camp v. Home Depot. Because no final decision has been issued as of September 1, 2026, the answer may depend on current authority, the applicable wage order, the technology used, and the employer’s actual practices.
What is Camp v. Home Depot?
Camp concerns an employer whose system captured actual employee punch times but used rounded time to calculate compensation. The California Supreme Court accepted the case to decide whether neutral time rounding is permitted under California law.
Does California require employers to track every minute worked?
California employers must maintain accurate records of daily hours worked and compensate nonexempt employees for compensable work time. Whether a particular timekeeping method satisfies those obligations depends on current law and the circumstances, including the question now pending in Camp.
Does using a payroll provider protect an employer from timekeeping errors?
Employers should not assume that a third-party platform has evaluated whether their configuration or practices comply with California law. A provider may process the information it receives without identifying problems in the employer’s policies, settings, or data transfers.
What should an employer do if its system rounds employee time?
Start by identifying where rounding occurs and comparing original punches with paid time. Because the appropriate response will depend on the employer’s systems and circumstances, consider obtaining legal guidance before changing policies, payroll records, or employee communications.
The Bottom Line for California Employers
You do not need to wait for a payroll dispute to understand how your timekeeping system works.
A focused review can help your leadership team identify whether employee punches, timecards, payroll records, and wage statements are telling the same story. It can also provide the information needed to make thoughtful decisions as California law continues to develop.
If your organization would benefit from a review of its timekeeping or payroll practices, contact Koegle Law Group to schedule a consultation. Our team can help you evaluate your systems, policies, and records and develop practical next steps for your business.
Legal References and Resources
Current as of September 1, 2026
California DIR: Industrial Welfare Commission Wage Orders — Industry-specific wage, hour, and time-record rules
California Supreme Court: Camp v. Home Depot U.S.A., Inc., Case No. S277518 — Pending review of neutral employee time-rounding practices
California Labor Code Section 1174 — Employer payroll and daily-hours recordkeeping requirements
California Labor Code Section 226 — Accurate itemized wage-statement requirements
Disclaimer: This article is intended for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. The information contained herein may not reflect the most current legal developments and is not guaranteed to be correct, complete, or up to date. Nothing in this article should be construed as creating an attorney-client relationship. Employers and HR professionals should consult with competent employment counsel regarding their specific facts and circumstances before taking any action.
About Koegle Law Group, APC
Koegle Law Group, APC is a boutique employment law and business litigation firm serving employers and business owners. Our attorneys advise clients on wage and hour compliance, PAGA defense, class action defense, employment counseling, and general business matters. For a confidential consultation, contact us at:
Koegle Law Group, APC – www.koeglelaw.com; info@koeglelaw.com
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