This edition focuses on the addition of geofencing to clocks in the app and what preparations can already be made for it.
Location-based clocking
R&R has been offering timekeeping through the R&R job app for two years. This method allows employees to record their attendance and breaks through the app. While clocking through the R&R job app offers a lot of flexibility, one downside is that it is perceived as "too flexible" by some employers. As of April 2, 2024, with the addition of 'Geofencing,' it will be possible to restrict clocking in to the physical location where work may be performed.
How does it work?
Within R&R, Geofencing is used to verify that an employee is authorized to clock in at a specific location. For each physical location in R&R, one GPS coordinate can be set where clocking in is allowed.
When an employee opens the R&R job app and goes to 'Clocking', the app will check if the phone is within the designated radius of one of the physical locations. If it is, the button to clock in will be available. If it is not, a notification will be displayed that the employer has indicated that clocking in can only be done at work. This check only takes place when an employee clocks in. For clocking out, clocking in on break and changing departments, no check is made for geolocation. The R&R job app only determines whether an employee may clock in, but does not use geolocation to determine where an employee worked. The location shown in the realization is still determined based on scheduled roster shifts.
What about privacy
R&R values the privacy of its users. For this reason, geofencing is designed so that the user's location information is not stored and shared. On the phone, location-based checks are made to see if an employee is allowed to clock in. If so, the button for clocking becomes visible and only clock times are forwarded to R&R. So we are effectively sending all allowed locations to the phone, rather than requesting the user's location. This means that users' geolocation will never be forwarded to R&R.
It will become possible shortly after the release to exclude an employee from geofencing via the employee card. This employee can then use clocks in the app as if no geofencing was set up. This ensures that you can still clock employees who do not have a (working) GPS on their device or have legitimate objections to using the location, instead of having to fall back on the roster, for example.
Do you have any questions in response to the above information? If so, please contact us at aftersales@rr-wfm.com and we'll make sure your question or information gets to the right people.
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Sincerely,
Mark Taling - Product Owner
