Attendance
& Rostering
The Attendance module tracks staff presence in the hospital. It integrates with biometric devices (fingerprint, face recognition, RFID) to record check-in and check-out times, manages shift schedules, and feeds data into payroll.
What is Attendance Management?
Attendance Management handles biometric check-in/check-out, shift scheduling (assigning staff to shifts), leave management (requests, approvals, entitlements), overtime calculation, and attendance reporting. It ensures staff are where they need to be, when they need to be there.
The system handles multiple shift patterns (day, night, rotational), late arrivals, early departures, absent markings, and public holiday policies.
Why Does It Exist?
- → Shift coverage — A hospital needs 24/7 coverage; missed shifts can be dangerous
- → Payroll accuracy — Pay depends on hours worked; manual tracking leads to errors
- → Leave abuse — Without tracking, staff might take unauthorized leave
- → Compliance — Labor laws require accurate attendance records
How Attendance Works
Shift Scheduling
Managers create shift schedules (who works which shift on which day). Shifts can be fixed (e.g., 9 AM - 5 PM) or rotational (day/night rotation). Staff can view their schedules on their dashboard.
Biometric Check-In
Staff check in using fingerprint, face recognition, RFID card, or PIN at the start of their shift. The system records the exact time. Late arrivals are flagged. Staff check out at the end of their shift.
Exception Handling
Late arrivals, early departures, missing check-in/out, and absences are flagged for manager review. Staff can request corrections (e.g., "I forgot to check in but I was here") which managers can approve or reject.
Payroll Feed
At the end of the pay period, attendance totals (regular hours, overtime, late minutes, unpaid leave) are calculated and sent to the Payroll module. Managers review and approve before payroll processing.
Every Feature Explained
Biometric Integration
Connect to fingerprint, face recognition, or RFID devices.
Prevents buddy punching (one person checking in for another). Accurate records.
API integration with biometric hardware. Check-in/out events are sent to the system and matched against the shift schedule.
Shift Management
Create and assign shifts to staff.
Ensures proper coverage for 24/7 operations.
Shift types (Morning, Evening, Night, General) are configured with start/end times. Staff are assigned to shifts. Rotational patterns are supported.
Leave Request vs Approve vs Types
Three surfaces: self-request, HR approval queue, and leave-type/policy config.
Segregation of duties and correct nav (Attendance vs HR hub).
Request: /dashboard/attendance/leave-requests (leave:request + create geo). Approve: /dashboard/hr/leave-requests (leave:approve-manager then leave:approve-hr + edit geo). Types/entitlements: /dashboard/hr/policies (leave:manage-types). Flow: Requested → manager_status → hr_status → approved only after both. Balances are ledger-backed (not live prior-year recompute).
Geo Punch Fence
Optional campus GPS fence for self clock-in/out.
Stops remote buddy punches when the hospital enables geo enforcement.
BranchSetting attendance.geo.* (default off; radius 200 m). Self punches require browser GPS inside fence; attendance:manage desk punches may omit. UI gates via GET /attendance/geo-fence-status. Clock-in ANDs create geography; clock-out ANDs edit geography.
Overtime Calculation
Auto-calculate overtime based on actual hours worked.
Ensures staff are compensated fairly for extra work.
Overtime rules are configurable (e.g., >8 hours = OT, >12 hours = double OT). Weekend and holiday multipliers apply. Overtime requests have their own approval workflow.
Overtime Request Workflow
Formal overtime request and approval chain.
Prevents unauthorized overtime and ensures proper compensation for extra hours worked.
Staff submit OT requests with date, start/end time, total hours, and reason. Workflow: Draft → Submitted → HOD Approval → HR Approval → Approved. Both HOD and HR can reject with reasons. Comments are tracked in a timeline. Once processed, OT hours flow to payroll.
Manual Attendance Corrections
Staff can request corrections for missed or incorrect check-ins.
Biometric devices can fail or staff may forget to check in. Corrections ensure accurate attendance records.
Submit manual attendance request with employee, date, check-in/out times, reason, and optional attachment. Status: Pending → Approved/Rejected. Approval auto-creates an attendance record. IP address and user agent are logged for audit.
Late Coming Policy
Configure institutional late-coming penalty rules under HR Policies.
Standardizes how late arrivals are penalized across the institution.
Create an active late_coming HR policy (HR → Policies; /api/v1/hr/policies) with lates-per-deduction thresholds and effective dates, not a standalone late-coming page. Late counts feed into payroll deductions.
Late Exemption
Exempt specific employees from late-coming penalties.
Certain roles (consultants, on-call staff, executives) may have flexible attendance requirements.
Employees can be flagged as late-exempt with optional date ranges (from/until) and a free late allowance per month. Exempted employees are not penalized within their allowance.
Technical Architecture
| Field | Type | Institutional Role |
|---|---|---|
| id | UUID | Unique identifier for the attendance log. |
| staffId | UUID | Institutional ID of the workforce member. |
| checkIn | DateTime | Verified biometric entry timestamp. |
| integration_id | Varchar(64) | Identifier of the biometric integration source. |
Note: Sensitive fields use AES-256 field-level encryption where applicable.
Governance & Power
attendance:viewpayroll:viewThe system supports Fingerprint, RFID, and Face-ID integration. Logs are de-duplicated at the edge before being committed to the central Workforce Ledger.
Verification
Entry is matched against the assigned shift schedule.
Exception
Late arrivals or overstays are flagged for HR review.
Finalization
Attendance totals (overtime, late minutes) are made available for payroll.