Guide
Time Tracking for Trades and Construction: Legal Duty, Daily Practice and the Right Software
·5 min read·digitalWAS solutions
Time tracking is mandatory for trade and construction businesses in Germany. The European Court of Justice (judgment of 14 May 2019, C-55/18) and the Federal Labour Court (decision of 13 September 2022, 1 ABR 22/21) oblige employers to record the start, end and duration of working time systematically. Detailed legislation is still pending, but the duty already applies. Every business needs hours per job to check its quotes and invoice correctly. This article covers the legal position, why paper timesheets fail, what an app must do on site, and how hours reach the invoice without retyping.
The legal position: what the courts require
The ECJ ruled on 14 May 2019 (C-55/18) that member states must oblige employers to set up an objective, reliable and accessible system measuring each employee's daily working time. On 13 September 2022 (1 ABR 22/21) the Federal Labour Court derived the same duty for Germany from section 3 of the Occupational Safety and Health Act: employers must record start, end and therefore duration of working time, overtime included, whether or not the Working Time Act is amended. A draft law has been discussed, nothing has been passed. This is not legal advice, but the core points are not in dispute:
- Start, end and duration must be recorded for every employee, breaks and overtime included.
- No form is prescribed; paper and electronic recording are both permitted if the system is objective, reliable and accessible.
- Recording may be delegated to employees; responsibility stays with the employer.
- Section 16 of the Working Time Act requires hours beyond eight per day to be recorded and kept for two years.
- Construction and other sectors listed in the Act to Combat Undeclared Work fall under section 17 of the Minimum Wage Act: record start, end and duration within seven days and keep the records for two years.
Why paper timesheets fail
Paper is cheap and needs no battery, yet it breaks at the same three points. Nobody writes on site, so the sheet is filled in on Friday for the whole week: breaks are guessed, travel is forgotten, and a day split between two jobs lands on whichever comes to mind first. That is a memory, not a record. Handwriting in the rain and abbreviated customer names leave the office guessing. Finally, even a perfect sheet is typed into payroll, invoice and job costing: three chances for errors, and because retyping is unpopular the invoice goes out weeks after the work.
What a time tracking app must do on site
| Requirement | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Clock in and out on the phone, no training | Anything more and people return to paper |
| Project time per job | Every hour belongs to a customer and a time report |
| One entry, two views | Working time for the law, project time for the invoice |
| Time reports on demand | Per employee, job and period |
| Path into invoicing | Hours reach the accounting software without retyping |
The time tracking module of digital scaleUp solutions is built for this: clock in and out, project time per job, time reports and mobile recording on the phone for fitters and field staff. It is part of the all-in-one software for small and medium-sized businesses, not another isolated app.
Project time per job and post-costing
Most businesses calculate a quote once and never look back. With hours per job, post-costing becomes a report: recorded time multiplied by the hourly rate, plus material and expenses, compared with the quote. You see which job types overrun, whether travel time appears in your pricing, and which extras were never billed. In scaleUp the hours feed the finance and controlling module with reports, cost centres, expenses and post-costing per job.
Handover to invoicing without retyping
Recorded hours, expenses and services go from scaleUp to sevDesk or lexoffice without retyping; the invoice is created in the software your tax adviser already uses, and bank transactions can be reconciled via finAPI. scaleUp deliberately has no invoicing program of its own, because a second one beside your accounting means duplicate customer records and two invoice number ranges. The workflow is described in From timesheet to invoice with sevDesk and lexoffice.
Hours are incomplete without leave and sick days, and jobs come from enquiries, so look at the whole: leave planning software, digital checklists and inspection reports, a ticket system for small teams and a CRM for small businesses. Why one system beats five is explained in all-in-one software for SMEs.
Data protection and pricing
Working hours are personal data: sign a data processing agreement under Art. 28 GDPR, prefer hosting in Germany, avoid third-country transfers, inform staff about purpose and retention, and involve the works council where there is one. digital scaleUp solutions is hosted in Germany, developed in Berlin and designed to comply with the GDPR. Starter costs 49 euros per month for up to 5 users, Business 129 euros for up to 25 users, Enterprise is priced individually; time tracking is included. Details are on the product page.
Frequently asked questions
Is time tracking legally required in Germany?
Yes. The ECJ (C-55/18) and the Federal Labour Court (1 ABR 22/21) oblige employers to record start, end and duration systematically; detailed legislation is still pending.
Is a paper timesheet enough?
Paper is not excluded, but the system must be objective, reliable and accessible. Weekly sheets written from memory hardly meet that standard.
Do travel times count as working time?
Travel from the workshop to the site and between sites usually counts. The trip from home to the first site depends on the individual case, so record travel separately.
Get started
Try digital scaleUp solutions free for 30 days, no credit card required, or book a consultation to discuss how time tracking fits your work on site. More answers are in the FAQ.