Preparing for a labour inspection

What a labour inspection is and when it can happen

The Labour and Social Security Inspectorate (ITSS) can turn up at your company at any moment, with or without prior notice, to verify compliance with employment law. Inspections relating to working-time recording are one of the most frequent actions since RDL 8/2019 came into force and can be triggered by:

• A complaint from a worker or their union representative.
• An ITSS sector or territorial surveillance campaign.
• Action taken on the Inspectorate's own initiative based on information available at public bodies.
• A request arising from a social security file (collective redundancy, furlough scheme, benefit claim).

A company using CheckBiz360 is in a position to respond to any request relating to working-time recording immediately and with complete documentation. This guide explains what documents the inspector may request and how to obtain them from the platform.

Documents the Labour Inspectorate may request

Working-time records for all employees

This is the central document in any inspection relating to RDL 8/2019. The inspector can request the working-time records of every employee in the company (or of those at a particular site) for a given period. That period may be:

• The last 30 or 90 days.
• A complete calendar year.
• The period of up to four years the rule requires to be retained.

Applicable collective agreement

The inspector will verify that the working time recorded is consistent with the sector's collective agreement and with the employment contracts. Have to hand the text of the collective agreement that applies to your company and your workers.

Employment contracts

The contracts of the employees being inspected, especially if there are part-time workers, since the contracted working time has to match the working time recorded.

Documentation on the recording system used

The inspector may ask which system the company uses for working-time recording and request a demonstration of how it works. Be ready to explain that you use CheckBiz360 and how the clocking system works.

How to obtain the compliance report from CheckBiz360

To respond to the working-time record request, follow these steps:

1. Sign in to the back office with an Owner or Manager role.
2. Go to the Reports section and select Regulatory compliance report.
3. Enter the exact date range the inspector has indicated.
4. Select All employees or the specific employees you have been asked about.
5. Press Preview to verify that the data is complete.
6. Press Export and select the PDF format for delivery to the inspector, or Excel if you prefer to present it in that medium.

What data the report includes

CheckBiz360's regulatory compliance report contains:

• Full name and identification of each employee.
• The date of each workday recorded.
• The exact entry and exit timestamps.
• The validation status of each record.
• A log of manual corrections: who made them, when and for what reason.
• A header with the organisation's details (legal name, tax ID, period covered and the report's generation date).

In what format to deliver the report

The ITSS does not require a specific technical medium. The most common ways of presenting it are:

• Printed on paper: valid but not recommended for long periods or large headcounts, because of the volume of pages.
• Digitally signed PDF file: this is the most advisable format. It offers legibility, portability, and the digital signature evidences the document's authenticity.
• Excel file: accepted in most actions; it lets the inspector work with the data directly if they ask to.

If the inspector issues a formal written request, attach the report exported from CheckBiz360 as an annex to your written response, stating the technological system used for recording.

Recommendations ahead of an inspection

Although it is not possible to foresee when an inspection will happen, you can prepare your company in advance so that you are in the best possible position if one does.

Verify that every employee is registered on the platform

Check periodically that every active worker has their profile created in CheckBiz360 and is assigned to the correct branch. An employee who does not appear on the platform will have no working-time records, which constitutes non-compliance with the rule.

1. Go to the Employees section of the back office.
2. Review the list of active employees and compare it with the company's current headcount.
3. Verify that no employee with a current contract appears as inactive or without a branch assignment.

Verify that there are no gaps in the record

A gap in the record is a working day on which an employee should have worked but has no entry or exit record, without a justified absence being logged.

1. Go to Reports > Attendance report.
2. Select the last complete month and all employees.
3. Filter by Unjustified absence or No record status.
4. Resolve each case: add the absence justification where appropriate, or correct the record if there was a technical problem with the clock-in.

Keep manual correction reasons up to date

If you have made corrections to employees' records, make sure they all have a documented reason. A compliance report with corrections lacking a recorded reason can raise questions from the inspector about the system's integrity.

Have the organisation's basic information to hand

Prepare in advance:

• The company's legal name and tax ID.
• The applicable collective agreement (official name and the official gazette it was published in).
• Employees' employment contracts, especially part-time ones.
• The name and contact details of the company's employment or legal adviser.