How to Track Your Shift Timesheet — Complete Guide 2026

Managing your working time correctly can be a challenge, especially in organisations that run around the clock. In this complete guide for 2026, you'll learn exactly how to track your shift timesheet, what your legal obligations are, and how a modern app can help you avoid calculation errors.

What is a shift timesheet?

A shift timesheet is the systematic record of start and end times for employees who don't follow the standard 9-to-5 schedule. Shift work involves staff rotating across different time slots — for example, 8-hour shifts across 3 rotations, or 12/24 and 12/48 patterns.

Under labour law, recording working hours is mandatory. For shift workers, the timesheet isn't just an administrative formality — it's the tool that guarantees legal rest periods are respected and pay rights are calculated correctly.

Monthly working hour norms 2026

To track your timesheet correctly, you always need to compare your worked hours against the official norm for that month.

How is overtime calculated in shift work?

In shift work, overtime is calculated against the reference period (one month, or up to 4 months as agreed). If at the end of the month an employee has logged 172 hours and the norm was 160, they have 12 hours of overtime which must be compensated with time off within 90 days or with a pay supplement.

How to mark AL and SL in your timesheet

Annual Leave (AL): Marked on days when the employee was scheduled to work according to their rota. It reduces the norm they need to achieve that month.

Sick Leave (SL): Recorded on the basis of a medical certificate. The corresponding hours are treated as "justified absence" and deducted directly from the monthly norm without counting as hours actually worked.