How To Enter Time In Workday: Complete Step-by-Step Employee Guide
Mastering time entry in Workday ensures accurate payroll processing, compliance with labor regulations, and seamless project tracking for your organization. This comprehensive guide outlines the exact workflows, navigation paths, and corrective procedures required to submit timesheets efficiently across desktop and mobile interfaces.
Pre-Procedure Planning for Time Tracking
Successful time entry requires familiarity with your organization’s specific pay period schedules, cost center allocations, and internal compliance policies. Before logging hours, workers must understand their employment classification (exempt versus non-exempt), approved overtime thresholds, and relevant project codes.
- Essential Tools & Access: Active Workday credentials, a verified internet or secure intranet connection, and the official Workday mobile application or supported desktop web browser (Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Microsoft Edge, or Apple Safari).
- Prerequisite Knowledge: Familiarity with your organization's pay calendar, understanding of time type categories (regular, overtime, sick, vacation, holiday), and knowledge of specific worktags or project task codes required by your department.
- Operational Benchmarks: Weekly time entry and submission generally take less than 10 minutes, with approval workflows completing within 24 to 48 hours before payroll lockouts.
Step-by-Step Workday Time Entry Workflow
Step 1: Accessing the Time Application in Workday
Log into your organization's Workday portal using your secure credentials and multi-factor authentication. From the main landing page, known as your Workday Home dashboard, locate the applications menu. Click or tap on the Time application icon, which typically resembles a clock face or calendar. If the icon is not immediately visible on your primary dashboard, use the global search bar at the top of the screen and type "Enter Time" or "Time" to navigate directly to the primary timesheet interface.
Pro-Tip: Pin the Time application to your personal Workday dashboard for rapid, single-click access during every shift or pay period.
Step 2: Navigating the Timesheet Calendar and Pay Periods
Once inside the Time application, you will be presented with a weekly or semi-monthly calendar view. Use the directional arrows located near the top of the calendar grid to navigate to the exact work week or pay period requiring time entries. Verify that the date range displayed at the top matches your intended reporting window. Workday automatically highlights your current pay period and displays a summary of total hours logged versus your expected standard hours for that cycle.
Step 3: Entering Daily Hours and Time Types
Click or tap directly on the specific calendar day square corresponding to the hours worked, or click the "Add" button within the daily row. A detailed time entry modal window will appear on your screen. Enter the total number of hours worked in the primary hours field. Select the appropriate "Time Type" from the drop-down menu, such as Regular Hours, Overtime, or Shift Differential. If your organization mandates project tracking, locate the worktags section within the same modal to assign your hours to the correct cost center, project, grant, or internal phase.
Warning: Entering time under an incorrect time type or omitting mandatory worktags can trigger payroll processing errors and delay supervisor approval.
Step 4: Utilizing Advanced Features Like Check-In/Check-Out or Copy Previous Week
If your organization utilizes clock-in and clock-out functionality rather than manual hourly entry, locate the prominent "Check In" and "Check Out" buttons on your Time landing page and click them in real-time as your shift begins and ends. For salaried or hourly staff with repeating weekly schedules, click the "Actions" menu or the gear icon within the timesheet view and select "Copy Previous Week" to populate identical hours. You can then edit individual days as needed for holidays or time off.
Step 5: Reviewing and Submitting Your Timesheet for Approval
Once all hours for the pay period have been entered, review the daily and weekly totals displayed at the bottom and side of the calendar grid to ensure mathematical accuracy. Click the orange "Review" or "Submit" button located at the bottom right of the timesheet page. Workday will run an automated validation check for missing data, overlapping entries, or policy violations. If no errors are detected, confirm your submission. The status of your timesheet will instantly update from "Not Submitted" to "Submitted," and a notification will route directly to your designated manager or timekeeper for review.
Enforcing Meal break Rule in Workday Time Clock
Workday Time Types and System Configurations
| Time Type Category | Typical Usage Scenario | Worktag Requirement | Approval Routing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Regular Hours | Standard scheduled working hours within a normal shift. | Department / Cost Center | Direct Manager |
| Overtime (OT) | Authorized hours worked beyond standard weekly thresholds. | Cost Center + Project Code | Manager + Finance |
| Paid Time Off (PTO) | Approved vacation, personal days, or floating holidays. | Time Off Plan Tag | Absence Partner / Manager |
| Sick Leave | Unplanned medical absences or scheduled healthcare appointments. | Leave Type Tag | Automated System / HR |
Troubleshooting Common Time Entry Errors
- Root Cause: Attempting to submit a timesheet while missing mandatory worktags, cost center allocations, or project task numbers.
- Actionable Fix: Review the error banner highlighted in red at the top of your timesheet screen, click the flagged day, and populate all required fields marked with an asterisk before attempting to submit again.
- Root Cause: Trying to log time for a past pay period that has already been locked by the payroll department.
- Actionable Fix: Contact your internal HR or payroll administrator to request a retroactive adjustment window, or utilize the "Request Correction" feature on your historical timesheet if enabled by your company's security profile.
- Root Cause: Inability to locate the Time application on the Workday home screen due to incorrect security role assignment.
- Actionable Fix: Submit an IT service desk ticket or contact your HR operations team to verify that your employee profile has been properly activated within the Workday HCM time-tracking tenant.
- Root Cause: Discrepancy between mobile app time entries and desktop browser views.
- Actionable Fix: Refresh your session by logging out and back into the Workday mobile application, or ensure your app version is updated to the latest release available in your device's app store.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I enter time in advance on Workday?
Most organizational policies restrict advance time entry beyond the current open pay period to prevent compliance issues with unworked hours. However, you can submit foreseeable paid time off, such as scheduled vacations, well in advance through the Absence application rather than the standard timesheet.
What should I do if my manager rejects my timesheet?
When a manager sends back a timesheet, Workday generates a notification detailing the rejection reason in your inbox. Review the feedback provided by your manager, make the necessary corrections to hours, time types, or worktags directly on the calendar grid, and re-submit the timesheet for approval.
How do I correct a submitted timesheet from a previous pay period?
If a previous pay period has already been processed by payroll, you cannot directly edit the submitted timesheet. You must initiate a retro-adjustment request or submit a time adjustment ticket through your human resources support channel to ensure proper wage correction on the next payroll cycle.
Can I use the Workday mobile app to enter my hours?
Yes, the Workday mobile app fully supports time entry, check-in and check-out functionality, and timesheet submission. You can download the application on iOS or Android devices, log in using your corporate single sign-on credentials, and access your time tracking dashboard from anywhere.
What happens if I forget to submit my timesheet before the payroll deadline?
Failing to submit your timesheet before the established cutoff can result in delayed payment for those specific hours until the subsequent payroll cycle. If you miss a deadline, immediately notify your payroll administrator and submit your pending timesheet as soon as possible to trigger manual review.
Optimize Your Workforce Management Processes Today
Streamline your organizational payroll accuracy and empower your staff by standardizing time entry training across all departments. Implement these best practices within your Workday tenant to minimize processing errors and maintain total compliance.
