What export do I need?

Any CSV of punches: employee, clock-in, clock-out, and a date unless the clock cells carry it. An hourly rate column lets the audit price multiplier rules; flat rules (New York City, Philadelphia) do not need one.

Should I audit the schedule or the timecards?

The premiums are owed on shifts or hours worked, so timecards are the usual choice. Philadelphia's regulations measure the rest from the posted schedule: load that export if it differs.

How far back should I look?

As far as your records and your correction policy go. Seattle and Chicago require keeping the records three years, Philadelphia two (see their rule pages); the audit takes any date range up to 20,000 rows at a time.

What does the audit not decide?

Coverage, consent and whether a premium was already paid under another name. It flags every pair the rule counts and prices it; payroll and the labor office decide the rest.

How to audit your timecards for clopening premiums

An audit for rest-between-shifts premiums takes five steps: export one row per clock-in and clock-out, join the punches around meal breaks into shifts, sort each person's shifts, measure every gap in real hours, and apply the local formula to the gaps under the rest window. Below, the steps on a made-up week under Seattle's rule.

Open the timecard audit

1. Export the punches

One row per clock-in and clock-out. The first lines of the sample file:

Employee,Date,Clock in,Clock out,Hourly rate
Sam Rivera,2026-09-14,3:00 PM,11:30 PM,21.00
Sam Rivera,2026-09-15,6:30 AM,10:30 AM,21.00
Sam Rivera,2026-09-15,11:00 AM,3:00 PM,21.00

2. Join meal breaks

A punch-out for lunch is not the end of a shift. The audit joins a person's punches up to 60 minutes apart (you can change it): Sam's 6:30-10:30 and 11:00-3:00 on Tuesday become one shift of 8 worked hours.

3. Measure each gap in real hours

Per employee, in time order, the gap is the elapsed time from the end of one shift to the start of the next, in the jurisdiction's time zone: the nights the clocks change, it differs from the wall clock by an hour. Overnight shifts end the next day.

4. Apply the rule

Seattle: fewer than 10 hours after the previous day's shift, time and a half on the hours inside the window.Sample data: 7 close-then-open pairs checked, 4 inside:

Sample data: Seattle rule (computed)
Employee	Closed	Opened	Rest	Hours inside	Premium
Jo Park	Tue 09/15 1:00 AM	Tue 09/15 9:00 AM	8 h	2 h	$19.50
Lee Chen	Fri 09/18 10:00 PM	Sat 09/19 6:00 AM	8 h	2 h	$20.00
Sam Rivera	Mon 09/14 11:30 PM	Tue 09/15 6:30 AM	7 h	3 h	$31.50
Sam Rivera	Thu 09/17 11:00 PM	Fri 09/18 7:00 AM	8 h	2 h	$21.00

5. Total per employee and pay period

Sample data: premium per employee (computed)
Employee	Pairs inside	Hours	Premium
Jo Park	1	2 h	$19.50
Lee Chen	1	2 h	$20.00
Sam Rivera	2	5 h	$52.50

The week comes to $92.00 over straight time. Do the same with your export in the timecard audit; the Pro workbook puts every pair in Excel with live formulas and prints a page per employee.

Frequently asked questions

What export do I need?: Any CSV of punches: employee, clock-in, clock-out, and a date unless the clock cells carry it. An hourly rate column lets the audit price multiplier rules; flat rules (New York City, Philadelphia) do not need one.
Should I audit the schedule or the timecards?: The premiums are owed on shifts or hours worked, so timecards are the usual choice. Philadelphia's regulations measure the rest from the posted schedule: load that export if it differs.
How far back should I look?: As far as your records and your correction policy go. Seattle and Chicago require keeping the records three years, Philadelphia two (see their rule pages); the audit takes any date range up to 20,000 rows at a time.
What does the audit not decide?: Coverage, consent and whether a premium was already paid under another name. It flags every pair the rule counts and prices it; payroll and the labor office decide the rest.

Is clopening illegal? Rest-between-shifts laws by city
Where a close-then-open shift pair costs a premium: rest hours, premium formula and coverage for NYC, Oregon, Seattle, Chicago, Philadelphia, LA and more.
The 11-hour rule between shifts: which cities use it
New York City fast food, Emeryville and Evanston require 11 hours between shifts; the others use 10 or 9. The rest windows side by side, with a worked pair.
NYC clopening premium: the $100 fast-food rule explained
New York City's fast-food rule: fewer than 11 hours between a close and the next shift costs $100 per instance, consent or not. Examples, clock changes included.
Oregon rest between shifts: the 10-hour rule and time and a half
ORS 653.442: time and a half for every hour worked in the first 10 hours after the previous day's shift, for retail, hotel and food service employers with 500+ staff.

Last updated 2026-09-30. Applies the rest-between-shifts rules of the jurisdiction you choose to the shifts you load. Coverage depends on your industry and size — check with the city or state labor office. Not legal advice. Not affiliated with any city or state agency.