The basic purpose of time-keeping is to provide data for the following:

(i) Preparation of pay-rolls.

(ii) Attendance record of workers for governmental regulations and laws.

(iii) Computation of labour cost of a product, operation or service.

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(iv) Allocation of overhead cost based on wages or labour hours.

(v) Control of labour cost and determination of productivity of labour in the factory.

(vi) Fixation of wage rates.

(vii) Promotion of punctuality and discipline among the workers.

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Time keeping is essential even where a worker’s wages do not depend upon his attendance but on the piece-work system. This is because of the following reasons:

(i) If no control is exercised, the general morale of the workers is likely to be affected and they will not have any time sense. They will not care about time and it may also lead to a bad atmosphere in the factory.

(ii) The output of the factory is bound to fall, because there will be more idle time, and production schedules will not be followed.

(iii) Time recording is essential for determining overheads recovery rate based on labour hours.

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(iv) Time recording is also necessary for statistical analysis purposes.

(v) Time recording also facilitates fixation of different piece rates. 9.2.1 Methods of Time Keeping