GPS Tracking of Employees: Notice, Consent and Location at Clock-In Only

Employers can generally use GPS to track employees on work devices during work time, but the safest approach is to give written notice, explain the purpose, and capture location only when an employee clocks in or out. There is no general federal law that bans GPS tracking, yet a few states require notice, and continuous tracking creates privacy and morale problems that most timekeeping goals do not justify.

This article explains what the law says, where the real risks are, how clock-in-only location works, and how to write a short notice that protects you and your team. Rules vary by state, so confirm the details with counsel or your state labor department before you roll out any tracking.

What the law says about GPS tracking

No single federal statute governs workplace GPS tracking of employees. Instead, you deal with a patchwork: state electronic monitoring laws, state privacy and tort claims, and rules about off-duty conduct. New York has required employers since 2022 to give written notice of electronic monitoring when hired, to get a written or electronic acknowledgment, and to post the notice where employees can see it. Other states have their own rules, and some limit tracking of personal devices or tracking outside working hours.

Even where no statute applies, an employee can still bring a claim if the tracking intrudes on private life, for example by following a personal vehicle on weekends. The practical rule is simple: track work, not people. If the data is about when and where a job started and ended, it is easy to defend. If it is a minute-by-minute map of someone's day, you must be able to explain why you need it.

Continuous tracking versus location at clock-in

There are two very different uses of GPS. Continuous tracking records movement all day, often through a vehicle tracker or a phone app running in the background. Location at clock-in and clock-out records a single coordinate when the employee punches, so you can confirm the punch happened at the job site or within a reasonable area.

For timekeeping, the second option is almost always enough. The FLSA does not require you to know where someone is every minute; it requires accurate hours worked each day and each week. A coordinate attached to each punch supports that goal, deters false entries, and creates far less privacy exposure. Continuous tracking can also backfire: if your system shows an employee on a job site at 7:40 a.m. and your timeclock says 8:00 a.m., you may have created evidence of unpaid time.

Where GPS tracking creates wage and hour risk

GPS data cuts both ways. It can prove an honest start time, and it can prove unpaid work. Think about a crew member who drives a company truck to a site. Travel after the first work task of the day is usually paid time, and GPS records can show exactly when the truck left the yard. If payroll only counts the time from arrival, you may owe wages. Our guide on travel time pay explains which trips count.

Here is a numbers example. A technician earns $22.00 per hour. GPS shows the van leaves the shop 30 minutes before the first customer address every day, and the employee is not paid for it. Thirty minutes per day over five days is 2.5 hours per week. At $22.00 per hour, that is 2.5 x $22.00 = $55.00 per week. Across 50 weeks, that is $2,750.00 for one employee, before any overtime or liquidated damages. Location data you collect is data you may have to act on.

Consent, notice and what to put in writing

Even where a statute does not require it, a written notice is good practice. It tells employees you are not hiding anything and it gives you a record that they understood the rule. A short notice should cover what is collected, when it is collected, why, who can see it, and how long you keep it.

A simple model reads like this:

- We collect your device location at the moment you clock in or out, to confirm that time entries match your work location.

- We do not track your location at other times.

- Location data is visible to your manager and payroll, and is kept with your time records.

Have each employee sign or acknowledge the notice in the system, and keep the acknowledgment with the personnel file. If you operate in several states, use the strictest standard for everyone; it is easier than maintaining a different policy for each location.

Personal phones, off-duty time and minors

If employees use their own phones, be careful. Asking someone to install an app is reasonable, but the app should not collect location in the background or outside the clock-in action. Explain this plainly in the notice. Employees should never feel that clocking out does not actually end the tracking.

Also decide what happens when an employee refuses location permission. Offer a consistent alternative, such as a supervisor-verified punch, instead of disciplining one person informally. For employees under 18, remember that you are also dealing with strict hours rules; for 14 and 15-year-olds, GPS entries can help you prove they stayed inside the 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. window, or until 9 p.m. between June 1 and Labor Day.

How to use location data for audits and disputes

Location at clock-in is useful when a dispute arises. If a worker says they clocked in on time and the entry is flagged for being far from the site, you have an objective starting point for a conversation instead of an accusation. Always treat a mismatch as a question first. Phones can have weak signals, and an employee may have started work at a different location by instruction.

Keep location data with the time record for the same period as the timecard. The FLSA requires employers to keep time cards and supplementary records for 2 years and payroll records for 3 years, and some states require longer. Do not keep detailed location logs longer than you keep the time entry they support, unless a claim is pending.

How SimpleWorkshift Helps With GPS-Verified Time Entries

SimpleWorkshift is a cloud time clock where employees clock in and out from the iOS or Android app or from the web. Each entry captures a GPS location at the time of the punch, so you get GPS-verified time entries without following anyone around all day. Managers see entries and exceptions in real time, and the data stays with the time record for reports and audits.

Because the system uses automatic overtime calculations and custom reports, location data feeds an accurate record of hours rather than becoming a separate surveillance project. You can try it for 30 days with no contract and cancel anytime at simpleworkshift.com. For related reading, see our article on mobile time clock apps.