By industry · 4 min read
Attendance control for solar panel installers: how to comply with the law
Short answer
A solar energy company can meet the electronic working-time record requirement by combining a QR code on site with location-based clock-in for people who work offsite. The law requires recording each person's start and end time; it does not require a wall-mounted time clock.
How work happens at a solar energy company
A solar energy company employs installers, electricians, salespeople and project designers, with crews on client rooftops and a project office. That brings three challenges for measuring working hours:
- Crews work at a different address every day.
- Sales visits clients.
- Project design can work from home.
What the law requires of solar panel installers
Since the 2026 reform, the Federal Labor Law requires recording electronically the start and end time of each worker's workday (article 132, section XXXIV). Failing to do so is fined 250 to 5,000 UMA. The STPS will define who it applies to and what exceptions there will be. The details are in the reform guide.
Work outside the premises. The time a person is at the company's disposal is working time, even if they are not at your facilities.
Work from home. Someone who works remotely also has working hours. The law does not exclude them from the record.
How to record working time at a solar energy company
- Register the location, your team and their shifts.
- Those who work on site scan the QR code.
- Those who work offsite clock in from their phone, with the location confirmed at that moment.
- They all appear in the same report, with the place or mode of each record.
Example. The crew clocks in with location at the installation; the project designer clocks in from home.
How much is the fine for not recording
How to do the math by hand
The minimum fine is 250 × $117.31 = $29,327.50. The maximum is 5,000 × $117.31 = $586,550. If the penalty is calculated per person, with 5 people the range goes from $146,637.50 to $2,932,750.
Common mistakes at a solar energy company
- Keeping attendance from memory or in a notebook.
- Recording the clock-in and forgetting the clock-out.
- Asking staff who work offsite to stop by the office just to clock in.
- Assuming that someone who works from home has no working hours.
What to check every day and every week
Every day.
- Who did not record their clock-in or clock-out.
- Records made in unexpected places.
- Departures later than planned.
Every week.
- Each person's overtime against the weekly cap.
- Rest days that were actually taken.
How much an overtime hour costs: example in pesos
Suppose a daily wage of $450 on a day shift. The ordinary hourly rate is $56.25. One overtime hour at double time costs $112.50 and one at triple time, $168.75. If a person works 9 overtime hours in a week in 2027, that is $1,012.50 extra.
It is an example to show the calculation, not a reference wage for the sector.
What changes every year, from 2026 to 2030
| Year | Maximum working hours | Double-time overtime | Triple-time overtime |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 48 h | 9 h | 4 h |
| 2027 | 46 h | 9 h | 4 h |
| 2028 | 44 h | 10 h | 4 h |
| 2029 | 42 h | 11 h | 4 h |
| 2030 | 40 h | 12 h | 4 h |
Decree published in the Official Gazette of the Federation on May 1, 2026, second and fourth transitory provisions, and article 68 of the LFT. Each change applies from January 1.
Related terms
Vacations by law: how many days are owed. With one year of work, 12 days of vacation are owed.
IMSS contributions: what they are and who pays them. Employer-employee contributions are the payments to the IMSS that fund social security.
What is attendance control. Attendance control is any means of knowing who came to work and at what time.
Frequently asked questions
Does a solar energy company need to buy a time clock?
No. The law requires an electronic record of working time, not a device. An app on a phone complies.
What options are there for recording working time?
An app on each person's phone, a shared tablet or a clock connected to a system. All three comply if they generate an electronic record per person, with a start and an end time.
Is staff tracked during the day?
No. The location is used only at the moment of recording.
Does someone who works from home also clock in?
Yes. They record the start and end of their day from their phone.
Is overtime counted by week?
Yes. The cap on double-time overtime is weekly and per person.
Legal basis and sources
- Electronic working-time record: article 132, section XXXIV, of the LFT and fifth transitory provision of the decree.
- Overtime: articles 66 and 68 of the LFT and fourth transitory provision of the decree.
- Working hours: articles 58 to 64 of the LFT and second transitory provision of the decree.
- Decree amending the Federal Labor Law on the reduction of the working week. Official Gazette of the Federation, May 1, 2026.
- Federal Labor Law, current text. Chamber of Deputies.
How we write this content. The Sicheca team writes it from the official text of the law. When something is not yet defined by the authority, we say so. It is general information and does not replace the advice of a lawyer or an accountant.