By industry · 4 min read
Time clock for marketing and advertising agencies: working-time record without devices
Short answer
A marketing agency can meet the electronic working-time record requirement from each person's phone, wherever they are. 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 marketing agency
A marketing agency has creatives, account executives, designers and programmers, with flexible hours, deliveries that run long and hybrid work. That creates three challenges for measuring working time:
- Client deliveries bring long nights.
- The team works hybrid.
- A flexible culture is used as a reason not to keep any control.
What the law requires of marketing and advertising agencies
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 peaks. Overtime has a weekly cap: 9 hours at double time in 2027, with a maximum of 4 per day on no more than 4 days, and never more than 12 total hours in a day.
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 marketing agency
- Register your team and agree on a reference schedule.
- Each person records the start and end of their day from their phone.
- Long breaks are also recorded.
- The report shows each person's work mode.
Example. Flexible hours do not remove the obligation. What changes is the start and end time of each day, and that is what gets recorded.
Calculate your overtime
How to do the math by hand
Take a salary of $400 per day on a day shift. The ordinary hour is worth 400 ÷ 8 = $50. In 2027, with 11 overtime hours in the week, the first 9 are paid at double time (9 × $100 = $900) and the remaining 2 at triple time (2 × $150 = $300). Total: $1,200.
Common mistakes at a marketing agency
- Keeping attendance from memory or in a notebook.
- Recording the clock-in and forgetting the clock-out.
- Covering peaks only with overtime, until exceeding the weekly cap.
- 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.
- Departures later than planned.
Every week.
- Each person's overtime against the weekly cap.
- Days when someone came close to 12 hours.
- Rest days that were actually taken.
How much an overtime hour costs: example in pesos
Suppose a daily wage of $600 on a day shift. The ordinary hourly rate is $75. One overtime hour at double time costs $150 and one at triple time, $225. If a person works 9 overtime hours in a week in 2027, that is $1,350 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
Aguinaldo: how much it is and how it is calculated. The aguinaldo (year-end bonus) is an annual payment of at least 15 days of salary, which must be paid before December 20.
What is PROFEDET. PROFEDET is the Federal Labor Defense Attorney's Office (Procuraduría Federal de la Defensa del Trabajo).
What are the internal work regulations. The internal work regulations are the document with the mandatory rules inside the company: schedules, breaks, pay days and disciplinary measures.
Frequently asked questions
Does a marketing agency 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.
Can I ask for more overtime in peak season?
The weekly cap is not extended for the season. It helps to plan relief staff.
Does someone who works from home also clock in?
Yes. They record the start and end of their day from their phone.
Does the law require a particular system?
No. It asks that the record be electronic and include the start and end time for each 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.