Best Practices for Tracking Overtime in Timesheets

This page outlines three recommended methods for tracking overtime using Tempo Timesheets for Jira on Cloud. Each method fits different team structures, reporting needs, and administrative preferences. Choose the approach that best aligns with your organization's workflow.

Method 1 — Use a Work Attribute

Overview

Work Attributes in Tempo allow you to attach custom metadata to individual worklogs. By creating an Overtime work attribute, team members can flag any worklog as overtime at the point of entry — without changing the issue, project, or account structure.

When to Use This Method

• Overtime is occasional and logged on regular project issues

• You want a lightweight, low-overhead approach

• Reporting needs to filter by overtime across all projects simultaneously

• You do not want to create separate issues or accounts just for overtime

Setup Steps

1. Navigate to Tempo > Settings > Work Attributes

2. Click Add Work Attribute

3. Configure the attribute:

   • Name: Overtime

   • Type: Static List (recommended) or Checkbox

   • Values (if Static List):Yes / No

   • Required: Optional — set to required if all worklogs must declare overtime status

4. Save the attribute. It will now appear on every worklog form.

How Team Members Log Overtime

1. Open the Tempo log time dialog on any Jira issue

2. Enter time spent, date, and description as normal

3. In the Overtime work attribute field, select Yes

4. Submit the worklog

Reporting

• Use Tempo Reports > Logged Time and filter by the Overtime work attribute = Yes

• Export to Excel/CSV for payroll or management review

• Combine with team/user filters for per-person overtime summaries

Pros & Cons

Method 2 — Use Internal Issues

Overview

Create dedicated Jira issues (or a dedicated project) specifically for managing overtime requests and logging overtime hours. This method treats each overtime event as a first-class Jira work item — with its own lifecycle, assignee, due date, approval trail, and comment history. Time is logged against these internal issues in Tempo, giving you both the governance of a structured workflow and the time-tracking depth of Tempo's reporting engine.

When to Use This Method

• Overtime must be formally pre-approved before work begins

• Your organization needs a clear, auditable trail of who requested, approved, and logged each overtime event

• Different teams or cost centers have distinct overtime budgets to track separately

• You want to associate overtime with specific sprints, epics, or components

• HR or Finance requires documented justification for every overtime claim

Step 1 — Jira Project Setup

Create a dedicated Jira project to house all overtime requests. Keeping it separate from delivery projects prevents board clutter and allows independent permission and workflow control.

Step 2 — Issue Type: Overtime Request

Create a dedicated issue type named Overtime Request within the project. This keeps it visually distinct from generic Tasks and enables issue-type-specific screens and workflows.

Recommended custom fields for the Overtime Request screen:

Step 3 — Approval Workflow Design

The workflow is the backbone of this method. It enforces that overtime cannot be logged in Tempo until it has been explicitly approved, and it creates an immutable audit trail of every state transition.

Workflow States

Workflow Transitions

Step 4 — Notifications & Automation

Use Jira's Automation feature (or the Notification Scheme) to keep all parties informed at each workflow stage without manual follow-up.

Step 5 — Logging Time in Tempo (Post-Approval)

Employees should only log time in Tempo after the issue has reached the Approved status. This is the gate that connects the governance workflow to actual time tracking.

1. Open the approved Overtime Request issue (e.g. OT-42)

2. Click Log Time via the Tempo panel on the issue, or open the Tempo Timesheet and search for the issue by key

3. Enter:

   • Time spent: Actual overtime hours worked

   • Date: The date(s) overtime was performed

   • Description: Brief summary — reference the original project issue if applicable (e.g. "Overtime for PROJ-234 release deployment")

4. Submit the worklog

5. Transition the Jira issue to Time Logged to notify the manager

6. Update the Actual Overtime Hours custom field to match what was logged

Step 6 — Manager Verification & Closure

1. Manager receives a notification that time has been logged (status = Time Logged)

2. Manager opens the issue and reviews:

   • The Tempo worklogs panel on the issue — verifying dates and hours

   • The Actual Overtime Hours field vs. the Requested Overtime Hours field

   • Worklog descriptions to confirm the work relates to the approved purpose

3. If hours match: transition to Done — the overtime record is closed and payroll/HR can be notified

4. If hours differ significantly: transition to Dispute Hours → back to Under Review, add a comment explaining the discrepancy

Step 7 — Reporting

Edge Cases & Policy Considerations

Pros & Cons

Method 3 — Use an Account with Tempo Timesheets

Overview

Tempo Accounts allow you to group logged time for billing, cost tracking, or internal categorization — independently of Jira projects and issues. Creating a dedicated Overtime account gives you a financial and operational view of overtime hours that integrates with Tempo's invoicing and cost features.

When to Use This Method

• Your organization uses Tempo Accounts for billing or internal charge-backs

• You need overtime costs rolled up across multiple projects and teams in one view

• Finance or HR requires overtime data in Tempo's financial reports

• You want to connect overtime tracking with Tempo Budgets or Invoices

Setup Steps

1. Navigate to Tempo > Accounts

2. Click Create Account and configure:

   • Name: Overtime

   • Key:OT (or your preferred identifier)

   • Category: Internal (or create a dedicated Overtime category)

   • Status: Open

   • Lead: Assign to the HR or Finance manager responsible for overtime approval

3. Optionally, link the account to relevant Jira projects so it appears as an option when logging time on those project issues

4. Set up a Tempo Budget against the Overtime account if you need to cap overtime spend per period

How Team Members Log Overtime

1. Open the Tempo log time dialog on any Jira issue

2. Enter time spent, date, and description as normal

3. In the Account field, select the Overtime account

4. Submit the worklog — the hours are now attributed to the Overtime account regardless of which issue or project they're logged on

Reporting

• Use Tempo Reports > Account Reports and select the Overtime account

• View hours, costs (if billing rates are configured), and breakdowns by user, team, or period

• Use Tempo Budgets on the account to monitor overtime spend against approved limits

• Generate Tempo Invoices if overtime is billed to a client or internal department

Pros & Cons

Method Comparison at a Glance

Recommended Combinations

• Small team / simple needs: Use Method 1 (Work Attribute) alone — fast to set up, easy to report on.

• Medium team with approval requirements: Use Method 2 (Internal Issues) to enforce a manager approval step before time is logged.

• Finance-driven or client-billing environment: Use Method 3 (Account) to capture costs, or combine Method 1 + Method 3 for task-level and financial-level visibility simultaneously.

• Enterprise / full audit trail: Combine all three — the Work Attribute flags overtime on the worklog, the Internal Issue tracks the approval lifecycle, and the Account rolls up cost reporting.