Tracking Labour Attendance on a Construction Site
A practical daily method for tracking workers, calculating wages and managing advances without a costly HR system.
June 2026 · By Rajni Sharma
Why attendance tracking is non-negotiable
Labour is typically 25-35% of a project's cost. Without daily attendance records, you're paying on verbal word — and disputes are almost impossible to resolve. A signed muster roll is your only protection.
The daily muster roll
A muster roll records every worker's name, date and present/absent status. Each worker or the mandal (gang leader) signs it. Keep the signed originals — labour inspectors can ask for them up to 5 years back.
Track advances separately
Construction workers frequently take salary advances. Keep a separate advance register per worker — amount given, date, reason. Deduct from the final weekly or fortnightly payment. Verbal advance tracking leads to the biggest disputes.
Calculating wages
Wages = (days present × daily rate) − advances. For overtime, check the prevailing state minimum wage notification. Paying below minimum wage — even informally — exposes you to contractor liability under labour law.
AgenticVani makes this simple
The Contractor CRM has a worker register, daily attendance sheet, advance tracker and auto-calculated wage payout — for every worker across multiple sites. No HR software needed.
Everything here comes ready-made inside AgenticVani — one-time ₹499, no monthly fee.
See Contractor CRM →