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CompliancePublished 16 August 2026 · Updated 6 September 2026 · 2 min read

US certified payroll: where attendance hours fit

Understand the limited role of attendance inputs in federal covered-contract payroll reporting, using current Department of Labor guidance.

By Attendify Vision · Product-led guidance with sources and labeled examples.

Confirm the reporting context

This article concerns US federal Davis-Bacon and Related Acts covered-contract reporting. State and local prevailing-wage regimes can differ. Applicability, wage determinations and classifications need review by the people responsible for the contract and payroll.

The Department of Labor’s WH-347 instructions explain weekly reporting and the statement of compliance. Use of that particular form is optional; the underlying applicable reporting obligations are not made optional by choosing another format.

Hours are only one input

A certified-payroll process can require classifications, rates, fringe-benefit treatment, deductions and certification as well as hours. An attendance export does not establish these items or certify the result.

Attendify does not currently generate a complete WH-347 submission, assign prevailing-wage classifications, calculate fringe benefits or provide certified-payroll compliance. Its role is narrower: reviewed attendance evidence and hours that a payroll process can evaluate.

Preserve the breakdown that matters

The DOL instructions address work classifications and accurate hour breakdowns; where an accurate classification breakdown is not kept, higher applicable-rate treatment may be required. Review the official instructions for the relevant scenario rather than treating a site total as sufficient.

Scroll the table sideways to read all columns.

Attendance inputAdditional payroll decision
Worker identifierCorrect worker and reporting identity
Site and work dateCovered project and reporting period
Recorded hoursClassification-specific work breakdown
Applied correctionSupporting evidence and affected payroll revision
Exported totalRates, benefits, deductions and certification

Attendify’s site field is not an automatic classification or contract-code allocation.

Correct genuine recording errors

Machine-captured times are evidence, not an untouchable substitute for actual work. A missed punch needs investigation. Record any correction and its reason, then reconcile the revised hours with the receiving payroll process.

A blocking software exception excludes the day from Attendify’s policy export. It is not a legal decision that the worker should not be paid. The employer’s payroll process must account for the actual work and applicable requirements.

Test the complete reporting route

Before relying on an attendance handoff, test a normal week, multiple work classifications, missing records and a late correction in the system responsible for reporting. Keep the source-to-report reconciliation and the authorized certification separate.

Read payroll export boundaries and the general handoff checklist for the attendance portion. No estimated savings, reporting-time reduction or compliance guarantee is asserted here.

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