Retail scheduling and time clock glossary
The 15 key terms to know when managing retail teams: hour bank, annualized hours, time off in lieu, payroll export. Short definitions and real examples.
Schedule
Document that distributes each employee's working hours across a week or month.
In multi-store retail, the schedule indicates who works each day, in which store, in which time slots. It must be posted at least 7 days in advance in France (Labor Code art. L3121-44) and similar rules apply in most EU countries.
Time clock
Recording of an employee's arrival and departure times.
Time clocking can be done via badge, mobile app or iPad kiosk. For legal admissibility, the timestamp must come from the server (not the device) and ideally be augmented with photo and GPS coordinates.
Hour bank
Cumulative balance of worked hours vs contract hours.
If an employee worked 38h on a 35h contract, their bank is at +3h. If they worked 32h, it sits at -3h. Allows smoothing activity variations without paying overtime immediately. Governed by collective agreement or company agreement.
Time off in lieu (TOIL)
Rest time taken instead of being paid for overtime.
When an employee exceeds contract hours, the employer may compensate in rest rather than paid overtime. Ratio is 1-to-1 up to 8 extra hours, then increased (1.25 or 1.5 depending on the agreement).
Overtime
Hours worked beyond 35h weekly (France) or beyond the individual contract.
French legal markup: +25% for the first 8 overtime hours (35h to 43h), +50% beyond. Collective agreements may set different rates. Capped at 220h per year unless agreement says otherwise.
Annualized hours
Distribution of working time over a year rather than per week.
Over a reference period (often 12 months), average weekly hours remain at 35h. Allows alternating high weeks (45h) and low weeks (25h) without triggering overtime. Requires a collective agreement (L3121-41 and following).
Day-rate contract (forfait jour)
Contract where work duration is expressed in days worked per year, not in hours.
Reserved for autonomous executives (and autonomous non-executives by agreement). Legal cap: 218 days per year. Employee does not clock hours but must benefit from 11h daily rest and 35h weekly rest.
Collective bargaining agreement
Agreement between employer and employee unions covering a sector.
For retail in France, main ones are the National Collective Agreement for Non-Food Retail (IDCC 1517) or department stores (IDCC 2156). Defines minimum wages, extra holidays, bonuses, break rules.
Break
Mandatory work interruption as soon as the employee has worked 6 consecutive hours.
Legal minimum in France: 20 minutes after 6h of effective work (L3121-33). Usually unpaid unless more favorable agreement. Multiple micro-breaks do not replace the long mandatory break.
Meal vouchers
Restaurant voucher co-financed by employer, usable as payment.
2026 value in France: 11.50 € per day max, of which 50 to 60 percent paid by employer (social exemption up to 7.18 € per voucher). Allocated per day of presence exceeding 4h effective work. Squadra automatically computes entitlement.
iPad kiosk mode
Tablet mode dedicated to employee time clocking in a store.
The iPad stays plugged in the store, displays a single token-protected clocking page. Employees identify via PIN and take a timestamped selfie. Anti-fraud: an employee cannot clock for another, timestamps come from the server, not the device.
Clocking anomaly
Significant discrepancy between planned shift and actual clock event.
Examples: arrival 15 min late, departure before end of shift, missing clock-out. Squadra detects automatically and requires written justification from the employee or manager.
Payroll export
CSV file or API that transmits worked hours to the payroll software.
Squadra exports to Payfit, Lucca, Silae, Factorial. The file contains: regular hours, overtime with markup, leave, sick days, used TOIL, bonuses. Should be checked monthly by the payroll administrator.
Paid leave
Right to 2.5 working days of leave per month worked, or 30 days per year in France.
Calculated from June 1 to May 31 (or other period defined by agreement). Subject to manager approval. Pay is delivered as if the employee had worked (maintenance rule or one-tenth rule, whichever is more favorable).
Multi-store
Ability of the scheduling tool to manage multiple stores with distinct managers.
Each manager sees their assigned store(s), affiliated employees, local clock events. Reports are consolidated at headquarters. Squadra supports unlimited stores at no extra cost (29 € per month flat).