Attendance Point System: Policy Template, Examples & How to Implement

I know how it feels chasing late clock-ins or no-call no-shows. It’s frustrating, and it’s mind-numbing to balance attendance violations with medical leave, FMLA.

That’s why I decided to switch to an attendance point system, and it completely changed how our company functioned!

In this blog, you’ll see how it works, real-world examples, how to build your own in Google Sheets, and how to automate it!

What is an Attendance Point System?

In this type of attendance tracking, points are structured to assign a point value to attendance violations such as arriving late, leaving early, and so on.

With this approach, every infraction, such as a late clock-in or unexcused absence, is assigned a numeric value, usually ranging from 0.5 to 5.

Upon crossing the threshold, disciplinary action or monetary consequences are taken. Compared to traditional methods, it reads attendance and absences with trackable, measurable data.

Allowing managers and team leads to easily apply company policies to guide or penalize employees. It goes hand-in-hand with modern time and attendance tracking systems.

Read more:
Employee Attendance Tracker Templates
Time Clock App

Why Businesses Use Point-Based Attendance Policies (and When They Don’t)

You might be thinking, “Does this policy actually work?” Fortunately, it does, and many companies have seen:

• Increased Employee Punctuality: According to Teamsense findings, multiple manufacturing companies saw a 17% drop in absence rates.
• Objective Discipline: Getting the actual data of when to take action and when to let go.
• Data-driven Oversight: When combined with a time and attendance software, it becomes easier to act before an employee has gone beyond redemption.
• Supports Absence Management: With structured point accumulation and thresholds, the system becomes part of your broader ecosystem of employee well-being management.

However, in some cases, it might not be an ideal scenario to use this system:

• If the system fails to incorporate federal and state laws, it can lead to compliance issues.
• A general point system can penalize employees facing legitimate medical leave, running the risk of violating discrimination laws or EEOC regulations.

When you think of the 3% of employees being absent every month, you realize that you need something to help you solve that.
So, take the first step and follow along to know how you can implement it as well.

Sample Point Scales & Real-World Examples

Before you decide to implement the point-based system, here’s a simple 3-sample point scale organized by level of strictness.

You are free to add/subtract accordingly depending on your requirements.

Trigger thresholds example:

• 5 points = verbal warning
• 8 points = written warning
• 12 points = final warning/termination review

These are standard point systems available in multiple industries.

Learn more about:
Work Schedule Types
Hybridwork Monitoring Attendance

How to Create Your Own Attendance Point System (with Google Sheet Template)

Designing a transparent attendance point system is simple. Before you start thinking it’s some difficult thing to implement, just wait a little.

Let me guide you all the way!

1. Define What Counts as an Attendance Violation

First and foremost, list down every attendance violation you can think of. Make sure you are properly marking the severity of that violation.

Some of the common categories are:

• Tardiness: Arriving late, leaving early, or missing partial shifts.
• Unexcused Absences: Days missed without any approval, documentation, or communication.
• Call Outs: Short-notice absences.
• Attendance Tracking Failures: Missed clock-ins/outs, skipped ID card swipe systems, or unverified punch data.

2. Assign Point Values and Thresholds

As shown previously, you need to finalize a simple point system based on your requirements. Here’s a basic point value table you can use as a reference:

Then, set total-point thresholds such as:

• 5 points: Verbal warning
• 8 points: Written warning
• 12 points: Final warning or termination review

3. Include Reset Rules

If you haven’t noticed yet, your point system needs to be reset after a scheduled period. Otherwise, your employees will only rack up points after points and eventually, mass suspension!

Jokes aside, usually HR teams choose to reset points every 6–12 months of perfect attendance. Depending on your policies, you can use a shorter or longer timeframe.

4. Align with Legal Considerations

Don’t ever forget the legal aspect of any policies, especially those that include leaves. Make sure your system is compliant with:

• Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)
• Pregnancy Disability Leave Law
• EEOC regulations and discrimination laws related to disability and protected leave
• Federal and state labor laws

5. Start a Reward & Achievement Recognition

This simple step is enough to motivate many employees to give that extra effort. At the end of the day, everyone loves a little appreciation and recognition. The employees who are constantly coming to the office on time are definitely worthy of celebration!

6. Review and Optimize Non-stop

When everything is up and running, you need to continuously monitor now. From attendance violations to unexcused absences, analyse whether the numbers are improving.

Use the Google Sheet dashboard (download from below!) for visualizations. It will help you to easily identify teams with higher absenteeism and share the insights with leadership for absence management.

With this template, you can:

• Add or modify violation types and points
• Track live attendance data
• Auto-calculate warnings and expirations

Explore further:
Google Sheets Time Tracking Templates
Excel Time Tracking
Excel Timesheet Formula
How to Track Employee Hours

Best Practices for Implementing an Attendance Point System

While you might know a bit more about the Attendance Point System now, it’s good to learn about the best practices.

• Make sure to exclude absences covered under FMLA, Pregnancy Disability Leave Law, and other state/federal laws.
  Try to be flexible for employees with disabilities or protected leave. It enables you to stay compliant with EEOC regulations and discrimination laws.
• Maintain a proper attendance history, preferably with time and attendance software.
• Don’t incentivize presenteeism; check if your scheduling system is working and take proper action for employees’ well-being.
• If you’re using punch clocks, ID card swipe systems, or AI-powered attendance systems, then make it fully compliant with your policies.

Read more:
Time Tracking Best Practices

How to Automate an Attendance Point System with Apploye

Manual tracking is okay for small businesses to maintain an attendance point system. However, for large companies, it’s tough to go through hundreds of data points at one go.

Apploye unifies attendance management, role-based point assignment, and secure reporting, with just a single app.

• Automated Time Tracking: Don’t waste time tracking time when Apploye can automatically do that for you. Just check the clock-ins and clock-outs at the end of the day, and that’s all.
• Real-Time Attendance Monitoring: No Excel or Google Sheets file can show you the actual productivity or monitoring in real-time! Apploye can.
• Leave Management Integration: Manage all the leaves with proper notes and reasons in one place. Match it with your point system for easy verification.
• Detailed Reporting and Analytics: Daily, weekly, monthly, or even custom. Get detailed reports and analysis, and export them anywhere.
• Secure Data Handling: Apploye employs robust security measures to protect attendance data, including encryption and security solutions. This focus on data security ensures compliance with privacy regulations and protects the system from online attacks.

See more:
Employee Scheduling Software
Timesheet App
Employee Monitoring Software

Conclusion

Managing attendance is tough until you know how to do it properly. With an attendance point system, you can promote accountability, stay compliant, and boost employee morale.

Build your own with our free Google Sheet template, or automate multiple processes with Apploye’s time and attendance software!

Frequently Asked Questions

Can points be assigned for approved medical leave?

No, any absence covered by protected laws like medical leave or the Family and Medical Leave Act must be excluded.

How often should points reset?

Many organizations reset points every 6–12 months for perfect attendance.

Does a point system violate EEOC regulations?

Only if it fails to exempt protected absences or violates discrimination laws under EEOC regulations.

Do I need specialized software for tracking?

While you can use spreadsheets, time and attendance software, or integrated workforce management software is far more efficient.

Are late arrivals always penalized?

They’re typically assigned points (e.g., for a late clock-in), unless due to covered reasons like a leave of absence or reasonable accommodations.

What qualifies as a “no-call no-show”?

When an employee fails to arrive and doesn’t notify HR or their manager within the required timeframe.