Daily attendance log (roll call)
Every workday, the foreman, ganger, or site supervisor takes the roll call for the crew and marks each worker's status. The typical states are present (full shift), absent (did not show up and is not paid for the day), late (arrived late, with or without a deduction depending on the policy), and half day (a half shift, paid as 0.5). That daily record, added up across the week, is what tells you how many days each person actually worked.
The attendance log is the direct input for the payroll of anyone paid a day wage: adding up each worker's shifts and multiplying by their daily rate gives their weekly pay. A half day counts as 0.5 shifts, an absence as 0, and a full day as 1. That is why an attendance log kept poorly —or kept "from memory"— turns into wrong payments, friction with the crew, and loss of control over labor cost.
Beyond pay, the attendance log helps you control the job: it shows how many people were actually at each work front per day, measures absenteeism, lets you check that the labor on site matches the physical progress achieved, and leaves evidence of who was on site on a given date. Kept consistently, the attendance record becomes a useful history for estimating productivity and planning future crews.
Example
Over one week, a helper's attendance log shows: Monday present, Tuesday present, Wednesday half day, Thursday absent, Friday present, Saturday present. That adds up to 1 + 1 + 0.5 + 0 + 1 + 1 = 4.5 shifts. At a daily rate of 350, the week's pay is 4.5 × 350 = 1,575.
Frequently asked questions
What is the attendance log on a construction site?
It is the daily record of who is on the crew. For each worker you mark whether they were present, absent, late, or worked a half day, and that record determines how many shifts they are paid for in the payroll.
How does the attendance log relate to the payroll?
The attendance log is the input for the payroll: for anyone on a day wage, the sum of the shifts recorded per worker (counting a half day as 0.5 and an absence as 0) is multiplied by their daily rate to get their weekly pay. Without the attendance log you cannot calculate the payroll correctly.
How is a half day counted in the attendance log?
As a half shift, that is 0.5. It is used when a worker only worked part of the day; their pay for that day is half the daily rate, and in the weekly total it counts as 0.5 shifts.