Order time and working time are two different figures
The customer pays for labour units, the mechanic works hours. MetronHR records both separately and shows where the difference arises.
- Order time per vehicle, working time per person
- Emissions test and safety inspection authorisations with expiry dates
- Productive and unproductive hours kept separate
In short
The workshop order is calculated in labour units, the Working Time Act in hours. And emissions test authorisation depends on people whose training has to be repeated every 36 months.
Legal position
What comes together in the workshop
Car workshops are not named in section 2a SchwarzArbG, so the stricter recording duty of the Minimum Wage Act only applies to marginally employed staff. Two other topics, though, are specific to the industry.
- Emissions test training to be repeated
- every 36 months
- Records for mini-jobs
- 7 days, 2 years
- Maximum working time
- 8 hours, 10 with compensation
- Compensation period
- 6 months or 24 weeks
Labour units are a costing figure, not working time
The time sold on an order follows the manufacturer's specifications. The working time actually performed follows the Working Time Act. The two figures never match, and only the second one is decisive for maximum working time, breaks and rest periods.
Working time within the meaning of section 2 (1) ArbZG is the time from the start to the end of work excluding rest breaks, not the time billed to the customer. Anyone using order time for time tracking systematically understates actual working time: setup, fetching parts, queries and waiting time all drop out.
Emissions test authorisation depends on people and on a deadline
For emissions testing the business must be recognised, and at least one responsible person or specialist must have passed the training course. The course has to be repeated every 36 months with updated content.
The procedure and requirements are in Annex VIIIc StVZO, which refers to Annex VIII numbers 3.1.1.1 and 3.2. For planning that means an emissions test appointment can only be scheduled if an authorised person is on site that day, and the authorisation has an expiry date that belongs in the same file as the holiday entitlement.
Productivity is measured against attendance, not against orders
The productivity rate is the ratio of labour units sold to paid attendance hours. Both figures have to be recorded separately, otherwise the metric is an estimate.
Unproductive time is not wasted time: cleaning the workshop, instructing trainees, taking in spare parts and warranty work all belong to it. It is missing from the order time and still has to be paid and recorded.
Shift operation brings the night work rules with it
Anyone regularly working past 11 pm on a late shift can become a night worker, with an entitlement to occupational health examinations and compensation.
Night work is any work covering more than two hours of the night period from 11 pm to 6 am (section 2 (3) and (4) ArbZG). A night worker is someone who does this on at least 48 days a year. The shorter compensation period of one month or four weeks under section 6 (2) ArbZG then applies as well.
Further reading:Annex VIIIc StVZO (to Annex VIII nos. 3.1.1.1 and 3.2), section 29 StVZO · Section 2 (1), (3) and (4) ArbZG, section 3 ArbZG, section 6 (2) to (5) ArbZG · Section 17 (1) MiLoG for marginally employed staff
As at:September 2026. This is not legal advice; for a specific case in your business it is better to ask someone with a licence to practise.
The job card knows nothing about breaks
Order times are booked against the vehicle, working times would have to be booked against the person. In many businesses only the first happens.
Order time is treated as working time
Setup, fetching parts, queries and waiting are not in it. The recorded working time is therefore systematically below the actual figure.
Emissions test appointments without a look at the authorisation
The appointment is booked, the authorised person is on holiday. That shows up on the morning of the appointment, not when it was taken.
Unproductive hours disappear
Whatever is not booked to an order shows up nowhere. That leaves half the answer missing to the question of where the time went.
Two kinds of time, one recording system
The mechanic clocks their attendance and books their time to orders. What remains is unproductive time, named rather than vanished. Authorisations sit in the file with an expiry date.
Productivity as a calculated figure
Labour units sold against paid attendance hours, with no estimating in between.
Features for workshops and dealerships
Built for order-based work, qualifications and shift operation.
Book time to an order
Order time and attendance side by side
The mechanic books their hours to orders, and the difference from attendance is the unproductive time, visible instead of estimated.
Authorisations with an expiry date
Emissions test and safety inspection training speak up before expiry
The training certificates under Annex VIIIc StVZO sit in the personnel file with their 36-month deadline, with a reminder in good time beforehand.
Schedule appointments against qualifications
No emissions test appointment without an authorised person on site
Planning knows who holds which authorisation and who is present that day. An appointment without suitable staffing is flagged.
Breaks under the Working Time Act
The break no longer goes missing from the record
From six hours 30 minutes, from nine hours 45 minutes, taken into account automatically and shown in the record.
Productivity rate per person and month
A metric based on actual records
Labour units sold against paid attendance hours, per mechanic and per month, with the unproductive shares in detail.
For workshop managers and mechanics
Two roles, two questions for the same figures.
Know where the hours went
The order was costed at eight labour units and took ten hours. Why?
Order time, attendance and unproductive shares sit side by side, per order and per person.
Book without a second recording step
First on the job card, then on the timesheet, and the two rarely match.
One entry at the terminal or in the app, and order and working time come out of it together.
Frequently asked questions from car workshops
What workshops and dealerships ask about time tracking and authorisations.
No. Working time within the meaning of section 2 (1) ArbZG is the time from the start to the end of work excluding rest breaks. Labour units are a costing figure based on the manufacturer's specification. Equating the two systematically understates the record, because setup, fetching parts and waiting time do not appear in it.
Only for marginally employed staff. The motor trade is not named in section 2a SchwarzArbG, unlike construction, hospitality or building cleaning. The general recording duty under section 3 (2) no. 1 ArbSchG still applies to everyone.
Every 36 months with updated content. The recognition procedure and requirements are in Annex VIIIc StVZO. Without an authorised person in the business, no emissions test may be carried out.
As the ratio of labour units sold to paid attendance hours. Both figures have to be recorded separately. If only orders are booked, the denominator is missing and the metric is an estimate.
When their shift covers more than two hours between 11 pm and 6 am and they do this on at least 48 days in the calendar year (section 2 (3) to (5) ArbZG). The entitlement to examinations, compensation and the shorter compensation period under section 6 ArbZG then apply.
Question not answered here? Every step is explained in the help centre.
Other industries
Call centres
Every phone system produces performance data. That makes time tracking here a co-determination question under section 87 (1) no. 6 BetrVG before it is a software question.
ViewClubs and associations
In a club, volunteers, instructors and employees work side by side. The Working Time Act applies only to the last group, and the line between them determines contributions and charitable status.
ViewHospitality
Hospitality is named in section 2a SchwarzArbG. The seven-day deadline of section 17 MiLoG therefore applies to all employees, not just to mini-jobbers.
ViewOrder time, working time and authorisations in one place
One entry for both, productivity as a calculated figure and training deadlines that speak up by themselves. Try it free for 14 days.
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