Daily Working Hours Log Mexico (Registro de Jornada Laboral)

A Daily Working Hours Log Mexico (Registro de Jornada Laboral) is the official record-keeping document used by Mexican employers to document the actual hours worked by each worker during each workday, as required by Article 63 of the Ley Federal del Trabajo (LFT), published in the Diario Oficial de la Federación on 1 April 1970 and substantially reformed in May 2019. Article 63 LFT establishes the employer's obligation to allow workers a 30-minute rest period during the workday and to record actual working time; Article 804 LFT requires employers to retain working hours records for at least one year after the employment relationship ends, as these records are primary evidence in STPS (Secretaría del Trabajo y Previsión Social) inspections and Tribunal Laboral proceedings.

The constitutional framework for working hours in Mexico is Article 123, Apartado A, Fracciones I through IV of the Constitución Política de los Estados Unidos Mexicanos, which establishes the eight-hour maximum workday (jornada diurna), the seven-hour maximum night shift (jornada nocturna), and the 7.5-hour maximum mixed shift (jornada mixta). These constitutional limits are implemented through Articles 58 through 68 of the Ley Federal del Trabajo. Article 58 LFT defines the workday (jornada de trabajo) as the time during which the worker is available to the employer for the performance of their duties. Article 60 LFT defines the three types of workday based on the hours worked: diurna (between 06:00 and 20:00), nocturna (between 20:00 and 06:00), and mixta (spanning both periods, which is classified as nocturna if the nocturnal hours exceed 3.5).

Overtime (tiempo extraordinario) is governed by Articles 65 through 68 LFT. Article 66 LFT limits overtime to a maximum of three hours per day and nine hours per week. Article 67 LFT requires that overtime be paid at double the regular hourly rate (doble del salario que corresponda a las horas de la jornada) for the first nine hours of weekly overtime, and at triple the rate (triple) for any hours exceeding nine hours in a week under Article 68 LFT. The Comisión Nacional de los Salarios Mínimos (CONASAMI) minimum wage provisions set the floor salary on which overtime calculations must be based. Employers who require overtime exceeding the nine-hour weekly limit commit a labour infraction under Article 994 LFT and may face fines imposed by the STPS Inspección del Trabajo.

The weekly rest requirement (descanso semanal) under Article 69 LFT mandates that workers receive at least one full day of rest per week, paid at the regular daily rate. Workers required to work on their rest day are entitled to double pay (salario doble) under Article 73 LFT, in addition to a compensatory rest day (día de descanso compensatorio). Article 75 LFT similarly governs work on mandatory public holidays (días de descanso obligatorio) — the seven national holidays listed in Article 74 LFT include 1 January, 5 February, 21 March, 1 May, 16 September, 20 November, and 25 December, plus election-related holidays and regional holidays determined by state decree.

The Registro de Jornada Laboral serves as the primary evidentiary document in STPS Inspección del Trabajo audits (visitas de inspección) conducted under Articles 540 through 550 LFT. When an STPS inspector visits a workplace, production of the working hours log is mandatory — employers who cannot produce working time records are presumed to have violated Article 63 LFT and face fines under Article 994 LFT ranging from 250 to 5,000 Unidades de Medida y Actualización (UMAs) per violation. The UMA value is updated annually by INEGI (Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Geografía) under the constitutional amendment of 27 January 2016 that de-linked the UMA from the minimum wage for penalty calculation purposes.

The working hours log also plays a critical role in Tribunal Laboral proceedings. Under Article 784 LFT, when there is a dispute about hours worked, overtime, or rest days, the burden of proof (carga de la prueba) falls on the employer — the employer must prove the actual hours worked. Article 804 LFT specifically lists working hours records among the documents that employers must retain and produce when required by the Tribunales Laborales or IMSS auditors. Failure to produce these records results in the court accepting the worker's version of events regarding hours worked and any claimed overtime entitlements.

NOM-030-STPS-2009 (Servicios preventivos de seguridad y salud en el trabajo — Funciones y actividades) and NOM-035-STPS-2018 (Factores de riesgo psicosocial en el trabajo) require employers to monitor and document actual working time as part of psychosocial risk prevention programs, particularly for workers in high-stress positions or extended shifts. The working hours log feeds into the employer's compliance documentation for these NOMs.

A Daily Working Hours Log Mexico is required whenever a Mexican employer must document, verify, and retain records of the actual time worked by employees in compliance with Ley Federal del Trabajo art. 63 and art. 804, and in preparation for STPS Inspección del Trabajo audits or Tribunal Laboral proceedings.

The log is required for all employers operating in Mexico, regardless of size, sector, or whether workers are employed on a full-time, part-time, or mixed schedule. The Ley Federal del Trabajo does not exempt micro-enterprises (microempresas) or domestic employers (patrones de trabajadores domésticos) from the Article 804 retention requirement, though the STPS inspection focus tends to concentrate on medium and large establishments. Employers in sectors with extended shift arrangements — manufacturing (manufactura), mining (minería), healthcare (salud), security services (seguridad privada), and transportation (autotransporte) — face particularly rigorous STPS working-hours compliance audits.

The record is needed when a worker performs overtime (tiempo extraordinario) beyond the standard workday. Under Article 66 LFT, the employer must document any overtime authorization and the actual overtime hours worked. This documentation is required to calculate the double or triple overtime pay premium under Articles 67 and 68 LFT, to reflect overtime in the payroll receipt (recibo de nómina) under LISR art. 99, and to demonstrate to IMSS and SAT that the overtime pay component was correctly included in the Salario Diario Integrado (SDI) and ISR withholding calculations.

The log is needed when workers operate on rotating shifts (turnos rotativos) or non-standard schedules — for example, 4x3 arrangements (four days on, three days off), 12-hour shifts in manufacturing, or compressed workweeks. Rotating shift schedules require careful documentation to confirm that no individual worker exceeds the constitutional daily and weekly maximums and that rest days and premium pay are correctly assigned.

The working hours log is required when an employer claims an exception to the standard workday hours under Article 59 LFT, which permits workers and employers to agree by mutual consent on a compressed workweek (semana comprimida) distributing the 48 weekly hours across fewer than six days. The log documents actual compliance with the agreed schedule and provides evidence if an STPS inspector questions whether the arrangement respects the constitutional workday limits.

The document is required when an employer disputes a worker's claim for overtime pay before the Centro Federal de Conciliación y Registro Laboral (CFCRL) or the Tribunales Laborales. Under Article 784 LFT, the employer bears the burden of proof on hours worked — without a signed daily log, the employer cannot rebut a worker's overtime claim and will be ordered to pay the claimed overtime at the applicable premium rate.

A valid Daily Working Hours Log Mexico under Ley Federal del Trabajo art. 63 and art. 804 must contain the following essential elements to comply with STPS Inspección del Trabajo requirements and to be admissible as evidence before the Tribunales Laborales.

Worker and Employer Identification: The full legal name of the worker (nombre completo del trabajador), their job title (puesto o categoría), and the employer's full legal name or business name (razón social del patrón) and Registro Patronal (IMSS employer registration number). Article 25 LFT requires that the employment contract specify the work location and schedule — the log header should reference the contract terms and the specific work centre (centro de trabajo) to which the log relates.

Log Period: The specific workweek or pay period covered (período de registro), including the start date (fecha de inicio) and end date (fecha de término) of the period in DD/MM/YYYY format. Weekly logs are the standard format recommended by the STPS Inspección del Trabajo, as they align with the weekly overtime calculation framework of Articles 66 through 68 LFT.

Daily Entry Fields: For each working day within the period, the log must record: the calendar date (fecha); the assigned shift type (jornada diurna, nocturna, or mixta); the actual entry time (hora de entrada); the rest period start and end times (hora de inicio y fin del descanso) confirming compliance with the 30-minute minimum rest under Article 63 LFT; the actual exit time (hora de salida); the total ordinary hours worked (horas ordinarias); any overtime hours worked (horas extraordinarias) with authorization reference; and the worker's signature or initials confirming the daily record.

Overtime Recording and Authorization: Each overtime entry must include the number of overtime hours, the reason for overtime (causa de horas extras), and a reference to the supervisor's or employer's prior authorization. Under Article 66 LFT, overtime requires employer authorization — unauthorized overtime still requires double pay under Article 67 LFT, but employers who habitually permit unauthorized overtime lose the ability to rely on lack of authorization as a defense in Tribunal Laboral proceedings. The log must separate first-nine-hours weekly overtime (paid at 100% premium — doble) from overtime exceeding nine hours in the week (paid at 200% premium — triple) under Articles 67 and 68 LFT.

Rest Day and Holiday Recording: The log must indicate scheduled and taken weekly rest days (días de descanso semanal) under Article 69 LFT, and must record any work performed on rest days (with double pay notation under Article 73 LFT) or on mandatory holidays under Article 74 LFT (with triple pay notation under Article 75 LFT). The seven mandatory national holidays — 1 January (Año Nuevo), 5 February (Aniversario de la Constitución), 21 March (Natalicio de Benito Juárez), 1 May (Día del Trabajo), 16 September (Día de la Independencia), 20 November (Día de la Revolución), and 25 December (Navidad) — must be pre-identified in the log for each applicable year.

Total Hours Summary and Payroll Integration: A weekly summary row (resumen semanal) totalling ordinary hours, overtime hours by premium category, rest day hours, and holiday hours. This summary feeds directly into the payroll calculation for the period, and any discrepancies between the log totals and the recibo de nómina totals must be reconciled and documented. Inconsistencies between the hours log and the payroll receipt are a primary finding in STPS and IMSS joint audits.

Worker Acknowledgment Signature: The worker's signature (or fingerprint where the worker cannot sign) on each daily or weekly log entry, confirming the accuracy of the recorded hours. Under Article 804 LFT, unsigned working hours records have diminished evidentiary value before the Tribunales Laborales. The employer must retain signed originals — digital records with qualified electronic signatures (firma electrónica avanzada — FEA) issued by the SAT are acceptable under the Código de Comercio arts. 89 through 94 and the Código Civil Federal.

Supervisor or HR Certification: The name, signature, and position of the direct supervisor (supervisor inmediato) or HR department representative certifying the accuracy of the log at the end of each period. This certification confirms that the employer had actual knowledge of the hours worked and that the records are genuine — a critical factor in STPS inspections and litigation.

Forms-legal.com provides this Daily Working Hours Log Mexico template as a starting point for LFT art. 63 compliance. Each employer should confirm that the log format satisfies the requirements of any applicable collective bargaining agreement (contrato colectivo de trabajo), sector-specific NOMs, and the employer's Reglamento Interior de Trabajo filed with the STPS under Article 424 LFT. All records should be reviewed by a licensed Licenciado en Derecho or abogado laboralista familiar with STPS inspection procedures in the relevant state.