Glossary
HR, payroll & field operations terms defined
Clear definitions linking workforce concepts to GPS tracking, mileage reimbursement, and expense management for enterprise field teams.
Workforce Management: Definition for Field Operations Teams
What workforce management means for enterprises with mobile field employees — scheduling, attendance, GPS verification, and labor analytics beyond call-center WFM.
Per Diem: Definition for Field Employee Travel & Expense
What per diem means for field teams — fixed daily allowances for meals and incidentals vs actual expense reimbursement, and policy design for mobile workforces.
Employee Attendance: GPS Verification for Field Workforces
What employee attendance means when workers are mobile — shift sessions, geofence proof, and audit trails replacing honor-system check-ins.
Buddy Punching: Definition, Cost & Prevention for Field Teams
What buddy punching means in workforce management — one employee clocking in for another — and how geofence GPS time clocks prevent it on field crews.
Time Theft: Definition for HR & Operations Leaders
Time theft is paying employees for hours not worked — including buddy punching, extended breaks, and falsified timesheets. Field prevention uses GPS-verified sessions.
Geofencing: Definition for Field Employee Tracking
Geofencing creates virtual GPS boundaries around job sites so mobile time clocks only work when employees are physically on site.
Mileage Reimbursement: Definition & Employer Obligations
Mileage reimbursement pays employees for business use of personal vehicles — typically cents-per-mile under accountable plans with GPS substantiation.
FLSA: Definition for Field Workforce Compliance
The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) governs minimum wage, overtime, and recordkeeping for US employers — critical when field employees track hours via GPS shift sessions.
Overtime: Definition & Field Employee Rules
Overtime is premium pay (typically 1.5× regular rate) for hours worked beyond statutory thresholds — GPS attendance helps field employers calculate OT accurately.
Compensable Time: Definition for Hourly Field Work
Compensable time includes all hours an employee must be paid for — including certain travel and on-call periods — relevant when GPS tracks field shift sessions.
Non-Exempt Employee: Definition for Field Teams
Non-exempt employees are entitled to minimum wage and overtime under FLSA — most field hourly crews qualify; GPS time clocks support accurate pay.
Exempt Employee: Definition & Field Sales Nuance
Exempt employees are not entitled to overtime under FLSA when meeting salary and duties tests — field sales roles require careful classification review.
Hourly Employee: Definition for Field Workforces
Hourly employees are paid per hour worked — standard in field service, construction, logistics, and retail execution; GPS attendance substantiates pay.
Accountable Plan: Definition for Expense & Mileage Reimbursement
An accountable plan is an IRS-compliant reimbursement arrangement requiring business connection, substantiation, and return of excess — enabling tax-free mileage payments.
FAVR: Fixed and Variable Rate Reimbursement Definition
FAVR (Fixed and Variable Rate) vehicle reimbursement combines a monthly fixed amount with a per-mile variable rate based on local costs — for high-mileage field fleets.
Car Allowance: Definition & Compliance for Field Employees
A car allowance is a fixed monthly payment for business use of a personal vehicle — simpler than CPM but risky in states requiring full expense indemnification.
Grey Fleet: Definition & Employer Duty of Care
Grey fleet refers to employees driving personal vehicles for business — requiring mileage reimbursement, policy, insurance review, and GPS substantiation.
Spend Management: Definition vs Expense Management
Spend management is the broader corporate discipline of controlling all organizational spend — expense management focuses on employee-initiated T&E claims in field contexts.
Absence Management: Definition for Distributed Field Teams
Absence management tracks planned and unplanned employee time away from work — PTO, sick leave, and no-shows — integrated with field attendance and shift scheduling.
Absenteeism Policy: Definition & Field Workforce Application
An absenteeism policy defines acceptable attendance expectations, reporting procedures, and consequences for excessive unplanned absences — including field route coverage requirements.
Gross Pay: Definition for Payroll & Field Reimbursement
Gross pay is total employee compensation before tax withholdings — including wages, overtime, and taxable reimbursements that fail accountable plan rules.
Base Pay: Definition for Hourly & Salaried Field Roles
Base pay is the fixed rate of compensation before overtime, bonuses, and reimbursements — the foundation for field employee band configuration.
Compensation: Definition for Field Workforce Programs
Compensation encompasses all pay and benefits employees receive — wages, mileage reimbursement, per diem, and allowances — for mobile field workforces.
Payroll: Definition & Field Mileage Integration
Payroll is the process of paying employees — integrating GPS-verified hours and approved mileage rollups from field operations platforms into earning codes.
FMLA: Definition for Field Workforce HR
The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) provides eligible employees unpaid, job-protected leave — HR tracks field attendance separately from approved FMLA absences using shift and PTO records.
PTO: Paid Time Off Definition for Field Teams
PTO (paid time off) combines vacation, sick, and personal days — field HR correlates approved PTO with GPS shift gaps to prevent paid work claims during leave.
Bereavement Leave: Definition & Field Workforce Policy
Bereavement leave is paid or unpaid time off after the death of a family member — field employers document policy in handbooks and track against attendance systems.
Compensatory Leave: Definition for Hourly Field Crews
Compensatory leave (comp time) is time off granted instead of overtime pay — largely restricted in private sector; public sector field crews may use comp time under specific rules.
Rotating Shifts: Definition for Field Workforce Scheduling
Rotating shifts alternate employee work schedules across days or weeks — field ops must align GPS shift sessions and mileage policies with changing route assignments.
Holiday Pay: Definition for Field Hourly Employees
Holiday pay compensates employees for designated holidays — field employers document eligibility in policy and track hours via GPS attendance when holiday work occurs.
Labor Cost: Definition & Field Workforce Calculation
Labor cost is total employer spend on wages, benefits, taxes, and reimbursements — field programs add mileage and per diem that finance must include in loaded cost models.
Performance Management: Definition for Field Workforces
Performance management is the ongoing process of setting goals, measuring outcomes, and developing employees — field ops add GPS-verified productivity KPIs like visit coverage and windshield ratio.
Employee Engagement: Definition for Deskless Teams
Employee engagement measures commitment and discretionary effort — transparent GPS shift policies and fair mileage reimbursement affect engagement for field workers.
Employee Turnover: Definition & Field Workforce Impact
Employee turnover is the rate at which employees leave an organization — slow mileage reimbursement and unclear attendance policies accelerate turnover in field industries.
Comp Time: Definition for Non-Exempt Field Workers
Compensatory time (comp time) is paid time off granted instead of overtime pay — generally restricted for private-sector non-exempt employees under FLSA.
4/10 Work Schedule: Definition for Field Crews
A 4/10 work schedule compresses 40 hours into four ten-hour days — field ops must align GPS shift sessions and overtime rules with compressed schedules.
Workforce Analytics: Definition for Field Operations
Workforce analytics applies data analysis to HR and operations metrics — field programs add GPS-derived KPIs like territory coverage, windshield ratio, and mileage cost per visit.
Fleet Tracking: Definition vs Employee GPS
Fleet tracking monitors company-owned vehicles via telematics — distinct from employee GPS on personal vehicles used for grey fleet mileage reimbursement.
Vehicle Reimbursement Program: Definition
A vehicle reimbursement program pays employees for business use of personal vehicles via CPM, FAVR, or accountable allowances — requiring GPS or contemporaneous mileage substantiation.
Contemporaneous Mileage Log: Definition
A contemporaneous mileage log records trips at or near the time of travel — GPS shift sessions satisfy IRS substantiation vs end-of-month reconstruction.
CPM Reimbursement: Cents-Per-Mile Definition
CPM (cents-per-mile) reimbursement pays a fixed rate per business mile — typically the IRS standard mileage rate for US field employees.
Employee Handbook: Definition for Field Policies
An employee handbook documents workplace policies — field editions must include GPS consent, mileage reimbursement, expense limits, and geofence attendance rules.
Salary: Definition vs Hourly Field Employees
Salary is fixed periodic pay regardless of hours — exempt salaried field roles may still receive mileage reimbursement but typically not overtime for drive time.
Full-Time Hours: Definition for Field Scheduling
Full-time hours typically mean 30–40+ hours weekly per employer policy — field GPS shift sessions document actual hours for ACA and overtime analysis.
Paid Holidays: Definition for Field Workforces
Paid holidays are employer-designated days off with pay — field employees working holidays may earn premium pay per policy and GPS-documented holiday shifts.
Maternity Leave: Definition & Field Employee Context
Maternity leave is job-protected time off for childbirth and recovery — field employers coordinate FMLA leave with GPS system access suspension.