Guide

How do I prove hours worked to a general contractor?

Q: How do I prove hours worked to a general contractor?

Prove hours with contemporaneous records. Use timestamped GPS timelines, signed time-and-material tickets, or daily logs showing your name, dates, arrival and departure times, work locations, and tasks. Records created at the time work occurs carry more weight than reconstructed estimates.

By Ryder Wishart — trades experience and contractor office administration · Updated 2026-11-06

Quick quiz

What makes a digital GPS time record more defensible than a paper timecard filled out from memory?

Contemporaneous records created during the work carry more evidentiary weight than reconstructed estimates. A GPS timeline with timestamps and coordinates provides independent verification that is harder to dispute than rounded hours written from memory.

No record is automatically conclusive. However, digital GPS records with timestamps and location data raise the burden for anyone disputing the hours. The opposing party must address the corroborating evidence rather than simply claiming hours are inflated.

GPS timelines provide proof of when and where you worked. They work best combined with other documentation like signed T&M tickets that capture tasks, materials, and GC authorization. Different documentation serves different purposes in proving hours and scope.

For solo subs doing T&M work, a GPS timeline created during the job is stronger evidence than hours reconstructed Friday from Monday through Thursday memory.

Why contemporaneous records matter

Construction arbitrators and general contractors treat records created during the work as fact. Records reconstructed from memory later are viewed as estimates.

A foreman who fills out Monday through Thursday hours on Friday afternoon produces a log that looks complete but lacks evidentiary weight. Rounded hours, missing delays, and omitted early departures make the record vulnerable when a GC disputes the invoice.

Digital time records with timestamps, GPS coordinates, and verified worker identity are harder to challenge. The opposing party must address the corroborating data rather than simply claiming hours are inflated.

What general contractors expect in time documentation

Federal Davis-Bacon and CWHSSA regulations set the minimum standard for labor records on government contracts. These rules require worker name and ID, job classification, hourly rate, and daily and weekly hours worked.

Those same standards apply to commercial work when a GC requests backup for disputed hours. A field entry that states crew size and general task description does not answer which specific workers were on site, how hours split across cost codes, or whether breaks are included.

Each missing piece becomes a contested point during payment disputes.

GPS time tracking as proof

A GPS timeline shows timestamped arrivals and departures at each job site. For solo subcontractors, this creates a defensible record without manual clock-in steps.

Your phone records location readings while you work. At the end of the day, you review a timeline of stops and trips. Each stop shows address, arrival time, departure time, and duration. You can label stops with job names and export the timeline as text or PDF.

When a GC questions T&M hours, you provide the GPS-stamped timeline showing exactly when you arrived and left. The timestamp is verifiable, and the location data provides independent proof of on-site presence.

This approach works best for solo contractors and small operations. Crew tracking typically requires clock-in systems with per-worker identity verification.

Signed T&M tickets and daily logs

Time-and-material tickets capture extra work as it happens. A useful T&M ticket includes project name, date, ticket number, work location, detailed task description, worker name and classification, regular and overtime hours, equipment use, materials with delivery references, and photos.

The GC's authorized reviewer signs to acknowledge observed hours and materials. Label what the signature confirms. A superintendent may have authority to verify observed quantities but not approve payment.

Daily logs should list crew by name and trade, start and stop times, work performed with location and percent complete, materials received with ticket numbers, safety incidents, GC directives, and next-day plans. Submit logs by the deadline specified in your subcontract.

How TradesTimer records proof for solo subs

TradesTimer uses background GPS to automatically record stops and trips. Your phone detects when you arrive at a job site and when you leave. At the end of the day, you review a timeline with addresses, times, and durations.

You label each stop with a job name. Select billable visits, then export rounded hours and a mileage log. The export includes dates, times, addresses, and durations. This contemporaneous record shows exactly when you were on site.

The timeline stays on your phone unless you choose to share an export. No account signup, no per-user fees, and no monthly subscription.

When reconstructed records fail

A GC with digital time capture will have precise clock-in data. If your paper timecard shows different numbers, the GC's records carry more weight.

Common gaps in reconstructed timecards include rounded hours instead of actual minutes, missing delays for safety training or weather, early departures not recorded, and work split across multiple cost codes treated as one scope.

Avoid these problems by recording time as work happens. Use a GPS timeline, digital clock-in system, or same-day field logs. Keep originals for three years after project completion.

The founder’s experience

I ran the back office for an electrical contractor with about ten electricians on the road. I handled purchase orders, parts, invoices, and time tracking. When hours surfaced weeks after the work, we ate them. With ten workers, lost billable time was not a small problem.

I saw what happened when time records came from memory instead of same-day capture. Disputes over hours, missing increments, and reconstructed timecards that did not match the GC's own logs.

TradesTimer records stops and trips automatically using background GPS. Your phone creates the timeline as you work. At invoice time, you have contemporaneous proof of when you arrived and left each site. For solo subcontractors, this eliminates the gap between doing the work and documenting the hours.

— Ryder, founder of TradesTimer. Experience in framing, fencing, roofing, concrete, drywall, painting, and office administration for an electrical contractor.

FAQ

Can I use my GPS timeline instead of a signed timecard?

A GPS timeline provides contemporaneous proof of when you were on site. It works best combined with other documentation like signed T&M tickets or daily logs. If the GC disputes hours, the GPS-stamped arrivals and departures support your claim. For government work, check whether certified payroll or specific formats are required.

What if I forgot to record time on Tuesday and need to add it Friday?

Late entries are weaker than same-day records. If you must reconstruct time, note that it is a late entry and explain why. Provide any supporting evidence like text messages, delivery receipts, or photos with timestamps. Contemporaneous records always carry more weight than memory-based estimates.

How long do I need to keep time records after the job finishes?

Federal CWHSSA rules require three years. Many commercial contracts specify similar retention periods. Keep originals or verified copies of timecards, GPS exports, T&M tickets, daily logs, and any correspondence about disputed hours. Store them safely in case of payment disputes or audits.

Will a general contractor accept a GPS timeline from my phone?

GCs expect records that show when work occurred and where. A GPS timeline with timestamps, addresses, and durations meets that standard for solo subcontractors. If your contract requires specific formats like certified payroll or signed timecards, follow those rules. GPS proof can support disputed hours even when other documentation is required.

Last updated 2026-11-06.