Attendance codes explained: P, A, HD, L, OT and WO

What do the common attendance codes mean?

Different agencies, clients and software use different letters for the same thing. This guide is part of our contract staff attendance guide. Here are the codes you will meet most often, and how they usually count for pay:

Notice the overlaps already: "H" can mean half-day on one sheet and holiday on another; "HD" can mean half-day or holiday. That is exactly how pay mistakes start.

Why is a bare "L" a problem?

"L" is the most dangerous letter on a muster roll. On some sites it means late, a full paid day. On others it means leave, which may be paid or unpaid. If one supervisor uses L for late and another for leave, the office cannot tell them apart at month end. Two staff with the same mark get different pay, or the same pay when they should not.

The fix is simple: never use a one-letter code that can mean two things. Write LATE and LEAVE in full, or LT and LV.

Which codes does HaazriPro use?

HaazriPro uses seven statuses, each with a fixed colour that appears as a ring and icon on the staff member's face photo:

Present is green, late orange, absent red, half-day amber, paid leave blue, overtime purple and transferred grey. Because a supervisor taps a face photo and picks a status, there is no letter to misread. Our free monthly attendance sheet uses the same seven codes in a drop-down, plus WO for a weekly off.

Should late arrival have its own code?

Yes. Many registers have no code for late, so a supervisor either marks P (and the lateness is forgotten) or A (and someone who worked most of the day loses it). Neither is fair, and both cause arguments. A separate LATE code records what actually happened: the person came and worked, but not on time.

What a late day is worth is then a policy decision, made once, in writing. In HaazriPro and on our free sheet, a late day is a full paid day. If your policy cuts pay for lateness, mark the day as a half-day instead, so the cut is visible on the sheet rather than hidden in a calculation. HaazriPro also lets the supervisor record the time the person arrived, which helps when a pattern of lateness needs a conversation.

HaazriPro works this out every month from your attendance, for every staff member and site. Start 30-day free trial  →

How do the codes turn into paid days?

Once each code has one meaning, paid days are easy to count. A common rule, and the one our sheet and calculators use:

Paid days = P + LATE + OT + paid leave + ½ × half-days

Absent days, weekly offs and transfers out are not counted at that site.

Worked example: one staff member's month

At ₹700 a day, that is ₹17,500 before overtime and deductions. The overtime hours on the two OT days are paid on top; see the staff salary calculator, which takes paid days, half-days and overtime hours and works out net pay.

How do you convert an old sheet with messy codes?

If you are moving from old registers, map every code to one meaning before you count anything:

1. List every code that appears on the sheets, including ticks, numbers and blanks.
2. Agree a meaning for each with the supervisor who wrote it. For ambiguous ones such as a bare L, ask; do not guess.
3. Treat blanks carefully. A blank is not an absence and not a weekly off until someone confirms it.
4. Write the mapping down and use it for every site and every month.

This is the same discipline our team follows when we import an old sheet into HaazriPro: a code we cannot map with certainty is sent back to the owner to decide, never guessed.

Do the codes matter for legal registers?

Statutory registers record attendance day by day. For central-sphere establishments, the 2026 central rules under the Labour Codes set the attendance register-cum-muster roll in Form XIV, which records each day with the shift and in and out times and overtime hours. State rules apply elsewhere. Clear, consistent codes make it far easier to fill any required format from your daily record. See our guide to contractor registers, and for how marks are kept accurate at many sites, the guide to multi-site attendance.

Sources

• OSH and Working Conditions (Central) Rules, 2026, G.S.R. 345(E): Form XIV attendance register-cum-muster roll (eGazette)
• PIB, 21 Nov 2025: the four Labour Codes made effective

This guide explains the rules in plain language. It is not legal or tax advice. Laws and rates change, so check the register format that applies to you with your labour consultant before you act on it.