Schedules people can see
Staff see the week the moment it is published, pick up open shifts and start swaps themselves. Managers get told before a shift goes uncovered, not after.
Employee app
The employee self service app your team will actually open
Workzenly is an employee self service app for every person on your payroll. Clock in, see and swap shifts, request PTO, check pay stubs, send an expense, sign onboarding forms and find a policy, all from one phone. Each employee sees only their own record.
- Built for phones first
- Shared tablet for clocking in
- Each person sees only their own
Wed, Nov 11
Good morning, Maya
Front counter · Northfield Coffee
8:58 AM
Today’s shift 9:00 AM–5:30 PM
Not clocked in yet
PTO left
52 hrsof 80 hrs
Next paycheck
Fri, Nov 20Nov 1–14
Next shift
Mon, Nov 16 · 7:00 AM–3:30 PMSwap a shift
Sat, Nov 21
Your shift
9:00 AM–5:30 PM
Front counter · 8.0 h after break
Who can take it
Aisha Brown
Free Sat · 24.0 → 32.0 hJordan Lee
38.0 → 46.0 h that weekPick someone to ask
Pay stub · paid Fri, Nov 6
Oct 18–31
Regular 65.4 h × $17.50$1,144.50
PTO 8.0 h × $17.50$140.00
Gross pay$1,284.50
Federal income tax−$62.00
Social Security−$79.64
Medicare−$18.63
Net pay$1,124.23
Direct deposit
Checking ··4417Built for teams that work in shifts
- Restaurants and cafés
- Retail stores
- Clinics
- Home care
- Job sites
- Warehouses
- Offices
“When am I working Saturday?” “How much PTO do I have?” “Where’s my pay stub?” Every one of those lands on the manager’s phone.
Give every employee the answer before they ask
An employee app puts each person’s schedule, hours, PTO balance, pay stubs and paperwork on their own phone. The answer is the same record the manager and payroll use, so nobody has to look it up and text it back.
What changes in the first month
Fewer questions for managers, fewer surprises for staff
Pay questions answer themselves
Pay stubs appear in the app on payday, next to the hours and PTO behind them. People can check their own numbers at 11 PM without waiting for the office to open.
Requests in one place
PTO, expense claims and missed-punch fixes arrive as requests with the details filled in, instead of as texts, sticky notes and hallway conversations.
Paperwork done before day one
New hires sign their offer letter, fill out the W-4 and I-9, add direct deposit and read the handbook on their own phone, so the first shift starts with work.
How it works
Four things employees do in the employee mobile app
Every screen reads and writes the same record your managers and payroll work from, so a swap, a PTO request or an expense shows up where it needs to without anyone retyping it.
The week, on the phone in their pocket
Employees clock in from the app, with GPS and geofencing confirming they are at the right site. Their own shifts sit on the same screen, along with open shifts they can pick up.
- Today’s shift and this week’s hours on one screen
- Pick up an open shift or start a swap
- Ask for a fix if a clock-out was missed
My week · Nov 8–14
Maya Torres
Hours this week26.4 of 40
8.0 h still scheduled · today 9:00 AM–5:30 PM
Open shift · Front counter
Fri, Nov 13 · 1:00–5:00 PM · 4.0 h34.4 h scheduled this week
Mon, Nov 9 clock-out
Recorded 3:31 PMTime off without the email chain
Employees pick the day, see their balance before and after, and send. The manager sees who else is out before saying yes, and the balance updates itself once it is approved.
- Balances accrue on their own each pay period
- Status shows pending, approved or declined
- Approved PTO lands in payroll as PTO
Request time off
Fri, Nov 27
TypePTO
Hours8.0
Balance now52.0 h
After this request44.0 h
Goes to Marcus (manager)
Wed, Oct 28
PTO · 8.0 hReceipts sent from the store aisle
Bought milk on the way in? Photograph the receipt, pick a category and send. Once a manager approves it, the claim is paid with the next paycheck and shows on the pay stub.
- The receipt photo travels with the claim
- Employees see when it is approved
- Reimbursed on the next paycheck, not in cash
New expense
$23.40
CategorySupplies
DateWed, Nov 11
NoteMilk run, opening
Paid with your next paycheck once approved
The handbook, searchable
Policies, the handbook and each person’s own documents are stored in Workzenly and searchable. Typing “uniform” finds the dress code before anyone texts the manager a photo of their shoes.
- Search across the handbook and policies
- Their own signed offer letter and forms
- The current version, not last year’s PDF
Policies and documents
Find a policy
uniform
Dress code and uniform
Handbook · “black apron, closed-toe shoes”Uniform replacement
Handbook · expenses sectionMy documents
Offer letter
SignedEmployee handbook
Read and acknowledgedOnboarding on the phone
New hires finish the paperwork before the first shift
The day someone accepts, the employee app becomes their onboarding packet. They sign the offer letter, fill out their W-4 and Section 1 of the I-9, add direct deposit and read the handbook. The manager sees what is done and what is left, and the documents stay with that person’s record.
- Offer letter signed from the same app they will clock in with
- W-4, I-9 and direct deposit filled out by the employee
- Handbook read and acknowledged before day one
Dana Brooks
Barista · $18.25/hr · Northfield Coffee
Done on her phone5 of 5
Offer letter signed
Tue, Oct 27Form W-4
Thu, Oct 29Form I-9, Section 1
Thu, Oct 29 · documents on file Mon, Nov 2Direct deposit
Checking account addedEmployee handbook
Read Fri, Oct 30Shift swaps and open shifts
Staff sort out coverage, managers stay in the loop
When Maya can’t work a Saturday, she offers it from the app instead of texting the whole team. The schedule shows the change as soon as it happens, and managers get told before a shift goes uncovered, with time to offer it to someone who is free.
- Swaps and pickups show on the schedule right away
- Warnings before a pickup pushes someone into overtime
- Uncovered shifts flagged before the day, not on it
Maya Torres → Aisha Brown
Sat, Nov 21 · front counter · 9:00 AM–5:30 PMMaya Torres picked up an open shift
Fri, Nov 13 · 1:00–5:00 PM · 38.4 h that weekKitchen shift has nobody on it
Sun, Nov 15 · 6:00 AM–2:30 PMSam Rivera is free Sunday
Kitchen · 8.0 h after break · first shift of his weekExpenses and pay
From a receipt photo to the next pay stub
Claims sent from the employee app land in one list for the manager, each with its receipt and category. Approved claims are added to the next paycheck alongside approved hours, overtime and PTO, and the employee sees the line on their pay stub on payday.
- Approve or send back with a reason
- Approved claims flow into payroll
- Employees track their own claims
| Employee | Category | Submitted | Amount | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ECEmily Carter | Kitchen supplies | Thu, Nov 5 | $86.00 | Approved |
| MTMaya Torres | Supplies | Wed, Nov 11 | $23.40 | Waiting |
| Total | $109.40 |
1 claim waiting · $23.40
Approve to add it to Maya’s Nov 20 paycheckWho uses it
One employee app, four people who rely on it
Role
Employees
Replaces
Texting the manager, paper stubs and the binder in the back
They use it to
Clock in, check and swap shifts, request PTO, read pay stubs, send expenses and find policies
What they notice
Answers at any hour, without asking anyone
Role
Managers
Replaces
Group texts and requests scattered across channels
They use it to
Approve PTO, expenses and timesheets from their phone and see coverage gaps early
What they notice
Fewer “quick questions” during a rush
Role
Payroll
Replaces
Printing stubs and re-entering direct deposit forms
They use it to
Run payroll from approved hours, PTO and expenses, then publish stubs to each app
What they notice
Fewer “was I paid right?” calls
Role
Owners
Replaces
Onboarding packets and filing cabinets
They use it to
Keep forms, policies and records with each person, with access they control
What they notice
Paperwork that is finished and findable
Access you control
Self service that stays private
Employees see their own
Each person sees their own shifts, hours, PTO, pay stubs and documents, never a coworker’s.
Managers see their team
Managers see their team’s shifts and time off, and approve their team’s requests and timesheets.
Pay stays with payroll
Pay rates and pay stubs are visible only to the employee and the people you give payroll access to.
Connected
One app in front of every Workzenly feature
Employee time clock app
Clock in and out by phone with GPS and geofencing.
Time clock →Employee scheduling
Build the week by dragging people into shifts; staff see it instantly.
Scheduling →PTO tracking
Requests in two taps and balances that accrue on their own.
PTO →Payroll
Approved hours, PTO and expenses become pay stubs in the app.
Payroll →Onboarding
Offer letter, W-4, I-9 and direct deposit before day one.
Onboarding →HR documents
Offer letters, I-9 documents and the handbook, stored with each person.
HR documents →Hand every employee their own record
See the employee app with your own team’s names on it. We set up a demo workspace with your company name before the call.
The buyer’s guide to an employee self service app
Most small employers already have self service of a kind: a schedule photo in the group chat and a manager who answers the same five questions every day. This guide covers what an employee self service app does, who changes what, the privacy and legal points to check, and how to roll one out to hourly staff.
What an employee self service app does
Employee self service (ESS) means employees look up and update their own work information instead of asking someone in charge. An ESS app puts that on the phone. For an hourly team the core jobs are:
- Time. Clocking in and out, breaks, and seeing hours this week. Workzenly’s employee time clock app handles this, with GPS and geofencing.
- Schedule. Seeing the week as soon as it is published, picking up open shifts and swapping with a coworker.
- Time off. Requesting PTO and seeing the balance. Workzenly’s PTO tracking keeps balances accruing on their own.
- Pay. Reading pay stubs on payday and following the hours, PTO and expenses behind them.
- Paperwork. Signing the offer letter, filling out the W-4 and I-9, adding direct deposit, and finding the handbook later.
Older employee self service portals were web pages built for office staff with a work email and a laptop. A shift worker needs the same functions on a phone, quick enough to use on a break. That is the difference between a portal people log into once a year and an employee app they open every shift.
ESS app vs manager portal
Every workforce system has two sides. The employee side asks and looks things up. The manager side approves, plans and pays. Both should read from the same record, or you end up reconciling two versions of the truth.
| Task | Employee self service app | Manager side |
|---|---|---|
| Hours | Clock in and out, see this week’s total, ask for a missed-punch fix | See who is in, late or out; approve the week’s timesheets |
| Schedule | See own shifts, pick up open shifts, start a swap | Build the week, get told before a shift goes uncovered |
| Time off | Request PTO, see own balance and status | See who else is out, approve or decline |
| Pay | Read own pay stubs | Run payroll (payroll access only) |
| Expenses | Photograph receipt, pick category, send | Approve; approved claims paid with next paycheck |
| Documents | Sign own forms, search policies | Store records with each person, keep the handbook current |
| Device | Built for phones first | Approvals on a phone; payroll easiest on a laptop |
What employees change themselves vs what managers approve
The point of self service is fewer hand-offs, but anything that changes pay or coverage still needs a second pair of eyes. A sensible split for an hourly business looks like this:
| Employees do it themselves | Employee asks, manager approves | Manager or payroll only |
|---|---|---|
| Clock in and out, start and end breaks | PTO requests | Pay rates and job titles |
| Read their schedule and pay stubs | Expense claims | Timesheet approval |
| Fill out their own W-4, I-9 Section 1 and direct deposit during onboarding | Fixes to a missed or wrong punch | Running payroll |
| Search policies and read the handbook | Shift swaps and pickups, if your policy says so | Reviewing I-9 identity documents |
Write the split into your employee handbook so nobody has to guess, especially for swaps. For punch fixes, the correction should keep the original punch next to it, with who made it and why.
Privacy and access
An employee app concentrates sensitive data: pay, bank details, tax forms, identity documents. Three rules keep it under control.
- Each employee sees only their own record. No shared logins, no coworker’s pay stub one tap away. In Workzenly every person has their own account.
- Managers see their team, not everything. A shift lead needs the schedule and time off for their people. They do not need anyone’s pay rate.
- Pay is limited to payroll access. Decide who that is by name, and review the list when someone changes role or leaves.
If you turn on GPS for clocking in, tell employees what is recorded and when. Workzenly records location at the clock-in, inside a geofence you draw; our guide to GPS time clock apps covers the notice and consent questions.
Rules to check before you go paperless
- Pay stubs. Federal law does not require pay stubs, but many states do, and each sets its own rules on electronic stubs. Some allow them only if the employee can view and print them or agrees to it. Our guide on how to read a pay stub explains what a stub shows and lists the common state rules.
- Time spent in the app. Under the Fair Labor Standards Act, work that is “suffered or permitted” is work time (29 CFR 785.11). If you require non-exempt staff to finish training, read policies or fill out forms in the app, pay for that time.
- Personal phones. California Labor Code section 2802 requires employers to reimburse necessary work expenses, and a 2014 California appeals court decision applied it to a reasonable share of personal cell phone bills. Check your state before you make a personal phone mandatory.
- Electronic W-4 and I-9. The IRS allows employers to collect the Form W-4 electronically if the system meets its requirements. USCIS allows electronic Form I-9 storage with integrity controls, an audit trail and an index; Section 1 is due no later than the first day of work for pay, and you still review the employee’s documents yourself.
This guide is general information, not legal advice. Rules change, so check your state labor department or an employment lawyer for your situation.
Rolling it out to hourly staff
Hourly teams adopt an app when the first thing they do in it is useful. Start with clocking in and the schedule, which everyone needs every shift, then add pay stubs and requests.
- Import everyone first. Send your employee list and current PTO balances as a spreadsheet; Workzenly imports them during setup, so each person opens the app to their own balance instead of a zero.
- Plan for people without a phone at work. Where phones stay in lockers, or someone does not want a work app on a personal device, set up a shared tablet at the door as a time clock kiosk. They can check the rest from home.
- Do sign-up on the clock. Walk each shift through installing the app during a paid huddle.
- Pick a clean start date. Start at the beginning of a workweek and a pay period, so the first pay stub in the app covers hours that were all clocked in the app.
New hires are the easiest group. If they sign their offer letter and finish their forms in the app, as described in our employee onboarding guide, it is already the place they go for work.
How to choose an employee app
Hand a phone to your least technical employee and ask them to clock in, find next Saturday’s shift, request a day off and open last week’s pay stub. Then check that the request reaches the manager with the balance attached. Ask each vendor:
- Does the employee app use the same record as scheduling, time off and payroll, or does it sync?
- What does an employee see, what does a manager see, and who can see pay?
- What happens for workers without a smartphone at work?
- Can new hires finish onboarding forms in the app before day one?
- Who handles payroll tax deposits and filings? Ask us on the demo call how that works with Workzenly.
If you are still building a shortlist, our neutral comparison of the best HR software for small business covers the main options. If you want to see the employee app with your own team, book a demo and we will set up a workspace with your company name before the call.
FAQ
Questions about an employee self service app
Something else on your mind? Write to [email protected].
What is an employee self service app?
An employee self service app lets workers handle their own everyday HR tasks from a phone: clocking in, checking their schedule, requesting time off, viewing pay stubs and finding company policies. Instead of asking a manager or the office, they look it up or send a request. In Workzenly the same app also covers shift swaps, expenses and onboarding forms.
Can employees see their coworkers’ pay or records?
No. In Workzenly each employee sees only their own record: their hours, shifts, PTO balance, pay stubs and documents. Managers see their team’s shifts and time off, and pay is visible only to the people you give payroll access to.
Do employees need their own smartphone?
Most will use their own phone, because the employee side is built for phones first. Where phones stay in lockers or someone does not want work apps on a personal device, a shared tablet at the door works as a time clock instead. If you require personal phones, check your state’s rules on reimbursing work use, such as California’s.
What can employees do themselves and what needs a manager?
Employees clock in and out, see their schedule, start a shift swap or pick up an open shift, read their pay stubs, search policies and fill out their own onboarding forms. Requests that affect pay or coverage, such as PTO, expense claims and missed-punch fixes, go to a manager to approve, and managers approve timesheets before they reach payroll.
Are pay stubs in an app legal?
Federal law does not require pay stubs at all, but many states do, and states set their own rules on electronic stubs. Some allow them only if employees can view and print them, or agree to receive them that way. Check your state labor department before you stop handing out paper.
How long does it take to roll out?
Most small teams are clocking in within a week. We import your employee list and PTO balances from a spreadsheet during setup, each person gets their own account, and we stay with you through the first pay run so the first pay stubs land in the app on payday.