Payroll for manufacturing
Payroll software for manufacturing units and factories
On a shop floor, payroll starts at the gate. Hundreds of punches across A, B and C shifts decide who was late, who stayed back and how many days each worker is paid for. Swastik Payroll reads those punches, applies your shift and late rules, and prepares PF and ESIC for a workforce that is mostly under the wage ceilings.
The problem
What makes factory payroll hard
Punch data that nobody wants to export
The biometric machine holds every punch, but the salary sheet needs present days, late marks and overtime per worker. Exporting and cleaning that file each month takes days and invites mistakes.
Three shifts, rotating weekly
Workers move between A, B and C shifts. Whether 06:24 is late, or 15:30 is overtime, depends on which shift the worker was on that day, and the night shift ends on the next date.
Overtime you must be able to justify
Overtime affects wages and your legal exposure. An inspector or auditor may ask how many hours a worker did in a quarter, and a spreadsheet total is hard to defend.
Cash, bank, advances and PF together
Some workers are paid in cash and some by bank transfer. Advances are common. Nearly everyone falls under PF and ESIC, and the portal files must match the wages actually paid.
How Swastik Payroll handles it
From gate punch to locked salary
- Biometric sync every minute from attendance systems that store punches in a database. First punch is in time, last punch is out time. Compatibility is confirmed during the demo.
- Shifts with scheduled breaks, including overnight shifts, assigned to each worker with effective dates so weekly rotation is recorded properly.
- Overtime hours measured beyond the end of each worker's assigned shift and totalled in the monthly salary record.
- Late-coming rules that deduct leave hours from casual leave once late marks cross the limit, with a late report per worker.
- Bulk attendance management and manual entry for days when the machine was down, plus time sheet and attendance sheet exports.
- Salary advances and loans with EMI recovery, skipped months and custom amounts.
- Monthly payment report filtered by cash or bank transfer, bank name and department, exportable as CSV.
Sample three-shift plan
Example only. Your shift names, timings and breaks will differ.
| Shift | Timing | Break | Week 1 | Week 2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | 06:00 – 14:00 | 10:00 – 10:30 | Line 1 | Line 3 |
| B | 14:00 – 22:00 | 18:00 – 18:30 | Line 2 | Line 1 |
| C (overnight) | 22:00 – 06:00 | 02:00 – 02:30 | Line 3 | Line 2 |
Reading the punch board above against this plan: Ramesh left A shift at 15:30, 1.5 hours after 14:00. Manoj's C shift ended at 06:00 the next morning and he punched out at 07:15, so 1.25 hours are recorded. Deepak arrived at 06:24, past the grace time, and gets a late mark.
Compliance note
Overtime, PF and ESIC on the shop floor
Overtime. Under Section 59 of the Factories Act, and the OSH Code that took its place from 21 November 2025, overtime is generally paid at twice the ordinary rate of wages. Ordinary rate means basic plus allowances, excluding bonus and overtime. The Factories Act threshold is 9 hours a day or 48 a week; the OSH Code uses an 8-hour day, and states set quarterly overtime limits. Rules under the codes are still being notified, so check your state.
Swastik Payroll records overtime hours and an overtime amount per worker. Check that amount against the rate your unit must pay before approving the month; the salary record has an adjustments field with notes for corrections.
PF and ESIC. EPF is mandatory at 20 employees and ESIC for notified factories with 10 or more (20 in some states). Most workers earn under ₹15,000 of PF wages and ₹21,000 of gross wages, so nearly every name appears in both returns. A worker whose average daily wage is up to ₹176 does not pay the employee ESIC share, though the employer still pays 3.25%.
Illustration of the legal rule
A worker's ordinary wages are ₹15,600 a month for 26 working days on an 8-hour shift.
- Daily rate: ₹15,600 ÷ 26 = ₹600
- Hourly rate: ₹600 ÷ 8 = ₹75
- Overtime rate at twice ordinary: ₹150 per hour
- 10 overtime hours in the month: ₹1,500
This shows how the statutory formula works. It is not output from the software, and the right divisor for your unit depends on your wage agreement and state rules. Try other figures in the overtime calculator.
Contract-style staff
Workers who join, leave and come back
Bulk import
Add a new batch of workers from a CSV or Excel file with UAN, ESIC number, department and payment method.
Joining and leaving dates
Each profile holds the date of joining and date of leaving, so short engagements are clear in the records.
Contractor workers
Workers supplied by a contractor are paid by that contractor. As principal employer, you are generally expected to check that their wages, PF and ESIC have been paid.
FAQ
Manufacturing payroll questions
Which biometric machines does it work with?
Swastik Payroll syncs from biometric attendance systems that store punches in a database, checking for new punches every minute. We confirm compatibility with your device during the demo.
What happens when a worker forgets to punch out?
Without an out punch no overtime is counted for that day. HR can correct the record through manual attendance entry or bulk attendance management, and every change is logged.
Can workers be paid partly in cash and partly by bank?
Each worker has one payment method on the profile, cash or bank. The monthly payment report separates the two. Payment status can be marked paid, partially paid or held, and any shortfall is carried to the next month as arrears through salary reconciliation.
Does it upload the ECR to EPFO?
No. It produces the ECR v2.0 text file and the ESIC contribution CSV. You upload them and pay on the EPFO and ESIC portals with your establishment login.
Related
Attendance Management
Biometric sync, mobile punch, shifts and late rules.
PF Management
EPF, EPS and EDLI figures with ECR v2.0 export.
ESI Management
Eligibility, 0.75% / 3.25% contributions, ESIC export.
Overtime Calculator
Hourly rate and overtime wages.
Overtime Pay Rules
Rates, limits and worked examples.
ESI Contribution Periods
Why coverage continues mid-period.
Test it on a week of your gate punches
Tell us your shift timings and the attendance device you use. We will show how punches become late marks, overtime hours and a PF and ESIC-ready salary run.