Labor Analytics Reports

The Labor Analytics Report goes beyond basic time tracking to help you understand the relationship between your labor investment and your revenue. With three specialized presets — Labor Cost vs Sales, Sales per Labor Hour, and Staffing by Hour — this report provides the data-driven insights you need to optimize staffing levels, control labor costs, and maximize productivity.

How to Access

Open the Labor Analytics Report from the main menu:

• Reports > Employees > Labor Analytics > Labor Cost vs Sales — opens with the LaborCostVsSales preset selected
• Reports > Employees > Labor Analytics > Sales per Labor Hour — opens with the SalesPerLaborHour preset selected
• Reports > Employees > Labor Analytics > Staffing by Hour — opens with the StaffingByHour preset selected

All three menu entries open the same report form. The only difference is which preset is selected by default. You can switch between presets at any time using the Preset dropdown.

Required Permission

You must have the RPT_VIEW_EMPLOYEES permission to access this report. Super Admins and Location Admins have this permission by default.

Filters

The report provides the following filter controls along the top of the window:

After changing any filter, click Refresh or press F5 to reload the data.

Labor Cost vs Sales (LaborCostVsSales)

This preset compares your total labor expenditure against your total sales revenue for each period, revealing whether your staffing costs are proportional to the revenue being generated.

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How the Data Is Calculated

The report pulls data from three sources:

1. Time clock entries — Clock-in/out records provide the actual hours each employee worked
2. Employee salary records — The hourly rate (or derived hourly rate for salaried employees) determines the cost per hour
3. Invoices — Completed invoices within the date range provide the sales revenue figure

Labor cost includes regular pay, overtime premiums (1.5x), and double time premiums (2x) but does not include benefits, taxes, or other employer-side costs. Keep this in mind when comparing against industry benchmarks that may include fully loaded labor costs.

Labor Cost Percentage Benchmarks

Labor cost as a percentage of sales varies significantly by industry. Here are some common benchmarks to help you evaluate your numbers:

• Retail stores — 15% to 25% is typical for most retail operations
• Restaurants / food service — 25% to 35% is common, with quick-service on the lower end and full-service on the higher end
• Professional services — 35% to 50% is not unusual given the labor-intensive nature of the work
• Manufacturing — 20% to 30% depending on automation levels

If your Labor Cost % consistently exceeds your target, investigate whether you are overstaffing during slow periods, paying excessive overtime, or if your pricing needs adjustment. If it is consistently below target, verify that you are not understaffing to the point where customer service or employee well-being suffers.

Sales per Labor Hour (SalesPerLaborHour)

This preset measures the revenue generated for each hour of labor invested. It is one of the most important efficiency metrics for any labor-dependent business.

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Using Sales per Labor Hour for Scheduling

The Sales per Labor Hour metric is a powerful tool for making scheduling decisions:

• Consistently high values may indicate understaffing — your team is generating strong revenue but may be stretched thin, leading to burnout or poor customer service
• Consistently low values may indicate overstaffing — you have more labor hours than needed to handle the sales volume
• Volatile values suggest inconsistent scheduling — some periods are well-staffed while others are not

The ideal approach is to track this metric over several months to establish your baseline, then set a realistic target. Review the report weekly and adjust upcoming schedules accordingly. When sales per labor hour drops below target, consider reducing scheduled hours for the following week. When it exceeds target, consider adding hours to prevent employee fatigue and maintain service quality.

Staffing by Hour (StaffingByHour)

This preset analyzes your staffing levels and sales performance for each hour of the business day, helping you identify when you are overstaffed or understaffed.

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Identifying Over- and Under-Staffed Periods

The Staffing by Hour report reveals mismatches between your labor supply and customer demand:

• High Sales per Employee + Peak Indicator — This hour is a peak period and your staff may be stretched thin. Consider adding an employee during this hour.
• Low Sales per Employee, no Peak Indicator — This hour has more staff than needed relative to sales. Consider reducing coverage or staggering shift start times.
• High Avg Sales + Low Avg Employees — A clear understaffing signal. Customers are buying, but service may be suffering.
• Low Avg Sales + High Avg Employees — A clear overstaffing signal. Labor cost is being spent during low-traffic hours.

Use this report to build or refine your standard scheduling template. Align shift start and end times with the hours where demand rises and falls, rather than using uniform shifts that do not match traffic patterns.

Common Use Cases

1. Monthly labor review — Run LaborCostVsSales for the past month to verify labor spending is within target and present findings at management meetings
2. Scheduling optimization — Run StaffingByHour for the past 4 weeks and adjust next week's schedule to better align staffing with peak hours
3. Efficiency tracking — Run SalesPerLaborHour weekly to monitor whether operational changes (training, layout changes, new processes) are improving productivity
4. Location comparison — Run any preset with different locations selected to compare labor efficiency across stores and share best practices from high-performing locations
5. Seasonal planning — Run LaborCostVsSales for the past 12 months to identify seasonal labor cost patterns and plan hiring or hour reductions ahead of seasonal shifts

Tips

• Set realistic targets — Use 3-6 months of historical data to establish your Labor Cost % and Sales per Hour targets before comparing against them
• Account for ramp-up — New employees are less productive. A drop in Sales per Labor Hour after a hiring wave is expected and temporary.
• Combine with Time & Attendance — Use the Time & Attendance Reports to investigate the underlying hours data when labor analytics show unexpected results
• Review after promotions — Major sales or promotions will increase Total Sales, which can temporarily improve labor metrics. Look at non-promotional periods for your true baseline.
• Watch trends, not single periods — A single week of high labor cost may not be concerning. A three-month upward trend in Labor Cost % is a signal that requires action.
• Use StaffingByHour before expanding hours — If you are considering extending business hours, check whether early morning or late evening hours generate enough sales per employee to justify the labor cost

Related Articles

• Time & Attendance Reports
• Sales Trend Reports
• Salary & Payroll Reports
• Getting Started with Reports & Analytics