WTF? When did this BS start?

Lisa B.

So yesterday I was finishing a project on an hourly contract, and noticed the current session time was accurate on the tracker, but the time being recorded were around 30 minutes less. And then I was billed for 5 hours and 30 minutes instead of the full 6 hours that I worked.

"Kayla" in support answered my complaint this morning, explaining that now the time tracker automatically deducts time if there's not enough activity being recorded. Such nonsense since I definitely worked the full 6 hours and the time was accurately tracked. I didn't take any long breaks or pauses.

In 8+ years on Upwork, this has never happened—even when I did take breaks in the past while the tracker was running.

Vladimir

Lisa B. I'm sure you know this but would it be possible you didn't have any activity (no keystrokes or mouse movements) for a shorter period of time? I'm asking since the screenshots are taken randomly and it's possible the segments in question weren't 10 or more minutes apart but a lot closer, making even a shorter break result in losing a segment or two.

If I remember correctly this information is cached in the app only for a week or so. If you're positive you haven't had any inactive periods, do ask if there are other reports coming in and if the Technical Support Team could take a look, and for steps how to share the necessary info from your end. Note that even if this happens, sometimes it might take longer for the escalation to happen.

Lisa B.

Thanks, Vladimir.

Yeah, that could be but why has this never happened to me before in 8+ years of using the time tracker? I think this is some tweak they've recently made to the tracker. Maybe they think this new method will make it faster for them to check the work diaries after a client refuses to pay or there's a chargeback. It's already calculated for them.

The support gal sent me a long response that even had screenshots from my work diary that supposedly proved that iI had low activity here and there, but the thermometer thingy still looked pretty full to me. That's why reaching out to the tech team won't do any good because of those screenshots that are supposed to prove something, but really don't.

Wakey

I know they have to have a way of combating abuse but it is a ridiculous way of doing things as actually not all jobs will result in lost of input during periods of a job. For example if I'm having to upload lots of files as part of a job or I'm having to update software which might need single click or command line typed that I need to be there to oversee it so I know if there are any issues and when its done to move onto the next part but I don't need to be clicking or typing anything for a period of time. They should record the activity for the clients use and allow a client to query it when they review the work diary where we can explain why there may have been lower activity which the client can then decide if they want to accept that or challenge it but automatically denying it when they have no actual context is just

Mark

Wakey You should just use manual time in those scenarios after first setting expectations with your clients about why you are using manual time.

Alexandra

Wakey Good point. And same here. I use dictionaries and encyclopedias (real, physical books!) for my work, which inevitably reduces my actions on the computer during lookup. It just really stresses me out every time!

TopRatedTroll

Kayla the AI rep is wrong. It won't record if you have no activity for an entire segment (in other words, inactive for the whole 10 minutes). For some reason, I keep forgetting to turn off Tracker. I have to delete the segment where it snapshots some website I was on because I was active for the first part of the segment. It then won't record if you are gone for the entire next segment. When you come back and resume activity, it starts to track again. I get a snapshot when I'm barely awake in the morning when I forget to turn off Tracker. lol

I've got plenty of low-activity segments recorded in my current contract. It's a long-term contract so I don't worry about it, but the system doesn't automatically delete them.

Raul

I would be careful with manually tracking hours unless you have proof of the work you did, such as screenshots or other evidence. If the client decides to dispute those hours—or any manual hours tracked in the past 30 days—Upwork will deduct the equivalent amount from your earnings and refund it to the client. You’ll receive an email notifying you of the dispute, giving you a limited time to provide proof for those manual hours.

So, use manual tracking with caution and always keep evidence of your work.

This is my recommendation, as something similar happened to me recently.

TopRatedTroll

The only time manual time makes sense is if you're already at the $2500 mark for coverage. Might as well use manual time for the rest of the week because it's not covered anyway.

Lisa B.

TopRatedTroll

Yeah, I only use it occasionally with long-term clients who never give a shit about checking the weekly hours billed.

TopRatedTroll

Lisa B. yeah, I don't even use it on long-term anymore since I had one client fail payment three times. The one I'm using it on now has the credit system on Upwork, so don't have to worry about his CC failing.