> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.zeal.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Shift Object

> Learn the Shift Object schema for describing work and earnings on an employee check.

A shift is the unit of earnings in Zeal's payroll system. Every employee check must contain at least one shift. Shifts can be provided when creating an employee check ([`POST /employeeCheck`](/reference/employee-checks/employee-checks/create-employee-check)) or added to an existing pending check via [`POST /shifts`](/reference/employee-checks/shifts/add-shifts-to-check).

Each shift carries a `time` field (an ISO-8601 datetime indicating when the work was performed) plus one nested earning-type object - for example `hourly`, which takes `hours` (required), an optional `wage` override, and an optional `custom_name` label:

```json theme={null}
{
  "time": "2024-02-01T09:00:00Z",
  "hourly": {
    "hours": 8,
    "wage": 25,
    "custom_name": "Regular hours"
  }
}
```

If `wage` is omitted, Zeal uses the employee's `default_wage`.

See [Add Shifts to Existing Check](/reference/employee-checks/shifts/add-shifts-to-check), [Get Shift Information](/reference/employee-checks/shifts/get-shift-information), and [Update Pending Shifts](/reference/employee-checks/shifts/update-pending-shifts) for the full request/response schema, including any other earning types your account has enabled.