What is the correct way to fill "Date Started" on Jira Log Work

[Karmandroid Singularity]

I kind a confuse with this description from Jira:

Date Started - the date and time when you started this unit of work

Let's use this study case:

1. 08/17/2024 10.00AM, a task is assigned to me
2. 08/17/2024 11.00AM, I start work on the task
3. 08/17/2024 13.00PM, I take a lunch break
4. 08/17/2024 14.00PM, back from lunch break and start to work on the task again
5. 08/17/2024 17.00PM, end of day, stopped working on the task
6. 08/18/2024 09.00AM, back to work, start working on the task
7. 08/18/2024 11.00AM, finished the task

Let's talk only about "Date Started" and disregard other Log Work's field.

From above, I fill log work 3 times (#3, #5, #7) with Date Started as follow:

#3 Date Started = 08/17/2024 11.00AM
#5 Date Started = 08/17/2024 14.00PM
#7 Date Started = 08/18/2024 09.00AM

Is this the correct approach? or should I fill all the entries with the Date Started of the initial time when I start working on the task (#3) ?

[Trudy Claspill · Accepted solution]

Hello @Karmandroid Singularity 

The answer is it depends on what you and your company want.

If you want to record only the time actually spent working on the issue then you should enter the date and time when you actually started the work.

Is there a plan to look at reports to audit when exactly work is being done? That is another reason to enter the actual date and time work syared.

[Karmandroid Singularity]

Hello @Trudy Claspill 

What we need is to log the actual working time for a task without the waiting time/idle time in between. And yes, from what I understand the way I currently did should be correct for this purpose, no?

But what bother me is: when will it relevant when the Date Started always filled with the initial Date Started? How will it translates to the Log Work (Estimation, Time Spent) ?

What does "unit of work" refers to in the description?

[Trudy Claspill]

For what you want you should do as you specified for making three Log Work entries, each one specifying the actual date and time you started each of those three working sessions.

Don't get fixated on the definition of "unit".

Regarding how it impacts Time Spent, the date and time you enter are not relevant. Time Spent is a separate field. If you had reporting software that would show how much work you did on a given day, the the Date Started field is considered in determining on which day the Time Spent should be counted.

Regarding Estimation the Date Started also has no impact on that.

[Karmandroid Singularity]

hmm, okay now it make sense why there are no automatic calculation field related to: Date Started, Estimation, Date Finished on the Advance Roadmap.

Because actually as what you mentioned that all of those fields has no direct relation on the system. But rather just exist for individual usage.

Thank you sir