A tool check is handed in when a worker receives company-owned equipment in order to perform an assigned task. The tag is later reclaimed when the tools or other items are returned. This allows the company to keep track of its property and determine who is responsible for lost or damaged items.
A work check is handed in to a company clerk at the beginning of a shift or assignment, and then reclaimed when the shift ends or the job is done. Miners also use tags of this sort on ore cars, so that the proper individual or crew is credited for the load.