Time & Attendance and Payroll Transaction Entry
Accessing GP ... 1
Accessing the terminal server ... 1
What do I do if I can’t access the terminal server? ... 2
Creating a shortcut to the Remote Desktop Connection command ... 2
Opening Great Plains ... 2
Exiting from Great Plains... 3
What happens if you don’t exit properly ... 4
Ending your terminal server session ... 4
Understanding the GP homepage ... 5
Adding quick links ... 5
Setting user preferences ... 7
Specifying your printer ... 8
Getting help in GP ... 9
Entering time and attendance information ... 9
Selecting an employee ... 9
Understanding the function of time codes ... 11
Entering a time code ... 12
What happens if you select the wrong time code ... 12
Understanding the two types of transactions shown in the Attendance Transaction window ... 13
Entering date information... 13
Entering number of hours ... 13
Entering reason and type codes... 13
Saving that transaction ... 14
What to do after saving a transaction ... 15
Making corrections to time and attendance records for an employee ... 15
Reason Codes overview ... 16
Understanding reporting options ... 18
Finding summary leave information for an employee ... 19
Payroll Transaction Entry ... 20
Opening the payroll transaction entry window ... 20
Creating a batch ID for payroll transaction entry ... 20
What happens if you don’t create your payroll batch ID correctly? ... 21
Saving your batch ID ... 21
Entering dates for the payroll batch ... 22
Selecting an employee ... 23
What to do about the Trx Type column ... 24
Understanding pay codes ... 24
Selecting a pay code ... 25
Entering the transaction amount ... 25
Entering the pay rate ... 25
Supplying a reason code ... 26
Reason codes overview for payroll transaction entry ... 26
What happens if your reason doesn’t appear as an option ... 27
Entering budget code information ... 28
Searching for a budget code ... 29
Changing a budget code ... 30
Time & Attendance and Payroll Transaction Entry
What to do if you get the “Not all required fields have been entered” error ... 31
Other types of errors you might see ... 31
Reviewing your entries and printing an approval copy for your supervisor ... 31
Turning your transaction edit list into a PDF ... 32
Reopening a batch ... 33
Deleting a transaction ... 33
Accessing GP
Great Plains lives on a terminal server that you use Remote Desktop to access. The most important thing to remember when accessing anything on one of the terminal servers is that when you are finished, you should log off of the terminal server. Please do not ever choose
Shut Down, because you really don’t want to run the risk of shutting down the server itself.
Accessing the terminal server
Click on the Start button, select All Programs, select Accessories, and then select Remote Desktop Connection.
Enter the terminal server name:
Cob-gp-term01.cob.albco
OR
Cob-gp-term02.cob.albco
Click on the Connect button.
Note: You may see a warning message about recognizing the computer; it is okay to select the option that will allow you to ignore this message.
It may take a minute to establish the remote connection, but eventually you will see a login screen where you enter your network credentials.
Schools folks: remember to change the domain at the bottom to SCHLS, or enter your username as follows:
What do I do if I can’t access the terminal server?
If you have problems accessing a terminal server, please contact the Local Government Help Desk at 296-5895 (ext. 5895) or helpdesk@albemarle.org.
Creating a shortcut to the Remote Desktop Connection command
If you are going to be accessing Great Plains on a regular basis, you should save yourself some clicks by setting up a shortcut to the Remote Desktop command.
Click on the Start button, select All Programs, select Accessories, and then right-click on the
Remote Desktop Connection command.
A shortcut menu appears where you can choose to pin the command to the taskbar running across the bottom of the screen, or to the Start menu.
Click on the appropriate command.
Note: once you have pinned the Remote Desktop command to either your taskbar or start menu, if you right-click on the command you will be given the option to unpin it from that location.
Opening Great Plains
Once you are on the terminal server, you should see a GP shortcut on the desktop: If you don’t see the shortcut, click on the Start button, select All Programs, select
Microsoft Dynamics, select GP 10.0, and then at last you can select the GP application from there.
Use one of these commands to save the Remote Desktop command where you can find it quickly and easily.
Note: because I already have the Remote Desktop
command pinned to my Start Menu, the shortcut menu now gives me the chance to unpin it.
Note: if the GP shortcut is not on your desktop, right-click on the GP application link, select
Send To, and then select Desktop (create shortcut) so that you no longer have to remember this long path!
Once you’ve opened GP you have a two-step process to get up and running: 1. Log in to GP
2. Select the correct company.
The login screen is shown below. The server name will always be Dynamics GP. You do not have do anything to that field.
Enter user ID and password that you were given for GP, and then click on the OK button.
The next screen that displays is where you will select your company. The live production company for GP is named County of Albemarle. If you are training on a new function or doing some testing, you may be asked to select a different company.
Once you have chosen a company, click on the OK command.
Exiting from Great Plains
When you are finished with your GP work, be sure that you exit properly so that you are no longer logged into the system.
Click on the Microsoft Dynamics GP menu and select Exit from the bottom of the menu.
Click on the dropdown arrow here to select the company.
If you simply click on the X in the upper-right corner of the GP window, you may not be properly logged out of the system, so please don’t do that!
What happens if you don’t exit properly
If you forget to close out of GP properly, or if your connection to the terminal server gets
dropped, you will see the following error message the next time you open and try to log into GP:
Click on the Yes button, and the Current User Login Activity appears, showing when you last logged in:
Click on the Delete button to eliminate that login.
You should now be returned to the Company Login window, where you will be able to proceed normally with the login process.
Ending your terminal server session
Once you have properly closed out of GP, you must also end your terminal server session. Click on the Start button and select Log Off.
Note: whatever you do, do NOT select shut down, which could shut down the server for you and everyone else!
Understanding the GP homepage
On the GP homepage you see a setup that looks somewhat like the Outlook Today homepage
in Outlook. On the homepage you can access all of the different parts of GP to which you have been given access through several different methods:
Area pages: in the lower-left corner of the screen are shortcuts to the homepages for different areas of GP. Click on one of these to see options available to you there.
Menus: a dark gray menu bar runs across the top of the screen; select a menu option and then navigate to open directly into wherever you need to go.
Note: once you’re familiar with GP, the menus are the most efficient way to move around. The
area pages are a useful way to familiarize yourself with the options available to you. You will not be able to open, or in many cases even see, items to which you don’t have access.
Adding quick links
The Quick Links tool on the homepage is the best way to customize the homepage so that, in most cases, you can get to the screens you need to see quickly.
Shortcut to area pages Breadcrumbs
Dropdown menus offer same navigation as area pages
Hover on the right side of the Quick Links title bar until you see a pencil icon appear.
Click on the pencil icon to open the Quick Links Details window.
Click on the Add button near the bottom of the window and select Microsoft Dynamics GP window.
Choose an item from the Menu Groups list on the left side of the screen. Its relevant options will then show up on the right side of the screen.
Highlight the item you want to add and then click on the OK button.
You will be returned to the Quick Links Details window, where you will see the new item added to your list.
If you think the display name is unclear or lacking in detail, select it in the list and then click on the Modify button near the bottom of the screen.
Hover in this area until you see the pencil and Help icon appear.
These are items I have already added.
The Properties window opens; here you can change the name to whatever makes the most sense to you.
Click on OK to return to the Quick Links Details window.
You can modify the order in which the links appear by using the Move Up and Move Down
commands on the right side of the screen.
To remove any links you no longer need, select the link and then click on the Delete command. When you have finished adding and modifying links, click on the OK command.
You will need to refresh the homepage by selecting one of the area pages in the lower-left corner and then returning to the homepage. Then you should be able to see the changes you made to Quick Links.
Setting user preferences
Click on the Microsoft Dynamics GP menu and select User Preferences. The items you are most likely to want to modify are discussed below.
You can reset your password here; you get the same 2-week countdown period as with your network password
Determine how many autocomplete items GP will remember for you; autocomplete carries across all of GP Use these
commands to rearrange the order in which your quick links appear.
Use the Delete command to get rid of a link that you no longer need.
Default Report Destination: you can choose whether the default destination is the printer or your screen. Please save a tree and change the default destination to SCREEN!
Note: even though you set your default to screen, you will still be able to print to a printer, if necessary.
Entry Key: determines how Tab and Enter keys work. If you are accustomed to using the Tab key for moving from field to field, then leave the selection at Tab. If you prefer to have the Enter key function as a tab key, then select Return.
Display button: opens another window where you can specify how required fields display. In the lower-right side, change the Font Color for Required Fields to Red.
Once you have made your desired changes, click on the OK command to save them.
Specifying your printer
One of the peculiarities of GP is that you must specify your printer on the homepage. If you decide while running a report that you need to print to a
different printer, you must come back to the homepage and change the printer there.
Click on the Microsoft Dynamics GP menu and select Print Setup.
In the Print Setup window, click on the dropdown arrow beside Name and then select your printer of choice.
Note: to get your printer added to the list of those available, please email the Local Government Help Desk
(helpdesk@albemarle.org). The Help Desk will email you instructions for how to get your local printer added as your default printing option.
Click on the OK button to save your setting.
Getting help in GP
Most screens you see in GP will have the standard blue circle Help icon on them somewhere; click on this icon to open the Help system.
No matter where you are in GP, hitting the F1 key on your keyboard will bring up a context-sensitive help screen.
The Help window itself looks quite similar to help windows in other Microsoft products. You can enter in a search term on the left side of the window. Note that the Context, Index, and Search
tabs allow you different ways to search.
On the right side of the screen is help information specific to the window you were in when you hit the F1 key. Depending on your GP location, you may just have a single page of information, or there may be links near the top of the page to additional information on that window, as well as related topics at the bottom of the page.
Entering time and attendance information
Selecting an employee
Click on the Transactions menu, select Human Resources, and then select Transaction Entry.
The Attendance Transaction Entry window appears. Select an employee using one of the following methods:
1. If you know the employee’s ID number, enter it into the Employee ID field and then click on the Tab key.
2. Type the employee’s first or last name (or part of one of the names) into the Employee ID field and then click on the Lookup command.
Use these links to read about the fields and command buttons found in a particular window.
A list of employees whose name includes the text you entered appears in the Employees lookup window. Double click on the name of the employee you want to review, or click once on the employee name and then click on the Select command.
3. Click on the Lookup command beside the Employee ID textbox.
When the Employees window appears, click on the Last Name header to sort by that column. You can then enter the beginning of the employee’s last name into the Find by Last Name box. Hit the Tab key to begin the search.
Note: in Great Plains, you will use the Tab key to move from field to field.
Once you see the employee you need, use one of these methods to select the name and return to the Attendance Transaction Entry window:
Double-click on the name
Click on the name to highlight it and then click on the Select command near the bottom of the window
In the Employees lookup window, click on a header to sort by that column.
The default sort order is by Employee ID. Click on the Last Name header here to change the sort order, then type the employee’s last name into the Find box above.
When you return to the Attendance Transaction Entry window, the employee’s information is now displayed, along with a new window to the right, the Additional Attendance Information window. While initially blank, this window will display summary information for the employee once a time code is selected.
Understanding the function of time codes
GP contains a time code for each type of time that an employee might be able to accrue and use, including sick leave, annual leave, holiday leave, leave without pay, other leave, and comp time.
In GP, the work previously done by the leave code has been split into two separate fields:
Time code: specifies the type of time being tracked
Reason code: further breaks down the reasons used with that time code
Only those time codes for which the employee is eligible will appear in the Lookup window. For example, if an employee is not enrolled in the Sick Bank, that time code will not appear.
When you open the Time Code Lookup window, you see a column containing the time codes, a description, and a type.
1. Numerical prefix: this number, which can range from zero (0) to five (5), references the position held by an employee. Generally speaking, the number corresponds to the suffix used for that employee in the mainframe. If an employee is eligible for leave under multiple positions, you will see multiple instances of a code.
2. Text abbreviation: the two letters following the prefix are an abbreviation for that type of time.
Note: additional codes do appear in the Time Code Lookup window that you cannot use for time and attendance purposes. For more information, see the “What happens if you select the wrong time code” section below.
Entering a time code
Click on the Lookup command for the Time Code field. The Time Code Lookup window appears.
You can select a time code using one of these methods:
Double-click on the code
Click once on the code and then click on the Select command
Once the time code appears in the field, move down to the Type area.
What happens if you select the wrong time code
One of the annoying features of the Attendance Transaction Entry window is that it doesn’t alert you early on if you’ve chosen the wrong type of time code. If you click by mistake on Base Pay, Additional Pay, or Overtime Pay, it will let you enter a date, number of hours, and reason. It’s not until you save the transaction that you get the following error:
This rather cryptic error is actually telling you that you’ve selected a code that can’t be used with attendance transaction entries. Click on the OK command and then select another time code. The following codes in the Time Code lookup window cannot actually be used for time and attendance entry:
Additional Pay
Remember that the time codes available here will vary depending on the employee’s status.
Overtime Straight Pay
Overtime Pay
Understanding the two types of transactions shown in the Attendance Transaction
window
The Type area shows both Hours Used and Hours Available. The Hours Available option is only actually available to HR staff who need to make larger adjustments to employee’s time
totals (for example, in the case of a teacher transferring time in from a previous job). For standard time transactions, you will always choose Hours Used Transaction.
Entering date information
Enter the date the time was taken in the Date field. You can enter the date by typing it in, or by clicking on the small calendar icon to bring up a calendar where you select the correct date.
Note: You must record time information on a day-by-day basis. If an employee took a week’s
worth of vacation, you will enter five separate transactions to record each day.
Entering number of hours
Once you have entered the correct date, enter the number of hours. To get a whole number, click on the period key to enter the decimal point, and the system will automatically enter the trailing zeroes.
Note: part of your documentation packet is a chart converting minutes of the hour to decimals. This information will also be available online.
Entering reason and type codes
Reason codes represent one of the more visible changes to the leave entry system. Every time you create an entry in this window, you must select a reason. Some of the reasons will also include a type.
Please be accurate when selecting reason codes. This data affects calculations made in the system and is used in a variety of reports.
For more information on the different types of reasons associated with each time code, please see the following “Reason Code overview“ section.
To select a reason, click on the dropdown arrow beside the Reason box and click on the one you want to use.
Note: as you become familiar with the reason codes associated with each time code, you can speed up your process by keying in the first few letters of the reason; the appropriate reason will show up and you can click to select it or hit the Tab key to select it and move to the next field. If you forget to enter a reason and try to save the transaction, you will get the following error message:
Saving that transaction
Once you have entered all the necessary information for this transaction, you must click on the
Save command on the left side of the toolbar. After you save, you will notice that the relevant information has updated in the Additional Attendance Information window.
Select a reason code from the dropdown list or by keying the first few letters.
What to do after saving a transaction
Once you save a transaction, the employee’s name and the last-used time code remain in the attendance transaction entry window. If you need to enter additional transactions for that employee, you can select a different time code or enter more hours under the same code. If you need to enter information for a different employee, click on the Clear command to remove the current employee’s name and time code, and then key in the new employee ID or look up the employee’s name.
Note: if you don’t clear the current employee’s information first, and then select a new
employee who doesn’t have the same time code that is currently displayed in the Attendance Transaction Entry window, you will get the following error message:
Click on the No command, and then delete that time code from the window before searching for the next employee’s name. Or, you can click on the Clear command in the toolbar near the top of the window.
Making corrections to time and attendance records for an employee
If you need to adjust an employee’s time and attendance information, you will enter a negative number of hours in Hours Used Transaction field (except for instances where you are entering comp time earned).
Follow the process described above to select the employee and the correct time code. In the Type area, select Hours Used.
Enter the correct date, and then enter a minus sign (the dash key) followed by the number of hours you need to subtract. Once you hit the Tab key to move out of that field, the system converts the number to a negative by putting parentheses on either side of it.
Once I hit the Save button on the toolbar, the Hours Used and Available columns update.
If you look over at the Additional Attendance Information window, you can see the current balance for that time code in the Available column.
Once you hit the Save command on the Attendance Transaction Entry window, the amount in that Available column will update. The Hours Used column will also show a negative number.
Reason Codes overview
The chart below lists all of the time codes and the reason codes associated with them.
Time Code Reason Assignment Notes
Annual Leave (AL)
Annual Leave
Annual Payoff Requires a payroll transaction entry as well.
FML-Annual Leave
FML WC-Annual Leave HR use only—do not use WC-Annual Leave HR use only—do not use
Additional Pay (AP)
Not used for attendance entry
Base Pay (BP) Not used for attendance entry
Comp Time (CT) Comp Earned 1 1/2 Time Remember to enter as a negative number to credit them with the time they have worked.
Comp Earned Regular Time Remember to enter as a negative number to credit them with the time they have worked.
Comp Pay Off Requires a payroll transaction entry as well.
Comp Time Taken FML-Comp Time Taken
FML WC-Comp Time Taken HR use only—do not use Holiday Payoff in Comp Police/FR only
WC-Comp Time Taken HR use only—do not use
Holiday Pay (HP) Holiday Leave Must track for all 12-month
employees.
Holiday Payoff in Comp Police/FR only—must also enter Holiday on same day in order to track Holidays.
Holiday Payoff in Money Police/FR only—must also enter Holiday on same day in order to track Holidays.
Leave Without Pay (LW)
FML-Leave Without Pay Leave Without Pay transactions no longer require a separate payroll
Time Code Reason Assignment Notes
transaction to dock the employee’s paycheck.
FML WC-Employee Paid 2/3 by WC HR use only—do not use FML WC-Leave without Pay HR use only—do not use Leave Without Pay
Leave Without Pay - No Sick Leave
Suspension Without Pay New reason code
WC-Employee Paid 2/3 by WC HR use only—do not use WC-Leave Without Pay HR use only—do not use Military Leave
Other Leave (OL) Emergency Leave 12-month employees only
Employee Recognition
Field Trip School use only Inclement Weather
Jury Duty Military Leave Professional Leave Suspension With Pay
Overtime Pay (OT)
Not used for attendance entry
Overtime – Straight Pay (OS)
Not used for attendance entry
Sick Leave (SL) FML-Personal Leave School use only
FML-Sick Leave Family FML-Sick Leave Individual
FML WC-Sick Leave HR use only—do not use Personal Leave School use only
Sick Leave
Sick-Death in Family Sick-Illness in Family
Sick Leave Transferred In HR use only—do not use Sick Lv ACJR Transferred In HR/ACRJ use only—do not use Sick Lv ACJR Transferred Out HR/ACRJ use only—do not use Sick Payoff Grandfathered Local Gov’t
employees only—do not use. Requires a payroll transaction entry as well.
Time Code Reason Assignment Notes Sick Bank (SB) FML - Sick Bank Taken
Sick Bank Taken
Understanding reporting options
In the Attendance Transaction Entry windows, several reports are available:
Edit Report: a list of all transactions created by the user signed on to Great Plains
Employee Detail (BYTD): all transactions for the budget or fiscal year to date for the employee whose information is currently displayed
Employee Detail (CYTD): all transactions for the calendar year to date for the employee whose information is currently displayed
Employee Detail (MTD): all transactions for the month to date for the employee whose information is currently displayed
Employee Summary: the amount of time in each category that an employee currently has
Access these reports for the employee you are currently working on by clicking on the Reports
command on the Additional Attendance Information window.
When you select a report name, the Report Destination window appears. Be sure the destination is set to Screen rather than Printer, then click on the OK command.
Note: see the “Setting user preferences” section for information on setting your default report
destination so that you don’t have to check and uncheck to get the correct destination every time.
Make sure you set your destination to Screen rather than Printer before clicking on the OK command.
The reports will look something like the sample below, which shows an employee’s month-to-date information:
Finding summary leave information for an employee
If you want to tell an employee what their totals are for different categories of leave, use the
Employee Summary report, the final option on the Reports menu. A sample Employee Summary report is shown below.
Header information shows the date, time, and user who runs the report.
Reports include the name of the person who entered a transaction and the date it was created. Reports include date range
Payroll Transaction Entry
What used to be called payroll input is now known as payroll transaction entry. You will use this window to accomplish the following types of tasks:
Pay substitute employees
Pay temporary employees
Pay regular employees working additional hours in another position (such as coaches)
Pay regular employees for working overtime hours
Comp time payout
Annual leave payout
Police Department contractual work
Opening the payroll transaction entry window
Click on the Transactions menu, select Payroll, and then select Transaction Entry.
A “Did you know” window appears the first time you select Transaction Entry; you can check the box beside “Do not display this message again” to ensure that it doesn’t display again. Then click on the Transaction Entry command.
Creating a batch ID for payroll transaction entry
In the Transaction Entry window, the first thing you must do is create a batch ID. The batch ID name consists of four parts:
1. The number of the month (in two digits) 2. A batch identifying letter (E or M) 3. A dash
4. Your GP username Some Batch ID samples:
11E-tjones: a November month-end batch for user tjones
11M-tjones: a November mid-month batch for user tjones
03M-jdoe: a March mind-month batch for user jdoe
The number of the month must be two digits, so please proceed the first nine months with a zero.
The batch identifying letters are:
M for mid-month
E for end of the month
Check this box to avoid seeing this window every time you open the Payroll Transaction Entry window.
Your GP username is the user ID you use to log into the system (generally speaking, it will match the network ID you use to log into the computer every day). Some sample usernames are below:
elbrother
tharris
jwells01
Note: users with the same name will have a number appended after their name to distinguish among them
Note2: usernames are case sensitive, so be sure to enter in all lower caps unless otherwise instructed.
What happens if you don’t create your payroll batch ID correctly?
If you misspell your GP username or otherwise make a mistake when setting a payroll batch ID, you will see the following error when you hit the Tab key to save the batch ID:
If this happens to you, click on the OK command and start over with creating the batch ID.
Saving your batch ID
Once you enter the Batch ID, click on the Tab key on your keyboard.
A new window appears asking if you want to add the batch; click on the Add command.
Enter your batch ID here and then click on the TAB key when you are finished.
A Payroll Batch Entry window appears. Here you need to do the following:
Enter a comment about the timeframe for the batch (for example, ELBrother February mid-month). This comment will be helpful for the Payroll Department in case they have any questions about which payroll cycle you are working on.
Make sure that the frequency is set to Single Use.
Click on the Save command to save your batch.
Entering dates for the payroll batch
Once you’ve saved your batch ID for this payroll cycle, you can enter the dates covered by this batch ID into the “Pay Period From” and “To” areas of the Transaction Defaults section.
You have two sets of date options:
Batch type Batch identifying
letter
Pay Period From and To dates
Sample dates
Mid-month M 16th to end of prior
month
04/16/2012 04/30/2012 End of month E 1st to 15th of current
month
05/01/2012 05/15/2012 You do not have to enter any information into the Days Worked or Weeks Worked fields.
Once you have specified the pay period dates, you can begin entering transactions for individual employees.
Enter a comment specifying the time frame.
Make sure the frequency is set to Single Use. Click here to Save the batch.
Selecting an employee
To select an employee, use one of these methods:
1. If you know the employee’s ID number, enter it into the Employee ID field and then click on the Tab key.
2. Type the employee’s first or last name (or part of one of the names) into the Employee ID
field and then click on the Lookup command.
A list of employees whose name includes the text you entered appears in the Employees lookup window. Double click on the name of the employee you want to review, or click once on the employee name and then click on the Select command.
3. Click on the Lookup command beside the Employee ID field.
When the Employees window appears, click on the Last Name header to sort by that column. You can then enter the beginning of the employee’s last name into the Find by Last Name box. Hit the Tab key to begin the search.
Note: in Great Plains, you will use the Tab key to move from field to field.
In the Employees lookup window, click on a header to sort by that column.
Once you see the employee you need, use one of these methods to select the name and return to the Attendance Transaction Entry window:
Double-click on the name
Click on the name to highlight it and then click on the Select command near the bottom of the window
When you return to the Payroll Transaction Entry window, the employee’s ID and name are now displayed.
What to do about the Trx Type column
The Trx Type column, which is shorthand for Transaction Type, contains several codes on its dropdown list. However, only Payroll employees can select anything other than Pay Code, so you should just tab through that field or click into the Code field.
If you do try to select a different option under Transaction Type, you will see the following error message:
Click on the OK command to close the error message.
Understanding pay codes
The number of pay codes listed for each employee will vary depending on the employee’s status and employment history with Albemarle County.
The pay code is made up of two parts:
1. Numerical prefix: the number references the employee’s pay position; employees who
have held several positions with the County may have higher prefixes such as 4 or 5.
The default sort order is by Employee ID. Click on the Last Name header here to change the sort order, then type the employee’s last name into the Find box above.
2. Pay code: the two letter code that references the type of pay they are receiving. Things to keep in mind about pay codes:
An employee whose pay position is temp or sub will have a pay rate of $0.00.
Retirees now working part-time may have multiple pay codes.
Selecting a pay code
Tab over to the Code column and click on the Lookup command to display the list of pay codes available for that employee.
Note: the list of pay codes varies from employee to employee, depending on each employee’s
status.
Select the relevant pay code for that employee using one of these methods:
Double-click on the pay code
Click once on the pay code and then click on the Select command.
Entering the transaction amount
Please be sure that you change the number in the Amount column to the correct option for the employee.
The number that you enter in the Amount column can represent the number of hours worked, with these notes for your consideration:
If you are paying a substitute classroom teacher, enter a whole number for the number of days that person worked as a substitute.
If you are paying a nurse, enter a whole number for the number of days that person worked.
Other types of substitute employees are paid on an hourly basis; please see the Supplemental Pay Schedule for more information.
. If you are doing a lump-sum payment of some sort, you would put a 1 in the Amount column and the entire dollar amount to be paid to the employee in the Pay Rate column. Hit the Tab key once you have changed the number in the Amount column.
Entering the pay rate
Once you have entered information in the Amount column, hit the Tab key to move into the Pay Rate column. There, you will enter the correct rate of pay.
Note: because Albemarle County’s pay rates are calculated out to five decimal places, please
be sure that you enter enough digits to get the correct rate of pay. If you’re entering a whole number, press the decimal (period) key once you’ve entered the number and it will automatically put all the trailing zeroes in for you.
The number of pay codes available varies by employee.
Supplying a reason code
For transactions in the payroll transaction window, you will be required to enter a reason code. These codes function in the same way as do the reason codes used for time and attendance entry—they allow for more-precise reporting and tracking of data.
The reason code window will not appear until you select a paycode. The you will see a reason and type window appear in the lower-left corner.
If you are working in the “list view” version of the payroll transaction window, you will not see a reason code window until you try to tab to the next line in the window to create another entry. Then you see the following window:
Remember that the information displayed in the dropdown list will vary depending on the type of pay code you selected.
Select the correct reason and then click on the OK command. For more information on reason codes see the below table.
Reason codes overview for payroll transaction entry
Time Code Reason Assignment Notes
Additional Pay (AP)
Annual Leave Payoff
Requires an attendance
transaction entry as well to reduce the hours.
Comp Payoff
Requires an attendance
transaction entry as well to reduce the hours.
Holiday Payoff in Money Police/FR use only See Note
Shift Differential Sick Payoff
Grandfathered Local Gov’t employees only—do not use.
The reason codes displayed here will vary depending on the code chosen. The list of available
reason codes varies depending on the pay code you select. Only certain pay codes also requie you to choose a type as well.
Time Code Reason Assignment Notes Overtime Pay
(OT)
Overtime Pay – 1 ½ Time Enter the date the overtime was worked in the Date From and Date To fields so that it will record appropriately for time-tracking purposes.
Overtime Straight Pay (OS)
Overtime Pay - Straight Time Enter the date the overtime was worked in the Date From and Date To fields so that it will record appropriately for time-tracking purposes.
Reduce Pay Payroll only—do not use
Semi-Monthly Pay (SM)
See Note Use for paying subs and temps. Substitute Employee
Temporary Employee
What happens if your reason doesn’t appear as an option
If you need to pay an employee, and the appropriate reason code doesn’t appear on the dropdown list, use the See Note reason code instead.
Once you select the See Note reason, click on the OK command.
Enter your relevant information (such as dates a sub worked, or reason for an employee receiving additional pay) into the blank area of the note.
To save the note, click on the Attach command in the lower-right corner of the window.
Click on the Attach command to save your note.
When you return to the Payroll Transaction Entry window, you will see that the Note icon for that record is now yellow, instead of white, to indicate that information is stored there.
Entering budget code information
Budget code information is included for regular employees, but there are circumstances where you will need to modify the account code information, including the following:
If you are paying an employee for overtime, you must change the code to hit the appropriate budget line.
If you are paying an employee additional pay that should be charged to another budget code.
Substitute and temporary employees are configured in the system without a budget code, so that you can charge to the appropriate code.
In the case of subs and temps, the system will prompt you, once you’ve finished entering a transaction for that employee, to add the necessary budget information.
If for some reason the Payroll Distribution Entry window shown above does not appear, use one of the following methods to open the window:
Use the keyboard shortcut: Ctrl + D keys
Click on the Additional menu and select Distributions
The Note for this record is now yellow because I entered information there.
If you know what budget code to use, enter it into the Account Number column and then view
the description to make sure that you keyed it correctly.
Note: you can find the budget code information using the supplemental pay scale posted on the Human Resources website.
If you are charging the entire transaction to one budget code, click on the OK command to return to the main transaction window.
If you need to split the transaction between multiple budget codes, enter the percentage to be charged to the first budget code, and then repeat the process described above to enter the second budget code and allocate its percentage.
Once you have finished entering the correct budget codes, click on the OK command to return to the main transaction window.
Searching for a budget code
If you don’t know what budget code to use once you are in the Payroll Distribution Entry window, click on the Lookup command beside the Account Number, and the Accounts search window opens. To narrow down your search, enter part of your department or location here and click on the Tab key. If you don’t know what budget code to charge, click on the Lookup command to open the Accounts search window. If you know what
budget code to charge against, key it into the Account Number field and then verify that the Account Description column is correct.
Here you can search for the budget code; I like to narrow down my options by using the
Description filter on the right side of the window.
Type your location or department name into the Description textbox and then click on the Tab
key.
The list of available accounts will filter down to show only those including that name. Once you find the correct budget code, you can select it using one of two methods:
Double-click on the account code
Click once on the account code and then click on the Select command near the top of the window.
Either way, you will return to the Payroll Distribution Entry window and see the budget code displayed there.
If you are charging the entire transaction to one budget code, click on the OK command to return to the main transaction window.
If you need to split the transaction between multiple budget codes, enter the percentage to be charged to the first budget code, and then repeat the process described above to enter the second budget code and allocate its percentage.
Once you have finished entering the correct budget codes, click on the OK command to return to the main transaction window.
Changing a budget code
If you need to give an employee additional pay, use the appropriate Additional Pay code but change the budget code so that you are charging correctly.
To select a different budget code, click on the Additional menu and select Distributions, or use the Ctrl + D keyboard shortcut.
Remove the existing budget code information by selecting that row and then clicking on the
Delete Row command.
To enter the correct budget code, key it into the Account Number column and then verify it in the Account Description column.
If you are uncertain about the budget code, use the “Searching for a budget code” directions above to find the correct budget code.
Make sure that the percent amount is correct, and then click on the OK command to return to the payroll transaction entry window.
Saving your transaction
Once you have entered all of the necessary information for that employee, click on the Tab key to advance to the next row if you are in the “list view.” If you are looking at the expanded view, click on the Next button in the lower-right corner.
Click on the Delete Row command to remove existing budget code information.
Remember, moving to the next row on the Payroll Transaction Entry window is what saves your record.
As noted above, transactions requiring a reason code will prompt you with a popup window before allowing you to advance to the next record.
What to do if you get the “Not all required fields have been entered” error
If your transaction requires a reason code, the appropriate dropdown list should appear in the lower-left corner. However, if you click into the wrong spot on the screen, the system may think that you are trying to move on to the next record and display the following message:
If this error appears for you, click back into one of the fields in your current record and then make sure that you have entered all necessary information, including the Reason code.
Other types of errors you might see
If you don’t fill out all necessary information, you might see the following error:
Click on the Continue command to return to the record and enter the missing data.
Reviewing your entries and printing an approval copy for your supervisor
It’s always a good idea to review your work before the payroll deadline, and the Transaction Edit List will allow you to double-check yourself, and create a printed copy for your department or location’s supervisor to review and sign off on.
To create a Transaction Edit List, click on the Print command near the top of the Transaction Entry window.
A Report Destination window appears; I recommend selecting “Screen” as your destination rather than sending it directly to the printer.
Once you have chosen a destination, click on the OK command.
A sample Transaction Edit List is shown below:
Notice that this list subtotals for each employee and then creates a grand total as well.
Once you have completed your payroll batch, be sure to print the Transaction Edit List, sign it, and have the appropriate person sign his/her approval as well.
To send your report to the printer, click on the Print icon on the report toolbar.
You may see the following window the first time you try to print your transaction edit list:
Click on the Install button and let the software install.
Turning your transaction edit list into a PDF
If you would like to have a PDF version of your transaction edit list, click on the dropdown arrow beside “Select a format” and choose Acrobat (PDF) file, then click on the Export command. A new browser window opens, along with the File Download window shown below:
Make sure your destination is set correctly here.
Click on the Open command to open and then save the PDF, or click on the Save command to save it directly into the desired location.
Reopening a batch
Once you create a payroll batch, you can enter transaction in it whenever you have the time to do so before the payroll deadline. To reopen an existing batch, click on the Transactions
menu, select Payroll, and then select Transaction Entry.
When the Payroll Transaction Entry window appears, click on the Lookup command beside the Batch ID field.
When the Payroll Batch IDs window appears, double-click on your batch ID to select it.
Deleting a transaction
If you create a payroll transaction and later realize that you don’t need it, you will need to delete it before the deadline for batches to be processed by the Payroll Department.
Open the payroll batch as described above.
Click into the record you wish to delete in order to select it. Click on the Delete Row command.
A warning message appears:
Click on the Delete command.
Delete Row command
Deleting a batch
If you need to get rid of a batch, open the batch and then click on the Delete Batch command near the top of the window.
