Edit pay stub deductions

[williamconley]

We use TimeTrex (for employees) and Intuit Online Payroll (for Taxes!). Every now and then they do not agree with each other precisely. At present when this occurs, we must revert to the "Old Interface" to modify the paycheck stub so they match precisely between the two systems. Apparently I'm too stoopid to find the method to make this alteration in the new interface (and too lazy and fearful to perform the task directly in MySQL).

Recently, they have been perfect, but we upgraded today and were warned that the old interface will go *poof* in three months. Which means I now must resolve this before something bad happens.

So: Is it possible to modify the deductions in the new interface? And if so, where?

A good answer could get the helper some free service on their telephone system

[shanec]

The ability to directly edit pay stubs within the legacy interface was discontinued in the new interface in favour of Pay Stub Amendments.

Please see the Pay Stub Amendments section of the TimeTrex Administrator Guide for more information:
http://help.timetrex.com/index.php/Time ... Amendments

However we are curious as to why you're using two applications to process your payroll?

[williamconley]

Intuit Online will pay our taxes directly from within their interface. They also remind when each tax and form is due (Federal and State). We get a reminder on the "Payday" page with a link to click on to "just take care of it". No extra logins, no calculations. Just "this tax/form is due" and we authorize payment/form filing and we're done. At $40/month that's too easy to pass up.

However, it does not provide for timeclock, vacation/sick, and all the HR "gotta have it" of a real business without getting stupid expensive and complex.

Admittedly, however, HR covering all the basis is by its very nature complex, but with TimeTrex at least it is not also expensive! LOL

But then there is this challenge: Peace of mind knowing all taxes are automatically handled on payday ... means there is (once in a while) a disagreement over a deduction. Since THEY file the taxes, they win. TimeTrex's number must then be revised. Up to now, this has been simple. But if that will go away, so will TimeTrex in favor of whatever allows this function OR more likely we'll add this function and stop using TimeTrex's deduction engine exclusively (manual entry/override). A module to edit the deductions when required would resolve the issue nicely, but I expected that someone would have this already.

Intuit has one, just like TimeTrex used to have, because no matter what the System thinks, the Accountant still has the last word. Plus the Taxes have to match the Paystubs! The day we can no longer modify them within the stock TimeTrex Interface and they do not match, we'll have to modify them another way.

[shaunw]

Most people who use Quickbooks for payroll don't also use TimeTrex. Instead they simply export the time and attendance data from TimeTrex into QuickBooks and let it handle all the payroll calculations itself, that way you aren't updating two systems with the same data.

As Shane mentioned, the Pay Stub Amendments allow you to make any adjustments to any pay stubs that you wish, its just in a more controlled way.

[williamconley]

Most people who use Quickbooks for payroll don't also use TimeTrex. Instead they simply export the time and attendance data from TimeTrex into QuickBooks and let it handle all the payroll calculations itself, that way you aren't updating two systems with the same data.

As Shane mentioned, the Pay Stub Amendments allow you to make any adjustments to any pay stubs that you wish, its just in a more controlled way.

1) Not Quickbooks. In case you're unaware, that is accounting software. Intuit Online Payroll is JUST payroll and taxes. Taking care of the legalities.

2) Unless I am viewing pay stub amendments incorrectly, all it does it alter the amount of the pay before deductions are calculated. It cannot alter a specific deduction, which is what I will undoubtedly need to do in the near future. It may only be a penny or two, but eventually Intuit and TimeTrex are bound to disagree. LOL

[shaunw]

Pay Stub Amendments can alter any line item on the pay stub, but you just need to enter the differences in this case. For example if TimeTrex calculated Federal Income Taxes at $105.62 and Intuit calculated it at $105.73, you would enter a Pay Stub Amendment affecting the "Federal Income Tax" Pay Stub Account for $0.11 (105.73-105.62).

You can do this every pay period, or if you prefer just figure out the differences over a longer period of time (monthly/quarterly) and enter the differences then.

[williamconley]

That sounds very close (I was unaware PSA was capable of that!). Would this adjustment show as a line item on the pay stub? Or, worse yet, in any pay records in TimeTrex to the Employee (as an Adjustment of some sort ...)? Obviously this would be awkward, as adjusting taxes after they are calculated is not normal, and having that Viewed by said employee would be counterproductive.

If there are visible adjustments on the pay stub, this would cause employees to believe there is something wrong. Don't want that. Which is why the present method of merely changing the stub has been working perfectly up to now.

But if a PSA would be invisible to the Employee, that would work very nicely and even keep a record of how many minor adjustments were necessary (in case the accountant ever cares).

This would be on a paycheck by paycheck basis.

[shaunw]

The employee would see the adjustment on their pay stub, but it can be accompanied by a note that the employee can also see as well. Tax Adjustments actually happen quite frequently (for all sorts of reasons), I personally don't see any problem with it, and if its accompanied by a note and only for tiny amounts, questions should be kept to a minimum.

[williamconley]

I'm more of a believer in NO questions. Otherwise I'd just skip the change and work it out on W-2 Day. But it's accounting and taxes, so I prefer perfection and pure sync.

We'll probably just build a quick app that modifies the deductions on the checks when the next adjustment becomes necessary.

TimeTrex is cool, don't get me wrong, but it would be much cooler if it predicted form filing and tax payment requirements. Even better if it linked to the sites to MAKE the payments, but I'm pretty sure that's unlikely. And at $40/month I just can't replace that peace of mind of knowing it's "Handled" with the Happiness of Open Source Freedom. LOL I wouldn't have any problem making payments and filing paperwork if I KNEW they were handled. After all, a popup explaining HOW to handle each one is simple enough (even if I have to fill in the text on the first occurrence of each one as to How I Handled It). But at present I'm quite sure Intuit's livelihood depends on not screwing that up for thousands of businesses across the country so they are "on it" to keep that money flowing.

[shaunw]

TimeTrex Professional Edition has scheduled report functionality, so you can simply schedule the reports to be emailed to you at the necessary time, you wouldn't even need to login to TimeTrex.

[williamconley]

the concept is that in NY (and probably Federal, but i don't keep track) certain items must be paid when they reach a threshold, others are timed. intuit keeps our schedule and we never need to do anything except push a button when due.

intuit online shows a list of payments "not yet made because they are not due yet" in a lower section. in the upper section is "Pay these now" with a button to pay each. After cutting payroll we are bounced to the tax payments page. on that page, if payments are due, they are in the top section with a hyperlink to pay them (or file the form if it's not a payment).

WE do not determine when it is due by checking a report and then deciding if something is due based on comparison of that report to whatever notes we have regarding it.

i'm sure you're familiar with "we're very busy, even on paydays, so this must be stupid simple to be sure we miss NOTHING". We're not in the payroll business, so payroll is a mere (necessary) distraction. and at $40/mo it's a lot less distracting!

[shaunw]

Again, this can all be handled with the scheduled reports functionality in the Professional Edition. Reports can be "timed" (sent on specific days/weeks/months), or even be sent once certain thresholds are reached, or literally almost any combination there of that you can imagine.

The above is not limited to just tax reports, it can work for any report, for example you can have a report triggered and emailed to you when an employee has three In Late exceptions in the last 90 day period. Or have a report emailed to you 7 days before each employees birth day. Just as a few quick examples.

[williamconley]

Of course it can. And I can set up a cron job to do anything I like, too. Based on criteria I have to define.

But that would be ME setting it up and determining the periodicity. And a report is not the same as a link in a todo section that stays until you pay a tax. Receiving a report in an inbox does not mean you'll pay any attention to it. (Ever not paid attention to your inbox for a few days? LOL.)

And none of that would pay the taxes for me, I'd still have to find the credentals and link up to pay the tax/fill out and file the form(s).

Intuit Online, on the other hand, pays it all, files all the forms, handles the periodicity and keeps the "pay this" link up from the moment it SHOULD be paid until it gets paid. Nothing to lose in an inbox. No need to figure out when what gets done. Needless to say I could build a cron job that specifically calculates each payroll tax and modifies the execution to match dates and threshold amounts ... and then hope no one changes a rule or there isn't one I've overlooked. But considering how much fun that would be and how much time it would take (and how much the fine would likely cost), I'm good with someone else determining the periodicity (who can get sued by thousands of us if they screw it up ... which means they likely will not screw up!).

If the paid version was $40/month and handled that ... I'd be all over it