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PR Automatic Earnings

PR Post Auto Earnings posts predefined rows from PR Automatic Earnings into the current pay period. Each qualifying row becomes a timecard line based on its frequency code. Typical uses: salary to a single job or no job (multi-job salary must be entered in PR Timecard Entry); subsistence; salary reductions such as 401(k); and earnings calculated as a rate of gross, rate per hour, rate per day, rate of straight-time equivalent, or flat amount.

Lines can be edited or deleted in Timecard Entry before checks print. Run this after manually entered timecards are posted when auto earnings depend on those other earnings, and before you finish the payroll sequence in Executing the PR Payroll Process.

Before you start​

  • Manually entered timecards for the period are posted. Auto earnings that base on other earnings need those earnings posted first.
  • Employees have active rows on PR Automatic Earnings (employee, earnings code, Seq#, frequency, rate/amount, and any Payment Seq#, department, Ins Code, craft/class, job/phase or GL company, limits, or EM usage). Inclusion is the setup row plus an active frequency for the period — there is no separate “mark this earnings code automatic” switch on PR Earnings Codes.
  • Source earnings that should feed rate-of-gross / similar basis have Subject to Auto Earnings checked on PR Earnings Codes.
  • Pay period is set for the PR Group (batch month, PR end date, pay sequences).

Steps​

  1. Open PR Post Auto Earnings (PR Programs). Batch Selection opens.
  2. Confirm Batch Month, PR Group, PR End Date, and Pay Seq, then OK.
  3. On open, the grid can list employees set up for automatic earnings who already have non-posted timecards (and those batches). Those employees are not processed until those batches are posted.
  4. Optionally check Restrict by Employee and enter Employee (F4). The employee must be active, in the batch PR Group, and already assigned codes on PR Automatic Earnings.
  5. Optionally check Restrict posting to a single Payment Seq# and enter Payment Seq#. Useful when employees have multiple payment sequences (salary vs allowance vs Section 125). Entries with a blank Pay Seq# on setup post to this number; entries that already have a Pay Seq# still post to their assigned sequence.
  6. Set Timecard Date (the posting date on each new timecard). Vista warns if it is outside the pay-period date range.
  7. Optionally check Delete & Replace if Timecards for Empl, Pay Seq... when auto earnings were already processed and must be changed or deleted. Checked: matching Employee + Pay Seq# + Earnings Code timecards are pulled into the batch flagged for deletion, then new lines are added from current PR Automatic Earnings. Unchecked: active automatic earnings are skipped when a timecard already exists for that Employee, Pay Seq#, and Earnings Code.
  8. Select Process, confirm, then Close. Matching employees appear in the grid.
  9. Select File > Process Batch. On PR Batch Process, process the batch. After validate, Batch List from PR Batch Process shows how earnings posted. After entry, print PR Employee Auto Earnings from the Report menu if needed.

With neither restrict option, all employees and sequences for the pay period / PR group are included (subject to frequency and the skip rules above).

How amounts are calculated​

Method comes from the Method drop-down on PR Earnings Codes. Basis for rate-of-gross depends on Subject to Auto Earnings on prior codes.

  • A - Amount: fixed amount (negative allowed). Typical salary. On PR Automatic Earnings, Rate/Amount holds the amount; for salaried employees it can default from Salary on PR Employees. Extra sequences for the same earnings code should each hold that sequence’s share; the sum should equal total Salary.
  • H - Rate per Hour: posted hours × rate. Override Pay Period's Standard Hours chooses hours on the auto-earnings row vs standard hours on PR Pay Period Control. Hours of 0 makes an add-on line: zero hours posted; rate × hours already posted this period to earnings subject to automatic earnings.
  • D - Rate per Day: amount per day of posting, using days already posted or standard days for the group pay period.
  • G - Rate of Gross: all earnings prior to this earnings code that are subject to auto earnings (typical 401(k) US, superannuation AU, RRSP CA).
  • S - Rate of STE: straight-time equivalent; documented as used only for automatic earnings (typical US workers’ compensation).
  • F - Factored Rate per Hour / V - Variable Factored Rate: factor of the posted earnings code (union add-ons).
  • R - Routine: AU and CA only (rate-of-subject-gross posting uses the RateofGros routine).
  • L - Allowance: payroll allowances (AU crib/meal).
  • Use Regular Hourly Rate on PR Automatic Earnings: uses the higher of PR Employees Hourly Rate and the craft/class/template rate (documented for Australian RDO accruals; other countries may use it).

Seq# on PR Automatic Earnings keeps rows unique within employee and earnings code, allows multiple distributions, and sets processing order. Payment Seq# on the setup row overrides the batch Pay Seq# when set; blank means every pay sequence is eligible.

Limits: Limit Period (N-None, A-Annual, P-Pay Period, M-Monthly) and Limit Amount on PR Earnings Codes default the auto-earnings limit. If the limit is greater than 0.00, accumulated earnings for that period are calculated when auto earnings run. Employee override is Override Standard Limit / Override Limit Amount on PR Automatic Earnings; a later earnings-code limit change updates employees who do not have an override. Rate/Amount and the limit must be the same sign. If HQ Earn Types Annual Limit is set and the earn type ties to multiple earnings codes, Post Auto Earnings uses that limit across those codes.

Update Auto Earnings on PR Employees, for an employee/earnings code also on PR Automatic Earnings, writes salary changes into Rate/Amount.

Who is processed / skipped​

  • Only automatic earnings whose Frequency Code is active for the pay period.
  • Payment sequences already paid do not change: no existing timecards pulled, no new entries.
  • Employees with unposted timecards are excluded until those batches are posted.
  • Negative / non-taxable earnings whose codes do not have True earnings for Payroll Reports checked on PR Earnings Codes are split across every tax state the employee worked in, in proportion to gross in that state (example: −10% of gross with $500 Oregon and $600 Washington becomes two timecards, −$50 OR and −$60 WA).

Add-on and AU/CA subject-gross order​

  • Add-on earnings are not calculated until payroll process runs. Enter and post regular timecards → process the pay period to calculate add-ons → post automatic earnings → process the pay period again for deductions, liabilities, and completion.
  • AU/CA rate of subject gross (RateofGros only): post regular timecards → post automatic earnings for salary time → process payroll to calculate add-ons → post automatic earnings again for add-on / rate-of-subject-gross earnings → process payroll again for deductions and liabilities.

Notes​