Getting Started Guide

Transcription

1 Getting Started Guide Employee Data Payroll Last revised: September 27, 2007 Professional Solutions 3581 Excel Drive, Medford, OR Fax: (541) Website: Sales: Mon. Fri. 8 AM 4 PM Pacific sales@procaresoftware.com Support: Mon. Fri. 6 AM 4 PM Pacific tech@procaresoftware.com Page i

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3 1. Install ProCare Get Started with ProCare Today! Complete installation instructions are included with your ProCare CD. To print an additional copy visit support.procaresoftware.com and select Print Installation Instructions. Note: Installation on a network may require you to work with a local computer technician to setup and configure your network prior to installing ProCare. If you (or your technician) need assistance with installation, please contact ProCare Technical Support at 1-(800) Learn ProCare Learn ProCare through live web based training or use Free Learning Tools, including self-paced tutorials, to help get the most from your childcare management software. Get Live Training 30 Minutes Free for First Time Buyers* With Live Training you'll learn how to get the most from ProCare while working live on your own data. Just share your computer screen with the instructor for a true hands-on learning experience. A free, 30-minute, online training session is included with your first time purchase of ProCare*. Additional training is available at modest rates. Learn more at training.procaresoftware.com or call 1-(800) and ask for the Training Department. *Note: To qualify you must schedule your training within one month of your initial purchase. Use the Free Learning Tools Free Learning Tools are always available to let you learn at your own pace and at a time convenient for you. Online Tutorials Interactive, step by step tutorials show you how to use each ProCare module. Visit support.procaresoftware.com and select Tutorials. Getting Started Guides User Guides (like this one) are a great way to familiarize yourself with the basics of getting around ProCare. We suggest you read a few pages at a time then take a Tutorial related to what you just read. Frequent Questions & Online Help Answers to many Frequent Questions and up to date Online Help are available at support.procaresoftware.com. If you re not online, there is also Help built into ProCare just click the Red Question Mark located on many ProCare screens or tap the F1 key on your keyboard. 3. Technical Support Toll free Technical Support is available for installation questions, trouble shooting issues, and answers to specific questions for all current versions of ProCare. If your answer is not available in the many learning resources above please contact ProCare Technical Support at 1-(800) Page iii

4 Dear Friend: Thank you for choosing ProCare Software as your Management System. Your confidence in us is greatly appreciated. The mission of Professional Solutions is to provide the best management software and quality services to our customers. Specifically, our commitment is centered around the following goals and objectives: To always remember that the relationship between ourselves and our customer is one of sincere trust and to do everything possible to achieve and maintain that trust. To deliver to each customer the absolute best management software product and quality service, now and into the future. To remember that it is our duty and obligation to serve our customers so that their goals and objectives are fulfilled. To always be aware that each customer must be treated with care, concern, dignity and sensitivity. To at all times conduct ourselves in the utmost professional manner, adhering to the highest ethical standards and putting the interests of our customers first. Thank you for letting us have this opportunity to serve your needs. Jeffrey R. Blum, President Professional Solutions

5 Software License Agreement Professional Solutions grants you a non-exclusive, non-transferable license* to use this copy of the ProCare Management Software and accompanying documentation. This license is not a sale. Title and copyrights to the program and accompanying documentation and any copy made by you remain with Professional Solutions. Unauthorized copying of the program or the accompanying documentation, or failure to comply with the following restrictions, will result in automatic termination of this license and any software support through Professional Solutions, and will make available to Professional Solutions other legal remedies. This software license authorizes you to utilize the program according to the following terms: Acceptable 1. Use of this program at one registered location. 2. Installation of this program at more than one computer only if the computers are located at the center that originally purchased the site license to use the program. The original site for the software will have the site name encoded into the program. 3. Making one copy of the program in machine readable format solely for backup purposes. All proprietary notices must accompany the copy. Unacceptable 1. Use of this program at more than one center, without a site license for that site. 2. Duplication (except for backup), modification, translation, reverse engineering, decompiling, disassembling, or creating derivative works based on the program or documentation. 3. Renting, transferring, or granting any rights in the program or documentation in any form to any person without the prior written consent of Professional Solutions. 4. Removing any proprietary notices, labels or warnings on the program and accompanying documentation. 5. Selling or otherwise transferring your software license to a new owner or other business entity.* * Professional Solutions reserves the right to transfer the Software License with an associated fee. Software Warranty Professional Solutions warrants that, for a period of ninety (90) days from the date of delivery to you, as evidenced by the date on your invoice, the media on which the program is furnished under normal use will be free from defects in materials and workmanship and the program under normal use will function without significant errors that make it unusable. If you notify Professional Solutions within the warranty period of any such defects, Professional Solutions will replace the defective media. The sole remedy for breach of this warranty is limited to replacement of defective materials or refund of purchase price and does not include any other kinds of damages. The entire risk as to the performance of the programs is with the purchaser. Professional Solutions does not warrant that the operation of the programs will be uninterrupted or error-free. Professional Solutions assumes no responsibility or liability of any kind of errors in the programs or documentation or for the consequences of any such errors. In no event will Professional Solutions be liable for any damages, including loss of data, lost profits, or other special, incidental, consequential or indirect damages from the use of the program or accompanying documentation, however caused and on any theory of liability. You acknowledge that the license fee reflects this allocation of risk. Page v

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7 Table of Contents Employee Data & Payroll General Overview...1 Employee Data Setup...4 Also known as the Program Configuration, this is the where you choose the overall settings that affect Employee Data. Examples would be the number of pay periods in a year and the departments (or classrooms) where employees work. Also, this is where you set User Limits to allow only certain people to perform certain tasks in the Employee Data & Payroll Module. General Settings User Limits...4 General Parameters...5 Employee Data Settings City, State, Zip...6 Check-In Message (all employees)...6 User Defined Fields...6 Immunizations...7 Employee Groups...7 Employee Tracking...8 Work Department...8 Employee Positions...8 Classroom Links...9 Payroll Data Settings Federal Withholdings...10 State Withholdings...11 General Withholdings...11 EIC (Earned Income Credit) Calculations...12 Paycheck Format...13 Payroll Formula Editor...15 Entering Employee Data Entering a New Employee...19 Editing / Changing an Existing Employee...23 Emergency Contacts...21 Entering Pay Rates...21 Current Advances...22 Withholdings...23 Variables...23 Medical Information...24 User Defined Fields...24 TimeCards / Scheduling / Vacation and Sick Time / Payroll Time Card...25 Batch Post Time Card...27 Current Pay Period...28 Payroll Checks...29 Voiding a Check...33 Posting Year to Date Payroll...34 Batch Print Payroll Checks...35 Vacation, Sick, and Training...36 Accumulation Rate for Vacation and/or Sick Time...37 Batch Post Training...38 Holidays...39 Bonus Checks...39 Employee Schedules...41 Page vii

8 Other Employee Status...44 Reminders...44 Log Sheet...46 Check-In Message (one employee)...47 Deleting an Employee...47 General File Management...56 Standard Payroll Variables, Functions, Math Operators...57 Search, Letter Merge... see Help Files Printing Reports Employee Specific Reports...48 General Reports...49 Printing Reports...51 Report Designer...61 Index...66

9 Employee Data & Payroll General Overview Purpose The Employee Data module is where you keep track of employee information, like names, addresses, schedules and time cards. If you also have the Payroll module, you ll be able to print paychecks and payroll reports. Below is a quick summary of the major areas of these modules. Each area will be covered in greater detail as you progress through this Getting Started Guide. You may also get more information by tapping the F1 key while in ProCare to bring up the Help screens. The Main Menu The Main Menu (also known as the ABC s screen) is the starting point of the Employee Data & Payroll module. From this screen you may access all areas of the module by clicking buttons, like New to enter a new employee, or clicking the alphabet letters across the top to look up a particular employee. Other features are listed under the pulldown menus at the top of the screen like Options or Functions. Program Configuration Also known as the Employee Data Setup screen, the Program Configuration is where you choose the overall settings that affect Employee Data. Examples would be the number of pay periods in a year and the departments (or classrooms) where employees work. Also, this is where you set User Limits to allow only certain people to perform certain tasks in the Employee Data & Payroll Module. This is the first place you ll go to begin setting up the module. Employee Information The Employee Information screen is where you keep basic information about each employee, like name, address, social security number, pay rate, and withholdings. This is the screen you will see after clicking the New or Edit buttons from the Main Menu. If you have the Attendance Tracker module, this is the screen where you enter an ID Code for the employee to use when checking in. Employee Data & Payroll Page 1

10 Time Card The Time Card is used to keep track of the number of Straight Time and Overtime hours for each employee. These hours may be imported to the Paycheck or used simply as a time clock if your center does not do its own payroll. Schedule Allows you to schedule individual employees or a department of employees at once. The employee s schedules are linked to the children s schedules, and will warn you if the required Teacher/Child ratios are not being met. A smiley face means the ratios are okay! Payroll Check Calculation The Check Calculation screen is where the amounts and withholdings for each paycheck are determined. If you are using the Attendance Tracker module as your time clock, those hours can be automatically imported to the paycheck. Page 2 Employee Data & Payroll

11 Batch Print Checks The Batch Print Payroll Checks feature allows you to print individual checks or a group of checks. For example, you could select all the checks for your current payroll at once. Employee Data Reports You may print reports that show various employee information. For example, Employee Time Cards or a simple directory of names and addresses. Most reports allow you to select a particular group of employees to be included. Payroll Reports These reports are for specific payroll information like a Tax Deposit report, or a Payroll Check Summary. Employee Data & Payroll Page 3

12 Employee Data & Payroll Program Configuration Getting there... From the Functions Menu, click on Program Configuration. Purpose The Program Configuration, also known as the Employee Data Setup screen is where you choose the overall settings that affect Employee Data & Payroll. Examples include the number of pay periods in a year, the departments (or classrooms) where employees work and Income Tax Withholding Tables. Also, this is where you set User Limits to allow only certain people to perform certain tasks in the Employee Data & Payroll Module. General Configuration User Limits User Limits (Security Level) allows you to have only certain persons perform certain tasks. For instance, you may not want everyone to be able to post paychecks, or to add new employees, etc. Each module has its own set of User Limitations. There are also Global limitations for the entire ProCare System. Page 4 Employee Data & Payroll

13 General Parameters This is the place you assign general things like the number of pay periods per year and how overtime is determined, etc. If you have the Employee Data module only (and not Payroll) skip to item #6. 1.) Select the Current Payroll Year by clicking on the small, black up and down arrows. You can only print checks that have a Post Date within the year entered here. For example, if it were January 2001, but your payroll year were still set to the year 2000 you would have to change this screen to 2001 before you could print a check with a 2001 date. 2.) Select the Start Day of Pay Week by clicking on the pulldown list. This affects how overtime (above 40 hours per week) is calculated. It has nothing to do with the Current Pay Period. For example, let s say the calendar was as follows: Sun = 3 rd / Mon = 4 th / Tues = 5 th / Wed = 6 th / Thurs = 7 th / Fri = 8 th / Sat = 9 th Sun = 10 th / Mon = 11 th / Tues = 12 th / Wed = 13 th / Thurs = 14 th / Fri = 15 th / Sat = 16 th Sun = 17 th, etc. If you select Monday, as the Start Day of Pay Week then overtime is determined on a Monday - Sunday basis. If an employee worked over 40 hours from the 11 th - 17 th it would be considered overtime (unless you have NONE selected for Overtime Calculation - see below). Any hours worked on the 10 th would count toward overtime for the week of the 4 th - 10 th. This is not related to the Pay Period. If your Pay Period were from the 1 st - 15 th, it would have no bearing on the overtime calculation. Since the Pay Week runs from the 11 th - 17 th (and is not yet over) any hours worked as overtime on the 16 th or 17 th would show up on the next paycheck. The important thing is to be consistent. You can t choose Monday - Sunday one time then switch to Tuesday - Monday. This would make overtime calculations impossible, as well as causing a great deal of confusion. 3.) Select the number of Pay Periods in a Year from the pulldown list or you may type in a number of your choosing. This is one of several factors used to determine how much to withhold in taxes from each check. The standard choices are: 12 = Pay once a month 24 = Pay twice a month 26 = Pay every 2 weeks 52 = Pay every week Note: When entering a New Employee, the number of Pay Periods assigned to that employee automatically defaults to the number set here. If the number in the Program Configuration has been changed since an employee was first entered, it would be necessary to also change the number on each Employee Pay Rate screen. 4.) Select the method used for Overtime Calculation. To have overtime automatically calculated, select either Over 40 hrs/week or Over 8 hrs/day and over 40 hrs/week. If you calculate overtime in some other way or not at all, then choose None, which means all hours would be considered straight time. Make any adjustments on the Payroll Check Calculation screen. It is strongly recommended that you seek advice from a professional accountant before using the None option. 5.) General Ledger Assignments is where you indicate which account the money for payroll comes from, known as the Payroll Checkbook, and where to post Employee Advances (if you give an employee money before your normal payday). Employee Data & Payroll Page 5

14 Enter the appropriate General Ledger Numbers from your chart of accounts in the GL Number box. Be sure to use Asset account numbers. The General Ledger Description will automatically be entered based on the GL Number you used, however, if the GL Number is not already in your chart of accounts, the description will be blank. In this case it would be necessary to add this number to the chart of accounts. The default numbers are Primary Bank Account and Employee Advances. Your numbers may vary. Ask your accountant. 6.) The Monitor Employee Training section is used to track the number of hours an employee spends in training or on work related travel. You may choose to enter a date range using the Between the dates of option or select to view a certain number of months using for the Prior... Months. Employee Data Configuration City, State, Zip This feature allows you to set a default City, State, and Zip Code. If you have a number of employees who live in the same city this can be a great time saver. Each time you enter a new employee the City, State, and Zip will automatically be filled in using these default settings. You can always type over the information for a particular employee if their City, State, or Zip are different. General Message You can send Check-In Messages to all employees at once. They will see the messages when checking in/out at a check-in computer (running ProCare Attendance Tracker) or using a ProCare Time Clock. Messages can be assigned in the following ways: General Employee Message This message will go to every employee. You may use up to 150 characters. Click on Exit to save the message, or Cancel to exit without saving the message, or Clear to delete an existing message. Individual Employee Message This message will go only to one specific employee. See page 47. User Defined Fields Gives you the ability to track information for employees that is not otherwise shown. In other words you can create your own data fields. You might use this to track Spouse s Name, or First Aid Certified, etc. You can keep track of words, numbers, dates, or things with Yes/No answers. Page 6 Employee Data & Payroll

15 Immunizations You can track the immunizations required for each employee and generate reports showing when each immunization is due. After completing these steps, enter the immunization history for each employee under the Medical button on the Employee Information Screen. 1.) Click on the Immunizations button under the heading Employee Data. 2.) Click the line next to Immunization Name and enter a name like Polio or DPT, etc. Then tap the TAB key to move to the next blank box and enter another name. You can enter up to 12 immunization names. Note: You can look at the Data Field Information box in the upper left-hand corner for a brief description of what to do. 3.) Click on the line next to Immunization Type. You have 2 choices: #1 Employee s Age When Due: Enter the employee s age in months (for 1 st Due, 2 nd Due, etc.) when each immunization is due. #2 Time Between Immunizations: Enter the number of months between each immunization. 4.) Click on the line next to 1 st Due and enter the employee s age in months when the first immunization is due. Note: This step is the same regardless of whether you chose Immunization Type #1 or #2. 5.) Click on the line next to 2 nd Due and if you chose Immunization Type #1 enter the employee s age in months, however, if you chose Immunization Type #2 enter the number of months between the 1 st and 2 nd immunizations. 6.) Repeat step #5 for 3 rd Due through 8 th Due. If an immunization does not require all eight due dates, simply leave that due date blank. Employee Groups You may categorize your employees into groups for issuing paychecks, running reports, etc. For example, you might have categories for the type of work they do, such as Administration or Clerical. If you have more than one center, the group could be the location where they work like Lincoln School, Fifth Avenue Center, and so on. You may assign one group per employee. Note: Most Payroll Reports can be sorted by group, so if you d like to break down payroll into different categories this is a good way to do it. 1.) Click on the Employee Groups button under the heading Employee Data. 2.) Click on a blank line and enter the name of a group. Employee Data & Payroll Page 7

16 Employee Tracking This feature allows you to track other information on each employee. You might use this to track which employees are CPR certified, or special classes/training they may have completed. The possibilities are vast. You may assign more than one tracking category to each employee. 1.) Click on the Employee Tracking button under the heading Employee Data. 2.) Click on a blank line and enter a category for Employee Tracking. Work Department Describes the place an employee works. Usually these will be the names of your classrooms, but you might also have departments like Kitchen, Office, etc. 1.) Click on the Work Departments button under the heading Employee Data. 2.) Click on a blank line and enter the name of a department. Employee Positions Defines the type of work an employee does, like Teacher, Cook, Bus Driver, Office Assistant, Administrator, etc. Having separate categories allows you to track the amount you spend on salary or wages for each category. You may also want positions for things like Holiday, Jury Duty, Bereavement, and Bonus. A few positions are pre-defined and cannot be changed including Vacation, Sick Time, and Training. 1.) Click on the Employee Positions button under the heading Employee Data. 2.) Click on a blank line under the heading Description and enter the name of a position. Continued >> Page 8 Employee Data & Payroll

17 3.) Place a check mark in the No Overtime column (shown as No OT ) if you want hours for this position to be excluded from overtime. This would be appopriate for positions like Holiday. 4.) Next, click on or TAB to the GL Number box. Enter the appropriate General Ledger Number from your chart of accounts. Be sure to use an Expense account. Then click on or TAB to the General Ledger Description which will automatically be entered based on the GL Number you used. The default number is Payroll Paid. Your numbers may vary. Ask your accountant. 5.) Assign each employee their position(s) on the Pay Rate screen. See page 21. Note 1: If you want to track the amounts paid for each position separately, you must use different GL Numbers for each position. For example, Teacher might be and Office Assistant , etc. These numbers must be defined in the Chart of Accounts first. Note 2: To track payroll expenses associated with a grant create a separate position like "Teacher - Grant" and assign a separate GL number. If a teacher's pay is partially subsidized by the grant they would be assigned 2 positions, the regular "Teacher" and "Teacher - Grant" to track the payroll Expense. If their pay is also divided between 2 bank accounts it would be necessary either to issue 2 paychecks (one from each account) or issue the check from a single check book then transfer funds from one account to the other with a Journal Entry in the General Ledger module. Classroom Links This function links the children s classrooms from the Family Data & Accounting module with the employee work departments so you can use the automatic scheduling feature of Employee Data. 1.) Click on the Classroom Links button under the heading Employee Data. 2.) At the Classroom Links screen you will see the names of the employee departments and the children s classrooms. In many cases the department and classroom names will be the same. a.) Click on the Employee Department, for example, Toddlers. b.) Click on the Classroom you wish to link to the Employee Department selected in step A. This might also be named Toddlers. You will now see this link appear on the bottom section of the screen as follows: Toddlers --->Toddlers [0:1] This indicates the employee department called Toddlers has been linked to the classroom of the same name and the currently assigned Student / Teacher Ratio is zero to one. c.) Repeat steps A and B for all departments and classrooms. Some departments like kitchen, or office, may not need any classroom links. 3.) Assign the Student / Teacher Ratio by clicking the Ratio button. A Child to Teacher Ratios screen will appear. Simply enter the number of children allowed per teacher for each classroom. When you are finished click Exit and you will notice the ratios have changed. For example, if you entered 8 on the Child to Teacher Ratios screen, the link would change as follows: Toddlers --->Toddlers [8:1] 4.) To delete a link simply select that link, at the bottom section of the screen, and click the Unassign button. To delete all links at once, click Unassign All. Employee Data & Payroll Page 9

18 Payroll Data Configuration Federal Withholdings These tax tables are automatically installed when you load the Employee Data & Payroll disk. To modify them: 1.) Click on the Federal Withholdings button under the heading Payroll Data. 2.) Next to the words Federal Income Withholding is the date these tables were current. For example, Jan 2000 indicates these were the current tables as of that date, however, if you make any changes to the tables the date will still say Jan Updating Federal Withholdings: You may order a W-2 disk at the end of each year which includes the new tax tables (both Federal and State) for the coming year and enables you to print W-2 information on pre-printed forms you obtain from your local office supply store or other third party vendor. If you choose to do W-2 s by hand or have your tax consultant prepare them then you may order a complete update of ProCare with the new tax tables. A third option is to manually update the tables each year based on the Circular E (from the IRS) by clicking the appropriate button under the heading Modify the formula for... (like Fed - Single, etc.). Be sure to use the tables for ANNUAL PAY PERIOD. Note: For more information on editing payroll formulas, see page ) The appropriate figures for Social Security, Medicare, and Federal Unemployment (FUTA) will automatically be entered based on the disk installed in step #2. To manually update these amounts simply type over them. Note: Wage Base means the amount of earnings subject to that particular tax. For example, a tax (like FUTA) may apply to only the first $8,000 in wages. If a tax applied to all earnings (with no limit) the wage base would be entered as a very large number like 1,000,000 or 9,999, ) GL Number is where you indicate to which general ledger account the withholding (employee s share), is posted. Enter the appropriate numbers from your chart of accounts. Be sure to use Liability account numbers (this is for the employee s share only - the employer s share is posted separately in the Accounts Payable module). The General Ledger Description will automatically be entered based on the GL Number you used, however, if the GL Number is not already in your chart of accounts, the description will be blank. In this case it would be necessary to add this number to the chart of accounts. The default numbers are FICA (Social Security), FICA (Medicare), and Federal Tax Liability. At the time of this writing, FUTA was paid by Employers, not Employees, however, it is still necessary to assign a GL number to FUTA you may use Federal Tax Liability here as well. If future tax changes require employees to pay, it would be necessary to add their percentage and perhaps create a separate GL number for FUTA Liability. Note: The percentage the Employer pays should be entered here, while the actual amount the Employer pays should be entered as an expense in the Accounts Payable module. Your numbers may vary. Ask your accountant. Page 10 Employee Data & Payroll

19 State Withholdings 1.) Click on the State Withholdings button under the heading Payroll Data. 2.) State tax tables are NOT automatically installed. If you have not already done so, install as follows: a.) Select your state from the list by clicking on it. b.) If tax tables for that state have never been installed, a message will pop up asking if you want to install them. If you do not get the message it means those tax tables are already installed. If you wish to update tables for a state that is already installed, simply click the Install button. c.) Repeat above for any other states for which you withhold income tax. 3.) Next to the name of each state (for which tax tables were installed) is the date these tables were current. For example, Jan 1999 indicates these were the current tables as of that date, however, if you make any changes to the tables the date will still say Jan In many cases state tax tables do NOT change from year to year. The states do NOT notify us of changes. It is up to you to verify your tables are up to date. If you are unsure contact your state revenue department. Updating State Withholdings: You may order a W-2 disk at the end of each year which includes the new tax tables (both Federal and State) for the coming year and enables you to print W-2 information on pre-printed forms you obtain from your local office supply store or other third party vendor. If your State changes it s tax tables in mid-year or if you choose to do W-2 s by hand or have your tax consultant prepare them then you may order a complete update of ProCare with the new tax tables. To install tax tables from an update simply follow step #2 above. A third option is to manually update the tables by clicking the appropriate button under the heading Modify the formula for... (like GA-Single, etc.). Be sure to use the tables for ANNUAL PAY PERIOD. Note: For more information on editing payroll formulas, see page ) If your state has a State Unemployment tax (SUTA) simply enter the figures in the appropriate boxes. Note: Wage Base means the amount of earnings subject to that particular tax. For example, a tax (like FUTA) may apply to only the first $7,000 in wages. If a tax applied to all earnings (with no limit) the wage base would be entered as a very large number like 1,000,000 or 9,999, ) GL Number is where you indicate to which general ledger account the withholding is posted. Enter the appropriate numbers from your chart of accounts. Be sure to use Liability account numbers. The General Ledger Description will automatically be entered based on the GL Number you used, however, if the GL Number is not already in your chart of accounts, the description will be blank. In this case it would be necessary to add this number to the chart of accounts. The default number is State Tax Liability. You could add a new liability to your chart of accounts for SUTA, if needed. The amount paid by the employer (if any) should be posted as an expense in the Accounts Payable module. Your numbers may vary. Ask your accountant. General Withholdings This allows you to create customized withholdings for things like: Employee Child Care, Health Insurance, Retirement or Pension Plans (like 401k or 403b), Local Taxes (City, County, etc.), a Garnishment, or anything else you would withhold. 1.) Click on the General Withholdings button under the heading Payroll Data. 2.) To make a new withholding category, click the Create New Withholding button. Employee Data & Payroll Page 11

20 a.) Enter a Category name. This is what the program will use internally to track the withholding. You may use up to 6 characters. For health insurance you might use Health. b.) Enter a Formula Name. This is the name you will see for the withholding. You may use up to 25 characters. For health insurance you could use the full name Health Insurance. Once you Exit, the name of the Category and Formula Name are permanent*. If you are not sure, click Cancel instead. This will take you back to the General Withholdings screen where you will have a button with the new formula name on it (assuming you did not cancel), right below the words Modify the formula for... *Note: If it becomes necessary to change the Category or Formula Name at a later time please contact Technical Support for assistance. 3.) GL Number is where you indicate to which general ledger account the withholding is posted. Enter the appropriate number(s) from your chart of accounts. Be sure to use Liability account numbers. The General Ledger Description will automatically be entered based on the GL Number you used, however, if the GL Number is not already in your chart of accounts, the description will be blank. In this case it would be necessary to add this number to the chart of accounts. If you are unsure what numbers to use, ask your accountant. 4.) Withholding Formulas are necessary to tell the program how to calculate the amount to withhold. To set up a new formula (or change an existing one) click on the button with that withholding s name on it (for example, Health Insurance) right below the words Modify the formula for.... This will bring up the Payroll Formula Editor screen. 5.) Once you have created the withholdings, you need to assign them to the individual employees at the Employee Withholdings screen. EIC Calculation The EIC (Earned Income Credit) tables are automatically installed when you load the Employee Data & Payroll disk. If you have questions about how EIC works please refer to your Circular E or contact the IRS. 1.) To modify the EIC formulas, click on the EIC Calculation button under the heading Payroll Data. 2.) Next to the words Federal Earned Income Credit is the date these tables were current. For example, Jan 2000 indicates these were the current tables as of that date, however, if you make any changes to the tables the date will still say Jan Updating Earned Income Credit Tables: You may order an updated Employee Data & Payroll disk at the beginning of each year with the new tables for that year. Simply click the Install button, insert the disk, and the tables will be automatically installed. OR You may manually update the tables each year based on the Circular E (from the IRS) by clicking the appropriate button under the heading Modify the formula for.... Be sure to use the tables for ANNUAL PAY PERIOD. Note: For more information on editing payroll formulas, see page 15. Page 12 Employee Data & Payroll

21 3.) GL Number is where you indicate to which general ledger account the Earned Income Credit is posted. Enter the appropriate numbers from your chart of accounts. It should be your Federal Tax Liability account. When an EIC is posted, it is a CREDIT (or decrease) in your Federal Tax Liability. The General Ledger Description will automatically be entered based on the GL Number you used, however, if the GL Number is not already in your chart of accounts, the description will be blank. In this case it would be necessary to add this number to the chart of accounts. The default number is Federal Tax Liability. Your numbers may vary. Ask your accountant. Paycheck Format This is the place to select the printer type of check you use, for example, 3-part inkjet or laser checks, or 2-part dot matrix. You also have the ability to move text around so things like the employee s name, and amount, print in the proper location. Note: You must obtain preprinted checks that include standard information like the check number, the name of your company, your banking institution and routing and account numbers. The check stubs must be blank. In most cases the paper size will be 8-1/2 x 11. The check must be either in the middle or at the top of the page. Click the Sample button to print a sample check layout on plain paper. Ordering Checks: ProCare recommends checks be ordered from Dynamic Systems at for guaranteed compatibility, however, you may purchase checks through your bank or other supplier. You may place an order online at 1.) Click on the Paycheck Format button under the heading Payroll Data. 2.) Select the Check Printer, Font Type and Font Size, then check Bold, or Italic, if appropriate. Times New Roman - 12 point, is generally a good choice. Note: If you select Bold or Italic, all of the text will print that way. You can t select just one thing, like the Employee s Name, to be Bold or Italic. 3.) All items appearing on the check are listed in the Check Item list box on the lower right side of the screen. It is NOT NECESSARY to click them unless you ve deleted a category and want to re-insert it. The default setting is that all text fields will be on the check unless you choose otherwise. SEE STEP #5 BELOW. 4.) In the bottom-center of the screen select the Check Style that is appropriate for your printer. Be sure to order checks with BLANK STUBS. ProCare will print the lines on the stub for you. Laser, Ink-Jet, or Bubble-Jet (single sheet) printers take 3-part checks in 1 of 2 formats: a.) Stub / Check / Stub (check is in middle of page) OR b.) Check / Stub / Stub (check is at top of page) These checks (including stubs) are 8-1/2 x 11 inches. Dot Matrix (continuous feed) printers take 2-part checks in 1 of 2 formats: a.) Stub / Check (check is at bottom of page) OR b.) Check / Stub (check is at top of page) These checks (including stub) are 8-1/2 x 7 inches. Note: Since dot matrix checks have a shorter than normal page length (7 inches) it is important to have the proper paper size selected in Windows. If you had 8-1/2 x 11 as the paper size, but the check was only 7 inches long, the paper would advance the full 11 inches and obviously the next check would not be lined up correctly. You must select 8-1/2 x 7 as the paper size when printing this type of check. Check your printer manual or contact the printer manufacturer if you need assistance. 5.) Print a sample check (on plain white paper) by clicking the Sample button in the lower right-hand corner. Hold the sample up to the light against a real check to see if the text is properly aligned. Employee Data & Payroll Page 13

22 Adjusting Position of Text on the Check If you need to make an adjustment, say for example, the dollar amount is printing too high, simply click and drag the dollar amount on screen (shown as ***$955.50***) to a new location and try a test print again until everything is properly positioned. As you drag the text on screen, note the Position of Left and Top change (in lower left-hand corner of screen). This lets you know the exact position of the text on the check. It is generally NOT necessary to change the Margin settings. Deleting Text from the Check You may choose to delete text, for example, the Employee s Social Security Number (shown as ). Simply click and drag the text to the Trash Can. Replacing Text that has been Deleted If you wanted to place the Social Security Number back on the check, simply double click the Social Security Number line in the Check Item list. This places the SS Number symbol (shown as ) in the upper left-hand corner of the check, then simply drag it to the desired position. Setting everything back to the default (standard) settings To put all text back to its original position, simply click the Resize button in the upper right-hand corner of the screen. Any changes you have made by repositioning, deleting, or adding text will be gone. Page 14 Employee Data & Payroll

23 Payroll Formula Editor The Formula Editor is where you create formulas that determine how much to withhold. Most withholding formulas will be fairly simple, like a percentage of gross pay (example: County Income Tax), or a flat dollar amount (example: Health Insurance). Comment The comment field is a place to enter a short description of what the formula is intended to do. If the formula, on line 1 for example, was meant to take 6% of gross, you could enter 6% of gross as the comment. It is NOT necessary to enter a comment, it is simply a way to make a note to yourself. Formula This is where you enter a formula using variables (like gross for Gross Wages) that determines the amount to withhold. A simple formula might be only one line long, for example, 6% of gross would be entered as:.06 * (gross). If the percentage varied for each employee, a variable would be created to replace the.06. Result This is the result of the formula for that particular line number. If the formula were.06 * (gross) and the gross had been entered under the Sample button as $500, the result for that line would be $30. Withholding is Exempt If the withholding is exempt from any of the following items, simply click on it to place an X in the box. This means the amount withheld is NOT subject to a particular tax, for example, a retirement plan might be exempt from federal income tax. If you are not sure, ask your accountant. Example: Gross wages $500. Amount withheld $100. If the withholding was exempt they would pay taxes on just $400. If the withholding was not exempt taxes would be paid on the full $500. You may make a withholding exempt from the following taxes: Federal Income Tax Social Security Medicare Federal Unemployment State Income Tax State Unemployment Create a Variable You would create a variable for something like a flat dollar amount or percentage that VARIES from employee to employee. If the amount or percentage is CONSTANT you would not need to create a variable. 1.) Click on the Variables button in the lower right-hand corner of the Payroll Formula Editor screen. The abbreviation VAR1 means variable #1. There may be up to 5 variables per withholding, but most withholdings won t need more than 1 or 2. Employee Data & Payroll Page 15

24 2.) Select a Format from the pulldown list. Formats are used in the following ways: Format Valid Numbers Possible Use 01 0 or 1 only yes and no answers (like 0=no, 1=yes) 012 0, 1, or 2 only anything that requires a number from 0 to or 3 only anything that requires a number from 0 to 3 9 any 1 digit number anything that requires a number from 0 to 9 99 any number up to 2 digits number of exemptions 9999 any number up to 4 digits anything that requires a 3 or 4 digit number ####.## up to 4 digits with 2 decimals dollar amounts ##.#### up to 2 digits with 4 decimals percentages Note: If the Format says Not Used it indicates this variable is not currently being used and you may assign a new format, however, changing an existing format could cause data stored in that variable to be lost. If you are not sure what an existing variable is used for, do NOT change its format. 3.) Enter Instructions to remind yourself of the purpose of this variable. For example, if the variable was used to withhold a certain dollar amount per check for health care, the instructions might simply say Amount to withhold for Health Care. Sample Data Entering sample data is a way to test a withholding without posting a check. This includes variables like Gross Pay, Straight Time, Overtime, etc. Figures entered in the sample data are used to calculate the result for each line of the formula and the amount to be withheld shown in the Withholding for Sample Data box in the top right-hand corner of the Payroll Formula Editor screen. 1.) To enter sample data of your own, simply click the Sample button in the lower right-hand corner of the Payroll Formula Editor screen and enter data in the Value column for any variables you choose. Note: It is not necessary to enter values for everything, just the variables used in the formula. For example, if the formula were.06 * (gross), the only variable that would need sample data would be GROSS. If $500 were entered as GROSS the result of the formula would be $30. Standard Variables and Functions Standard Variables (see page 57) are things like Gross Pay, or Overtime, while Functions and Math Operators include things like IF statements, addition and multiplication. These are pre-defined for you and may be used in formulas. Syntax is the way a variable or function must be entered, for example, a variable must always be enclosed in parentheses, like (gross). For testing purposes, the figures come from the Sample Data described above, but when you actually post a paycheck, the figures come from that employee s data. Page 16 Employee Data & Payroll

25 Payroll Formula Example 1 Flat amount withheld - Different for each employee. This formula would be typical for a Health Insurance Plan, Employee Child Care, Retirement Plan, etc. 1.) First you must Create a Variable to use in the formula and select the ####.## dollar/cents format. 2.) Then enter the following formula. It is not necessary to enter a comment, but you may if you wish. Line Comment Formula 1 Health (var1) 3.) Next go to each employee that will have this withheld and assign it to them on the Employee Withholdings screen. At that screen be sure to click the Variables button and enter the amount per paycheck to withhold for that employee. Payroll Formula Example 2 Flat amount withheld - Same for each employee. This formula would be typical for a Health Insurance Plan, Employee Child Care, Retirement Plan, etc. 1.) Since the amount is the same for each employee it is not necessary to create a variable. 2.) Then enter the dollar amount (per check) as the formula. It is not necessary to enter a comment, but you may if you wish. Line Comment Formula 1 Health 50 (or whatever dollar amount you want to withhold per check) 3.) Next go to each employee that will have this withheld and assign it to them on the Employee Withholdings screen. Payroll Formula Example 3 Percentage of Gross - Different for each employee. This formula would be typical for a Retirement Plan, Garnishment, etc. 1.) First you must Create a Variable to use in the formula and select the ##.#### percentage format. 2.) Then enter the following formula. It is not necessary to enter a comment, but you may if you wish. Line Comment Formula 1 Retirement (gross) * ((var1) / 100) 3.) Next go to each employee that will have this withheld and assign it to them on the Employee Withholdings screen. At that screen, be sure to click the Variables button and enter the percentage per paycheck to withhold for that employee. If you wanted to withhold 5%, you d enter it as Payroll Formula Example 4 1.) Percentage of Gross - Same for each employee. This formula would be typical for a Retirement Plan, Garnishment, etc. 2.) Since the percentage is the SAME for each employee it is not necessary to create a variable. 3.) Then enter the formula as (gross) times the percentage (per check). The example below is using 5% which is entered as.05 but you may enter any percentage like 4.75% which would be It is not necessary to enter a comment, but you may if you wish. Line Comment Formula 1 Garnishment (gross) *.05 Next go to each employee that will have this withheld and assign it to them on the Employee Withholdings screen. Examples Continued >> Employee Data & Payroll Page 17

26 Payroll Formula Example 5 - California SDI This formula is for California SDI or any tax that uses a taxable wage base. 1.) Since the tax rate is the same for each employee it is not necessary to create a variable. 2.) Enter the following formula. The taxable wage base and tax rate may vary from year to year. Please verify this information with the appropriate state agency or your accountant. The example below is for the year Line Comment Formula 1 Taxable Wage Base Tax Rate % Max[(Line[1] - (ytdgross)), 0] 4 If[Line[3] >= (gross), (gross), Line[3]] 5 (Line[4] * Line[2]) *.01 3.) Next go to each employee that will have this withheld and assign it to them on the Employee Withholdings screen. Page 18 Employee Data & Payroll

27 Entering a New Employee Employee Information Screen 1.) From the main alphabet screen of the Employee Data & Payroll module there are several ways to begin: a.) Click on the New button OR b.) Tap the F2 key OR c.) Click on the Options Menu and select Add a New Employee. Now go to step #2 below. Editing or Changing an Existing Employee 1.) From the main alphabet screen of the Employee Data & Payroll module, call up the employee whose information you want to modify. Then simply click on the box you wish to change and enter your changes. 2.) At the Employee Information screen your cursor will be flashing in the Employee Key field. The employee key is used to sort your employees alphabetically. Normally you would enter the first four letters of the Employee s Last Name (although you may use up to 8 characters, either letters, numbers, or a combination of both). Hint: the Employee Key will automatically be capitalized. Note: the BLUE Data Field Information box and the YELLOW BAR right below it will give you brief instructions as you move from box to box and point at different things. 3.) Next, click on or TAB to Employee Status. You have two choices: Active or Deactive. The program will automatically select Active, although you may change it if needed. 4.) Continue entering data in the appropriate boxes (also known data fields ). You may Click or TAB to move between boxes. Some areas require further explanation as follows: a.) Group, Employee Tracking, Work Departments, and City, State, Zip Code are defined in the Program Configuration. City, State and Zip are defaults that will save time if many of your employees live in the same area. You may simply type over those boxes if the defaults do not apply. b.) Employee Group: You choose the appropriate group from the pulldown list or simply tap the first letter of the group name, for example, T for Teacher, A for Administrator. Hint: to delete a group (have no group name assigned) tap the spacebar. c.) Employee Tracking: Click in the white box for a list of choices you defined in the Program Configuration. Click the boxes that apply to this employee a RED CHECK MARK will indicate they are selected (click a second time to remove the Check Mark). You may assign multiple tracking codes to the same employee. SAVE will save your selections CANCEL will cancel your selections REMOVE ALL will remove the Check Marks SELECT ALL will place Check Marks next to every category d.) Work Departments and Priority: This is where you assign the departments, or areas of the center, in which an employee works and prioritize them for scheduling. The choices you make here determine how an employee will be scheduled when using the Auto Schedule feature. If you are not using Auto Schedule, the priority is not important, however, it is still necessary to assign departments. Employee Data & Payroll Page 19