ITS-Enterprise Business Services Employee Web Kiosk Approver Training Doris Heidermann August 2013
Table of Contents Introduction... 4 1.0 Kiosk Functionality & Procedures... 5 1.1 Overview... 5 1.2 Functions available to all Employees... 5 1.3 Exceptions to Kiosk leave bookings... 5 1.4 The Approval Structure... 6 1.4.1 Escalation of Transactions... 6 1.5 Designated Approver Responsibilities... 7 1.5.1 Submitted Leave Requests... 7 1.5.2 Delegation while on Leave... 7 1.6 Summary... 7 2.0 HR Rules & Policies... 8 2.1 Overview... 8 2.2 Rules for Leave Processing... 8 2.2.1 Annual Leave balances... 8 2.2.2 Long Service Leave balances... 8 2.2.3 Personal / Carer s Leave... 8 2.3 Staff Leave Balances... 9 2.3.1 Negative Leave balance for Annual Leave... 9 2.4 Warning/Error Messages... 9 2.4.1 Warning - The amount of leave request exceeds available balance... 9 2.4.2 Error The amount of leave request exceeds available balance. Please contact your support representative... 10 2.5 Summary... 10 3.0 Employee Functions... 11 3.1 Overview... 11 3.2 Leave Requests using the Web Kiosk... 11 3.2.2 Options for submitting and monitoring Leave Requests... 11 3.2.3 Whole Day Leave Booking... 11 3.2.4 Part Day Leave Booking... 11 3.3 Notes on Leave Processing... 12 4.0 Approver Functions... 13 2
4.1 Overview... 13 4.2 Actioning Leave Requests using the Web Kiosk... 13 4.3 Actioning Leave Requests with Warnings... 13 4.3.1 Warning Message: The amount of leave request exceeds available balance... 13 4.4 Notes on Actioning Leave Requests... 14 5.0 Delegation Functions... 16 5.1 Overview... 16 5.2 Delegating Authority using the Web Kiosk... 16 5.3 Notes on Delegation Process... 16 6.0 APPENDIX... 17 6.1 Revision History... 17 3
Introduction Welcome to the Employee Web Kiosk Approver Training Manual. This manual is a PDF version of the Employee Web Kiosk Approver Online Training Course. It is intended that it be used in conjunction with the online course, and also to provide a printer friendly version of the course notes. This course is designed for UTAS employees who are designated approvers. It will cover all areas necessary for approvers to action leave requests submitted to them by their staff. The following Topics are addressed 1. Kiosk Functionality & Procedures 2. HR Rules & Policies 3. Employee Functions in Kiosk 4. Approver Functions in Kiosk 5. Delegation Functions in Kiosk The online course also includes some review questions and online demonstrations of how the kiosk functions. These are not included in this manual. We hope that you enjoy the course and also find it beneficial in using the Employee Web Kiosk, both as an employee and approver. 4
1.0 Kiosk Functionality & Procedures 1.1 Overview In this topic you will be introduced to the Employee Web Kiosk, its functions as well as its structure and flow of transactions, explaining the type of transactions allowed or disallowed. As an Approver it is important to understand this and also your responsibility in relation to these transactions. 1.2 Functions available to all Employees For past 10 years all employees have been able to login to the Employee Web Kiosk (Kiosk) to view their pay and personal details. All employees must now submit the following leave bookings via the Kiosk. Annual Leave (AL) o Whole day and Part day. Long Service Leave (LSL) o Whole day and Part day. Personal / Carer s Leave (PCL) o Triennium (for permanent staff and contract staff with 6+ years of continuous service) o 10 days/yr (for contract staff with less than 6 years service) o Whole day and Part day Notes All part-time staff should book periods of leave in the same manner as full-time staff. The system will automatically calculate the period of leave based on their fraction and/or roster. Leave requests can be reversed where the period of leave is no longer required and MUST be reversed where rejected. All compulsory leave is booked directly by HR and does not need to be submitted by the employee. 1.3 Exceptions to Kiosk leave bookings All employees should note the following exceptions to AL, LSL or PCL where paper forms must still be submitted are: Any leave type in conjunction with maternity leave (book entire leave manually by forwarding all forms to HR). LSL on half pay. LSL on double pay (an alternative option is to book LSL as normal and complete a form for an LSL payout for the required number of days) Any other type of leave i.e. bereavement, leave without pay. 5
Any transaction that exceeds / spans the maximum end date. 2 part day leaves for different leave types on the same day. Can book one online and forward form for the other to HR. PCL on half pay or without pay 1.4 The Approval Structure The Approval Structure facilitates the flow of leave transactions to designated approvers in a set sequence within a set number of approval levels and within a specified time frame known as the escalation period. There are 2 approval levels before transactions move to a central default location. The automatic escalation period for leave transactions is 28 calendar days. To ensure transactions reach the appropriate approver this approval structure must be maintained whenever there are staff changes which would disrupt this flow. It is imperative that changes to approval positions within the structure are reported to HR using the appropriate forms as early as possible. 1.4.1 Escalation of Transactions Stage 1: Technical Officer submits a leave request. The request is automatically sent to Assistant Manager (level 1 approver) for actioning. Stage 2: The Assistant Manager has 28 calendar days to action this request, before it automatically escalates to Operations Manager (level 2 approver). Stage 3: After a further 28 calendar days without action it is escalated to a central default location. Note: Designated approvers can action this request at any stage, even where a transaction has escalated to a higher level approver. Reminder emails are sent every 5 days to both employee and approvers until the request has been actioned. 6
1.5 Designated Approver Responsibilities 1.5.1 Submitted Leave Requests All transactions must be actioned in line with the approver's delegated responsibility as outlined in the University of Tasmania's Delegations Register. Any transaction that is outside the approver s delegated authority should be escalated to a designated approver within the Budget Centre that has the required authority. 1.5.2 Delegation while on Leave 1. To eliminate unnecessary delays in transactions being actioned, a Designated Approver should delegate their approval authority to another employee in the Budget Centre. 2. The Approver should consider the position and level of the employee to whom they are delegating, ensuring the delegated approver has the required authority. 1.6 Summary All employees must submit AL, LSL and PCL using the Employee Web Kiosk. The approval structure controls the automatic flow of submitted transactions. Designated Approvers have 28 calendar days to action submitted leave requests before automatic escalation. Approvers should delegate their approval authority to another employee if unavailable for a longer period of time. 7
2.0 HR Rules & Policies 2.1 Overview In this topic you will be introduced to the some of the HR Rules and Policies which are relevant to the process of actioning leave requests. 2.2 Rules for Leave Processing 2.2.1 Annual Leave balances Annual Leave is accrued on a daily basis, and an employee's leave balances are calculated at the end date of their leave booking. Compulsory leave period at Christmas will need to be subtracted from leave balances until they are due, when they are automatically deducted by HR. AL may in some circumstances, can be approved up to 10 days in advance. Leave Balances MUST NEVER reach more than 10 days in negative. Fixed-term employees are required to take all their leave prior to the end of their contract. Future leave bookings are deducted from current balances, and therefore may need to be added back to determine leave available at time of booking. Time in Lieu is available for shorter absences. 2.2.2 Long Service Leave balances Prior to an employee reaching their entitlement for Long Service Leave (10 years continuous service) minor positive or negative balances may appear in the Staff Leave Balances report. These adjustments are for periods of additional hours or periods of leave without pay and will be adjusted accordingly when their entitlement eventually becomes due. Long Service Leave has no provision to be taken until entitlement has been reached. 2.2.3 Personal / Carer s Leave For a Personal / Carer s Leave request you must indicate whether or not you have a medical certificate or statutory declaration. When you enter yes in the Medical Certificate field, you must provide the original certificate or statutory declaration to your approver before the request can be approved. 8
2.3 Staff Leave Balances 2.3.1 Negative Leave balance for Annual Leave On occasion an employee may show a negative leave balance. Negative leave balances may occur when An employee has future dated leave bookings, which are deducted from the current balance. An employee is on a Fixed-Term contract, requiring them to take all leave before the contract end date. There are 3 common scenarios where an employee has insufficient leave to cover a requested booking: 1. Employee is on a Fixed-Term Contract and may request for leave before it has accrued - as leave balances accrue daily - these requests are normally approved. 2. Balance is negative at the end of the booking with no future dated leave requests booked these must NOT be approved if the negative balance exceeds 10 days. 3. Balance is only negative by a minor amount - these requests are usually approved. 2.4 Warning/Error Messages If an employee submits a leave request which generates a negative leave balance or is outside their qualifying period, the system will alert the employee and their approver by posting a Warning Message. All requests with warnings are still submitted in the normal manner; however, they cannot be approved without viewing the warning first. Approvers will determine their action based on individual circumstances incorporating HR Rules and Policies. Two of the most common Warning Messages are detailed below. 2.4.1 Warning - The amount of leave request exceeds available balance This warning is posted when an employee has a negative leave balance at the end date of the leave request submitted. Before approving these requests the approver should determine the reason and extent of the negative balance before making a decision. It is up to the discretion of the approver, based on the rules already mentioned whether the leave request is approved or rejected. Cannot under the Staff Agreement exceed negative 10 days, even if the approver is ok with it. If the request is outside the approver s authority, it should be escalated. 9
2.4.2 Error The amount of leave request exceeds available balance. Please contact your support representative This error is posted when an employee has submitted a leave request, either LSL or PCL, where the requested period exceeds the available balance. These requests are NOT allowed by the system. Please contact your HR Advisor for further advice. 2.5 Summary Negative annual leave balances are allowed in certain circumstances. Always determine why an employee has a negative balance before actioning. Warning messages are posted when the amount of leave requested exceeds the balance or the qualifying period has not been completed. Add back any future leave bookings, and incorporate any compulsory leave not yet allocated when calculating leave balance at time of booking. 10
3.0 Employee Functions 3.1 Overview This topic will explain how an employee submits a leave request, how they can monitor its progress and how to reverse a request if no longer applicable. An understanding of this process will help with approval process. 3.2 Leave Requests using the Web Kiosk 3.2.2 Options for submitting and monitoring Leave Requests Leave Requests Page o Submit all leave requests. o View all submitted leave requests. o View & reverse approved future dated leave requests. Pending Transactions Page (My Requests) o View the status of all submitted leave requests not yet approved. o Delete all rejected leave requests. Leave History o View prior leave taken. o Reverse prior leave bookings. 3.2.3 Whole Day Leave Booking Whole Day Leave Booking link is used to submit leave requests which are for 1 or more whole normal working days for part time employees a whole day may represent 3 hours. When booking whole day leave you must select the type of leave i.e. Annual Leave, Long Service Leave. 3.2.4 Part Day Leave Booking Part Day Leave Booking link is used to submit leave requests which are less time, than your normal working day. When booking part day leave you must select the type of leave i.e. Annual Leave, Long Service Leave. Note: For employees with multiple jobs, the same leave request must be submitted for each job separately. All leave requests submitted will automatically be calculated based on the employee s fraction or roster. 11
3.3 Notes on Leave Processing 1. Bookings are allowed for Annual leave, Long Service Leave and Personal Carer s Leave. 2. Any leave requests in conjunction with maternity leave should be submitted to HR using forms. 3. Where an employee has more than one job a leave booking must be submitted for all jobs. 4. A request for 1.5 days requires 2 transactions, 1 whole day request and 1 part day request. 5. To make a request of 2 different leave types for the same day, request 1 type online and submit the other one to HR using a form. 6. A warning message is posted when the submitted leave request is in excess to the leave balance available at the time of booking. 7. Leave requests with a warning posted are still submitted, and may be approved. 8. All rejected leave requests must be deleted from the Pending Transactions Page (My Requests). 9. If you have any questions talk to your HR Advisor. 12
4.0 Approver Functions 4.1 Overview This topic will explain how a designated approver actions a leave request that has been submitted to them. It will also explain how to action leave requests with warnings posted, why warnings are posted and how best to deal with them. You will also be introduced to links which will provide you with extra information to help you with the process. 4.2 Actioning Leave Requests using the Web Kiosk There are 4 basic actions that can be applied to a leave booking by the Designated Approver. 1. Approve Multiple bookings can be approved at one time if there are no warning messages posted. Bookings with warning messages must be viewed in detail before they can be approved. Use the Record ID link to view the leave detail. 2. Reject Leave requests which are not allowed by the designated approver can be rejected. It is appropriate to add an explanatory comment when rejecting a leave request. 3. Defer If a decision by the approver cannot be made before automatic escalation the leave request can be deferred to a future date. Automatic escalation will not occur until 28 calendar days after the deferred date. 4. Escalate If the leave request is outside the scope of the approver it can be escalated to the next level approver. Once a leave request has escalated it cannot be deferred. Note: If no action is taken the leave request will automatically escalate in 28 calendar days to the next level approver. 4.3 Actioning Leave Requests with Warnings When a leave request has a warning posted, as approver you will need to determine if the leave request can still be approved. 4.3.1 Warning Message: The amount of leave request exceeds available balance This warning indicates that the employee has submitted a leave request which will leave them with a negative leave balance. There are several factors involved when assessing whether the negative balance will justify the leave request to be rejected. To help in this 13
assessment, as an approver you will be provided links to enquire on the employees leave balance & history. Use the following steps to determine whether the leave request should be approved. Leave balances are calculated at the end date of the leave, so it is necessary to assess the extent of the negative balance If this negative amount is relatively small - you may decide then and there that it is ok to approve. Negative leave balances must not exceed 10 days as per the Staff Agreement. All leave balances are shown in days based on the Full Time Equivalent (FTE) of 7.35 hours per day for Professional Staff and 7.5 hours per day for Academic Staff. To convert this to hours, simply multiply the displayed days by either 7.35 or 7.5. Fixed-Term employees are required to take all their leave entitlements before the end of their contract. As leave is accrued on a daily basis, these types of employees will often have a negative balance. Calculate the leave balance as at the end of contract date using the Leave Balances link. Ensure you consider any compulsory leave to be taken and deduct from overall leave balance. If this amount is negative - you will need to reject the request as they have applied for more than their entitlement. Approved future dated leave bookings are deducted at the time of approval and will occasionally be the cause of a negative balance. Check for any future dated leave bookings the employee has using the Leave History link. These future leave balances need to be added back into the balance at the time of the booking. Note: Under certain circumstances, leave may be approved up to 10 days in advance. Use your discretion and remember that the facility of time in lieu can still be utilized. If in any doubt, please contact your HR Advisor. 4.4 Notes on Actioning Leave Requests 1. Leave requests can be deferred to a future date, if more than 28 calendar days are required to take action. Automatic escalation recommences on the deferred date. 2. All leave requests with a Warning must be acknowledged before any action is taken. 14
3. Under certain circumstances an employee may have a negative leave balance at the time of their request. These requests may still be approved. 4. If a leave request is outside your authority, it is necessary to escalate this request to the next level approver. 5. It is advisable when rejecting, deferring or escalating a request to enter a short comment. 6. When calculating an employee leave balance Use the end date of the request, or end date of contract for fixed-term employees Add back any future dated leave bookings Consider any compulsory leave which may fall into the period of the leave request 7. If you have any questions talk to your HR Advisor. 15
5.0 Delegation Functions 5.1 Overview This topic will explain the procedure and responsibility of delegating the authority to approve to another employee during periods of unavailability. It will highlight some of the considerations necessary when choosing an employee. 5.2 Delegating Authority using the Web Kiosk If you are an approver and you will be unavailable to action leave requests which may be submitted to you, it is recommended that you delegate your authority to approve to another employee within your budget centre. This will avoid any unnecessary delay in leave processing. Should you wish not to delegate during your period of unavailability, you can still action leave requests remotely in the Kiosk via VPN. Note: If no delegation is in place all unactioned requests will escalate after 28 calendar days. 5.3 Notes on Delegation Process 1. Ensure that the employee that you are delegating to has an appropriate level in regard to all transaction types including financial implications. 2. You cannot delegate to certain employees e.g. casual, scholarship. 3. It is important to inform the employee you are delegating to and ensure that they are available during that period of time. It is also important to communicate your intentions: - e.g. do not approve LSL until I return. 4. Any existing outstanding requests will be delegated. If you do not want these to be delegated you must action these before you enter your delegation. 5. Delegation commences from the time it is entered into the system, therefore it is recommended that delegations are entered as close as possible to the time of unavailability. 6. Any requests not actioned by the delegate will stay with them; they are not re-directed to you, even when your delegated period is complete. 7. Do NOT delete any delegation records entered, unless they are future dated. These records are kept for audit purposes. 8. If you have any questions talk to your HR Advisor. 16
6.0 APPENDIX 6.1 Revision History DOCUMENT REVISION HISTORY Version Sections/All Doc Date Reason 1.0 All 19 April 2011 This is the first version of the document. 2.0 All 8 August 2013 Updated to reflect changes in new Version 13. 17