Set Up Your Pay Rules
This is step 7 of Quick Start. It sets up the rules for your award's loadings and penalties. Each employee's base rate is the hourly rate on their profile, which you entered in Add Your Staff.
If you don't pay under an award, the hourly rate on each employee's profile is enough. Skip to Run Your First Pay Run.
By the end of this step you'll have:
- Shift Rules for your award's loadings and penalties.
- Checked the result with the award pay calculator.
Before you set up your pay rules
You'll need the award your staff are paid under, its penalty rates and loadings, and each employee's employment type.
How Microkeeper's pay rules fit together
Each type of rule pays one part of the award. They're under Menu > Settings > Payroll Rules.
| Rule | What it pays |
|---|---|
| Shift Rules | Casual loading, weekend rates, daily overtime, late night penalties and worked public holidays. |
| Weekly Rules | Overtime once ordinary hours pass a weekly limit, such as 38 hours. |
| Extra Rules | Allowances, such as tool, laundry and meal allowances. |
| Break Rules | Breaks applied to shifts automatically. |
| Rate Rules | Optional: a base rate for each award level, used instead of the rate on each profile. |
This step covers Shift Rules, which most awards need. Add the others when your award calls for them.
Add Shift Rules for loadings and penalties
Navigate to Menu > Settings > Payroll Rules > Shift Rules.
- On the Normal Rules tab, click Add Normal Rule.
- Enter a Title, which is shown on the payslip, for example "Casual Weekday".
- Leave Group/Employee on ALL, so the rule applies to all your staff. Choose the Employment Type and Day.
- Enter the times and the Multiplier, for example "1.25" for a 25% casual loading.
- Click Add Shift Rule.
Shift Rules apply from the top down, and the first rule that matches pays those hours. Add casual rules before the rules for everyone else. Worked public holiday rates go on the Worked PH tab. For every option, see Shift Rules.
Check your pay rules with the award pay calculator
Open the Free Award Pay Calculator while you're logged in. It uses your own Shift Rules, Weekly Rules and public holidays.
- Choose the Employment Type and enter an employee's hourly rate in Base Rate.
- Choose the State, "9" in Version, and the Period.
- Enter a shift's Date, Start Time and End Time.
- Click Save and Calculate Award.
Each line shows the rule that paid it, the hours, the rate and the amount. Try a weekday, a Saturday and a Sunday shift, and compare each with your award.
When you'll need Rate Rules or Groups
You don't need either to finish Quick Start. Add them later if your business needs them:
- Rate Rules: with many staff on the same award level, give each level one rate and put staff on it. When award rates rise, you update each level once instead of every profile, and junior rates follow each employee's age. See Rate Rules.
- Groups: if some staff are paid under different conditions, such as a second award, put them in a Group and choose it in a rule's Group/Employee. See Groups.
Next step: run your first pay run
Continue with Run Your First Pay Run to pay your staff for the hours they worked.