How to Prepare for a Successful Payroll period locking?

Preparing a successful payroll period locking involves reviewing all punches before locking the period.

This process prevents surprises on the payroll and ensures that overtime, absences, and tardiness are properly accounted for.

The closing is initiated in Payroll > Lockings and only users with payroll permission can perform it.

Before creating or locking a period, verify that all employees belong to the correct payment group and that there are no pending approvals.

Setup Steps

1. Approve all pending punches in the current period 
    
   • Access the Punch log or Super Punch tabs. Identify:
   • Days with missing punches
   • Orange punches (pending)
   • Add missing punches
   • Approve pending punches
     
     
     
      
2. Approve all pending absences
    
   • Access the Absence & Vacation tab
   • Review requests such as:
     • Medical certificates
     • Vacations
     • Other absences
   • Approve or reject as needed
     
      
3. Check the order of employee punches
    
   • Ensure records are:
     • In chronological order
     • With entries and exits correctly distributed
   • Confirm all working days are complete

   • Expected result:

     • Fully completed punches
     • Approved punches (in green)
     • Correct sequence throughout the day
       
        
4. Analyze Hours Bank and Overtime reports
    
   • Consult the available reports. Analyze:
     • Breakdown of extra hours
     • Positive and negative balances
   • Validate if the values are consistent with the work schedule
     
      
     
5. Create Payment Group
    
   • Access Payroll > Groups. Click on New Group. Define:
     • Closing date
     • Payment rule (e.g., last day of the month)
   • Include all employees in the group
     • If there are employees with different payment dates, create separate payment groups
       
        
6. Create Payroll Layout
    
   • Configure the layout to be used for export. Define:
     • Payroll system
     • Time format
     • Events and their codes
        
       

Tips or Troubleshooting

• Monitor punch issues daily; do not leave corrections only for the locking period.
• Avoid changing the closing date after the period has been created; this would require recreating the group.
• If an employee does not appear in the locking, check if they are active and assigned to the correct group.

Best Practices

• Establish a routine for reviewing punches (daily or weekly) to reduce the accumulation of pending items.
• Instruct employees and supervisors about deadlines for correcting punches.
• Use electronic signatures to formalize the approval of hours, bringing transparency to the process.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What should I review before locking? Check for missing punches, overtime, delays, early departures, unfulfilled breaks, and absence requests. All items must be approved or justified.
2. Do I need to reopen the period for adjustments? Only if there is an error after locking. Use Unlock by employee to limit the impact.
3. How to avoid last-minute tardiness and absences? Establish internal deadlines for corrections (for example, by the next day) and use irregularity reports to identify problems early.