Payroll Groups: What is it? How to create and set up?

Payroll groups in Day.io allow administrators to define which employees share the same locking period.

A payroll group determines the payroll period (monthly, fortnightly, etc.), the locking date and optionally an external ID used by your payroll system.

This feature is useful for companies that run multiple payroll cycles and need precise control over cut‑off dates.

1. Create a new group

   • Go to Payroll > Groups and click New Group.

   • Enter a Name for the group (e.g., “All company - Biweekly”).

   • Choose a Payroll period from the drop‑down (Monthly, Biweekly, etc.).

   • Select the Date on which the period closes.

   • Enable External ID (For integration) if your payroll system needs a specific code.

   • Click Save to create the group.
     
     

2. Edit group settings

   • Click a group to open the Rules tab. If the group has no employees, you can change the Name, Payroll period, Date and External ID.

   • Update the fields and click Save.
     
     

3. Add employees

   • In the Employees tab, use the Search employees field and status filter to find people.

   • Select employees and click + Add employees (available when the group is empty).

   • Once employees are assigned, the rules become read‑only.
     
     

4. Assign managers (optional)

   • In the Managers tab, click Add payroll manager to grant access to specific users. Any user with payroll permissions can still manage the group if no manager is assigned.
     
     

5. Deactivate or set as default (optional)

   • From the group list, hover over a row and choose Deactivate to make the group inactive or Make default to set it as the default group for new employees.
     
     

Tips or Troubleshooting

• Use clear naming conventions so groups are easily identifiable.

• Groups with employees cannot be edited; create a new group if changes are needed.

Best Practices

• Maintain separate groups for different pay cycles (e.g., hourly vs. monthly) to avoid calculation errors.

• Review employee assignments regularly, especially after transfers or hiring.

• Assign managers to control who can modify group settings.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What’s the difference between deactivating and deleting a group? Deactivating hides the group from active lists but keeps historical data; deleting permanently removes it.

2. Can I change the locking date of an active group? No. You must create a new group with the updated date and reassign employees; existing groups with employees are read‑only.

3. What happens to employees if a group is deactivated? They need to be assigned to a different group to continue having hours processed.