Employee Payroll - Deduction

The Payroll section of Avionté contains a deduction sub-section used to configure deductions at an employee level. In order for transaction items to appear as deductions in this section, they must first be set up and defined as a deduction in the Transaction Type section of Admin Tools.

Note: The following contains behaviors and features only available in Avionté versions 14.1 and above. 

 

Add a Deduction

1. In the Employee section, search for and select the employee for whom the deductions are being set up.
   
   
2. Expand the Payroll option in the Employee sub-menu and select the Deduction option. 
   
   
   
   
3. Click the New Deduction link in the upper-left portion of the Deduction tab. Notice the fields on the tab clear for entry.
   
   
4. The Max % of Net indicates the default maximum percentage of an employee’s net income that can be taken out for deductions.
   
   
5. Click the Deduction Type drop-down and select the deduction from the list.
   
   
6. For Amount/Percentage, choose one of the following options:
   
   

   Option	Description
   Fixed Amount	Choose this when a fixed dollar amount is deducted from the employee pay, and then enter that amount in the Amount field.
   Percentage	Choose this when a percentage deduction amount is to be applied. When this option is selected, additional options appear to indicate whether the percentage is applied to Gross pay or Net pay. Enter the percentage to apply in the Percent field. The user is able to enter up to 3 decimals when configuring a percentage in this field.

7. Check the Flag During Payroll checkbox if the deduction should be flagged during payroll processing. Then when the payroll batch is processed, a warning will appear for this employee, allowing you to verify, and if needed, modify the deduction.
   
   
8. The Deduction Max % sets the max percentage that will be taken out of the total paycheck by the deduction during processing. This value will override the Max % of Net, and should be set based on the specific order for a deductions. For example, when this field is set to 50%, if the Net Income (NI) on a check is $100, the max amount that can be deducted (Disposable Income) is $50. If the employee has one garnishment for $60 and another for $60 being processed at the same time (on the same sequence) it will take $25 for each. However if the garnishments are for different amounts, in this case $50 and $10. The amounts will then be weighted:
   
   
   1. By added them together to find the total [50+10=60]
      
      
   2. Then each amount will be divided by that total to find what percentage of the total they are. [50/60=.83] and [10/60=.17]
      
      
   3. These will then be multiplied by the disposable income found earlier ($50) to find what dollar amount they will deduct. [.83*$50=$41.5] and [.17*$50=$8.5]
      
      

   If one garnishment is set for sequence 1 and the other is set for sequence 2, it will take $50 for the first, and $0 for sequence 2.
   
   

9. Use the Sequence field to show the order the deductions are to be taken out of the employee’s paycheck. If there is a deduction with a sequence of 1 and another deduction with a sequence of 2, the system will take the full amount from sequence 1 before considering sequence 2. If all deductions have a sequence of 1, the system will prorate the deductions if needed.
   
   Note: There are some restrictions as to which deductions can be placed into the same sequence. These are displayed in the following table:
   
   

   Deduction Type	Should be Placed with	Cannot be placed with
   Disposable Income Exempt	Disposable Income Exempt	All-or-Nothing, Non-Disposable Income Exempt
   Non-Disposable Income Exempt	Non-Disposable Income Exempt	Disposable Income Exempt, All-or-Nothing
   All-or-Nothing	All-or-Nothing	Non-Disposable Income Exempt, Disposable Income Exempt
   Tiered	None	All
   Levy	None	All

• The Active checkbox (checked by default), when checked, makes the deduction immediately active for the employee once the deduction is saved. If the deduction is made inactive, then the deduction is not included in calculating payroll for the employee.
  
  
• The Per Hour checkbox may appear next to the Active checkbox if configured by your administrator.
  
  
  Note: This will be calculated as [Rate*(Reg hours+OT hours+DT Hours)]
  
  
• From the Deduction Pay Cycle drop-down, select the pay cycle for the deduction. The options are hourly, daily, weekly, biweekly, monthly, semi-monthly, or yearly.
  
  
• In the Date options, enter dates as follows:
  
  

  Option	Description	Additional Information
  Start Date	Enter the date that the deduction is to become effective by entering the date in MM/DD/YYYY format or by clicking the down arrow and selecting the date from the calendar.	If a check is back dated into the period between this deductions start and end date this deduction will be applied to the check.
  End Date	Enter the date the deduction is to end. Typically, this would apply in the case where an insurance plan is offered on an annual basis, thus this date would indicate the final day the current policy is effective. If the deduction is open-ended, then leave this field blank.

• In the Select Agency drop-down, select the name directly related to the deduction, such as insurance company or 401K provider.
  
  
• In the Reference Number field, enter the number associated to the employee's deduction account.
  
  
• In the Limits options, enter amounts as needed:
  
  

  Option	Description
  Apply Limits	Place a check mark in the box to apply the value limits from the fields below to the employee's deductions. Enable the Apply Limits option with the PayPeriodLimit Transaction Property.
  Pay Period Limit	The maximum amount that can be deducted from the employee's pay during the pay period. This may be useful when a percentage value is entered for the deduction, and there is a maximum amount that can be applied.
  Monthly Limit	The maximum amount that can be deducted monthly from the employee's pay.
  Yearly Limit	The maximum amount that can be deducted annually from the employee's pay.
  Life Time Limit	The maximum amount that can be deducted from the employee's pay over their life time.

Edit Deductions

To edit an existing deduction for an employee, select the deductions in the deduction grid displayed in the upper portion of the window. The setup defined for that deduction then appears in the form below. Update the fields in the form as necessary, then click Save Deduction.

Delete Deductions

To delete deductions, select one or more deductions in the grid, then right-click the selections and choose Delete Employee Deduction(s). A window will appear asking you to confirm the delete action on the selected deductions. Deductions that exist on an employee's checks may not be deleted, all checks should be double-checked.

View Deduction History

The history of a selected deduction can be viewed by going to the Deduction History tab. Select the deduction in the deduction grid. History information will be displayed below. By selecting the deduction in the upper grid, the lower part of the screen changes to reflect the history for that deduction.

Add & View Notes

Notes, if any, can be added to the benefit by clicking on the Notes tab and adding the content in the text box as shown below.

 

 

Rate Setup for Tiered Deductions

For tiered deductions, deduction rates can be setup on the Rate Setup tab. Click the New Deduction Rate button. All values should be annualized (the pay multiplied by the pay frequency to find the yearly total).

Other

On the Other tab, choose which Staffing Supplier will handle the deduction.

One-Time Deduction Tip

If a one-time deduction does not subtract from a paycheck as expected,

1. Adjust the Start Date of the deduction to fall one day before the pay period begins
   
   
2. Adjust the Start Date to a date past the end of the pay period or leave it blank. 
   
   
3. Place a check mark in the Apply Limits box for that deduction.
   
   
4. Set a Lifetime Limit equal to the amount of the deduction.

If needed, void or reverse the employee's incorrect check as appropriate and cut a new check. Process a reversal if needed for a check already issued. 

Additional Configuration

The following links provide additional configuration information for setting up employee deductions at your site:

 

• AllowEditEmployeeDeduction
• Admin Tools: Branch: BranchSetting: DefaultEmployeeDeductionFrequencyConfigChoiceID
• DefaultEmployeeDeductionFrequencyConfigChoiceSystemName
• DefaultImportPayrollDeductionFilePath
• DefaultEmployeeDeductionSupplier
• ProcessDeductionsByWeekWorked

Troubleshooting

Visit the Deductions Not Calculating as Expected article for troubleshooting resolutions. 

Key Terms

• Gross Pay: Gross pay is the beginning value of an employee's paycheck, before any money is withheld.
  
  
• Net Pay: The amount an employee will receive on their paycheck after all necessary subtractions due to taxes, garnishments, deductions, etc.
  
  
• DI Exempt: A deduction (usually voluntary) that can be taken out of an employee's take home pay in which the deduction could cause the disposable income (DI) to be less than a set limit (typically set to minimum wage, default is Max Percent Of Net).
  Examples are here.
  
  
• Non-DI Exempt: A deduction that will not be taken out of an employee's take home pay if the deduction causes the disposable income (DI) to be less than a set limit (typically set to minimum wage, default is Max Percent Of Net).
  Examples are here.
  
  
• Voluntary (Pre-Tax) Deductions: Deductions that an employee has set to be taken out of their paycheck voluntarily. These will be taken out before taxes, but calculated with garnishments to ensure all required payments are able to be paid.
  
  
• Garnishments: Deductions (typically government issued, ex. court ordered fines, child support, etc.) taken out of an employee's paycheck after taxes, but calculated with other deductions to ensure payment.
  
  
• Levy: A legal garnishment that will remove "All but" a specific value or percent from a paycheck (ex. child support, court order, etc.). A levy is a DI exempt deduction. More information on how to set up a levy can be found on the Setup: Levy "All But" Deductions page.
  
  
• Sequence: A deduction sequence is a group of deductions that will be calculated and deducted simultaneously. Most paychecks will have multiple sequences to process all necessary deductions, as there are restrictions to what deductions can share a sequence.
  Examples are here.
  
  
• Tiered Deductions:Deductions that have set rules for what will be taken out based on how much money is remaining at the time the deduction is being processed. They typically switch between a fixed amount and a percentage.
  Examples are here.
  
  
• All-Or-Nothing: An All-Or-Nothing deduction can cause an entire sequence of deductions to not be processed if any of the deductions cannot be withheld from the paycheck.
  Examples are here.
  
  
• Max Percent of Net: A set limit in which an employee's paycheck cannot be reduced beyond (DI Exempt deductions are excluded from this policy).
  Examples are here.
  
  
• Deduction Max Percent: A set limit in which a deduction cannot supersede that percent of an employee's paycheck.
  Examples are here.
  
  
• Per Hour Deduction: A deduction taken off of hours worked for a pay period.
  
  
• System Deductions: Advance Bank, Advance Pay Back, and Advance Pay Back Fee.
  Note: Advance Pay Back and Advance Pay Back Fee will always be applied second to last, and Advance Bank will always be applied last.