Payroll Frequently Asked Questions

Updated 8/11/08

Stop Payment..................................................................... 2 Longevity .......................................................................... 2 Wage Type Reporter ......................................................... 3 PC_PAYRESULT ............................................................. 3 Overpayments & Prepayments .......................................... 3 Retroactive ........................................................................ 4 Dates .................................................................................. 4 Deductions ......................................................................... 5 Retirement Payouts ........................................................... 5 Bank Details ...................................................................... 6 IT0014 & IT0015 .............................................................. 6 Q: Role Change ................................................................. 7 W-2/Taxes ......................................................................... 8 Pay Statements/Remuneration Statements ........................ 9 Reports............................................................................... 9 Creditable Service ........................................................... 10 Combined Campaign ....................................................... 10 Off-Cycle Processing ...................................................... 10 Separation ........................................................................ 11 Paychecks ........................................................................ 11 Temporary Employees .................................................... 12 Payroll Deductions .......................................................... 12 Quotas.............................................................................. 12 DOC-Specific .................................................................. 13 DOT-Specific .................................................................. 13

Stop Payment
Q: How do we do a stop payment in BEACON? A: Please call BEST Shared Services if a payment must be stopped. Q: How will Cancellation Re-writes be allowed in April 2008 for March 2008? A: If there is a need to cancel a check for a payment made in March from Central Payroll, that cancellation will be done in Central Payroll because the check will not exist in SAP. If those earnings would have gone on the normal re-write cycle in April, the agency will be responsible for creating a PA30, IT2010 using a wage type for Pre to SAP (there are several available), and those earnings will be paid on the April 2008 monthly payroll cycle for monthly employees.

Longevity
Q: Is there a report showing the longevity of an employee and when it was issued during a 12 month period? A: Yes. Wage type reporter. Q: Can we find longevity information through an Infotype? The students are wondering how to locate this information in case an employee calls about their longevity payout. A: Wage type reporter. PUOC_10 will also let them see what it on the employees check. Q: Will Beacon calculate longevity pay for commissioners who get non-standard longevity pay? A: It depends, we know about a few commissioners in Commerce who get longevity on a monthly basis. Yes, we will calculate longevity pay for them. Q: Longevity, if an employee gets their Longevity in January, but they worked 15 days in December, how will SAP pay this in January 2008. (example employee started December 15, with PMIS his Longevity pays in January, but with SAP it will now paid in December.) A: We will manually create the adjustment to pay for the December longevities.

Wage Type Reporter

Q: On the Wage Type Reporter, what does the "Number of" Column represent? A: This is column represents any number entered on IT0014 or IT0015 in the number of units field. If nothing is entered, then this column will be blank. Q: The Wage Type Reporter listed on page 79 is PC00_M99_CWTR, but the Wage Type Reporter used on pages 104-105 is S_PH9_46000172. Does it matter which one we use? A: Either will work.

PC_PAYRESULT
Q: On the WPBP Table for PC_PAYRESULT, a participant has requested a definition of all the items in the blue area be given. Do we have access to a document listing these definitions? A: All of the fields on WPBP are from either IT0000 (Actions), IT0001 (Org Assignment), IT0007 (Planned working time), and IT0008 (basic pay). WPBP wraps them all up into one table.

Overpayments & Prepayments

Q: When there is the need for an employee to payback an overpayment - can this be done by percentage or flat amount? (Assuming an arrangement has been made not to take all net every pay period until the balance has been repaid.) A: The decision will be made by the Payroll Manager, State Controller, and the employee. Q: What is the process for an employee to prepay their insurances (voluntary and statutory deductions)? A: This answer is really part benefits and part payroll. (Payroll) An employee will not be able to prepay any deduction such as credit union, 401k, or any agency specific deduction for an unpaid leave of absence. The employee will have to settle directly with the vendor for these deductions. (Benefits) If the employee is on a paid LOA, premiums for benefits and other deductions will continue without interruption. If the employee is on an unpaid LOA, the agency should provide the employee with a copy of the LOA Continuation Letter. The employee should complete the LOA Continuation Form and return to BEST indicating which plans they want to continue. Premiums for the State Health Plan should be mailed to BEST by the first of each month. Premiums for any of the NCFlex benefit plans should be mailed directly to the vendor. Retirement

contributions will stop until the employee returns to work. The employee should contact their agency benefit representative to inquire about continuing any agency-specific benefit plans. Q: If an employee is currently making payments towards an overpayment, how will that be handled once GO-Live starts? Will the agency continue to handle that likes its doing currently? A: Since all agencies are now live, please contact Shared Services to report pre SAP overpayment situations. Q: If an employee is overpaid and has separated from DOC and has paid off the overpayment and gets re-hired at DHHS, how will SAP know the overpayment has been paid. A: The system will track overpayments for employees. Agency payroll will adjust the records once the overpayment has been collected so that if rehired, the employee payment will be up to date.

Retroactive
Q: When a retroactive payroll takes place, will the financial transaction associated with the retroactive payroll be current or retroactive? A: It posts current. However, in the retro line item it will have the pay period that it was for. Q: If we need to do a retroactive deduction or payment for a previous month, how does that impact Month End Close? A: It posts current. However, in the retro line item it will have the pay period that it was for. Q: When we have a Retro pay, how far back can we enter a date in SAP. A: The earliest entry date is the go-live date for your agency.

Dates
Q: Agency HR folks were wondering if the payroll cutoff dates could be sent to them? A: The payroll cutoff dates are listed on a calendar on accessed through the State Controllers website. Any questions regarding cutoff dates should be forwarded to Shared Services.

Q: When are monthly employees getting paid in December 2008? A: The last working day of December 2008. We will no longer pay early in December. Q: Before BEACON some agencies had a freeze put on HR actions after the 15th of each month so that payroll could be run. Will this still apply using SAP? Will there be a cutoff time for HR actions to go into SAP? (One student heard that they might not be able to perform HR actions within 72 hours of a payroll run.) A: There are no HR cutoffs or freezes due to Payroll in BEACON

Deductions
Q: When talking about the priority of deductions when an employee does not have enough net pay, how does they system prioritize once it gets to the Statutory deductions? A: The priority of deductions is as follows.... 1. Retirement 2. Tax Deferred and pre-tax deductions (i.e. pre tax 401K, 457, Flex plans, health insurance, parking) 3. Taxes (FICA, Federal, State) 4. Child Support 5. Any other garnishment 6. 401K and 457 loans 7. any other deductions - this includes any post tax deductions like credit union, SEANC, and all agency specific deductions. Within this last group the deductions are taken based on the number of the wage type. So Credit Union wage type 2400 will be taken before combined campaign wage type 2405 but after post tax parking which is wage type 2103.

Retirement Payouts
Q: How will employees be able to roll over vacation, comp time, and etc. into their 401k after their retirement? A: Employee's wishing to have their final leave payout put into their 401k will need to either increase the dollar amount on the vendors site in time for it to come over on our interface and upload in our system, or preferably complete a one-time deduction form: (https://www.retirement.prudential.com/ncplans/002003_OneTimeDeferralChange.pdf ) and forwarded to BEST. This form is available on the BEACON site as well as the 401k vendor's site. It is not a new form, it has always been available for employees to do.

Bank Details
Q: Under Bank Details (0009) you have bank details type such as main bank, other bank, etc. What is the meaning of Main Bank Details Off Cycle and Other Bank Details Off Cycle. A: We are currently not using Main Bank Details Off cycle and Other Bank Details Off Cycle. Q: If an employee wants to change their bank, how much time does it take to make the correction in the system? Example: I change my bank account today, will my check go to the new account this month? What is the time period that I must have it in by to have it go into the new account the same month? Example: 1 week before payday, 2 days before payday? A: On ESS there is an option for the change to happen immediately or future dated. Shared Services will begin Pre-noting in the future. When this happens they will post on the OSC website payroll calendar when the direct deposit change cutoff dates will be.

IT0014 & IT0015

Q: Can IT0014 & IT0015 can be used for both recurring and one-time payments/deductions? A: IT0014 is only for recurring deductions/payments. IT0015 is only for one time deductions/payments. Q: For IT0014 and IT0015, is there an indicator that shows if it is a payment or a deduction? A: If the amount is in the payment block of the rem statement, then it is a payment. If the amount is in the deductions block of the rem statement it is a deduction or overpayment. Q: Will shift and overtime pay for hours earned before go-live be paid using IT0015 or through a BEST process? A: All shift and overtime pay for hours earned before go-live that are not paid in Central Payroll prior to going live will be paid through infotype 2010 using a Pre SAP wage type. However, we strongly suggest that all earnings that can be paid through Central payroll, be paid prior to moving over to SAP. The Pre SAP wage types will not be permissible forever, just a small amount of time after the final go-live. Q: Is the whole amount for a deduction or garnishment will be taken out of the paycheck or can it be a percentage of the amount owed for the garnishment or deduction? Also, what is going to happen in April to those employees that currently have only a dollar

amount that they are paying back on a monthly basis? Will they no longer have that option? A: Please note, ALL questions/comments for Garnishments need to be addressed to BEST Shared Services 919-707-0707 or best@ncosc.net Q: In the course book, it states deduction can either be one-time or recurring and there are two info-types that are used. IT0015 and IT0014. What info-type(s) are used to display in recurring and non-recurring deductions. I am thinking that it is 0014 based on page 58 in the student guide. A: IT 0014 is for recurring deductions and IT 0015 is for non-recurring. Q: Currently on an employees pay stub it shows the employees health plan with a zero deduction amount. Will it show that way on the remuneration statement? A: If an employee has employee only coverage, the description will be seen in the deductions block of the remuneration statement and in the amount column within the deductions column of the remuneration statement it will be blank. Q: The student guide states ...The order will be keyed into SAP and generate a notification letter to the employee when requested. Would Best Shared Services automatically send a letter to the employee so they will not be surprised by a deduction for a garnishment vs. having advanced notice? Who would request the letter? Since Best SS is handling this...the agency would not necessarily know an employee was having a garnishment until the employee came to complain after receipt of their check after the deduction. A: Shared Services will create the notice letters for new garnishments only. If an employee calls the agency with a question regarding garnishments the agency needs to direct the employee to Shared Services. All garnishments and anything relating to garnishments should be directed to Shared Services. Q: Students are interested to know since SAP isn't using expense accounts 53****, will split salaries still be split within SAP? A: Most 'split salary' line items will be paid via an IT0014 or IT0015.

Q: Role Change
If a supervisor leaves their position which makes the position vacant OR if a change is made, what role would make these changes?

A: The PA Workflow Initiator role would submit the change as a Separation, Transfer, etc. - whatever the reason is the supervisor has left their position. As part of the action, the position is released as vacant.

W-2/Taxes
Q: When an employee leaves employment, will I cancel their NCID access? If so, how will employee print w-2 for the year? Will the employee sign up as individual in NCID in order to access pay information after leaving employment? A: The state will still mail W-2 forms to the address on file for all active and separated employees. Employees who leave the state will still be able to call BEST for post employment w-2 support. Q: Please clarify how we (Group 2) will get a W-2 form next year? Will we (Group 2) get 2 W-2 forms next year (1 from Central Payroll and another from BEACON)? A: Group 2 employees will receive a 2008 W2 from Central Payroll as well as a 2008 W2 from SAP. Towards the end of 2008 or early Jan 2009 agencies/employees will be notified/instructed how they will receive/retrieve their W2's. Q: Will W2's be mailed directly to the employee's home address or will they be mailed to the unit for distribution? A: This year's w-2 will be handled as they have in the past since they are coming form the legacy system. Next years process is TBD. Q: Will the W-2's for 2007 be printed at the Agencies, if not will they be mailed from Central Payroll? A: No, they will not be printed at the agencies. They will be printed at Central Payroll and distributed via the current distribution method. Q: Will W-2's be sent to the employee's home address or can the employee print W-2's under ESS? A: 2008s W-2s will be sent as in years past. The process for next year has not been defined but W-2s will be available online next year. Q: If an employee received Retro pay, will SAP tax it as an underpayment by the months due or will it be paid by the gross salary. A: All earnings are taxed in the period in which they are received by the employee.

Pay Statements/Remuneration Statements

Q: Once Go Live starts will the agencies still be required to print and distribute pay statements until the employee is on ESS? A: Printing of the pay statements is an agency decision. Q: Bank account number is showing on the REM statement, can this be removed? A: The intent had been to print just the last five digits of the bank account number on the REM statement. BEACON is reviewing this and will change it so that just the last five positions are displayed/printed. Q: Where can I see my annual salary? It used to be on my pay statement, but it's not anymore. A: ESS users can see it on their Total Compensation statement on their My Pay tab. Non-ESS users can contact their HR/Payroll office. It did used to be on their pay stub, it is no longer, since it would not always be correct. Due to legislative increase (or any other change in pay for that matter) that don't happen January 1, that figure would not be true figure because of the change in pay my salary isn't going to be $x per year but my monthly base salary x 12 or my biweekly base salary x 26. The legislative increase for 2008 was 2.75% or $1,100 whichever is greater. For employees that know their salary before the increase, they can calculate their new salary. If there are employees that question how to calculate their new salary, they can contact their HR/Payroll office to gain access to that information.

Reports
Q: Total unemployment payment reports are required from the agencies by OSP every year. Will the agencies still be required to compile these reports and send to OSP or will OSP be able to run the reports themselves using SAP reporting/BI functions? A: OSP will need to answer this, the BEACON project does not have this information. Q: Will some reports still be run in Extend/Exporter? If not, what in Beacon will be comparable? A: Reports run through Extend/Exporter (if possible) will just hold information that was paid in Central Payroll. No SAP information can be reported on using those reporting tools. Q: I have an agency that currently receives something called a payroll register every month from OSC. This document has the details of what is on an employees pay stub. Once BEACON goes live will they still continue to receive this document?

A: The payroll register will no longer be produced. However, there are reports in SAP that provide the information about payroll results. In addition, a Payroll Admin will be able to view the Remuneration statements of employees for current and past SAP payrolls. Q: What is the difference in the "planned hours" and "target hours" on the WPBP report? A: The WPBP table in the payroll cluster is the data from IT0000, IT0001, IT0007 and IT0008. The planned/actual/target is from the fields on IT0007. These IT0007 etc. are the technical name for the field. The WPBP table/report is a snapshot in time. The dates of the report are on the report.

Creditable Service
Q: Some employees work for county agencies and not state agencies; however, their time at the county agency would count toward longevity pay if they were ever a state employee. How will BEST calculate credible state service for longevity pay when an employee works for a county/other agency that's not under BEACON? A: Once creditable service from non-BEACON entities is verified, it would be entered on infotype 0552. Typically this would be at the time of hiring into BEACON.

Combined Campaign
Q: Will employees be able to modify/create combined campaign amounts in ESS or will the agency or BEST Shared Services handle this? A: The employee will not be able to change their own Combined Campaign information in ESS. The agency will be responsible for keying this information into SAP.

Off-Cycle Processing
Q: What is the timeframe for replacing a check that has been lost, stolen or destroyed? A: The time frame for check replacement is on a case by case basis. The Payroll Manager of Shared Services will decide when and how often check replacements are done. If the employee has direct deposit then they won't have to worry about losing or misplacing a paper check! Q: What day of the month will the Off-Cycle run?

A: There is no set schedule for off cycle runs. It is at the discretion of the State Controller. Q: What qualifies for an On-Demand check and what is process to request one? A: Shared Services will make that determination.

Separation
Q: If BEST Shared Services messes up / makes a mistake with an employee's pay (like over payment), is it still the responsibility of the agency to collect if the employee leaves prior to full repayment? A: Shared Services will clear the claim and issue a letter to the agency stating that they are now responsible for recouping any money incorrectly paid. Q: How late can you stop payroll for an outgoing employee? Suppose an employee just drops everything and leaves your agency for good. The employee does this near the end of the month. The employee still has outstanding equipment owed to the agency. What is the last possible day that I can stop the employee's pay for the month? The deadline, so the employee does not receive their direct deposit for pay? Or, suppose there is a claim and the employee leaves, how soon can the agency stop the employee from getting paid? A: If an employee leaves, process the termination action as soon as possible in PA. If it is close to the end of the month, notify Shared Services Payroll to find out what the options are to stop or change pay. Q: How will we pay Employees that separated before SAP goes live (example if the employee separated on 12/2/07 and the paper work is not process in 1/5/08.) A: During the cut over periods, we will have to make manual adjustments to pay for activity that occurred prior to the go-live dates. We have established wage types for this process.

Paychecks
Q: Where are pay checks mailed from? If a person has direct deposit and suffers identify theft, can that person receive a paper check until it is straightened out? A: Pay checks are mailed from OSC on payday. Exceptions to the Direct Deposit policy are made at the State Controller's discretion. Q: What address are pay checks mailed to?

A: Pay checks are mailed to the Mailing Address on file for the individual. If this address is blank, the Permanent Address will be used.

Temporary Employees
Q: When it is stated that all temps will be paid for Dec. 15-31 on 01/11/08, does that include just the agencies in the first wave, or all temps in all agencies, regardless of the go-live date? A: Just group 1 agencies. Group 2 agency temps will be paid by Beacon for the first time on April 4.

Payroll Deductions
Q: Will there be additional options for payroll deductions such as Probationary/Parole Association dues. Will these dues now be payroll deducted? A: No. Only options that are currently available in the Central Payroll system will be available in BEACON. If additional options are necessary, agency reps should contact the BEST team after go-live.

Quotas
Q: If vacation pay and bonus leave are going to be combined, how will hours over 240 be separated out at year end, where they now roll into bonus leave? A: Vacation Leave and Bonus Leave will continue to be stored in separate quotas (buckets) in BEACON SAP. The Time Statement and Quota Overview Report will show current balances for each of the quotas separately. On the time sheet, the "Approved Leave" Absence Type will be a single code used to deduct from an employee's compensatory time, vacation leave, and bonus leave quotas. Each time this absence is recorded, the deduction process will look for usable balances in these quotas in a specific order. The process will use up all of one quota before looking at the next. This will enforce the OSP policy calling for comp time to be used before vacation, etc. At year end, the Time Evaluation process will look at the balance in the Vacation Leave quota and if it finds more than 240 hours, the overage will be rolled over to the Sick Leave quota, per policy.

DOC-Specific
Q: DOC has positions that are paid on a 2-month lag time. How will that be caught up by Go-Live? In other words, there are DOC employees who have time for October or November that is not even due in to be processed until February 2008? How will this be rectified to get them on a current pay schedule? A: The time will need to be collected as part of cut over activities. All time after go-live must be entered in the BEACON system since central payroll will no longer be processing pay. Q: How long will DOC print stubs and/or will they be printing stubs? A: DOC will print pay stub until ESS is implemented. Q: DOC employees (*perm) currently turn in 13 time sheets/pay periods per year, after BEACON take over will they go to 12 time sheets/pay period? (*Sanford Correctional) A: No, 28 day staff will continue to stay on a 28 day cycle which is 13/year. However, we're adjusting the start of the 1st cycle so everyone (all agencies) are on the same 28 day cycle

DOT-Specific
Q: Will DOT's start date with SAP begin on December 20th with everyone else from group 1? A: Yes (Dec 15th not 20th), but DOT has specific instructions for time entry. DOT employees should talk to DOT management.