What is the Attendance Data Source setting?
It is a setting inside the pay policy that tells payroll where to get the hours data for computing work pay. Two options:
a) Use Time and Attendance data
Payroll uses actual hours, overtime, and leave data from your Time and Attendance system. If T&A records fewer hours than the employee's configured shift hours, the shortfall is treated as absent pay at the absent pay rate configured in the policy.
b) Use fixed hours
Payroll does not receive attendance data at all. It uses the default values configured in your pay policy — your daily working hours, weekly hours, monthly hours, or fixed days in a month — and assumes the employee worked their full configured period for every cycle.
2. I do not use a Time and Attendance system. Does this still work for me?
Yes. Select Use fixed hours. Payroll will not need any attendance data from you. It defaults to the hours configured in your pay policy and treats every cycle as full attendance. No attendance input is required from you on a monthly basis.
3. If I select "Use fixed hours", what happens with absences?
Payroll does not assume absences. It defaults to the configured hours and treats the employee as having worked their full period.
If you need to account for absences, you will need to connect a Time and Attendance system and switch to using Time and Attendance data. Absent pay only applies when Time and Attendance is connected and reports a shortfall against the configured hours.
4. I use a Time and Attendance system that is not Workpay's. Does this work?
Yes. The attendance data source setting is designed to work with any Time and Attendance system you use. When you select Use T&A data, Workpay receives hours and time data in the prescribed format from your system and computes payroll from it.
Contact your account manager to confirm the integration requirements for your specific T&A system.
5. If I use Time and Attendance data, what happens when an employee works fewer hours than expected?
The difference between the expected hours from the pay policy and the actual hours reported by T&A is treated as absent pay. The absent pay rate configured in the employee's pay policy is applied to the shortfall.
6. Can I change the Attendance Data Source setting later?
Yes, subject to the same mid-cycle restriction that applies to all pay policy changes. Changes can only take effect at the start of a new payroll cycle — not during an active payroll period.
7. Can different employees in the same company have different Attendance Data Source settings?
Yes. Because the attendance data source is configured inside the pay policy, and pay policies are assigned at the employee level, two employees in the same company can have different settings. For example, your office staff can be on "Use fixed hours" while your factory floor employees are on "Use T&A data".