The Rounding tab contains rules for standard punch rounding, custom punch rounding, daily total rounding, and additional daily minutes. By default, this tab is configured to round to the nearest minute (no rounding) under all circumstances. No adjustments need be made to this tab if punches and daily totals will not be rounded for employees assigned to the current pay class.
TIP: If employees are assigned to schedules in EmpowerTime, punches may be rounded to scheduled start and stop times using schedule rounding rules. Schedule rounding rules are described in the next section.
Figure 31: Rounding Tab in Pay Class Setup
Punch Rounding Rules
This section of the Rounding tab contains rules for rounding different types of punches. Four methods of rounding are available for each punch type. Punches can be rounded forward, backward, or to the nearest time increment defined. In addition, custom rounding policies can be defined for any of the punch types. Click any of the drop-down menus under the Rule column to view these options.
To establish a rounding policy for a punch type, select a rounding method from the drop-down menu and define an increment in minutes in the corresponding field to the right. Some of the most commonly used rounding rules are nearest quarter hour (15 minutes), nearest tenth of an hour (6 minutes), and nearest five minutes. Custom rounding rules require additional configuration as described later in this section.
WARNING: Be sure to check local, state, and union laws before establishing rounding policies. If rounding rules are changed, be sure to clearly post the new rounding policies to avoid any misunderstanding by employees.
In-Day
Defines the type of rounding to be applied to In For Day punches.
Out-Day
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Out-Lunch
Defines the type of rounding to be applied to Out For Lunch punches.
In-Lunch
Defines the type of rounding to be applied to In From Lunch punches.
Out-Break
Defines the type of rounding to be applied to Out For Break punches.
In-Break
Defines the type of rounding to be applied to In From Break punches.
Transfers
Defines the type of rounding to be applied to transfer punches. This rule applies to all types of transfer punches.
Daily Total Rounding Rules
This section of the Rounding tab contains rules for rounding different kinds of hourly totals such as break totals, lunch totals, daily totals, and weekly totals. These rounding options are described below.
Breaks
Defines the type of rounding to be applied to total daily break minutes. Out For Break and In From Break punches are always rounded first according to punch rounding rules before total break minutes are added up and rounded as specified by this rule.
Lunch
Defines the type of rounding to be applied to total daily lunch minutes. Out For Lunch and In From Lunch punches are always rounded first according to punch rounding rules before total lunch minutes are added up and rounded as specified by this rule.
Daily Total
Defines the type of rounding to be applied to total daily minutes. In For Day and Out For Day punches are always rounded first according to punch rounding rules, and lunch and break minutes are calculated and deducted, before the resulting daily total is rounded as specified by this rule.
Week Total
Defines the type of rounding to be applied to total weekly minutes. This rounding rule is activated only after all other punch and hourly total rounding rules have been applied.
WARNING: When weekly total rounding is used, the last segment of hours in a week is rounded in order to produce a rounded total for the week. For example, suppose the weekly total rounding rule is set to the nearest 15 minutes and an employee assigned to the pay class works Monday through Thursday for a total of 32 hours and 6 minutes, then takes 8 hours of vacation on Friday. As a result of the rule, the 8 hours of vacation on Friday would be rounded to 7 hours and 54 minutes to produce an even weekly total of 40 hours.
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NOTES
Additional Minutes Rules
This section of the Rounding tab contains rules for adding additional minutes to employees’ In For Day and Out For Day punches. When activated, additional minutes are added to the rounded punch time in employees’ timecards after all other rounding rules have been executed.
EXAMPLE: Employees are required to clock out before washing up at the end of the day and are paid ten additional minutes for clean-up time. To account for this policy, the Out For Day field in the Additional Minutes section is set to 10. An employee assigned to this pay class punches out at 15:00, and the punch is rounded forward to 15:10 to pay the additional minutes.
Custom Rounding
The Custom Rounding feature is used to customize rounding parameters for situations in which the Nearest, Forward, and Back rounding rules do not adequately meet rounding policies. The nearest rounding rule automatically rounds time based on an even split of the minutes. With a custom rounding policy, the threshold for rounding forward or back to quarter hour increments can be changed.
To establish a custom rounding policy, set the punch rule type to Custom and define the number of minutes of the rounding increment. Then, click the Custom button at the bottom of the tab to open the Custom Rounding window as shown below. Numbers defined in the Minutes column on the Rounding tab automatically appear in the corresponding Minutes column in the Custom Rounding window. To define the threshold for custom rounding, enter a number into the Minutes Worked To Receive
column.
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EXAMPLE: Employees assigned to the current pay class should have all In For Day punches rounded to fifteen-minute intervals, but employees are not allowed to punch in more than three minutes late. If employees punch in up to three minutes late, their punches should be rounded back to the nearest quarter-hour. If employees punch in four or more minutes late, their punches should be rounded forward to the nearest quarter-hour. To establish this policy, the rule for In For Day punches is set to Custom, and the Minutes field is set to 15. In the Custom Rounding window, the Minutes Worked To Receive column is set to 12, indicating that 12 of the first 15 minutes of the day must be worked in order to receive all 15 minutes of time. Employees assigned to this pay class can then punch in up to 3 minutes late without being penalized for 15 minutes of time.
REMINDER: The figure defined in the Minutes column on the Rounding tab automatically appears in the Custom Rounding window. Minutes figures must be defined in the Rounding tab.