Time Rack integration overview

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For live payroll processing only

Time Rack provides a time, attendance, and human resources solution that enables employers to manage employee payroll information. Time Rack produces an XML time clock file that can be imported into the application to increase the efficiency of payroll check processing.

This overview steps you through the process of starting service with Time Rack and setting up your client and employee records for Time Rack import.

The prerequisites to integrating Accounting CS and Time Rack are noted below. It is imperative to follow these steps before setting up payroll processing in Time Rack.

Starting service with Time Rack

To set up service with Time Rack, contact their sales staff directly by phone, email, or on the Web.

  • Toll free number: 951.284.1500 ext. 1
  • Email: sales@timerack.com
  • Web site URL: www.timerack.com

Setting up Time Rack clients in Accounting CS Payroll

  1. Choose Setup > Clients.
  2. Highlight the existing client name and click Edit, or add the new client as described in the Entering basic client information topic.
  3. Click the Payroll Information tab and then mark the Time Rack checkbox.
  4. Click the Ellipsis button next to the Payroll Schedules field.
  5. In the Payroll Schedules dialog, select a payroll schedule and click the Edit button.
  6. In the Time Entry Method section, choose the Import option and then select Time Rack from the Source drop-down list.
  7. Click Enter to save your changes, and then click Done. Click Enter again in the Clients screen.

Notes:

  • To exclude salaried employees from Time Rack imports for this client, mark the Exclude Salaried Employees checkbox.
  • Employees with both salary and hourly pay items are considered Hourly employees and will not be excluded from Time Rack imports when this checkbox is marked.

Setup steps for firms and clients NOT using the Time Rack HR module: Onboarding feature

If you choose this method for setting up employee information (adding employees in Accounting CS and exporting them to Time Rack) it is important to always use the same method. Adding employees in Accounting CS and in Time Rack will cause the duplication of employee records and payroll checks. You should add new employees only in one application and let the integration create the employee records in the other application.

Setting up employees of Time Rack clients in Accounting CS

  1. Choose Setup > Employees.
  2. Set up your employee as usual, as described in the Entering basic employee information topic.
  3. On the Main tab of the Setup > Employees screen, make sure the employees have at least one department associated with their primary work location.
  4. If the employee uses multiple payroll schedules, select the Time Rack pay schedule in the Primary payroll schedule field in the Main tab. You can select other pay schedules in the Alternate payroll schedule field.
  5. On the Personal tab, make sure that a hire date is entered for each employee.
  6. On the Payroll Items tab, make sure that each employee has at least one active pay item set up.

Note: Employees must be set up in Accounting CS prior to being imported to Time Rack.

Setting up clients in Time Rack

  1. Set up basic client information.
  2. Set up pay policies to match the Accounting CS payroll schedule. Verify that the month, day, and year are the same.
  3. Perform System update(s) in Time Rack to synchronize Accounting CS with Time Rack.

Contact Time Rack Support for detailed assistance with client setup in Time Rack.

Setup steps for firms and clients using the Time Rack HR module: Onboarding feature

If you choose this method for setting up employee information (adding employees in Time Rack and importing them into Accounting CS) it is important to do so consistently. Adding employees in Accounting CS and in Time Rack will cause the duplication of employee records and payroll checks. You should add new employees only in one application and let the integration create the employee records in the other application.

Setting up clients in Time Rack

  1. Set up basic client information.
  2. Set up pay policies to match the Accounting CS payroll schedule. Verify the month, day, and year are the same.

Contact Time Rack Support for detailed assistance with client setup in Time Rack.

Adding employee records in Time Rack

  1. Add employees in Time Rack

    Contact Time Rack Support for detailed assistance with employee setup in Time Rack.

  2. Perform System update(s) in Time Rack to synchronize Accounting CS with Time Rack.

Importing new employee records into Accounting CS and completing employee setup

  1. In Accounting CS, choose Setup > Employees. Accounting CS automatically checks for new employees that were created in Time Rack and displays a list of those employees.
  2. Review the list of employees and then click OK to import them in Accounting CS.
  3. For each imported employee, complete the following steps within the Employees screen.
    1. In the Main tab, click the Address Verification Address verify 4 bar indicator to verify the employee address.
    2. In the Accruable Benefits tab, mark the checkboxes for the applicable accruable benefit items to make them active on the employee record.
    3. In the Payroll Items tab, mark the checkboxes for any pay, deduction, and employer contribution items to make them active on the employee record.
    4. In the Payroll Taxes tab, enter the employee's federal and state withholding and allowances.
    5. In the Direct Deposit tab, enter any applicable direct deposit allocations for the employee. 

Note: The Employee setup overview provides details about adding this information.

Processing payroll checks for Time Rack clients

Upon completion of the setup steps and prior to processing payroll in Accounting CS, the Time Rack XML file must be sent to Accounting CS.

Note: We recommend that you verify that employee pay rates are up to date and correct in Time Rack before you send the time card XML file to Accounting CS. When the payroll batch is imported via the Actions > Enter Batch Payroll Checks screen, the existence of any zero or out-of-date pay rates prompts you (in Accounting CS) to import or reject pay rate changes for the affected employee.

  1. Choose Actions > Enter Batch Payroll Checks.
  2. Select the Time Rack client in the client selection list and select the appropriate payroll schedule. The application will check for changes from Time Rack.
  3. An updates dialog displays any existing changes. Review the changes and, if necessary, reject any by marking the Reject checkbox next to the updated information. Click OK to accept all other changes and close the dialog.
  4. The payroll check information is imported from Time Rack. Enter, Suspend, or Cancel the batch as appropriate. For more information about entering batch payroll checks, please see the Entering batch payroll checks procedure.

Important limitations or exceptions

  • Client records must be added and deleted in Accounting CS and then sent to Time Rack.
  • When Time Rack information is imported, only the employees who are included in the Time Rack file are displayed in the Actions > Enter Batch Payroll screen. If some employees are assigned to the payroll schedule but not included in the Time Rack file, you'll need to use the Actions > Enter Transactions screen to enter their payroll checks.
  • New payroll items and accruable benefit items can be added only in Accounting CS. Those items are then sent to Time Rack, where you will need to accept those changes.
  • Time Rack does not currently support the import of deduction items. However, any deduction items that you set up for an employee in Accounting CS will be calculated on payroll checks after time entry is imported from Time Rack. You will need to make any manual amount adjustments to the deduction items in Accounting CS.
  • Time Rack time entry does not enable you to specify time worked as Regular hours, Overtime hours, Accruable Benefit Hours Used.  Therefore we strongly recommend that you do NOT create separate payroll items for Overtime Hours, PTO, Vacation, or Sick Pay, etc.
    • Accruable benefits must be set up as accruable benefits, not as pay items.
    • Regular, Overtime, Double-time, and Accruable Benefit hours are imported to the employee's default payroll item as they are set up in Time Rack. The hours cannot be mapped to another payroll item in Accounting CS.
  • Accounting CS will not send updates to Time Rack for employee records that are marked as Inactive.
  • Currently, for Fixed Amount type pay items, you cannot enter both hours and amounts in Time Rack prior to import into Accounting CS. You can enter either the amount or the hours via Time Rack, and the other must be entered in Accounting CS.
  • All employees are synchronized with Time Rack, regardless of the selected payroll schedule, unless you have marked the Exclude salary employees checkbox in the Payroll Information tab of the Setup > Clients screen.
  • To avoid problems with synchronization between Accounting CS and Time Rack, employees should only be added in Accounting CS, and then imported to Time Rack.

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