Setting Up Hours Counting Service
To set up hours counting service, use the Service-Hours Counting (SERVICE_HRS_CNT) component.
This topic discusses how to define the hours counting service method.
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Page Name |
Definition Name |
Usage |
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PA_SVC_DEFINITION |
Set up basic service information. |
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PA_SVC_HRS_TIME |
Set up service period thresholds that employees must meet before getting service credit for a computation period. |
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PA_SVC_STATUS |
Establish which employee action and reason codes turn service accrual off and which turn service accrual on. See |
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PA_SVC_CAT_SEC |
Set up category-specific rules, including future status code adjustments and hours limits (minimums and maximums). |
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PA_SVC_HRS_CONVERT |
Set up rules to convert hours to service. |
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Final Handling Page |
PA_SVC_FINAL_RND |
Set up any adjustments to the total service amount. This page is identical to the Final Handling page for elapsed time service. |
Use the Service-Hours Counting - Definition page (PA_SVC_DEFINITION) to set up basic service information.
Note: Most of the field information on this page is the same as for the Service-Elapsed Time - Definition Page. Only the differences are documented here.
Navigation:
This example illustrates the fields and controls on the Service-Hours Counting - Definition page.
Service
Field or Control |
Description |
|---|---|
Service Type |
When you access this page through the Service-Elapsed Time component, the type is always Elapsed Time. When you access this page through the Service-Hours Counting component, the type is always Hours Counting. When you access this page through the Service-Hours Equivalence component, the type is always Hours Equivalence. |
Projection Method |
Set up your projection method on the Projections page, and enter the name of that method here. When you estimate a benefit for a future retirement date, you need to be able to project hours data for future periods. Note: The system displays this field and Hours Consolidation for the hours counting method only. |
Hours Consolidation |
Enter the name of your consolidation process here. An hours counting service definition is based on the number of hours worked during a specific period. The hours consolidation process provides the necessary hours data. |
Computation Period
Field or Control |
Description |
|---|---|
Period |
Select Anniversary Year, Calendar Month, Calendar Year, or Plan Year. Hours counting service definition is based on the number of hours worked during a specific period. |
Exclude Service Prior to and Exclude Service After
Field or Control |
Description |
|---|---|
Date and or Alias |
If the exclusion date occurs in the middle of an hours consolidation period, the system prorates the total hours for the period to determine the number of hours to be excluded. To exclude hours based on the day they are earned, create an hours consolidation definition that excludes those hours. |
Use the Time Requirement page (PA_SVC_HRS_TIME) to set up service period thresholds that employees must meet before getting service credit for a computation period.
Although you are setting up an hours counting service definition, you can set an elapsed time threshold that employees must meet before getting any service credit at all. For example, you could require employees to have nine months of elapsed time service in order to have their hours counted for a particular year.
Navigation:
This example illustrates the fields and controls on the Service-Hours Counting - Time Requirement page.
Hours/Time Requirement
Field or Control |
Description |
|---|---|
Hours/Time - Time Dependent |
Select to set a time threshold in the Consecutive Time Required Completed to Award Servicegroup box. |
Hours/Time - No dependencies |
Select if there is no time threshold. |
Consecutive Time Required Completed to Award Service
Field or Control |
Description |
|---|---|
Period Count and Period Type |
Enter the number of periods that employees must work before getting service credit, and specify whether this is the number of Consecutive Months or Consecutive Years. |
Use the Service-Hours Counting - Status and Categories Page (PA_SVC_STATUS) to establish which employee action and reason codes turn service accrual off and which turn service accrual on.
Most of the field information on this page is the same as for the Service-Elapsed Time - Definition Page. Only the differences are documented here.
Navigation:
This example illustrates the fields and controls on the Service-Hours Counting - Status and Categories page.
Hours counting service depends on the hours consolidation. Unless there is a minimum or maximum number of hours (real or projected) specified for a particular status, the service calculation uses whatever hours are provided. For example, if the consolidated hours includes hours from an employee's leave of absence, then those hours are considered for service; the service function does not categorize those hours and cannot, therefore, exclude them.
This means that Status and Categories work very differently for hours counting than for elapsed time and hours equivalence. The latter two methods use statuses as the basis for granting or not granting service credit; hours counting uses actual hours, rather than statuses, for this purpose.
Note: To avoid crediting service for particular employee statuses, you must define your hours consolidation to exclude those hours.
In an hours counting definition, you identify Status and Categories for the following purposes:
Identifying hire and termination periods if you use different hours-to-service conversion methods for those periods.
Applying status-based minimum or maximum hours limits.
Establishing a link between the service definition and the employee's action/reason history.
You need to put the following types of action and reason categories into your service definition:
Action and reason categories that start and stop limited periods.
For example, if certain leaves of absence have a maximum of 500 hours, you must identify action and reason codes for both those leaves types and for returns from leave.
Categories of hire and termination actions.
Categories covering any action and reason that could appear as the first action in an employee's job record. Normally a hire and rehire category covers this, but if your practices include using other actions for an employee's initial job record, be sure those actions are incorporated into one of the service categories. Without this information, the system cannot match employees to definitions.
Because you do not need to make elaborate adjustments to an employee's job history in order to apply service rules, you don't necessarily need the same amount of service status detail as you would for an elapsed time service definition. However, it's a good practice to enter included and excluded service statuses that match the way your consolidation handles hours from those statuses. For example, if you generate hours for certain kinds of leaves, those leaves would be service included statuses.
Use the Service Category Detail page (PA_SVC_CAT_SEC) to set up category-specific rules, including future status code adjustments and hours limits (minimums and maximums).
Most of the field information on this page is the same as for the Service-Elapsed Time - Definition Page. Only the differences are documented here.
Navigation:
Click the Category Details icon on the Status and Categories page.
This example illustrates the fields and controls on the Service Category Detail page.
Because hours counting service definitions use actual hours worked rather than the employee's action/reason history, they do not do not adjust the dates of action/reason changes. They do, however, allow future status code adjustments and limits (minimums and maximums) on the number of hours in a period.
See Service Category Detail Page.
Limit
Segments can have a minimum or maximum hours accrual based on the employee status. For example, an employee on leave could be limited to a 1000-hour maximum. Use the fields in the Limit group box to indicate the hours limitations associated with specific categories of HR action and reason codes.
Field or Control |
Description |
|---|---|
Limit Type and Hour Limit |
To set an upper or lower limit on hours following a particular action until the next action from any of the other categories, select Minimum or Maximum, then enter the limit in the Hour Limit field. If there are no limits, select No Limit. |
Limitation Period |
Limits always apply to either the computation period or the status period. If you select Computation Period, you can limit employees to 1000 hours per year while on leave. If you select Status Period, you can limit employees to 1000 hours for the total duration of the leave. If you select Computation Period, the limit applies only to the portion of the computation period when the employee is on leave. For example, for 2000 Miguel had 1250 total hours, but he was on leave for part of the year. The system first prorates the hours to allocate 250 hours to the period when Miguel was on leave. The limit of 1000 hours per computation period applies only to this 250 hours. In this case, therefore, the limit doesn't change the total hours for the period. |
Allocation Period |
In our limitation period example, Miguel's 1250 total leave hours fall into two computation periods. You have to reduce the total leave hours to 1000 using one of two Allocation Period options: Cut Off at Limit or Spread Across Days. If you select Cut Off at Limit, the first 1000 hours are used, any additional hours are reduced to zero. In this case, the 250 hours in 1980 remain at 250 hours, the 1000 hours that fall in 1981 are reduced to 750. If you select Spread Across Days, the 1000 hours are evenly distributed across the days of leave. For example 250 days, for an average of four hours per day. If the first portion of the leave has 60 days, then it has 240 hours; the second portion of the leave, with the remaining 190 days, has 760 hours. |
Example: Allocating Hours to Computation Periods
If your limitation period is the status period, the system still prorates hours within a computation period to determine how many hours fall into the specified status. If the hours violate the limit, you have to allocate the limited hours between two periods. For example, Miguel's leave of absence extends into 2001, as shown in the following diagram:
This illustration shows an employee leave period that beings during one computation period and ends during the next computation period.
Miguel's 1250 total leave hours fall into two computation periods. You have to reduce the total leave hours to 1000 using one of two Allocation Period options.
If you select Cut Off at Limit, then the first 1000 hours are used and any additional hours are reduced to zero. In this case, the 250 hours in 2000 remain at 250 hours, the 1000 hours that fall in 2001 are reduced to 750.
If you select Spread Across Days, the 1000 hours are evenly distributed across the days of leave—for example, 250 days—for an average of four hours per day. If the first portion of the leave has 60 days, then it has 240 hours; the second portion of the leave, with the remaining 190 days, has 760 hours.
For minimums, Cut Off at Limit adds any additional hours to the first segment. Spread Across Days increases the hours proportionally.
Use the Conversion page (PA_SVC_HRS_CONVERT) to set up rules to convert hours to service. This is necessary for any hours-based service definition (hours counting or hours equivalence.)
Navigation:
This example illustrates the fields and controls on the Conversion page - Service-Hours Counting.
Service Hours Conversion
Field or Control |
Description |
|---|---|
Service Period |
You can use different conversion rules for the hire period and termination periods from those you use for a standard computation period. For example, you may use a ratio rule for hire and termination periods, but a zero or one rule for other periods. Select the Service Period for the rules you are establishing: All Periods, Hire Period, or Termination Period. The Service function identifies hire and termination periods by the categories you established on the Status and Categories page. Note: Be sure to set up a rule for all periods. You can choose whether or not to set up additional rules for hire and termination periods. |
Hours Conversion Rule |
For each type of computation period, select an Hours Conversion Rule to establish the basis for your hours-to-service conversion:
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Ratio Rule
Field or Control |
Description |
|---|---|
Hours Divisor |
Enter the denominator. |
Decimal Places |
Indicate the number of decimal places for the division. |
Min Hours for Accrual (minimum hours for accrual) |
Employees accrue of maximum of one service unit, even if the numerator is greater than the denominator. To set a threshold number of hours, enter the minimum hours for accrual. Employees with fewer hours receive no service credit. For example, if you enter 500, employees with less than 500 hours receive no service credit. |
Hours for One Service Unit |
Set the number of hours for one service unit. Employees with the specified number of hours or more automatically receive one service unit; additional hours do not add service. |