Earning and Deduction Definitions for the US

The Define Earning and Deduction Definitions task list in your implementation project contains the tasks you use to set up elements and payroll components.

Your implementation may include a few predefined elements, usually for legislative tax deductions. Use the Elements task to create elements and the associated objects required to support their processing. The objects vary depending on the element classification and category.

Element Classifications
Elements
Component Groups
Eligibility Rules for Predefined Elements
Rate Definitions

Manage Element Classifications

Elements are grouped into primary classifications that control their sequence of processing and the balances they feed. Secondary classifications are subsets of the primary classifications, which you may use to manage wage basis rules for deductions and taxes.

The primary classifications and some secondary classifications are predefined. You can't remove or change predefined classifications.

What you can do:

Create additional balances that the primary classifications feed
Create secondary classifications

For further info, see Secondary Element Classifications for the US topic in the Help Center.
Specify costing setup options and frequency rules for element classifications

The default frequency rule is always each period.

Manage Elements

Use the Elements task to create and review elements. When you create an element, your selection of the element classification and category determines the questions on a predefined template. Submitting the template generates an element, which you can edit as required.

You must create at least one element eligibility record for all predefined and newly created elements.

Note: You must have set the country extension to Payroll using the Manage Features by Country or Territory task before you create elements for payroll processing. This setting ensures that you use the appropriate element templates.

Creating certain elements also creates component groups, calculation value definitions, and other calculation info. For example, creating involuntary deductions creates these additional objects. Use the relevant tasks in the Define Earning and Deduction Definitions task list to review the objects generated for each element.

Payroll components are associated with a set of rates and rules used for calculation or reporting. These components conform to manage calculation value definitions.

What you can do:

Review the tables that hold the rates and other values used to calculate deduction and exemption amounts.
Modify some value definitions.
Create calculation ranges, if required.

Manage the calculation info for elements that generate payroll components, such as involuntary deductions and statutory deductions.

Review the predefined calculation info as required, such as the wage basis rules and calculation factors.

Manage Component Groups

Component groups are predefined categories of calculation components managed by component group rules.

What you can do:

View rules for component groups.
Modify the rules, such as wage basis rules, for some deductions.

After set up, you add calculation components to personal calculation cards by:

Loading data, such as time cards
Using the Calculation Cards task and adding your own, such as for involuntary deductions

By default, US employees receive their tax card automatically upon hire.
Creating an absence transaction

Add Eligibility Rules for Predefined Elements

The task list includes this task as a reminder. Use the Elements task to define at least one element eligibility record for every predefined and newly-created element.

Note: You must define eligibility and cost all predefined employee and employer tax elements. For further info, see the Payroll Costing of Elements for the US in the Help Center.

Element eligibility determines who can receive entries of the element. Do the following.

Create a name for the element eligibility record. Use a naming convention similar to the element's to easily identify the record, such as when you set up costing for the element's eligibility record.
Restrict who can receive entries of the element by specifying eligibility criteria. For elements applicable to all workers, create eligibility without specifying any criteria.

Manage Rate Definitions

Define any rates that are based on calculated payroll balances, such as an employee's average salary during the last 3 months. You can use rate definitions in absence plans and formulas.

You can define rates to be:

Monetary, such as a pay rate, or nonmonetary, such as an absence accrual rate defined in days or hours
Based on a combination of elements, or a single element