Setting up Pay Groups for Smart Pay Management
Pay Groups in ShiftCare help you manage how staff members are paid by assigning specific rates to their shifts. This ensures that payroll is accurate and that you have clear visibility over labor costs.
With Pay Groups, you can:
✅ Set standard hourly or per-visit pay rates for staff members
✅ Automatically apply these rates to shifts
✅ Adjust pay rates for specific shifts when needed
✅ Export payroll data for easy processing
This guide will cover:
Getting Started With Pay Groups
Creating a Pay Group
To set up a Pay Group:
Go to Account > Pay Groups from the sidebar menu.
On the Pay Groups page, click the Actions button in the top-right corner.
Select Add Pay Group.
Enter a name for the Pay Group.
Example: You might name the group based on employment type (e.g., Casual Level 1 or Full-Time Senior).
You can name and structure your Pay Groups in a way that best fits your business.
Once created, your Pay Group will appear in the list. Now, you’ll need to define Pay Items within the group.
Adding Pay Items to a Pay Group
A Pay Group consists of individual Pay Items, which define when and how much a Staff is paid. To add Pay Items:
Click on your newly created Pay Group.
For each Pay Item, enter:
Name (e.g., Weekday Rate, Weekend Rate)
Pay Type (Choose Hourly or Per Visit—only one type per Pay Group)
Rate (the amount Staffs will be paid)
Days & Times (when this rate applies, e.g., Monday to Friday, 9 AM – 5 PM)
Effective Date (when the rate comes into effect)
(Optional) External Code (if using a payroll integration)
Important rules:
✔ Your Pay Group should cover all hours in a 24-hour period so every shift has an assigned rate.
✔ Pay Items within a group cannot overlap, unless they are for future effective dates.
Applying a Pay Group to a Staff Member
Assigning a Pay Group to a Staff ensures their shifts automatically apply the correct pay rates.
To set a default Pay Group for a Staff:
Go to the Staff tab in the left-hand menu and select List.
Select the Staff you want to assign a Pay Group to.
Scroll to the Payroll Settings section and click Edit.
In the Pay Group field, select the appropriate group from the dropdown menu.
Click Update.
Now, whenever this Staff is scheduled for a shift, their assigned Pay Group’s rates will automatically apply.
Enabling FLSA Overtime Rules
ShiftCare supports automatic calculation of overtime pay based on the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).
To enable FLSA Overtime:
Go to Account > Pay Groups.
Click Actions > Overtime Settings.
Toggle on 'Turn on FLSA Overtime' and enter an Export Code (this appears in exports to identify overtime hours). Click 'Save'.
FLSA overtime is applied when a staff member works more than 40 hours in a week. No custom thresholds or multipliers are currently supported. ShiftCare strictly follows the 40-hour FLSA rule.
When scheduling a staff member beyond 40 hours/week, the overtime premium will be displayed on the shift's details page, which can be accessed by clicking the shift with overtime hours.
A more detailed breakdown can also be seen in the 'Advanced Edit' page, which can be accessed by clicking 'Edit', then 'Advanced edit'.
This page shows the number of overtime hours, the overtime rate per hour, the total overtime amount, and the projected shift cost.
In timesheet exports, overtime hours will be included as a separate line item with the designated external code.
For Paychex users, overtime data is fully integrated and automatically recognized.
Smart Pay Management on Your Schedule
Adjusting Pay Rates for a Specific Shift
Sometimes, you may need to override the default pay rate for a particular shift. You can manually set a custom rate for an individual shift while scheduling.
To set a unique Pay Rate for a shift:
Open the Advanced Edit section when creating a shift.
Under Choose Caregiver, you’ll see a list of staff members assigned to the shift.
In the Rate column, select a custom pay rate for that specific shift.
The total shift cost will automatically update based on the new rate.
If needed, click Undo Override to restore the default Pay Group rate.
You can control who sees labor costs while rostering.
To hide costs from your own view, click the three dots menu (⋮) in the top right of the Scheduler and untick "Show Labor Costs".
To prevent rostering staff from viewing or editing pay rates entirely, assign them the Ops role. Unlike Admins, users with the Ops role do not have access to financial data or pay rates. Read this guide to learn more about Roles in ShiftCare.
Exporting Pay Rates for Payroll Processing
Currently, ShiftCare’s Pay Rates do not automatically sync with payroll systems via API. However, you can export payroll data as a CSV file for manual processing.
Exporting All Pay Rates for Payroll
Go to Timesheets.
Click the Export button at the bottom-right corner.
Select Pay Group-Based Export.
Your file will contain timesheet data with all relevant pay rate details.
Exporting Pay Rates for a Specific Staff Member
Open the Staff’s Timesheet.
Click the Export button.
The downloaded CSV file will include that Staff’s pay rates for payroll processing.
QuickBooks Integration
Currently, Quickbooks does not allow us to sync across unique rates applied to a Shift and/or Timesheet. Therefore, your Payroll Officer will need to ensure that the correct rates are applied manually in Quickbooks
Paychex Integration
Great news for you if you use Paychex, we are able to directly sync across the unique rate applied to a Shift and Timesheet to your payroll. Please ensure your Payroll Officer double checks that all data is correct.
FAQs
What is the difference between an Hourly Rate and a Per Visit Rate?
Hourly Rate: The Staff is paid based on the total hours worked during the shift.
Per Visit Rate: The Staff is paid a fixed amount per shift, regardless of its length.
Can I apply different Pay Groups to the same Staff?
A Staff can only have one default Pay Group, but you can override their rate for individual shifts.