With the HR Management module, you record in the employee file what employees earn: the base compensation as a fixed salary or hourly rate, plus variable compensations such as a Christmas bonus, benefits in kind or special payments. ZEP turns this into a monthly overview per year. The article Feature Overview – HR Management describes which product lines include the module.
You find compensation under Employees > [Person] > Employee File > Compensation. On the Employee File page, the Compensation card also shows the base compensation currently in effect; the card's icon takes you straight to the compensation page.
Page layout
The page has four areas, from top to bottom:
Tiles: the base compensation currently in effect and, per compensation type and payment frequency, the total of the recurring variable compensations that apply today. One-time payments do not appear in the tiles.
Base salary: table with the columns Start date, Compensation model, Payment frequency, Remark and Amount, newest entries first.
Variable compensations: table with the columns Time Period, Compensation type, Interval, Remark and Amount.
Monthly compensation overview: expandable monthly table for one year (see below).
ZEP shows amounts in the employee's currency: for freelancers with credit, in their credit note currency; otherwise in the department's currency or the system's base currency. You can show further columns such as Date created and Date modified via the table configuration.
Base compensation
The base compensation is the basic salary. It applies from its start date until the day before the next base compensation. To record a raise, you therefore create a new entry with its own Valid from date instead of changing the existing entry. This way, the table shows the complete history.
Add base compensation
Select Add Compensations > Add Base Compensation to open the dialog with these fields:
Field | Description |
Compensation Model | "Fixed salary" or "Hourly rate". Required, defaults to "Fixed salary". |
Valid from | Start date of the compensation. Required. Each start date can be used only once per person and must fall within the employment period. |
Amount | Required, greater than 0, at most two decimal places. |
Payment Frequency | Fixed salary only: "Annual Salary" (default) or "Monthly Salary". |
Comment | Optional, up to 255 characters. |
If the date is in the past and replaces a base compensation that is already on record, ZEP points this out in the dialog.
Edit base compensation
Click the start date to open the entry. The compensation model is fixed when editing; you can change all other fields. To switch the model, for example from hourly rate to fixed salary, create a new base compensation dated to the switch.
Variable compensations
Variable compensations are payments on top of the base compensation. Each one belongs to a compensation type that administrators maintain in the Basic Settings. A variable compensation is either recurring or one-time.
Add variable compensation
Select Add Compensations > Add variable compensation to open the dialog with these fields:
Field | Description |
Compensation type | Selection from the active compensation types. Required. |
Interval | "Recurring" or "One-time only". |
Payment Frequency | Recurring compensations only: "Monthly", "Quarterly", "Semi-annually" or "Annually". |
Payment from / Payment on | First payment or the date of the one-time payment. Required, defaults to the first day of the following month. |
Payment until | Recurring compensations only, optional. Without a date, the compensation runs indefinitely. When you turn it on, ZEP suggests the next payment date. |
Amount | Required, greater than 0, at most two decimal places. |
Comment | Optional, up to 255 characters. |
If the compensation type has defaults, ZEP fills in interval, payment frequency and amount in the dialog. All dates must fall within the employment period. If the selected period results in only a single payment for a recurring compensation, ZEP points this out.
With the Add another compensation checkbox, a new dialog opens right after saving, with the last selected compensation type already filled in.
Edit variable compensation
Click the time period to open the entry. Compensation type and interval are fixed; you can change payment frequency, dates, amount and comment. If the compensation starts in the past, ZEP asks for confirmation before saving, because it has probably already been paid out.
Delete compensations
You delete base and variable compensations via the Delete row action or in the open entry. ZEP asks for confirmation before deleting. If the compensation is already active, the confirmation points out that the related entries also disappear from the compensation overview.
Copy from another employee
If several employees have similar compensations, copy the entries of another employee to the person you have open. To do so, select Add Compensations > Copy from another employee. The dialog has two steps:
Selection: Choose whether to copy the "Base Compensation" or the "Variable compensations", then choose the employee to copy from. With the Locations & Departments area, you first select that employee's department. The Copy only the currently active compensation checkbox is selected by default.
Review: ZEP lists the entries to be copied. For each row, you adjust Valid from and Amount or remove the row. Click Save to create the entries.
Model, payment frequency, interval and end date come from the source entry; comments stay with the source entry. You can choose from employees whose compensation you are allowed to view.
Note: If the person you have open already has a base compensation with the same start date, the copied one replaces it. ZEP lists the affected dates before saving.
Monthly compensation overview
The compensation overview shows, month by month for one year, what is due in base compensation and variable compensations. Use the Year filter to switch years; the current year is preselected. The table has the columns Month, Base Compensation, one column per compensation type and Total, with the Annual total row below. You can show, hide, reorder and sort columns.
This is how ZEP calculates the values:
Fixed salary, monthly: the monthly amount, prorated by the days the person is employed in that month.
Fixed salary, annual: one twelfth of the annual amount per month, also prorated by days of employment. Over twelve full months, this adds up to exactly the annual amount.
Hourly rate: hourly rate times target hours according to the working time model. If no regular working hours are on record, the value stays empty.
Variable compensations: in the month of payment; for recurring compensations, from Payment from at intervals of the payment frequency until Payment until.
Inactive compensation types appear as a column if there are amounts for them in the selected year. Months without an amount stay empty.
Compensation for multiple employees
In the employee list, you can add the same compensation to several employees in one step. Select the rows you want and choose the Add Compensations bulk action; the Bulk operations section of the employee overview explains how bulk actions work in general. The action is also available in a department's employee list.
In the dialog, choose between "Base Compensation" and "Variable Compensation" under Compensation type. The fields match those for single entries, without the comment; for variable compensation, the selection is called Variable Compensation Type.
ZEP checks the start date and the employment period for each selected person. If a check fails, the error message names the affected employee, and ZEP saves nothing for any of the selected people. Correct the selection or the data and save again.
Note: Only people who have one of these roles themselves can edit the data of administrators and system administrators. If you have a different role and such people are selected, ZEP rejects the bulk action.
Permissions
Who can view and maintain compensation is controlled by the Employee Compensation row in Roles & Permissions:
View: the Compensation page, the Compensation card in the employee file and the monthly compensation overview.
Edit: add, edit, delete and copy compensations from other employees. For the bulk action, you need this permission for every selected person.
Administrators maintain the compensation types themselves in the Basic Settings.