One of the most powerful features in Workforce.com is the Earnings Rule Engine. This tool allows you to set up rules that determine how staff are paid under different circumstances.
What's covered in this guide?:
Best Practice for Creating Rules
Rules by day: Each rule may apply to one day, several days, or every day. For example:
Monday–Friday
Saturday
Sunday
Public Holiday
One rule per scenario: Each rule should only cover one scenario. Even if the same pay rate applies in multiple cases, create separate rules. Workforce.com will always apply the most specific rule.
Example: Overtime at 1.5x might apply:
after 7pm,
after 8 hours in a day, or
after 38 hours in a week.
Each should be its own rule.
(Optional) Use numbering: If you have many rules, add a numbering system. For example:
First digit = employment type (1 = Full Time, 2 = Part Time, 3 = Casual).
Second digit = day of the week (1 = Weekdays, 2 = Saturday, 3 = Sunday, 4 = Public Holidays).
Third digit = specificity level (1 = base rule such as Ordinary Hours, 2 = more specific e.g. after 7pm).
At least one universal rule: There must be one rule that applies to all staff, for all days (Ordinary Hours). If this is changed, Workforce.com will create a new default rule.
Use multipliers instead of rates: Multipliers (e.g. 1.5x, 2x) are more consistent across classifications and require fewer updates, unlike fixed rates which often change.
Test in staging: Use staging.workforce.com to trial rules safely. This account mirrors your live account (accurate as of yesterday) and resets daily at 5am. Changes here do not transfer to live.
Bulk manage via CSV: For efficiency, you can upload or update rules in bulk using CSV.
Ordinary Hours
Ordinary hours are an employee’s standard working hours, which do not attract overtime rates.
Agreements usually specify:
maximum ordinary hours per day, week, fortnight, or month,
minimum ordinary hours per day, and
the times ordinary hours may be worked (e.g. 7am–7pm).
Best practice: Create generic Ordinary Hours rules without detailed conditions. Leave specifics (such as maximum hours or times of day) to your Overtime rules. This creates a foundation on which other rules can build.
Overtime Rules
Most agreements include overtime, either after a daily or weekly threshold, with escalating pay rates.
Example agreement:
Hours beyond 38 per week paid at 1.5x
Overtime after 38 hours (1.5x): Rule type = Overtime; condition = after 38 ordinary hours in the pay period.
Adapt conditions to suit your agreement.
Fixed Monthly Overtime
This feature only applies to users with monthly overtime averaging enabled.
To configure:
Go to the Awards Rule page.
Enter the number of monthly overtime period hours.
Once an employee’s hours exceed this figure in the averaging period, overtime rates will apply for the remainder of the month.
This ensures compliance where overtime is calculated monthly rather than daily or weekly.
Allowances
To create an allowance:
Go to Compliance > Customise Your Setup > Allowances > Manage.
Click + New Allowance.
Name the allowance and link it to your payroll system.
Choose Manual (added individually to timesheets, e.g. mileage) or Automatic (applied whenever conditions are met, e.g. laundry allowance per shift).
Define whether it applies to all staff or only those with tags (e.g. Part Time, Casual, specific grades).
Choose whether it’s paid as a multiplier or a specific cost.
Save.
Automatic allowances apply automatically when conditions are met. Manual allowances must be added to timesheets.
Minimum Engagement
Many agreements require a minimum daily engagement (e.g. 3 hours).
To configure:
Go to Compliance > Custom Rules > + New Rule.
Under Conditions, select Minimum Shift Length and enter the required minimum hours.
Staff who work fewer hours will still be paid the minimum.
TOIL (Time Off in Lieu)
Instead of overtime pay, some agreements allow staff to take time off.
TOIL Accrued
Set conditions (e.g. after 38 weekly hours).
Under Outcomes, enter a rate of 0 and tick Export as TOIL/RDO accrual.
Hours will accrue, not be paid.
TOIL Taken
Create a TOIL leave type under Leave Types.
Usually treated as Ordinary Hours at 1.0x.
Integration with payroll will depend on your system.
Overtime for Hours Outside of Schedule
Employees may be entitled to overtime if they work beyond scheduled hours.
Example:
First 3 hours beyond schedule at 1.5x.
Further hours at 2.0x.
Configure under Conditions > After number of hours worked.
Overtime for Hours Outside of Contract
Similar to scheduled overtime, but based on contracted hours in an employee’s profile.
Example setup:
Overtime after contracted hours.
Additional overtime after 3 hours.
Timesheets compare actual worked hours against contracted hours.
Rules for Specific Public Holidays
To create holiday-specific rules:
Start a new earnings rule.
Under Conditions, select Specific Day(s) > Public Holiday.
Enter the holiday name exactly as it appears in Settings > General > Show Pre-Built Holidays.
Save.
The rule will then appear in the Earnings Rules Summary under “Applies On: Specific Public Holidays”.