1) Overview
2) Configuration of interpretation periods
3) Add interpretation periods
4) Manage / maintain interpretation periods
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Award | Triggers
Award | Management
1) Overview
Interpretation periods enable automatic triggers or manual work rules to pay a different set of weekly rates to an employee. Interpretation periods are used to trigger shift working conditions (e.g. night shift penalties) or apply a manual work rule to a shift. Interpretation periods can also be used to pay a single employee from multiple awards in a single payroll period. Finally, Interpretation periods can be used to to pay an employee as permanent in certain roles and as casual in other roles.
Examples provided in this article refer to instances from the SCHADS award. This award is provides examples that explain interpretation periods and manual work rules.
2) Configuration of interpretation periods
Interpretation periods can have the following automatic triggers:
- Based on when the shift started
- Based on when the shift started and ended
- Based on when the shift ended
Interpretation periods can also be setup to be applied manually on individual shifts in the timesheet.
Role overrides can also be setup to force specific roles into predetermined interpretation periods.
Things to consider:
- Adding a new interpretation period into an award will automatically add it to all associated pay groups.
- Updating an existing award level interpretation period does not automatically update pay group interpretation periods
- Pay group interpretation periods can be different to award based interpretation periods.
Interpretation periods can also be used if multiple shifts appear on the same day. In this case the shifts can be configured to count as a single shift and the same interpretation period can be applied to the group of shifts.
Another configuration to consider is when a specific time of day needs to trigger an overtime payment. In this case interpretation periods can be used to ensure a specific time of day enforces an overtime payment (for example, any shift that begins after 6pm requires a rate multiplier of 1.25).
3) Add interpretation periods
To add a new interpretation period:
- Click Organisation.
- Click Awards.
- Select an award.
- Scroll to the bottom of the award page and locate the Interpretation periods section.
- Tick Use interpretation periods for this award.
- Click Add or Create interpretation period.
- Complete the details in the pop up box.
- Click Save.
Each of the fields available in the Create interpretation period pop up are explained below.
- Name - The name of the interpretation period.
- Range type - The periods of time that trigger the interpretation period.
Apply for shifts
- All shifts - tick box if the interpretation period should apply to all shifts.
- Start time (inclusive) - The start of the range of time that is covered by this interpretation period.
- End time (exclusive) - The end of the range of time that is covered by this interpretation period.
Shift length condition
- Minimum shift length - The minimum length of a shift that can use this interpretation period.
- Maximum shift length - the maximum length of a shift that can use this interpretation period.
- Count consecutive shifts as one - This value is set in minutes. It represents the number of minutes. that can pass for multiple shifts to be counted as the same shift. If the time between shifts is greater than the value set here, shifts will not be counted as one shift.
4) Manage / maintain interpretation periods
To access interpretation periods, follow the first two steps as above, then:
- Select an award.
- Scroll to the bottom of the award page and locate the Interpretation periods section.
- Click Actions (three-dots icon) at the end of the Interpretation period you'd like to edit.
- Make adjustments to the interpretation period in the pop up box.
- Once changes or adjustments have been made, click Save.