Set up a dummy vendor called "Payroll" or "Job Labor" or something like that. For each payroll, enter a either a purchase invoice or a payment to this vendor. List all of your payroll job costs on this transaction using the same GL account for every line. On the last line enter a negative amount so the total becomes zero. Don't assign this line to a job.

This method allows you to track both quantity (hours) and costs. If you don't care about tracking hours you could skip setting up the dummy vendor and do the same thing through a general journal entry.

Hi Steve,

Currently, we itemize/breakdown our job cost into phases, using employee time sheets. What is your take on using a 'dummy' GL for payroll and posting jobs the same as we have been doing, off-setting with journal entry?

With both ideas, yours and mine, seems like we will be creating invoice numbers and/or check numbers. Is this okay, or will it create a nightmare of gaps and loopholes?

Thanks for your response.

Cheryl

I admit that the method I suggested isn't perfect, but many people have used it without creating big problems. If you do it as a vendor invoice, they won't affect anything else because the invoices have a zero balance. The same is true if you use a check. To keep the dummy check numbers from cluttering up your regular checking account you can set the bank account for the check to the same expense account that you use on the detail lines. A general journal entry works too, but since you can't enter quantities on a GJE you can only use them to track dollars, not hours.

I'm not sure I understand what you mean by "using a 'dummy' GL for payroll and posting jobs the same as we have been doing, off-setting with journal entry". But if you want to keep entering time sheets in Sage 50 you would have to convert those time sheets into payroll checks and then make sure those exactly match what was produced by your payroll service. It seems like that would offset most of the benefits of using a payroll service.

The 'dummy GL' would be something other than our regular payroll GL, so not to interfere with employee current earnings, to date.

We do not use the Sage Time Sheet Entry feature. Data is listed on a hand written, weekly Time Sheet.

The reason I am leaning toward utilizing payroll entry/checks is because all of the data I need is already set up. For example, when I review weekly time sheets, (if I were to enter purchase invoice) I would need to know each employee rate of pay and enter hours x rate of pay, for each line item. 50 employee's, 5-6 days per week, 1-3 jobs per day. Not to mention, the 'balance to 0' on the job posting feature, which helps to identify inaccuracies.

How does this sound, to keep things clean:

1) Set up New Bank Account Number - a) This will allow for a sequence of check numbers to remain separate from the working bank account. b) Checks will not appear on the the working check list

2) Set up New GL for "Job Posting Payroll" - This will allow all transactions to remain separate from current earnings and for all practical accounting purposes.

3) Enter hours into payroll. Should I SAVE or PRINT the check? ****I will not need printed checks. Check numbers are assigned at the time they are printed. Will this cause any issues down the road?****

4) Post Jobs toward employee paycheck.

5) Identify Dollar Value of week ending Payroll and offset with Receive Money Transaction or GL entry.

6) Account balance to ZERO. 0.00

Thanks so much for working this through with me.

Cheryl

Part of deciding on the best solution comes down to a question that I should know the answer to but I'm not certain. The question is whether or not you'll still have access to payroll entry without a payroll subscription (if you plan on maintaining one, this won't be an issue). I think you will still be able to enter hours and wages in Payroll entry, it just won't calculate any taxes or deductions. In your case that would be fine. Since I have payroll on my system I can't test this. Assuming I'm remembering that correctly, the easiest method would probably be to use Payroll Entry. Change all of your pay types to use your dummy payroll GL account. You don't need to set up a dummy bank account, just change the cash account in payroll entry to the same dummy payroll GL account. That way all the debits and credits for each check will go to the same GL account resulting in no change in GL balance.You'll use the Jobs button to distribute hours/costs to jobs just like you would if you were doing payroll in Sage 50.

Plan B would be to use Payments (Pay Bills). Again you would use the dummy payroll GL account as both the bank account and the expense account so you don't have to worry about zeroing out the transaction total. So that you don't have to remember everyone's pay rate you can use memorized transactions in one of two ways. Either create one big memorized transaction with a line for each employee. Put their name in the description and their rate in the Unit Price column. If you frequently pay overtime you could give each employee two lines, one regular and one OT. If they work on more than one job, just use the Row button to insert rows so you can have a line for each job they worked on. Or create a separate memorized payment for each employee, again putting their rate in the unit price column.

Hi Steve,

Thanks so much for following me on this!.

We will have access to payroll entry through 2017. Currently, calculating deductions and taxes, etc. We do not want these transactions interfering with our employee current earnings,etc. So, as long as the GL account is separate from the actual working Payroll GL, we should be okay. (?)

Whether we go with Plan A or B, we are now faced with the assignment of check numbers and how they may interfere with our actual check numbers.

Let's walk through this. Since I am using a 'cash' account, other than my working bank account, the checks posted will not be listed together with my actual working payments, payroll or otherwise. Therefore, the assignment of check numbers could begin at 1... (?) After doing the data entry for job assignment I would choose to Save or Print checks. Since I do not need actual hard copy of the checks, I would choose to send checks to a 'dummy' printer, which should successfully post the transactions.

...almost there...

Cheryl

If you use Payroll Entry the employee totals will be updated regardless of what the cash account is set to.

Since you don't need to print these checks you can enter a check number when you enter the first transactions. As you save each one, the check number will be incremented. It will keep doing that as long as you keep that window open.

When printing checks, Sage 50 will suggest the next check number based on the last time you printed checks. So any time you print checks you will need to watch carefully to make sure you have the right starting check number. When entering the dummy payments for jobs you will have to manually find the starting check number.

I forgot to say that reports, such as the check register and cash disbursements journal can be filtered by cash account ID so you'll still be able to get reports that don't include the dummy checks.

Thanks, Steve.. your input has been helpful.

Cheryl Lucas