Employee Numbering Methods

You can assign up to seven characters to identify each employee. You can use numbers, letters, or a combination of both. If you are using the Department feature, the two-character department number must precede the employee number. For example, an entry of 0212345 displays as 02-0012345, and an entry of 02JOHNSON displays as 02-JOHNSON.

If you use only numbers for the employee number, leading zeros are inserted automatically. For example, an entry of 150 displays as 0000150. If letters are used, no leading zeros are inserted.

Because employee numbers are used to identify all payroll transactions, it is important that your employee numbering method meets your requirements. When choosing your numbering method, remember that most payroll reports can be sorted by employee number, sort field, employee name, or Social Security number. You can use the Sort Field on the Employee Maintenance Main tab to enter information such as job type, union affiliation, etc. For more information, see Employee Maintenance.

Note Regardless of the numbering method selected, you can use the Lookup button in the Payroll module to obtain a listing of employees in employee name or employee number sequence when an employee number is required for entry.

This numbering method has the advantage of speedy entry when the numeric key pad on your computer is used. Because leading zeros are inserted automatically, you only need to type the significant digits of the employee number. The Numbers Only method is especially suitable for businesses with a large number of employees where it may not be practical to assign a descriptive code to each employee.

To assign numbers to each employee, it is suggested that you increment by 10s or 20s between employees. You might also use a unique number already assigned to the employee, such as a phone number.

This numbering method allows simple assignment of codes using common employee information, such as the first two or three characters of the employee name followed by a four-digit number. This number could be the last four digits of the employee's phone number or another unique number.

This numbering method allows you to identify the employee by looking at the abbreviated name (for example, CARPENT, PETERSO, STEVENS). Additionally, all payroll reports will list employees in alphabetical sequence. Although this method is the simplest to use, it is practical only if you have a relatively small number of employee s whose names you can easily recognize.