Phoenix for section 34 managers: Key self-service tasks

The Phoenix pay system automates many of the most common pay-related transactions in the public service. To ensure that these transactions are accurate, managers need to confirm that the basic information about each of their employees entered in the pay system is correct.

Employees must complete certain tasks themselves before the Phoenix pay system will process any pay-related transactions for them. Meanwhile, the pay system’s self-service feature for managers allows managers authorized under section 34 of the Financial Administration Act to complete certain key tasks on behalf of their employees.

All public service employees have a section 34 manager. This manager is responsible for reviewing and approving pay-related requests entered in the pay system. Establishing the employee–section 34 manager relationship in the Phoenix pay system enables the section 34 manager to input and approve self-service transactions on their employees’ behalf.

In situations where an employee does not have access or is in the waiting period to obtain access to the Phoenix Self-Service (e.g., an employee works in a remote location or is newly hired), section 34 managers can select the employees within their group to establish employee-section 34 manager relationship.

A checklist for managers

• Ensure that all employees know the name of their section 34 manager
• Ensure that all employees know what to do if their section 34 manager changes
• Communicate to employees the importance of updating the employee–section 34 manager relationship every time they change jobs, even in the case of an assignment or secondment
• Review your list of employee–section 34 manager relationships to ensure that it is correct
  • Notify employees if you notice a problem that they need to address

Section 34 managers need to review and update their employees’ work schedules. Failure to properly manage and maintain employee schedules will result in inaccurate self-service results. This could affect employee payments.

Managers must assign a predefined or personal schedule to employees who follow a non-standard schedule that is outside the normal work week as defined by the collective agreement or who must submit timesheets.

Phoenix applies a default schedule based on a standard workweek for all employees. As a result, managers of all salaried employees who work the standard 37.5 hours a week, 7.5 hours per day, Monday to Friday, should not need to assign a new schedule. Salaried employees receive their regular pay without reporting their time in self-service. Managers are encouraged to validate the default schedule for accuracy.

Managers who review and update work schedules

Department and agency managers who do not use MyGCHR should ensure that they:

• maintain employee schedules and make adjustments as required for employees who are:
  • new hires
  • returning from extended leave without pay
  • on compressed work arrangements
  • experiencing a status change (for example, part-time to full-time and shift workers)
• become familiar with employees’ varying schedules and work arrangements to ensure that the work schedules entered in Phoenix are accurate

Special cases

It is especially important to review and update schedules for the following:

• part-time employees
• employees on variable work week or compressed work week

As-and-when-required employees will not have a default work schedule and do not require predefined or personal work schedules. If the pay system creates a schedule for such an employee, the section 34 manager should delete it.

The Phoenix pay system automatically assigns a schedule of 1 hour to part-time employees. Managers need to ensure that they assign the appropriate schedule to these employees in the system.

Section 34 managers, whose employees do not have access to the Phoenix pay system, must:

• input self-service entries on behalf of employees who do not have access
  • managers must do this for employees with timesheets, extra duty pay and leave without pay of 5 consecutive days or less
• correct employee timesheets whenever Phoenix generates an exception

Section 34 managers must check exceptions or items pending in the worklist on a daily basis. The Phoenix pay system does not send automatic notification messages on items pending in the worklist.

Phoenix generates exceptions when a self-service entry does not satisfy the system rules. Phoenix will generate payable time (adjustments to pay) only when such exceptions are of low or medium severity. In these cases, exceptions will appear in the manager’s worklist for section 34 approval.

High-severity exceptions

In the case of a high-severity exception, such as cases resulting in no pay for the specified pay period, direct intervention is needed. Either the employee or the manager must correct the timesheet in the pay system before Phoenix will generate payable time (adjustments to pay).

Managers must make all corrections to an employee’s timesheet at least 1 day before the section 34 cut-off for that pay period.

Each individual pay cycle, section 34 managers must complete reviews and approvals within Phoenix self-service before the system cut-off.

When reviewing a submitted timesheet, ensure the following information is correct before approving:

• the classification level
• time reporting code
• number of hours
• date(s)

If the information is incorrect, send the timesheet back to the employee for re-submission.

Employees and section 34 managers may make retroactive changes to self-service entries at any time prior to the self-service cut-off and to any previous pay period. Changes made to self-service entries in the current pay period, prior to the section 33 authorization, will delete the original transaction. Following the overnight process, a new transaction will appear in the manager’s worklist for approval.

Changes made to self-service entries after the self-service cut-off, or that were previously paid, or where section 33 authorization is complete will result in adjustments (negative or positive depending on the change). These adjustments will appear in the manager’s worklist for approval.

Phoenix automatically tracks self-service entries to avoid double payment or recovery for the same transaction.

Part-time employees will see leave without pay for statutory holidays generated automatically, based on their schedule. These transactions still require section 34 manager approval.

Employees on secondment must submit paper timesheets to their section 34 managers in their new department and in their home department. The employee’s section 34 manager from their home department will then enter and approve the transaction in self-service.

The Phoenix pay system cut-off in each pay cycle occurs once the section 33 authorization is complete. This is usually done on the Monday of a non-pay week. The sequence leading up to the cut-off is as follows:

1. the employee or section 34 manager or timekeeper inputs the entry in self-service by 8:30 pm eastern time on the Sunday
2. the overnight administration process generates payable time
3. the section 34 manager approves the self-service entry by 2 pm eastern time on the Monday
4. Phoenix sends the approved transaction to the section 33 authorizer
5. the section 33 authorizer authorizes the transaction by 9 pm eastern time on the Monday