Understanding the Payroll Readiness Dashboard

⚡ Purpose

Running payroll, often referred to as processing payroll, is the process of calculating and submitting your employees’ pay for a pay period so they’re paid on payday. Before you run payroll, it’s important to review your setup, your employees’ hours, and any extra pay or deductions. Any of these can affect how much each employee is paid.

The Payroll Readiness Dashboard, located on the Run Payroll page, helps you and your team prepare for payroll in two ways:

• It flags what needs your attention. The dashboard shows your current setup issues, clock statuses, and earnings and deductions for the pay period, and updates as changes are made in your account.
• It gives you a checklist to track your review. You mark each check complete as you work through it, so you and your team can see at a glance what’s been reviewed before running payroll.

📌 | Note: The Payroll Readiness Dashboard is being introduced gradually as part of a phased rollout, so not all accounts will see it yet. If it isn’t on your Run Payroll page, continue following the steps in A Guide to Running Payroll.

🔐 Access required

The Payroll Readiness Dashboard is available on subscriptions with the Payroll Add-On.

Who can use the Payroll Readiness Dashboard?

• Super Administrators: Full access to view the dashboard, complete each check, and run payroll.
• Team Administrators: Can view the dashboard, complete each check, and run payroll if the Run Payroll permission is granted. If you are unable to access it, please confirm your permissions with a Super Administrator.

📋 Topics covered in this article:

• Accessing the Dashboard and Reviewing Your Pay Period
• Completing the Readiness Checks
  • Resolve Setup Issues
  • Review Clocks
  • Review Earnings & Deductions
• Tracking Your Progress and Running Payroll
• Frequently Asked Questions About the Payroll Readiness Dashboard

📚 Related articles:

• Understanding Payroll Processing Deadlines
• A Guide to Running Payroll
• Understanding Pre-Authorized Debit (PAD) Limits & Payroll Holds
• When and How to Unapprove a Payroll
• Check out our dedicated Payroll section to find how-to guides, FAQs, and more.

Accessing the Dashboard and Reviewing Your Pay Period

The Payroll Readiness Dashboard lives on the Run Payroll page, where you process payroll for each pay period. The information it shows depends on the pay period you select. When you choose a pay period, the whole dashboard updates to show what’s happening for that period: the key dates, how much time you have left to process payroll, and the three readiness checks.

This gives you a quick picture of where things stand before you start reviewing. You can also select a future pay period to plan ahead, for example, to see when payroll is due or how many days you have left to process it.

1. Click the Payroll tab.
2. From the left-hand navigation bar, select Run Payroll.
3. Under Select Pay Period, click the drop-down menu and select the pay period you want to process.
   💡 | Tip: Your current pay period is labelled (Next) in the drop-down menu.
4. The page will refresh and show the dashboard for the selected pay period!

Once the pay period is chosen and the dashboard refreshes, we recommend reviewing its key dates. These help you plan enough time to complete each check before payroll is due:

• Payroll period: The start and end dates of the pay period. The hours, earnings, and deductions for these dates will be paid.
• Submission Deadline: The date and time by which payroll must be processed for employees to be paid on the scheduled payday. A badge shows how many days you have left (e.g., Due in 4 days) or indicates the deadline has passed (e.g., Overdue).
• Payday: The date your employees are scheduled to be paid, based on your pay frequency.
  ⚠️ | Important: If the Submission Deadline has passed, the payday shown is still your original scheduled date. However, when you process payroll, a Pay Date Adjustment pop-up will show the next available payday, and the date will update once you accept it. For more details, refer to our article Understanding Payroll Processing Deadlines.

Below the key dates, you’ll see the three readiness checks for the same pay period. For details on each one, refer to the Completing the Readiness Checks section of this article.

Completing the Readiness Checks

Once a pay period is selected, the Payroll Readiness Dashboard includes three checks and reminders for you and your team to review before running payroll. Each check shows current information from your account and links you directly to where you can make changes. As you make updates, the dashboard reflects them in real time.

Once you’ve reviewed a check, click Mark complete to mark it as done. Marking a check complete is a manual confirmation only. It doesn’t approve clocks, fix setup issues, or update anything in your account. Any flagged items still need to be actioned where they’re set up.

This section will guide you through each readiness check available:

• Resolve Setup Issues
• Review Clocks
• Review Earnings & Deductions

Resolve Setup Issues

This check warns you about account or employee information that may be missing, inaccurate, or misconfigured. Each type of issue appears in its own drop-down. When you expand it, you’ll see additional details.

For example, a warning titled These active employees have an invalid SIN flags individuals whose SIN details aren’t valid, such as a placeholder like 999-999-998. It’s important to resolve these before year-end, so your employees’ tax forms, such as T4s, are accurate. When you open the drop-down, each impacted employee will be listed, with a link to each profile so you can update their information.

1. Under Resolve Setup Issues, review the warning badge(s) to see how many issues were found.
   1. If no issues are found, click Mark complete and move on to the next check.
   2. If issues are found, continue to the next step.
2. Click the arrow next to an issue type to expand it and see the details.
   1. To view every issue at once, click Expand all.
3. Review each issue to understand what information or setup is impacted. The dashboard will let you know whether the issues found will block payroll.
   1. If an issue will block payroll, update the information before running payroll. For employee-related issues, click the employee’s name to open their Profile.
   2. If an issue won’t block payroll, you can update it now or follow up later.
      💡 | Tip: If you choose to update an issue later, make sure to follow up so information stays accurate (e.g. employee records that could impact a tax form). 
4. Once you’ve reviewed all issues, click Mark complete.

Review Clocks

This check flags the total number of clock entries in the pay period that are approved, unapproved, or still in progress, so you can review them before running payroll. Clocks, also called clock entries, are records of when your employees clock in and out for their shifts using one of our PUSH apps. 

Depending on your Clock Settings, some clock entries are approved automatically, while others require a manager's review and are flagged as unapproved.

Reviewing clocks before running payroll helps make sure employees are paid accurately, with no missed hours and no overpayments. It also matters because unapproved clocks will prevent payroll from being processed.

1. Under Review Clocks, review the Approved, Unapproved, and Still Working counts.
   1. If all clocks are approved and there are no unapproved or still working clocks, click Mark complete and move on to the next check.
   2. If any clocks are unapproved or still working, continue to the next step.
2. Click the Unapproved or Still Working count to open the Clock Approvals page for that status in a new tab.
3. Review the clocks and approve or adjust them as needed. For employees who are still clocked in, confirm whether they’re still working or missed a clock-out.
4. To review all clock activity for the pay period in report format, click Audit report; this opens the Audit Clock Approvals Report.
5. To add a missing clock entry, click Add clocks; this opens the Clock History page. 
6. Return to the dashboard and confirm the counts have updated; the only counts with numbers should be Approved. 
7. Once you’ve reviewed all clocks, click Mark complete.

💡 | Tip: Keep an eye on whether the counts look right for your team. For example, if you notice a low number of clocks are showing as approved for a full pay period, some clocks may be missing.

Review Earnings & Deductions

This check is a reminder to confirm whether any additional payments or deductions are needed for your employees this pay period. Unlike the other two checks, it doesn’t flag any issues. Instead, it gives you quick links to review and add entries, and a way for your team to confirm it’s been reviewed.

Earnings and deductions are amounts added to or taken from an employee’s pay on top of their regular hours or salary. For example, an earning could be a bonus or a reimbursement. A deduction could be a benefits contribution or uniform cleaning costs. Reviewing them before running payroll helps ensure employees receive everything they’re owed and that nothing is missed or added by mistake.

1. Under Review earnings & deductions, consider whether anything needs to be added to or taken from an employee’s pay this pay period.
   1. If nothing needs to be added, click Mark complete and move on to the next step.
   2. If you need to add or confirm entries, continue to the next step.
2. (Optional) To see the entries already applied to the pay period, click View Earnings & Deductions Report; this opens in a new tab for the selected pay period. 
3. To add a new entry, click Add Earning/Deduction; this opens in a new tab. 
4. Once you’ve reviewed all entries, click Mark complete.
   ⚠️ | Important: Marking this check complete doesn’t add or change any earnings or deductions. It’s a manual check for your team to confirm entries have been reviewed, so make sure any needed entries are added before running payroll.

Tracking Your Progress and Running Payroll

As you complete each check, the dashboard tracks your progress so you can see what’s left before payroll is ready to run.

• The progress bar and the _ of 3 done counter update each time you mark a check complete.
• To revisit a check, click Mark incomplete to switch it back.
• Once all three checks are complete, the final step, Run this payroll, confirms you’re ready to run payroll.

⚠️ | Important: All three checks must be marked complete before you can run payroll. Marking a check complete doesn’t resolve flagged issues or override PUSH’s standard payroll checks. Any issues that normally prevent payroll from being processed will still appear when you click Run Payroll.

1. Confirm all three checks are marked complete.
2. Under Run this payroll, click Run Payroll.
   1. If any checks aren’t marked as complete yet, a pop-up will appear reminding you to finish the checklist first. Return to the checklist, complete the remaining checks, and click Run Payroll again.
   2. If a pop-up titled Pay Date Adjustment appears, your processing deadline has passed, and the pop-up will show the next available pay date. Click Yes to accept the new pay date and continue.
   3. If another pop-up appears, such as for unapproved clocks or required balances, resolve the issue before continuing. 
3. The page will refresh to show your pay run status. Under Completion Status, click View/Approve Pay Run.
4. Review and approve your pay run as usual. For what to check and the remaining steps, refer to A Guide to Running Payroll.

Frequently Asked Questions About the Payroll Readiness Dashboard

Have questions about using the Payroll Readiness Dashboard? Whether you’re wondering why you don’t see it, what the warnings mean, or how the checks affect your payroll, this section provides quick answers to help you prepare for payroll with confidence.

Q: Why don’t I see the Payroll Readiness Dashboard?
A: The dashboard is being introduced gradually as part of a phased rollout, so it may not be available on your account yet. In the meantime, you can continue following the steps in A Guide to Running Payroll.

Q: Will warnings on the dashboard stop me from running payroll?
A: No. You can mark a check as complete and run payroll even if the dashboard still shows warnings. However, PUSH’s standard payroll checks still apply when you click Run Payroll, so some issues, such as unapproved clocks, will still need to be resolved before payroll can be processed. We recommend resolving warnings before you run payroll so your employees are paid correctly.

Q: Does marking a check complete fix the issues it flagged?
A: No. Marking a check complete is a manual confirmation that you’ve reviewed it. It doesn’t approve clocks, update employee information, or change anything in your account. Any flagged items need to be updated where they’re set up.

Q: Why can’t I run payroll from the dashboard?
A: All three readiness checks need to be marked complete before payroll can be run. If you click Run Payroll before then, a pop-up will prompt you to complete the checklist first. For more details, refer to the Tracking Your Progress and Running Payroll section of this article.

Q: Will the dashboard update after I make changes?
A: Yes. The dashboard reflects the current information in your account. For example, if you approve unapproved clocks or update an employee’s SIN, return to the Run Payroll page, and the dashboard will show the updated status.

Q: What does the Overdue badge mean?
A: The Overdue badge means the Submission Deadline for this pay period has passed. You can still process payroll, but your payday may need to be moved. For more details, refer to our article, Understanding Payroll Processing Deadlines.

Q: Will I still see other payroll notifications?
A: Yes. The dashboard doesn’t replace any existing payroll notifications. For example, you’ll still see the Pay Date Adjustment pop-up if the deadline has passed, and alerts if your payroll exceeds your PAD limit.

Q: What if I can’t resolve a setup issue on my own?
A: Some setup items may need help from our team. Reach out to your assigned Onboarding Team member, or contact our Support Team for help.

Additional Information

Need further help? Refer to our Getting Help & Contacting Support article for the latest support options and ways to connect with our team.