Purpose
The purpose of this bulletin is to provide instructions for processing payments related to ERAP activities and to inform agencies of new Time Entry Earnings Codes to be used for reporting and tracking these payments.
Affected Employees
Employees who perform activities outside their normal work duties related to the ERAP eligibility determination are affected.
Background
Per NYS Division of the Budget (DOB), agencies must track expenditures for work related to COVID-19, including ERAP activities. To facilitate tracking in the NYS Payroll System (PayServ), new Earnings Codes have been created. The tracking of these expenditures in PayServ is separate from tracking employee time and attendance through systems such as the Leave and Accrual Tracking System (LATS-NY).
Payment for Emergency Rental Assistance Program (ERAP) Activities
The salary grade levels to be used when calculating payments are based on the assignment of employees to roles designated by the Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance (OTDA), and agreed to by employees prior to commencement of work, as specified in the following table:
Emergency Rental Assistance Program (ERAP) Roles
| Designated Role | Pay Grade for Payment | Union Designation |
|---|---|---|
| ERAP Program Eligibility Staff | 14 | PEF |
| ERAP Program Eligibility Review Coaches | 23 | PEF |
| ERAP Team Leaders | 27 | PEF |
Determining Rate of Overtime Pay
Note: The average/blended rate calculation must not be used.
Employees Whose Regular Position is Overtime Eligible:
- The following overtime rates are based on an advance agreement with the employee, consistent with Budget Bulletin G-1024, Section IX:
- When the overtime is worked in a role allocated to a salary grade lower than the employee’s regular position, the employee will be compensated for work in excess of 40 hours at one and one-half times the regular hourly rate of pay of the maximum salary of the assigned lower-graded role plus additional compensation (such as longevity lump sum payments, inconvenience pay, and location pay) the employee is currently receiving in their regular position, but in no event in excess of one and one-half times the regular hourly rate of pay of the employee’s regular position.
- When the overtime is worked in a role which is allocated to a higher salary grade than the grade of the employee’s regular position, the employee will be compensated for work in excess of 40 hours at one and one-half times the regular hourly rate of compensation the employee would be entitled to if permanently promoted to the higher graded role.
- When the overtime is worked in a role allocated or equivalent to the employee’s regular position, overtime shall be compensated for work in excess of 40 hours at one and one-half times the regular hourly rate of pay of the assigned role. This hourly rate of pay cannot be less than the employee’s current hourly rate of pay and must be at least the hiring rate of the out-of-title position.
Note: The overtime factor used in the calculation of overtime earnings is based on the employee’s primary bargaining unit’s negotiated overtime denominator.
Employees Whose Regular Position is Overtime Ineligible:
- Employees whose regular position is overtime ineligible shall receive overtime compensation using the methodology outlined above for employees in overtime eligible positions.
- The overtime rate is based on the salary grade of the assigned role and not the salary grade of the employee’s regular position.
- Overtime shall only be paid for hours worked in excess of 47.5 hours per week (not including use of leave accruals).
- Overtime waivers are not required for employees whose regular position is overtime ineligible (pertains to all overtime ineligible positions) and who are performing ERAP eligibility determination activities.
Determining Rate of Regular/Non-Overtime Pay:
If the assigned role is allocated to a pay grade above that of the employee’s regular position, the employee will be paid the straight rate of pay the employee would be entitled to if permanently promoted to the higher graded role. All other employees will receive their regular rate of pay for regular/non-overtime hours.
Effective Dates
Tracking work related to ERAP activities went into effect on 07/28/2021.
Eligibility Criteria
Employees who perform work related to ERAP activities on or after 07/28/2021 are eligible.
OSC Actions
The following Time Entry Earnings Codes have been created or revised to process payments associated with ERAP activities. In addition, if these activities are performed during an employee’s regular workday, the employee’s regular hours must be reduced by those hours worked on the ERAP activities using the appropriate reduction earnings code.
| Earn Code | Description | Purpose |
| CHR (Revised) (Retro Code RHR) | Regular Earnings Reduction ANN | Used to reduce an employee’s regular hours by the number of hours worked on a special project that must be tracked, such as the ERAP. (Comp Rate Code = ANN) |
| CLO (Revised) (Retro Code N/A) | Reg Earnings Reduct Override | Used to reduce an employee’s regular hours by the number of hours worked on a special project that must be tracked, such as the ERAP. (Comp Rate Code ≠ ANN or HRY) |
| ERA (New) (Retro Code = RRA) | ERAP ST Annual | If the assigned role is allocated to a pay grade equal to or less than that of the employee’s regular position, the employee will receive their regular rate of pay for regular/non-overtime hours. (Comp Rate Code = ANN) |
| ERH (New) (Retro Code = RHE) | ERAP ST HRLY | If the assigned role is allocated to a pay grade equal to or less than that of the employee’s regular position, the employee will receive their regular rate of pay for regular/non-overtime hours. (Comp Rate Code = HRY) |
| ERS (New) (Retro Code N/A) | ERAP ST Promo Calc Override | If the assigned role is allocated to a pay grade above that of the employee’s regular position, the employee will be paid the straight rate of pay the employee would be entitled to if permanently promoted to the higher graded role. |
| EHO (New) (Retro Code N/A) | ERAP ST Override | If the assigned role is allocated to a pay grade equal to or less than that of the employee’s regular position, the employee will receive their regular rate of pay for regular/non-overtime hours. (Comp Rate Code ≠ ANN or HRY) |
The following Time Entry Earnings Codes have been created to pay overtime related to ERAP activities:
| Earn Code | Description | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| ERO (Retro Code N/A) | ERAP OT Override | The overtime rate for employees working in an ERAP role will be calculated as out-of-title overtime based on the methodologies described above. (see Determining Rate of Overtime Pay) The grade level used in the calculation will be determined based on the role that is being performed. (see Emergency Rental Assistance Program Roles) |
Agency Actions
Agencies must use one of the above-referenced Earnings Codes to report hours worked as part of the ERAP.
Processing Instructions for Employees Working on the Emergency Rental Assistance Program During Their Regular Workday
The following instructions must be used when an employee performs work on the ERAP during their regular workday:
- Employees whose Compensation Rate Code equals ANN must have their regular hours reduced by the number of hours worked on the ERAP using Earnings Code CHR and those same hours reported using Earnings Code ERA.
- Employees whose Compensation Rate Code equal HRY and whose Employee Type equal Hourly must have only those hours worked in their regular position reported using Earnings Code RGH and those hours worked on the ERAP reported as Earnings Code ERH. A transaction using a reduction earnings code is not necessary.
- Employees whose Compensation Rate Code equal HRY and whose Employee Type equal Exception Hourly must have only those hours worked in their regular position reported using Earnings Code RGH with the exact Earnings Begin Date and Earnings End Date of the pay period being processed. Those hours worked on the ERAP must be reported using Earnings Code ERH. A transaction using a reduction earnings code is not necessary.
- Employees whose Compensation Rate Code equal HRY, whose Employee Type equal Exception Hourly or Hourly, and who received RGH earnings in a prior pay period for work performed on the ERAP must have those hours reduced using Earnings Code RGH. Those same hours must be reported using Earnings Code ERH.
- Employees whose Compensation Rate Code is not ANN or HRY must have their regular hours reduced by the parts of day worked on the ERAP using Earnings Code CLO and those same parts of a day worked on the ERAP reported using Earnings Code EHO.
Reporting a Reduction in an Employee’s Regular Hours Due to Work Performed on the Emergency Rental Assistance Program during the Employee’s Regular Workday
If an employee performs work on the ERAP during their regular workday, the employee’s regular hours must be reduced by those hours worked on the ERAP as outlined above. Agencies must submit this reduction on the Time Entry page or Time Entry Interface (NPAY502) using the appropriate Earnings Code:
| Earnings Begin Date: | First date included in the reduction of regular hours worked |
|---|---|
| Earnings End Date: | Last date included in the reduction of regular hours worked |
| Earn Code: | Enter appropriate code – RGH, CHR, or CLO |
| Hours/Units (Earnings Code RGH ONLY): | Enter as a negative value the number of hours/units worked on the ERAP during the employee’s regular workday that were previously processed using Earnings Code RGH; the system will automatically calculate the earnings based on the employee’s hourly rate. (Comp Rate Code = HRY) |
| Days (Earnings Code CHR ONLY): | Enter as a negative value the parts of a day associated with the number of hours worked on the ERAP during the employee’s regular workday; the system will automatically calculate the appropriate earnings. (Comp Rate Code = ANN) |
| Days and Amount (Earnings Code CLO ONLY): | Enter as negative values the parts of a day associated with the number of hours worked on the ERAP during the employee’s regular workday and the calculated dollar value. (Comp Rate Code ≠ ANN or HRY) |
Reporting Regular/Non-Overtime Hours Worked on the Emergency Rental Assistance Program
To report regular/non-overtime hours worked on the ERAP, agencies must submit the following information on the Time Entry page or Time Entry Interface (NPAY502) using the appropriate Earnings Code:
| Earnings Begin Date: | First date work is performed on the ERAP |
|---|---|
| Earnings End Date: | Last date work is performed on the ERAP |
| Earn Code: | Enter appropriate code – ERA, ERH, ERS, or EHO |
| Days (Earnings Code ERA ONLY): | Enter the parts of a day associated with the number of hours worked; the system will automatically calculate the appropriate earnings. |
| Hours/Units (Earnings Code ERH ONLY): | Enter the number of hours/units worked; the system will automatically calculate the earnings based on the employee’s hourly rate. |
| Days and Amount (Earnings Code ERS ONLY): | Enter the parts of a day associated with the number of hours worked on the ERAP during the employee’s regular workday and the calculated dollar value. |
| Days and Amount (Earnings Code EHO ONLY): | Enter the parts of a day associated with the number of hours worked on the ERAP during the employee’s regular workday and the calculated dollar value. (Comp Rate Code ≠ ANN or HRY) |
Reporting Overtime Related to Emergency Rental Assistance Program Activities
To report overtime related to ERAP activities, agencies must submit the following information on the Time Entry page or Time Entry Interface (NPAY502) using the appropriate Earnings Code:
| Earnings Begin Date: | First date included in the overtime |
|---|---|
| Earnings End Date: | Last date included in the overtime |
| Earn Code: | Enter Earnings Code ERO |
| Hours and Amount (Earnings Code ERO ONLY): | Enter the number of hours worked and the calculated earnings. |
In addition, agencies must enter a General Comment with the following information when paying overtime related to ERAP activities using Earnings Code ERO:
- If the employee’s regular position is NS, indicate whether the position includes an equated grade.
- The out-of-title role as provided in the Emergency Rental Assistance Program Roles chart.
- The methodology used to determine the hourly overtime rate (promotion, demotion, lateral).
- Indicate the overtime is related to the ERAP.
Employees Who Perform Work Related to the Emergency Rental Assistance Program in an Agency Other Than Their Agency on Record in PayServ
Employees performing work in an agency different from their regular job shall be paid for that time by the agency in which the employee’s regular job resides. The agency where the work is performed must provide the employee’s regular agency with the necessary information in order for the regular agency to process payment.
Employees with Multiple Active Records in PayServ
Employees who have multiple active records in PayServ (i.e. dual employment or extra service) and perform work related to the ERAP in one of those agencies shall be paid for that time by that agency.
Processing an Adjustment
If it is determined in a subsequent pay period that an adjustment to an overtime payment is needed and it cannot be automatically adjusted by the PayServ system, refer to Payroll Bulletin No. 1893 for guidance on entering these overtime adjustments. Non-overtime payments that cannot be automatically adjusted by the PayServ system should continue to be adjusted using Earnings Code ADJ or AJR, as appropriate.
Tax Information
These monies are taxable income, will be included in the employee’s taxable gross and are subject to all employment and income taxes.
The adjustments (AJR, ARC, ARO, and Retro (RXX)) are supplemental taxable income and will be included in the employee’s taxable gross subject to all employment and income taxes.
Federal, State, and New York City income tax withholding will be calculated using the Aggregate method. Yonkers income tax withholding will be calculated using the Flat Rate method (2.30815% for Yonkers residents and 0.50% for Yonkers non-residents).
Payroll Register and Employee’s Paycheck/Advice
The Earnings Code and the amount paid will be displayed on the payroll register. The earnings description and the amount paid will be displayed on the employee’s paycheck or advice.
Questions
Questions regarding this bulletin may be directed to the Payroll Earnings mailbox.