Contents of this article are applicable to the following users
Tier: NA
Product: PayrollAny
Platform: Web
Access Level: Owner
Pay Item Groups let you bundle multiple pay items together and assign them to employees as a single unit. Instead of adding pay items one by one to each employee's compensation, you can group related pay items such as all standard allowances or deductions for a staff category and assign the group once.
Who can access this: Users with Owner access level on PayrollAny (Web).
This guide will cover how to:
Default Pay Item Group
Pay Item Group's default Pay Items and default staff assignment are as below table:
Pay Item Group | Applicable to | Pay Item(s) Included |
All Hourly | All staff with Wage Type = Hourly |
|
All Salaried | All staff with Wage Type = Salaried |
|
All Staff | All staff | — |
Create a Pay Item Group
To create a pay item group:
Go to Payroll > Pay Item Group.
Click Create Pay Item Group.
Enter a Pay Item Group Name (required).
Optionally, enter a Description.
Under Automatically Tagged, select an option if you want the group auto-assigned to a staff category (All Staff, All Salaried, or All Hourly), or leave unset for manual assignment.
Select the pay items to include in the group.
Click Create.
If any of the selected pay items are already assigned to staff as Additional Pay Items in My Team, a blocking warning modal will appear before the group is created:
The modal shows the number of affected staff and the list of conflicting pay items.
You must download the Excel file of affected staff from this modal before you can proceed. The file contains each affected staff member's Employee ID, First Name, Last Name, Legal Name, Phone Number, and their current Additional Pay Item assignment details (pay item name, amount/rate, start/end period) so you can review and re-tag them after the group is created.
After downloading, confirm in the modal to continue.
Note: If you change your pay item selection after downloading the file, the download is invalidated and you must download a fresh file before proceeding.
The Pay Item Group is created. Any conflicting pay items are archived (renamed with an [Archived] prefix) and removed from the affected staff's individual Additional Pay Item assignments. The group is created using safe copies of those pay items, ensuring the same payment is not applied both as an Additional Pay Item and through the Pay Item Group.
Note: The Automatically Tagged option can only be set when creating a group. It cannot be changed after the group is saved.
Edit a Pay Item Group
To edit a pay item group:
Go to Payroll > Pay Item Group.
Find the group you want to edit on the Active tab.
Click Edit in the Actions column.
Update the Pay Item Group Name, Description, or pay items as needed.
Click Save.
If any of the selected pay items are already assigned to staff as Additional Pay Items in My Team, a blocking warning modal will appear that is the same as the one mentioned before.
If the group is assigned to active or future staff compensations, a second confirmation modal will appear. Choose one:
Update Compensations — applies changes immediately to all existing active and future compensations.
Future Assignment Only — applies changes only to future compensation assignments.
The Pay Item Group is updated with your changes.
Note: The Automatically Tagged field cannot be changed after a group is created.
Archive a Pay Item Group
Archiving a pay item group removes it from the Active tab but preserves the record. Archived groups are not available for new assignments.
To archive a pay item group:
Go to Payroll > Pay Item Group.
Find the group on the Active tab.
Click Archive in the Actions column.
To restore an archived pay item group:
Go to Payroll > Pay Item Group > Click the Archived tab.
Click Unarchive in the Actions column. The group will return to the Active tab and become available for new assignments.
Note: Pay item groups with an Automatically Tagged type (All Staff, All Salaried, or All Hourly) cannot be archived.
View Pay Items Included in a Group
To see which pay items are in a group:
Go to Payroll > Pay Item Group > Click the number in the Pay Items Included column.
A modal will open listing all active pay items in the group, including their category, amount type, and amount.
Assign a Pay Item Group to a Staff Member
After creating a Pay Item Group, you can assign it to individual staff members from their profile in My Team.
For step-by-step instructions, see Employee Profile Setup for Payroll — Assign Pay Item Groups to a Staff Member.
FAQ
Q: Who can access Pay Item Groups?
A: Pay Item Groups are accessible to users with Owner access level on PayrollAny (Web).
Q: Can I change the Automatically Tagged setting after creating a group?
A: No. The Automatically Tagged field is set at creation and cannot be modified afterwards. To use a different auto-tag type, create a new group.
Q: Why is the Archive button disabled for some groups?
A: Groups with an Automatically Tagged type (All Staff, All Salaried, or All Hourly) cannot be archived. These default groups are required for automatic staff compensation assignment.
Q: What happens to existing staff compensations when I edit a pay item group?
A: When you save changes to a group that is assigned to active or future compensations, you will be asked whether to update existing compensations immediately or apply the change only to future assignments. This prompt appears after the affected-staff conflict check (if applicable) is resolved.
Q: What is the difference between Automatically Tagged and manually assigned groups?
A: Automatically Tagged groups are assigned to all employees in a staff category (All Staff, All Salaried, or All Hourly) without any manual steps. Groups without an auto-tag type must be manually assigned to individual employees' compensations.
Q: What happens if a pay item I select is already assigned to staff as an Additional Pay Item?
A: If any of the pay items you select are currently assigned to staff as individual Additional Pay Items in My Team, the system will detect this before saving and show a blocking warning modal. The modal displays the number of affected staff and the conflicting pay items.
You must download the affected staff Excel file from the modal before you can proceed. The file lists each affected staff member's Employee ID, First Name, Last Name, Legal Name, Phone Number, and their current pay item assignment details (pay item name, amount/rate, start/end period), so you can review and re-tag them to the correct Pay Item Group after creation or update.
After downloading and confirming, the system will: archive the original conflicting pay items (renamed with an [Archived] prefix), remove those pay items from the affected staff's individual Additional Pay Item assignments, and create or update the Pay Item Group using safe copies. This ensures the same payment is not applied both as an Additional Pay Item and through the Pay Item Group.
Important: If you change your pay item selection after downloading the file, the download is invalidated and you must download a fresh file before proceeding.