How to Assign Employee Salaries and Increments in CrmLeaf
All editions, and step eight of the Payroll & HR edition onboarding checklist. Requires the Payroll add-on module to be enabled for your account by an Administrator.
Availability: All editions, and step eight of the Payroll & HR edition onboarding checklist. Requires the Payroll add-on module to be enabled for your account by an Administrator.
Overview
Employee Salary is where an individual employee's pay structure is recorded. Until an employee has a salary record, payroll cannot generate a payslip for them. This screen is also where increments are recorded, so that a pay revision applies from the correct point without losing the earlier history.
How It Works
Salary assignment sits between configuration and execution in the payroll flow. You configure components and groups first, assign them to employees here, and then run payroll for a cycle and department.
Configure components → Assign salary → Record increment → Run payroll → Payslip
- A salary group can be applied to an employee so the structure does not have to be built record by record.
- Increments are recorded against the employee's salary so revised pay is used from the applicable period.
- Salary data can also be brought in in bulk using salary import.
- Performance data can inform increment processing, and offer letter data from recruitment can pre-fill an employee's salary structure.
Who Can Use This Feature?
Administrator
- Assign a salary structure or salary group to an employee.
- Record increments and revised salary values.
- Enter values for variable components where they apply.
- Review salary coverage across the workforce before a payroll run.
This functionality is available only to Administrators. Employees see their own pay information through their payslips.
Prerequisites
- The Payroll add-on module enabled for your account and your role.
- Employee records created, with department and designation set.
- Salary components and at least one salary group created.
- Bank details recorded on the employee record if you pay by bank transfer.
- Approved salary figures for each employee.
For Administrators
Step 1: Open the employee salary screen
What to do: Use Search or Filter to find the employee whose salary you are assigning.
What to verify: You have the correct employee, especially where names are similar.
Step 2: Assign the salary structure
What to do: Apply the appropriate salary group to the employee, or build the structure from individual components where the employee's pay does not fit a group. Enter the amounts, complete every mandatory field, then select Save.
What to verify: Gross pay, deductions and net pay on the record match the approved figure for that employee.
Step 3: Record an increment
What to do: Where an employee's pay has been revised, record the increment on the salary record so the new value applies from the correct period rather than overwriting history silently.
What to verify: The revised value appears on the next payroll run and the earlier value remains visible in payroll history.
Step 4: Enter variable component values
What to do: For components marked as variable, enter the value that applies to this payroll period.
What to verify: Variable amounts are entered before payslips are generated, not after.
Step 5: Check salary coverage before the run
What to do: Review the employee salary list for the department you are about to process and confirm no active employee is missing a salary record.
What to verify: Every employee to be paid in the cycle has an active salary record.
Expected Result
The employee has an active salary record in Employee Salary, any increment is recorded, and the employee is included when payroll is generated for their department and cycle.
Service Organisation Context
In a consulting or IT services firm an increment usually follows a grade change, and a grade change usually changes how the person is staffed. Recording the increment here keeps the pay history intact, while the staffing picture is managed separately in Projects and the Resource Utilization views. Where the Recruitment module is in use, offer letter data pre-fills the salary structure of a newly converted employee, which is the practical join between hiring a consultant and paying them. Salary values do not become project cost automatically, because CrmLeaf does not carry a project costing rate per hour.
Important Notes
- Menu names and their position can differ between product editions and can be customised for your account, so your sidebar may not match these paths exactly. Use Search or your Quick Access items if you cannot find a screen.
- Payroll is a paid add-on module. Confirm it is included in your plan.
- Salary data is sensitive. Review which roles hold payroll permissions, since CrmLeaf permissions control which records a role can see, not only which pages it can open.
- Statutory deductions calculated from salary depend on rates and thresholds set by the relevant government authorities, which change over time. Confirm them with a qualified compliance advisor before a live payroll run.
- Assign or revise salary between cycles wherever possible, so a payroll period is not processed against changing data.
Common Scenarios
Example: annual increment cycle. Following an appraisal round, an Administrator records increments for a department, then runs payroll for the next cycle. Payslips reflect the revised salary while previous payslips remain unchanged.
Example: a new joiner mid-period. The employee record is created, a salary group is assigned, and payroll for the period is generated for their department. Attendance data for the partial period determines the paid amount.
Troubleshooting
| Issue | Possible Cause | Resolution |
|---|---|---|
| An employee is missing from the payroll run | No active salary record exists for that employee | Assign a salary structure, then generate payroll again for the cycle. |
| A salary group cannot be selected | No salary group has been created, or the group was deleted | Create the salary group in Salary Components first. |
| The increment is not reflected on the payslip | The increment was recorded after payslips were generated | Record the increment, then generate the payslips for the period again. |
| The employee salary screen cannot be opened | The Payroll module or the required role access is missing | Ask your Administrator to enable the module for your role. |
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I assign salaries to many employees at once?
Yes. Use salary import to bring salary data in in bulk, or apply the same salary group to employees as you set them up.
Can an employee see their own salary structure?
Employees access their pay information through their payslips in self-service and in the mobile app. Structure configuration remains with Administrators.
Does an increment overwrite the old salary?
Increments are recorded against the salary record so revised pay applies going forward. Payslips already generated for earlier periods keep their original values.
Where does offer letter data fit in?
Where the recruitment module is in use, offer letter data can pre-fill the employee salary structure when a hired candidate is converted into an employee.
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