Importing New Employees

Owned by Paul Sawyer (Unlicensed)
Last updated: Jul 01, 2016 by Robin Rodrigue
4 min read

 

Importing Employees
Import Employees

Timekeeper has the capability of importing employees through a batch process typically run during setup.

Contact your IT department for assistance in preparing the file.

 

Before the Import

Before you import any employees, you need to place the required data in XML format.  You may use the template provided to create your own employee files.

Each employee record found in the file will be created in the Time Keeper database. 

 

If an employee record already exists, it will be updated with the information provided in the import file.  Make sure that you are not overwriting data or information on the employee that you wish to keep.


A sample file is shown below followed by specific details about each field. All XML tags – the red text enclosed in brackets – are required unless specifically noted as optional. The fields must appear in the specified order.

SAMPLE CODE

 

<EmployeeUpdate>
  <Employee>
     <EmployeeNumber>123</EmployeeNumber>
     <FirstName>Bob</FirstName>
     <Middle>E</Middle>
     <LastName>Smith</LastName>
     <Suffix>Jr</Suffix>
     <PrimaryJobCode>449A</PrimaryJobCode>
     <ExtraJobCodes>
         <JobCode>449B</JobCode>
         <JobCode>449C</JobCode>
     </ExtraJobCodes>
     <PhoneNumber>555-555-5555</PhoneNumber>
     <SSN>123456789</SSN>
     <PayrollCode>1111111</PayrollCode>
     <CostCenterCode>2222222</CostCenterCode>
  </Employee>
  <Employee>
     <EmployeeNumber>456</EmployeeNumber>
     <FullName>Doe, John F Jr.</FullName>
     <Inactive />
     <PrimaryJobCode>668</PrimaryJobCode>
  </Employee>
</EmployeeUpdate>

Employee Update

This XML tag should start and end the whole import file. 

Employee

 There should be one Employee tag for each employee to be imported. It should surround all of that employee's data. All employee records should be between <EmployeeUpdate></EmployeeUpdate> tags.

EmployeeNumber - 32 alphanumeric characters max.

This is the primary identifier for employees. Duplicate employee numbers are not allowed and will cause the program to overwrite one file with another, leading to the loss of employee data. 

If an employee number in the import file matches an employee number already in the Timekeeper database, the employee record in Timekeeper will be updated with the information in the import file.

Inactive - XML Emplty Tag (Optional)

This tag contains no data. If this tag is present, the employee will be marked as inactive in the Timekeeper database. If the employee currently exists in the Timekeeper database, the record will be updated and activated/inactivated based on the existence of the Inactive tag.

FullName

A FullName tag may be used in place of the individual name tags and vice versa. Each part of the name is limited to the size listed below. The FullName may be listed as “Last, First Middle Suffix” or “First Middle Last Suffix” with only the first and last names being required.  However, each time the employee's name is used, the complete name, including suffix, will be displayed.

FirstName - 64 alphanumeric characters max.

Middle - 1 alphanumeric character max. (Optional)

LastName - 64 alphanumeric characters max.

Suffix - 3 alphanumeric characters max. (Optional)

PrimaryJobCode - 32 alphanumeric characters max.

This code must match an Export Code in the Timekeeper Job Code Maintenance screen. Job code descriptions are not allowed, just the number.

Job Codes must be keyed prior to employee import.

 Click here to expand...

The image below shows the codes in a red oval.

ExtraJobCodes (Optional)

This optional tag is used to assign additional job codes to an employee. All additional job codes must be listed within this tag using JobCode tags described below.  If the employee needs no extra job codes, you may leave these fields blank.

JobCode - 32 alphanumeric characters max. (Optional)

This optional tag is formatted exactly like that of the PrimaryJobCode tag. The code must match an Export Code in the Timekeeper Job Code Maintenance screen. If no match is found, the additional Job Code is not imported. Job code descriptions are not allowed. 

PhoneNumber - 32 alphanumeric characters max. (Optional)

This is an optional tag.  There are no formatting requirements on the phone number. It is stored and displayed as it is found in the import file. For example, (555)-555-5555 will appear as (555)-555-5555 and 5551234567 will appear as 5551234567. It is strongly suggested to pick one format for phone numbers.

SSN - 9 numeric characters max. (Optional)

This optional field will be visible only on the Timekeeper Employee Maintenance screen. It is not used within Timekeeper and exists strictly for the benefit of payroll systems that require it.  If your payroll system does not require it, leave the field blank.

PayrollCode - 64 alphanumeric characters max. (Optional)

This optional field is not used within Timekeeper, but exists as an alternative way to identify employees in 3rd party payroll systems.

CostCenterCode - 64 alphanumeric characters max. (Optional)

This optional field is not used within Timekeeper, but exists as an alternative way to associate an employee with a cost center in 3rd party payroll systems.

 

Below, you will find the XML code stripped of employee info.  Feel free to copy this snippet of code for your own imports.

 

<EmployeeUpdate>
  <Employee>
     <EmployeeNumber></EmployeeNumber>
     <FirstName></FirstName>
     <Middle></Middle>
     <LastName></LastName>
     <Suffix></Suffix>
     <PrimaryJobCode></PrimaryJobCode>
     <ExtraJobCodes>
         <JobCode></JobCode>
         <JobCode></JobCode>
     </ExtraJobCodes>
     <PhoneNumber></PhoneNumber>
     <SSN></SSN>
     <PayrollCode></PayrollCode>
     <CostCenterCode></CostCenterCode>
  </Employee>
  <Employee>
     <EmployeeNumber></EmployeeNumber>
     <FullName></FullName>
     <Inactive />
     <PrimaryJobCode></PrimaryJobCode>
  </Employee>
</EmployeeUpdate>

 

Importing Employee Data

Once you have correctly formatted the XML text, the actual import of employee data can begin.

  1. Click the Import Employees button under Utilities.

Once you click that button, the following screen will appear.


Simply type the location of the XML file to import and press OK. 

 

If you receive an error message during the import process, double check the location of the import file.  It is very easy to mistype such a long string of characters.

 

The program will import the data from your XML file.

That's it!  Your newly imported employees should be in your database.