🔐 To process Timesheets for multiple Workers, you'll need either Admin or Circus Admin access. Learn more about Managing Permissions. 🖥️ This feature is accessible on only desktop devices.
Overview
Use this guide to learn how to effectively search for, process, approve, download and delete a Timesheet, whether you are an accountant tasked with coding or editing Timesheets, or an approver who is part of the Chain of Approval responsible for approving or facilitating the payout of a Timesheet.
Navigating Timesheets
If you are part of the Chain of Review and need to approve a Timesheet, you will receive an email notification. Click on the 'Review' button in the email, which will direct you to log in to Circus and review the Timesheet.
If you are already logged into Circus, to access a Timesheet, start by clicking on the relevant production from your main dashboard. Then, on the production dashboard, click on Submissions icon in the left navigation bar, then on Timesheets to access the Timesheets overview page.
Any Timesheet can be opened by clicking on the 'Open' button or the entire row in the table.
Sorting Timesheets
By default, Timesheets will be sorted by most recent Week Ending Date. You'll also be able to sort Timesheets by phase:
All - Timesheets in every state as described below
My Approvals (default view) - Timesheets that require your review.
In Review - Timesheets that require either yours or someone else's review
Approved - Timesheets that have either been fully approved
Paid - Timesheets paid via a payroll run
Deleted - Timesheets that have been submitted by Workers but deleted by someone with elevated access
Timesheets in Payroll Runs – An additional column displays the name of the payroll run to which the timesheet has been assigned. Click the payroll run name to open it and view other associated timesheets.
Searching Timesheets
To find specific Timesheets, use the search bar in the top-right corner of the table. Simply enter a worker's name or role to filter the results.
Filtering Timesheets
Refine your Timesheet search further by applying filters. Click the filters icon next to the search bar to open the filters panel.
Then, click 'Add Filter' and select from the following options:
Department – Filter by one or more departments using the multi-select dropdown.
Roles – Narrow results by selecting one or more roles.
Tags – Search by one or more active tags.
Week Ending – Choose a specific week-ending date using the calendar picker.
To remove a filter, hover over the input and click the delete icon. To clear all filters at once, click 'Reset' on the far right of the filter bar.
Editing Timesheets
After clicking on a Timesheet, you will see a chronological history of all Timesheets submitted by each Worker, organized by their creation dates in the left-side navigation.
Workers do have the ability to submit a Timesheet under multiple roles if they've onboarded with multiple different Start Packs. This cannot be edited by you, however everything else can be adjusted on a Timesheet to ensure payroll is processed correctly and swiftly.
If the Week Ending Date is incorrect, click on the date and use the calendar picker to choose the correct work week.
Weekly vs. Bi-Weekly Format Timesheets: While approving, processing, or downloading a PDF of a Timesheet, you may notice that the formatting either spans over a 7 day work week (weekly) or 14 day work week (bi-weekly). This is set by the production in the settings. Learn more
Labor
Accountants or Approvers have the ability to edit everything in the labor section. If there's a day where Workers have worked but haven't input any times, you can activate it by selecting from the dropdown under the 'Period' column—options include 'Prep', 'Shoot', 'Wrap', or 'Travel'. This enables you to enter the relevant times for that day. Conversely, if a day needs to be disabled, simply choose 'No Call'.
🖥️ Note: depending on your screen's resolution, you may need to scroll left or right to see the entire table.
The time inputs utilize a 24-hour clock format and automatically rounds up all times to 6-minute increments. Therefore, you'll enter times in the following format:
9:00 AM = 0900
9:06 PM = 2106
If the Worker's shift spans past midnight, you will enter the time in the following manner:
Call Time: 6:00 PM = 1800
Wrap Time: 3:00 AM = 2500
Maximum Hours: 4700, or 11:00pm the following day is the maximum amount of hours that can be set on a timesheet.
Circus automatically calculates the Total Work Hours. By default, it includes meal times in this calculation. However, if you prefer to have meal times added to the Total Work Hours instead, simply click on the settings icon located at the top right of the table. Then, toggle off the 'Subtract Meal Times' option. The Timesheet will promptly re-calculate accordingly.
Circus will automatically calculate the Pay Hours but if you're looking for Overtime, Meal Penalties or Turnaround Penalties to be calculated based on union rules, click on the Calculate Overtime icon in the top right of the table.
Overtime
The overtime settings can be adjusted in the production settings. Please reach out to your Circus Account Manager to assist with any changes.
Kits & Allowances
Below the labor summary, you'll discover the Kits & Allowances section, offering the flexibility to include various Kit or Allowance Types (e.g., Cell Phone), along with specifying Units (e.g., 5), Frequency (e.g., Days), and Rate ($4.00/day). Once you've inputted all the necessary fields, the total will automatically calculate on the right-hand side.
To incorporate additional Kits or Allowances, simply click 'Add' at the bottom of the table.
Automated Kits from Deal Points: Timesheets by default will display all kits and allowances negotiated on the Start Pack. If it's not applicable to this week or was added erroneously, click on the 'Delete' icon positioned to the left of the table.
Uploading Receipts
If the worker has a few expenses such as a meal or parking fees and are not required to submit an Expense Report, you may see the receipt/s added for reimbursement so it can be processed in a payroll run.
To add a new receipt that may have been forgotten simply click on the 'Upload Receipt' button, then follow the prompts to:
Upload a photo of the receipt
A description of the expense (ie. Parking for the cast van)
Choose the category the expense belongs to (ie. Parking receipt should fall under Parking & Tolls)
Receipt total (note: Should be gross total of the receipt, not net)
GST / HST total. If there was no GST/HST charged on the receipt or is a USD expense, this can be left at $0.
Once complete, click 'Add Expense' and the table will update with the new expense. Or if you want to cancel, click on the 'x' icon in the top right or 'Never Mind' button on the bottom left of the modal.
The expense will appear in the table where it can be further edited. The Net Total will automatically calculate based on the calculation of Receipt Total - GST/HST Total = Net Total.
Automated GST/HST Account Code Allocation: GST/HST amounts on invoices or timesheets can be automatically coded for cost reporting. Visit the rules section under Accounting to customize this feature. Learn more about Managing Rules
To download an uploaded receipt, click on the more icon next to each expense and choose either to Download Receipt or Delete Expense.
Coding Timesheets
Each line item on a Timesheet can be categorized using multiple Group Codes and an Account Code, based on the Chart of Accounts uploaded or the Group Codes set up in Accounting.
Coding Start Packs to expedite Timesheets: Once set up, account and Custom Group Codes can be set for each worker on the corresponding Start Pack. Those codes will automatically apply to labor, kit, per diem, etc line items on each Timesheet. Learn more
On the timesheet, next to each active day, you can select the appropriate account code for the total amount of each line item by clicking on the dropdown menu, then choosing the appropriate Account Code.
Group Codes can also be chosen here. For instance, if the expense is related to labor for season 3, episode 3, you might choose '303' under the 'EPS' column. Alternatively, if you are allocating tax credits for this labor to a specific region like Ontario, select 'ONL' under the 'TAX' column. Note that any group codes can be designed to reflect your workflows.
Account and Group Codes can also be selected for Kits & Allowances, as well as any Expenses submitted below.
Any changes made to account codes and group codes will be saved automatically.
GST/HST automatically coded: As per your settings in the globals
Referencing Deal Points and Upgrading
To view the worker's start pack deal points while reviewing the Timesheet, click the Start Pack icon located in the top-right corner of the toolbar.
Here you'll be able to make add Upgrade Rates which can then be chosen on the Timesheet directly in the circumstance where a worker has performed a new role for the day.
Pay Hours can also be adjusted to re-calculate the overtime structure. In addition you may find the existing Overtime formula which can be adjusted.
Approving Timesheets
If you need to approve a Timesheet, simply click 'Approve' on the action bar at the bottom of your screen. The action bar will convert to an 'Approved' status and status of the Timesheet will be updated in the Timesheets overview page.
Blocked Approvals: Timesheets are blocked from being approved if their corresponding Start Pack has not yet been approved.
The platform will then automatically load the next Timesheet awaiting your approval. If there are no more Timesheets needing your attention, you will be redirected to the Timesheets Overview page.
Pro Tip: If payroll is enabled on the production, the fully approved Timesheet will automatically be included in draft payroll runs.
Commenting & Audit Logs
On the right side of your screen, the toolbar features Walkie, where you can access a comprehensive audit log or history of all events related to a Timesheet, including submission, edits, coding, and approval. This log includes timestamps for each action initiated by a user and is accessible to the Worker.
Additionally, approvers and accountants have the ability to add internal notes regarding the Timesheet, which are not visible to workers, facilitating private discussions about its status or required actions. To do this, enter your note and click on the plus ('+') icon.
To delete a note, simply click on the Delete icon.
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