Enter a budget rate to calculate what an approved position is budgeted to cost. You can give one position its own rate or let it use the rate shared by its job classification. A position’s own rate takes priority while it applies, and neither rate changes employee pay.

Before you begin

To do this You need
Review rates, applied adjustments, and calculated results View labor budgets for every included department
Add or maintain a position rate Manage labor budgets for the position’s department
Add or maintain a shared job classification rate Manage labor budgets for All departments
Create or change a pay adjustment rule The setup permissions listed in Pay adjustment rules

Choose the right base rate

Choose between two rate sources:

Rate source Use it when Priority
Job classification budget rate Positions with the same job classification share one budget rate Used when no active position rate applies
Position budget rate One position needs a documented exception Takes priority over the job classification rate

A position uses at most one base rate on a selected date. FTE Tree does not add the position rate and job classification rate together.

In Labor budget > Job classification rates, Base rate shows the starting amount before budget adjustments, and Rate type identifies it as Hourly or Annual. Select the job classification name to open its rate details for the selected budget date.

Example: shared rate with an exception

The Patient Services Coordinator job classification has a $70,000 annual rate. Position A has no position rate, so it uses $70,000. Position B has a $76,000 position rate for the same date, so it uses $76,000.

To return position B to the shared rate on October 1, choose Use job classification rate and enter October 1 as its Effective date. This records a new selection; the earlier exception remains in history.

Choose hourly or annual basis

An annual rate already describes a full-time year’s planned cost. For an hourly rate, multiply by the organization’s annual hours per FTE to find that yearly amount.

Annualized hourly rate = Hourly rate × Annual hours per FTE

The resulting full-time rate is then multiplied by the FTE used for the capacity or assigned calculation.

For a full-time hourly example, $30 per hour × 2,080 annual hours = $62,400 per year. A half-time position uses half that amount, or $31,200. See rounding examples when a rate needs more decimal places.

Example: annual basis

A full-time position has a $70,000 annual rate and 1.0 approved FTE.

$70,000 × 1.0 = $70,000 budget capacity before adjustments

Example: hourly basis

A position has a $32 hourly rate, and the organization uses 2,080 annual hours per FTE.

$32 × 2,080 = $66,560 full-time yearly rate

At 1.0 approved FTE:

$66,560 × 1.0 = $66,560 budget capacity before adjustments

If annual hours are not set for the selected date, the hourly rate cannot be calculated. Complete the annual-hours work item rather than replacing the hourly rate with a guessed annual amount.

Add a rate

  1. Open Labor budget > Positions for a position-specific rate, or Labor budget > Job classification rates for a shared rate.
  2. Open Actions and select Add position rate or Add job classification rate.
  3. Select the position or job classification. A job classification selected from a Needs budget setup row is already filled in.
  4. Enter the rate and choose Hourly or Annual.
  5. Enter Effective date, the first budget date the rate applies.
  6. Save the rate.
  7. Wait for the labor budget result to update.
  8. Open the saved rate and confirm its budget summary and timeline. On a job classification rate, use Position usage to search by position number or name, narrow the list by department, or review rates on another effective date.

The start date matters as much as the amount. A correct amount with the wrong date can change budget results for earlier or later dates.

A rate has no end date. The latest effective date on or before the budget date applies. When dates match, the most recently saved entry applies. Adding a backdated rate leaves a later scheduled rate in place. See Understand effective dates.

Review a position rate

The position rate page is the home for one position’s labor budget rates. Choose a budget date to compare the position rate with the shared job classification rate. Applied budget rate identifies the rate that wins on that date and shows its effective date. The timeline below it includes earlier, active, and scheduled position rates.

A position rate is a budget amount. It does not represent an employee’s or assignment’s compensation, and changing it does not change employee pay. Saving a position rate also does not create a position approval request.

Use View position summary when you need approved position structure or staffing. Use the position rate page and its row Actions menus when you need to maintain the budget rate.

Maintain the rate timeline

The position rate and job classification rate pages show the earlier, active, and scheduled rate entries for their record. Both timelines show each entry’s status on the selected budget date. On a job classification rate, Position usage shows the positions, departments, rate sources, and base rates for the required effective date. If you have access to a position, select it to open its details.

Use the Actions menu on a timeline row to maintain that rate entry. Earlier same-date values remain in history. Corrections and removals remain available in Activity history.

Use the action that matches what happened:

Action Use it when
Add rate or Schedule rate change Record another approved value and its effective date, including a date already used
Correct rate The amount, rate type, or effective date of a particular entry was entered incorrectly
Use job classification rate A position should use its shared job classification rate from a chosen date
Record no default rate A job classification should have no shared rate from a chosen date
Remove incorrect rate The rate should never have applied

Selecting a default records a new dated selection. It does not remove old entries or bring back an older position exception.

Example: valid rate increase

A $70,000 rate is valid through December 31, and an approved $74,000 rate begins January 1. Use Schedule rate change with January 1 as the Effective date. FTE Tree uses $74,000 beginning January 1 and retains the $70,000 entry unchanged.

Example: recorded amount was wrong

A rate entered as $74,000 should have been $72,000 from its original start date. Use Correct rate to fix the entry while retaining its activity history. Do not schedule a new business change merely to offset an entry mistake.

Example: exception ends

A position-specific $78,000 exception is valid through September 30. Choose Use job classification rate with October 1 as the Effective date. If the job classification has an active shared rate on October 1, that shared rate becomes the position’s base.

A zero rate means a deliberate $0 budget. Use the default-selection action when the position should inherit its job classification rate.

Example: two entries on the same date

Save $74,000 effective April 1, then save $75,000 effective April 1. The April 1 result uses $75,000. Both entries remain in the timeline; the $74,000 entry is an earlier value.

Resolve a missing-rate issue

Open the issue’s rate action. Check the preselected job classification or position and the missing Effective date, then enter the amount and rate type. An existing future rate does not prevent you from filling an earlier missing date. Save and return to the issue to check the updated result. If you lack permission, the issue identifies the access needed; ask someone with that permission to make the change.

Check the saved rate

Choose the rate’s first budget date and open an affected position calculation. Confirm the rate, basis, FTE, and annual hours when needed. If a job classification rate changed, review both an inheriting position and any position-specific exception. Wait for the updated calculation before running a new report.

Apply a separate adjustment

For premiums, allowances, reductions, or other policies on top of the rate, use Apply labor budget adjustments. Keep the base rate and the reusable adjustment rule separate.

Form choices

Use this reference to choose form values. Available choices depend on the task, selected date, and your access.

Rate basis

The basis describes the amount you enter. FTE is applied separately when calculating the position’s cost.

Choice Meaning
Hourly Enter an amount per hour. Annual cost uses annual hours per FTE and the applicable FTE.
Annual Enter the annual amount for 1 FTE. Annual cost scales this amount by the applicable FTE.

For example, a $60,000 annual budget rate at 0.5 FTE produces $30,000 before adjustments. An hourly rate also needs annual hours per FTE. A position-specific rate takes priority over its shared job-classification rate; selecting the shared default restores inheritance from the chosen date.

Optional practice: give the position a $70,000 yearly budget

For exercises that change records, use a separate practice organization and complete the preparation below.

Practice steps and checks
  1. Open Patient Services Coordinator’s labor budget calculation.
  2. Choose Actions > Add position rate.
  3. Choose the annual basis and enter $70,000.
  4. Start it on January 1, 2027, then save.
  5. Open the calculation and check that it uses this position rate.

At 1.0 FTE, the budget before benefits should be $70,000 per year. No hourly conversion is needed for this annual rate.

A position’s own rate takes priority over a shared job-classification rate. Try that choice on a separate practice position if you use shared rates. Next, add the 20% benefits estimate.