Where is my paycheck?
All faculty, staff, and graduate students must have their paychecks or direct deposit advices sent to their department. Tempoary employees can elect to have their paychecks sent to their local home address, permanent home address, the department, or to the Evanston or Chicago Bursar.
Also, every pay period there are checks held in the payroll office because the employee has not completed some piece of paperwork. A listing of all these checks is sent out to the department administrators before the pay day to let them know. The most common reasons for checks to be held are a missing I-9 (proof of eligibility to work in US), missing I-9 and nonresident paperwork, and missing work-study authorization form (required for work-study students).
How do I get a replacement for a lost paycheck?
If you haven't received a paycheck after checking where it should have been delivered or have lost a check, you need to call the payroll office and request a replacement. Replacement checks typically take 2 to 4 days for the stop payment to be placed on the original check and a new check to be issued.
I just started at Northwestern. What forms does payroll need from me?
Payroll needs to have a valid I-9 completed within 3 days of being hired as well as a personal data form if these haven't already been completed. You can find these forms on our personal payroll information page and also the W4 tax forms on our personal tax information page.
When do I get paid?
All faculty, exempt staff, and graduate students get paid on the last day of every month. All biweekly staff and temporary employees get paid biweekly. Biweekly staff are paid on the Friday following the end of the pay period while temporary employees are paid on the Friday 13 days after the end of their pay period.
If I sign up for direct deposit, how soon does it take effect?
If you sign up for direct deposit using our self service web site, it will take effect immediately. If you use the paper form, it will take up to a week for processing.
(We process the payroll about 4 or 5 days before the pay day to ensure timely deposit through the banking system and timely printing and delivery of checks and direct deposit statements.)
How do I change my direct deposit in self-service when it won't let me delete my account (must have balance row)?
You are required to have a primary account (balance account) for your direct deposit. If you are wanting to change this account, instead of deleting that account you should type over the account number and bank routing number.
How do I tell payroll that my address has changed?
Please use the self service web site if you are an active employee. If you are no longer active and have left the university, please use a personal data form. Please keep in mind that we do not have access to address updates in Caesar (student system).
I can't find my W-2 or 1042-S. How do I get another copy?
Call the payroll office at 847-491-7362 (Evanston campus) or 312-503-9700 (Chicago campus) or email us at payroll@northwestern.edu.
I am a graduate student; how do I get my Social Security and Medicare (FICA) tax refunded due to my late school enrollment?
To receive a refund of Social Security and Medicare tax taken from your monthly check due to late enrollment, you must send the payroll office a copy of both your check stub showing the tax was withheld and also a copy of your schedule or other proof of full-time student status. Your tax will then be refunded in a separate payment within 30 days sent to your deparment.
I am a graduate student receiving a stipend from a scholarship/fellowship payment. How do I get federal and state tax to be withheld?
If you are receiving a stipend from a scholarship/fellowship payment, these wages are not reported on form W2 and are not used to calculate federal and state taxes to be withheld despite their taxability. You will need to complete a federal and state W2 listing exactly how much tax you want to be withheld in the additional withholding field. More details and the tax forms are on our personal tax information page. You will not want to forget to change your W4s back to zero additional withholding if your position changes to a graduate assistant.
If I sign up for pretax transit, when do I need to submit the form and when do I get my CTA Chicago Card Plus or RTA transit check?
All forms should be submitted by the 5th of the month. Faculty and staff who submit applications for RTA transit checks (for Metra) that are received by the 5th of the month will have a deduction that month and will receive the transit check by the end of that month. Faculty and staff who submit applications for CTA Chicago Card Plus by the 5th of the month will have their first deduction in the following month receiving their Chicago Card Plus by the end of that month with the deduction value loaded by the end of that month.
How do I get payroll to change my name?
You need to complete a personal data form and attach to it a copy of your new Social Security Card. Your name in payroll must match your Social Security Card.
What is the ETES web address?
The ETES URL is included with all reminder emails and can also be found by clicking here.
Why can't I get the ETES web site to come up?
ETES can only be accessed on campus but not the dorms. Otherwise they need to download VPN from http://www.tss.northwestern.edu/vpn/.
When does my employee get access to ETES?
Personal data forms hiring temporary employees should be faxed to 1-3733 (Evanston campus) or 3-9702 (Chicago campus) on their first day of work. We hire them same day so that the employee can access ETES the next day.
Paperwork for biweekly staff is usually sent to Payroll on their first day, and we enter it same day so that the employee can access ETES the next day.
Why can't I log in?
1. You should be using your NetID and password. This is the same NetID that you use for NU webmail, Caesar, Meeting Maker, and other university systems. If you are a new hire, your department NetID coordinator will receive an email with your NetID.
2. If you still have problems using your NetID and password, go to password.northwestern.edu where you can test your NetID and password. If you still have problems with your NetID and password, call IT at 1-4357 to have it reset.
What web browser should I be using?
Please verify that your current browser is at least:
• Internet Explorer 5.5. SP2 or higher or
• Netscape Communicator 6.2x or higher .
If using a MAC:
• Internet Explorer 5.0
What should I do if my supervisor isn't here to approve my timesheet? Will I get paid?
You will still be paid. All hours that are entered on a time sheet will be paid even if not approved. We will follow up with the supervisor later for manual paper approvals if the supervisor's backup doesn't approve.
I have more than one job; how do I know which timesheet to enter my hours on?
With ETES, you will only have one timesheet for each pay period, regardless of how many jobs you have.
Log in to ETES. Click on the ‘My Timesheet' link.
Move to the Rec ID field. Doubleclick in that field. You will then see a pop up window with each of your current jobs displayed. Pick the correct job from the listing which includes your job title, supervisor name, department name, and CUFS account. You will be able to link work hours with a specific job by specifying the correct job record number in the Rec ID field.
How do I charge hours to a different account?
Only overtime (hours above the scheduled hours) for biweekly staff can be charged to a different account. The Work Hours field for the day on which you worked overtime should only include those hours that must be charged to your regular account.
Click somewhere on the timesheet row for the day on which you have worked overtime. Go to the bottom of the timesheet page and click on the word ‘Insert'.
In the new row, use the tab key to move to the Earnings Code field. Click on the drop down arrow and select the code “SOA” (Straight Time – Other Account) or “POA” (Premium Time – Other Account) depending on whether they have more than 40 hours worked and/or holiday hours for that week. Tab to the Hrs/Amt field and key the number of hours you worked overtime. Move to the Special Account field at the far right of the timesheet page. Type the special account, using the format xxxx xxx xxxx where the fund,area, and org of the account number are separated by blank spaces.
What do I do if I forgot to submit my hours or need to make a change to a prior pay period?
1. Either the employee or the supervisor must access the employee's prior pay period timesheet.
- If the employee makes the change, he/she must click on the Prior or Future Time Sheet link and then specify the appropriate prior pay period.
- If the supervisor makes the change, he/she must click on Slice Approvals, then click Prior/Future pay period radio button and key in the correct prior pay period end date. Then click To Approvals as usual.
2. Enter the employee's hours or any changes to the hours.
3. Whether or not the employee or the supervisor enters the hours, supervisory approval of the timesheet is necessary. To assure that the employee will be paid during the next adjustment run, i.e. one week prior to the next scheduled biweekly pay date, the supervisor should move to the bottom of the timesheet and click on the word ‘ Process All '.
NOTE: If the ‘Process' box is not clicked, the employee will NOT be paid during the next adjustment run. Rather, he/she will be paid during the next scheduled biweekly pay date.
4. Click on the words ‘Approve' and ‘Save'.
NOTE: If it is necessary for your employee to be paid even before the next adjustment run, your department may request a manual check after they have entered and approved the hours by emailing the ETES Helpdesk including a CUFS account to charge. The cost of the manual check will be $45.00.
Why I can't seem to enter the hours when I go into someone's timesheet myself as the supervisor? The timesheet is blue.
Place your cursor in the Work Hours field (if the employee enters their time as elapsed) or the In or Out field (if the employee enters their time as In/Out) on the day you wish to add hours. Click the insert button at the bottom. A white row should appear. You will then be able to enter the time.
If you are trying to enter the hours on a Monday after the deadline, you will have to wait until the next day and enter the hours as a prior pay period adjustment (see question above).
How do I approve a timesheet as the supervisor?
Log into ETES. On your Home Page, click on the link ‘Slice Approvals'.
When you are on the Slice Approvals Selection page, there will be check marks by each department and supervisor NetID combination where you are the primary supervisor (level 3). If you want to approve as a backup supervisor, you will need to check the appropriate department/NetID combination (level 2) (backup supervisors are approved and set up by your school administrator). Click in the bottom right corner on the words ‘To Approvals'.
The system will then display a listing, of all employees for whom you are supervisor of record or backup supervisor if you chose additional department/NetIDs at the Slice Approval Selection page. If you have more than 10 people, you may see arrows at the bottom of the page to take you to the next page.
You may either approve all of the employee timesheets on a page by clicking on the words ‘Approve All' and ‘Save' or you may so your approvals timesheet by timesheet. To approve at the timesheet level, click on the Employee's name and you will be brought to the employee's timesheet. Once there, you may also click on the words ‘Approve All' which will approve every workday segment for which you were the supervisor and ‘Save'. Saving can take several seconds. If they don't see their approval when they go back to the summary, your approval didn't save.
If there are any prior pay period timesheets needing approval, the employee's name will appear twice and one of them will have a different pay period end date in red behind the name. Any prior pay period adjustments must have the supervisor click the Process All button on the timesheet for them to be processed. The Process All button should never be clicked unless it is a prior pay period adjustment.
When must my timesheet be entered and approved by?
Biweekly temporary -- employee approvals by 5pm Fridays, supervisors by 2pm Mondays.
Biweekly staff -- employee approvals by 12pm Fridays, supervisors by 10am Mondays.
I am a supervisor; why do I get so many emails reminding me to approve timesheets?
All supervisors and backup supervisors are sent a reminder email every pay period if they have any employees that they are the supervisor or backup supervisor on that payroll. The email reminders sent out on Monday mornings are only sent to supervisors if an employee that you supervise or are set up as the backup supervisor has unapproved hours.
Why do I get the emails from the ETES Helpdesk stating that I haven't approved some timesheets and now must print them out?
We identify any timesheets that are still unapproved by the Monday 10:00am deadline for biweekly staff or 2:00pm deadline for temporary employees. We print out a copy of each of these timesheets to document this fact as this may often be caused by a supervisor who has only missed approving one day's hours for an employee that may have entered their hours after the supervisor had approved. The ETES Helpdesk is available to help explain the approval process to any supervisors including making a "house call" on approval days if their approvals don't seem to get saved.
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