HR NOTES for Support Staff, Supervisors & Managers

 

What is an EPAF? 

  

"EPAF" is the acronym for Electronic Personnel Action Form.  An EPAF is an electronic form, accessed through the ALTAS portal, that takes the place of a traditional paper action form.  It is used to initiate an entry or make a change in the Banner HR/Payroll system.  The college is currently using the EPAF function to process and pay most employee overload and adjunct assignments.  These assignments were previously paid using paper forms HR-26 and HR-27.  Other uses for the EPAF function are being explored and developed for future implementation.  Here is a brief description of a few of the key features of an EPAF transaction: 

 

An EPAF is prepared and routed electronically through an approval queue, much the way a paper action form might be routed through interoffice mail to be signed by various people.  Specific names are entered into the approval queue to designate the individuals who must electronically approve the EPAF.  These individuals can monitor the transaction as it moves along the approval queue.  They can see when a transaction gets "stuck" in the queue and remind an approver to act so the EPAF will move along to the next person.  The date and time are recorded as each person in the approval queue takes action on the EPAF.             

 

A unique transaction number is assigned to each EPAF when it is submitted to the queue for approval.  This reference number is helpful to the person who originated the EPAF, to the HR Department, and also to the employee for whom the transaction was prepared.  An employee may have more than one EPAF going through the approval queue at the same time, so the transaction number is useful to distinguish one transaction from another.  

 

The transaction status shows the current status of an EPAF as it moves along the queue through the approval process.  A status of "Pending" indicates that someone in the approval queue must take action on the transaction.  When approved at every applicable approval level, the EPAF is applied to the database in Banner and begins to be picked up in the payroll process.  This results in pay to the employee for whom the EPAF was originally prepared.  The transaction status for an EPAF that has been applied to the database is "Complete."        

 

A field for comments is used to record information on the specific course(s) being taught, the dates of instruction, and the total pay for each EPAF transaction.  Comments are also inserted when a transaction is returned to the originator for correction.  Anyone in the approval queue can enter comments on a transaction.  Comments must relate to the specific EPAF transaction and are not intended for routine communication.

 

The transaction history records the name of the person who created and submitted the transaction to the approval queue, as well as the dates the transaction was created and submitted.    

                  

                                                                                      HR Notes #79

                                                                                      February, 2008