Please note: This is an Opt-in feature available as part of Birdie’s Core, Advanced and Plus packages and is also available upon request for Entry, Essentials and Premium packages. Please get in touch if interested in more information on this feature!
Ensure your care staff are always paid correctly for working on bank holidays with our enhanced rates feature. We have added more flexibility to our finance tools, allowing you to set specific pay rates for individual holidays, such as Christmas Day, New Year's Day, or any other bank holiday.
This gives you precise control over your payroll. Instead of a single holiday rate, you can now create as many unique rates as you need, making the process simpler and more accurate.
What are date groups?
Date groups define a set of dates or holidays that you group for the purpose of pay and invoicing.
For instance, if you pay an enhanced or special rate on Christmas and New Year’s Day, you might want to create an Enhanced Bank Holidays group and set the dates to December 25th and January 1st.
How do I create a date group?
Go to the Finance page
Select the Finance Setup tab on the left-hand menu
Select the Dates Group tab from the drop-down menu
Now, click the Add new date group button.
You can now enter a name, descriptions and the dates this applies to. Click add new date for each date that you want included as part of that date group. You can create multiple date groups.
Click Save once done.
Please note: you will not set any multipliers or create the specific rates on this screen. This step is about selecting which days you want to include as part of a group of bank holidays, and differentiating between normal and enhanced / ‘special’ bank holidays.
You will set the rates and/or multipliers in the Holiday rates tab, which we cover below.
How to ensure an enhanced rate applies to a date group
Once you have created a date group, you will then be able to choose this date group when creating pay or invoice rate cards - or when editing existing ones.
To do this:
Click into an existing pay rate card (you can also select this option whilst creating a new rate)
Then select Edit
Click the Add rate button
Under Day type, select your date group
You will then enter all the appropriate details. Ensure you have added this new enhanced rate to all necessary pay rates - and ensure it is also assigned to the appropriate carers. For more on creating and assigning rates, read the article here.
You can then do the same for an invoice rate card, where necessary. This can be created, for instance, if one of your payers has agreed to an enhanced invoice rate for those dates.
Bank Holiday Rate Setup: Choose Your Configuration Method
The recommended steps vary depending on what holiday rate setup you use across your agency, i.e. if you have any branches that want to use multipliers instead of specific bank holiday rates on rate cards. All scenarios have been described below.
Choose your setup based on how you handle bank holiday rates:
Option 1: Multipliers Only: If you use multipliers for all bank holidays (1.5x, 2x), keep using the Holiday rates tab. No changes needed. Read the article here.
Option 2: Mixed Rates: If you mix multipliers and specific rates, switch everything to specific rates. Multipliers affect the whole branch, so mixing causes conflicts.
Option 3: Enhanced Holiday Rates: If you need different rates for Christmas/New Year vs other bank holidays:
Create a 'Regular bank holidays' date group
Create an 'Enhanced bank holidays' date group
Add both rate types to your rate cards
Set all multipliers to 1x in the Holiday Rates tab
FAQs
Do the date groups apply to both payroll and invoicing?
Yes, it is possible to apply date groups to both pay and invoice rates. If you set up date groups, you will have the option to set specific rates for those date groups on both the pay and invoice rate cards. Whether you choose to do so on both is up to you.
Where do I set my actual rates?
Once you have set up your date groups, you can then set the rates on the rate cards directly - in the same way you set up pay and invoice rates for weekdays and weekends. You will end up with a rate card that looks something like the one below:
Can I have a date group with a single date in it?
Yes, we have seen that many customers pay/charge the same for all bank holidays except Christmas Day. This means you will need a 'Christmas Day' date group that only contains a single date.
Can I edit date groups?
Yes, you can click on a date group and use the pop-up to edit the dates.
Can I delete date groups?
Not currently. We plan to add this functionality if needed in the future, but at the moment, you will need to edit your existing date groups. When you do this, you can remove the existing dates that form part of the date group, but you cannot remove the whole date group itself yet.
Does the Date Groups tab make the Holiday Rates tab unnecessary for my agency?
This depends on how you need your rates to be set up. Please see the explanations under Steps to prepare for the upcoming holidays to find the scenario that applies to you.