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Why not use leave to deduct for an employee's absence?

When an employee does not show up for work, the system automatically records this absence as an absence, or converts it to banked hours if there is an active banked hours rule for the employee, provided that the expected work schedule for the day is a working day. However, a common question among managers is whether the justification "excuse" can be used when the objective is to deduct the day's pay from the employee's salary.

The answer is: no . This is because a dismissal is not interpreted as a fault, but rather as a justified absence . Let's better understand the difference between these concepts and how to use each one correctly.

What is the difference between absence and leave?

Absence: This occurs when an employee does not show up for work without a valid justification. Depending on company policy, this absence may result in a deduction from their pay or a reduction in their time bank balance. To learn how to convert an absence to time bank balance or reject the accumulated balance so that an absence event is generated, please refer to this article .
Absence: This is a justification used when the company releases the employee from work without loss of pay. In other words, the system understands that this absence was authorized by the company and, therefore, does not generate deductions from the payroll nor affect the balance of the time bank.

Common questions about exemptions

Why shouldn't a leave of absence be used to excuse absences?

If the goal is to deduct the employee's absence, whether from their pay or banked hours, the ideal approach is to allow the system to automatically record the absence without using the "excuse" justification. This is because an excused absence justifies the day's absence.

By default, when a leave of absence is requested, the system assumes the absence was granted by the company and therefore does not generate a deduction for that day.

There is one exception: it is possible to register an absence along with a leave of absence, but this option is intended for days without an expected work schedule or for cases where the justification for the leave of absence needs to be registered, but without excusing the period excused. In this case, there is no possibility of generating a partial deduction, that is, the entire day will be considered an absence. If the leave of absence is entered partially, the absence will not be registered.

To record an absence for the day, enable the "entire day" in the "absence information" section, and select the "consider as absence" in the "calculation settings" section.

Why doesn't a dismissal generate a negative balance in the time bank?

If the employee uses a time bank system, the absence will only be deducted from the balance if it is considered an absence. If the excused absence is used without this option selected, the system will not count the absence as a negative balance, since the excused absence indicates that the company authorized the absence.

Does the system automatically register the absence?

If an employee's work schedule is correctly configured (representing an expected work schedule) and they fail to clock in, the system will identify this as an absence. Therefore, depending on the company's settings, the deduction will be made from their paycheck or banked hours.

Why doesn't "partial absence" appear in the system?

A common question is why "partial absence" doesn't appear in cases where the employee was absent for only part of the day. This is because the leave of absence doesn't represent an absence, but rather an authorized absence .

If the goal is to deduct hours not worked, do not use the "excused absence" justification. The system itself will identify the absence and apply the appropriate entries. The time not worked will be counted as lateness or early departure , depending on the period of absence.

How can we ensure that absences are handled correctly in the system?

Do you want the absence to be deducted from your pay? Don't register it as "leave"; let the system automatically consider it an absence. For this to work, the day must have an expected work schedule
The client has banked hours and wants the absence to be deducted from the balance? Approve the banked hours balance for the day so that the deduction occurs correctly.
Did an employee leave early or arrive late and is there a reason? Process a partial leave request .

If you have any questions about how to submit exemption requests, please consult the articles below:

With this clarity in the use of justifications, you avoid inconsistencies in the records and ensure accurate and transparent time tracking for everyone.

If you need further support, please contact our support team via the chat integrated into the Pontotel Gestão website or via WhatsApp .

Updated on: November 3, 2025

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