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

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

Se o objetivo for descontar a ausência do colaborador, seja no pagamento ou no overtime compensation system, o ideal é permitir que o sistema registre a falta automaticamente, sem utilizar a justificativa "dispensa". Isso porque a** dispensa abona a falta do dia.**
Por padrão, ao lançar uma dispensa, o sistema entende que a ausência foi concedida pela empresa e, portanto, não gera desconto no dia em questão.

Existe uma exceção: é possível registrar uma falta junto com um lançamento de dispensa, mas essa opção é voltada para dias sem jornada de trabalho esperada ou para casos em que a justificativa de dispensa precisa ser registrada, mas sem abonar o período dispensado. Nesse caso, não há possibilidade de gerar um desconto parcial, ou seja, o dia inteiro será considerado como falta. Caso a dispensa seja lançada parcialmente, a falta não será registrada.
Para lançar a dispensa registrando um falta no dia, habilite a opção "dia inteiro" na seção "informações da dispensa", e escolha a opção "considerar como falta" na seção "configurações de cálculo".

2. 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.

3. 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.

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

Uma dúvida comum é o motivo pelo qual não aparece "falta parcial" em casos em que o colaborador esteve ausente por apenas um período do dia. Isso acontece porque a dispensa não representa uma falta, mas sim uma ausência autorizada.
Se o objetivo for descontar as horas não trabalhadas, não utilize a justificativa "dispensa". O próprio sistema identificará a ausência e aplicará os apontamentos adequados. O tempo não trabalhado será computado como atraso ou saída antecipada, dependendo do período de ausência.

5. 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:

• How to register a sick leave/medical certificate for the whole day or several days.
• How to register a partial or hourly leave of absence/medical certificate

Com essa clareza na utilização das justificativas, você evita inconsistências nos registros e garante um controle de jornada preciso e transparente para todos.
Caso ainda tenha dúvidas ou precise de auxílio, entre em contato com o nosso time de Suporte pelo chat integrado ao site Gestão ou pelo WhatsApp. 

Updated on: May 22, 2026