“Payroll Week Is the Worst” (and Other Things Your Team Shouldn’t Have to Say) 

Do you ever hear your payroll team groan when it’s time to process payroll again? Or feel like every pay cycle turns into a never-ending scavenger hunt? 

Because let’s be real—manually running payroll in a school district can be a challenge. There are stacks of paper timesheets, people forgetting to clock in, last-minute changes, and reports that just don’t match. It takes time, effort, and constant double-checking to make sure everything is accurate. 

But what if payroll didn’t have to be so complicated? 

Districts that automate time tracking are cutting processing time in half (yes, really), reducing errors, and simplifying the entire payroll process. 

Let’s take a look at what’s really slowing things down—and how you can fix it. 

Common Payroll Challenges in K-12

If you’re still tracking time manually, relying on paper timesheets, or chasing missing approvals, it probably feels like Groundhog Day:

• Employees forget to submit timesheets—so payroll has to chase them down.
• Supervisors forget to approve timesheets—so payroll has to chase them down.
• Someone writes “8:00-4:00” on a paper timesheet—so now payroll has to figure out if they actually worked those hours.
• Someone forgets to log their extra duty pay—so now payroll has to fix it next pay cycle.
• Two systems don’t talk to each other—so now HR has to manually check if time worked matches absence records.

Sound familiar?

For many districts, payroll isn’t just about paychecks—it’s about ensuring every hour worked is tracked correctly, staying compliant with labor laws, and keeping budgets in check. But when you’re stuck with manual processes, that’s easier said than done.

“Our payroll department was getting behind technology-wise. There was still a lot of hand-calculating, and the tracking process was not really working with all other systems. With so many different payroll models for our employees…we were struggling.”

Rusty Stecker, Executive Director of Human Resources

If this sounds like your district, it’s time to take a closer look at the hidden costs of payroll inefficiencies.

The Hidden Costs of Payroll Mistakes

It’s no secret that mistakes add up. Maybe it’s an employee who got overpaid for extra duty work they never logged correctly. Maybe overtime couldn’t be tracked properly, leading to FLSA compliance concerns. Or maybe it’s the fact that payroll just spent three hours fixing something that shouldn’t have been a problem in the first place.

Let’s break it down:

• Payroll errors cost real money: Overpayments, retroactive pay fixes, and compliance penalties aren’t just frustrating to deal with…they drain valuable budget dollars that could be used elsewhere.
• Payroll processing takes way too long: Manual processes mean payroll teams are stuck fixing the same issues, every pay cycle. One district found that cutting manual tracking reduced payroll processing time by 50%​.
• Compliance risks are real: Missing ACA-eligible hours, mishandling FMLA leave, or failing to track overtime properly could put your district at risk of costly audits and penalties.
• Your payroll team is exhausted: Repetitive, time-consuming payroll tasks take a toll on morale. When your team spends more time fixing errors than focusing on strategic work, burnout becomes a real issue.

And if you think this is just the way payroll has to be, it’s not.

How K-12 Districts Are Fixing Payroll and Saving Time

The districts that aren’t drowning in payroll chaos every pay cycle? They’re the ones that stopped relying on manual tracking and started automating time collection and payroll processes.

With the right software, you can:

• Stop chasing timesheets. Employee time is captured digitally—no more handwritten notes, spreadsheets, or missing clock-ins.
• Automate extra duty, overtime, and gap time calculations. No more manual corrections next pay cycle—the system applies pay rules automatically.
• Eliminate double entries and overpayments. If an employee is out, their absence is automatically reflected in payroll, preventing costly errors.
• Cut payroll processing time in half. Many districts reduce payroll processing time by 50% when they stop manually tracking hours and approving timesheets.

“We immediately saw the benefits of being able to run a report and then just go through and verify. I went from, three, three and a half days of keying and agonizing about errors. Now [payroll] takes me about a day and a half.“

Jeff Swartzentruber, School Business Official, Mid-Prairie Community School District

Learn more about Frontline Time and Attendance

Your payroll process shouldn’t be this stressful—and it doesn’t have to be. Ready to see how districts are cutting payroll processing time in half—while eliminating errors?

Learn more about Frontline Time & Attendance here.