Introduction
The Employee Online WHAT‑IF calculator allows employees to simulate payroll changes (earnings, deductions, withholdings) and see the impact on net pay before payroll is processed. The calculator compares the employee’s Baseline pay check to a What-If scenario, allowing model changes without permanently updating payroll records.
The calculator:
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Uses information from W‑4 form and other payroll setup screens
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Performs all calculations securely in the background
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Displays a side‑by‑side comparison of Baseline vs What‑If results
Note: Submitting a What‑If scenario does not update your actual payroll or tax elections.
The calculator has two sections:
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Baseline Information (Left Panel)
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Results (Right Panel)
Each section displays values for both Baseline and What-If scenarios.
Baseline Information
This section displays current or default pay check values and allows the user to enter a hypothetical change is the What-If column.
Baseline is calculated based on the first pay period of the current month. If the user has not received their first pay check during the “What‑If” calculation, the system will display a warning message and will be unable to proceed with the calculation.
Gross
|
Field |
Description |
|
Earnings |
The employee’s estimated gross pay based on their current active pay assignments . User can modify the What‑If amount to simulate pay changes such as raises or unpaid time. The baseline earnings value is retrieved from PYUPEC screen based on the active payment history (PYUPPH) based on the CDH code setup is PYUPDD screen, under CDH Detail Information tab. Earnings is considered when 21: FIT field has plus (+) sign. |
Pre tax Deductions
Pre tax deductions reduce taxable income before federal, state, and FICA taxes are calculated (For example, Retirement contributions, Health Insurance Premiums etc).
Baseline values for pre-tax are captured from PYUPDD screen, under CDH Detail Information tab, Pay Bases is considered Pre tax Deduction when 03: FIT field has minus (-) sign.
|
Field |
Description |
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EO What‑If Ded #1 |
Optional placeholder for a pre tax deduction scenario. By default the value is set to zero (0), user can enter a value for a new pre tax deduction (if any) apart from the existing deduction considered for baseline calculations. |
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EO What‑If Ded #2 |
Additional optional pre tax deduction. By default the value is set to zero (0), user can enter a value for a new pre tax deduction (if any) apart from the existing deduction considered for baseline calculations. |
Taxes
This section controls how taxes are calculated for the pay check.
State Income Tax
The baseline values are fetched from HRPYPR - Taxes - State Income Taxes section.
The SIT CDH code setup is PYUPDD screen, under CDH Detail Information tab, Pay Bases is considered Pre tax Deduction when 21: SIT field has plus (+) sign.
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Field |
Description |
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State Income Tax Status |
State filing status. Lookup Values – Single, Married, Exempt, Not Applicable, Head of Household. |
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State Income Tax Exemptions |
Number of exemptions claimed for state taxes. |
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State Income Tax Additional Amount |
Optional additional state tax withholding per pay check. |
Federal Income Tax
The baseline values are fetched from HRPYPR - Taxes - Federal Income Taxes section.
|
Field |
Description |
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2(c) Federal Income Tax 2 Jobs Total |
Indicate if an employee has more than one job. Baseline flag value displayed as True or False based on the value on W4 -2 under Federal Income Tax section of HRPYPR screen. Box 2(c) on the W4. For What if, the user can alter the value as True or False to compute change in Net. |
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1(c) Federal Income Tax Status |
Your federal filing status (for example, Married).Box 1(c) on the W4. |
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Federal Exemptions (Pre-2019) |
Number of exemptions used for federal withholding. Applicable only for taxpayers who have filled out their W4 prior to 2019. For this screen it is assumed that the employee will fill out a new W4. Therefore this is set as zero (0) and read-only. |
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3 Federal Income Tax Dependent Amount |
Withholding adjustments related to dependents. Box 3 on the W4. |
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4 (a) Federal Income Tax Other Income |
Other taxable income that may affect federal tax calculations. Box 4(a) on the W4. |
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4 (b) Federal Income Tax Additional Deductions |
Additional federal deductions to consider for withholding calculations. Box 4(b) on the W4. |
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4 (c) Federal Income Tax Extra Withholdings |
Extra federal tax withheld each pay check. Box 4(c) on the W4. |
Note: Changes made in the What‑If column simulate changes to your W‑4, but does not effect your actual tax form on file.
Post Tax
Post-tax deductions are taken after all applicable federal, state and FICA taxes have been calculated. The section only displays post-tax deductions that have non-zero amounts. These deductions do not reduce taxable income.
The Post-tax values are captured from the PYUPEC screen, based on the CDH setup in PYUPDD screen, under CDH Detail Information tab. The deduction is considered Post tax where pay base 03: FIT field is blank.
Results
The Results panel automatically updates to show how your What‑If entries compare to the Baseline when you submit.
Earnings and Deductions
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Field |
Description |
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Earnings |
Gross earnings for the pay period after applying What‑If changes. |
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Pre tax Deductions |
Total pre tax deducted before taxes. Deductions are defined in PYUPEC. |
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Taxable Earnings |
Earnings subject to tax after pre tax deductions are applied. |
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FICA Earnings |
Earnings subject to Social Security and Medicare taxes. |
Taxes Breakdown
The calculator shows estimated tax withholding amounts for:
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FICA Earnings
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Federal Income Tax
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Social Security (6.2%): Calculated as 6.2 % of FICA value.
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Medicare (1.45%): Calculated as 6.2 % of FICA value.
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Additional Medicare: Additive amount from PYUPDD based on the percentage defined.
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State Income Tax
Note - These amounts are recalculated automatically when you modify What‑If values.
Net Pay Summary
|
Field |
Description |
|
Estimated Net |
Projected pay after all deductions and taxes. |
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Change in Net |
The difference between the Baseline and What‑If net pay amounts.
Use Change in Net to understand how a potential change affects your pay check. |
Action Buttons
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Reset Button: Clears all What-If values and restores Baseline amounts. System will allow 20 overrides for calculations on a single session.
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Submit Button: Recalculates Net Pay using the current What-If inputs.
Key Notes & Disclaimers
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The What‑If calculator is for estimation purposes only and is calculated on per period bases.
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Results may vary from an actual pay check due to rounding, pay frequency, regulatory changes, etc.
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Baseline is calculated based on the first pay check of the current month.