New timecard application in use

  • Published
  • By Mark Wyatt
  • 66th Air Base Group Public Affairs
HANSCOM AIR FORCE BASE, Mass. --  Department of Defense civilian employees here are now required to submit their time and attendance through the Automated Time, Attendance, and Production System, or ATAAPS, 66th Comptroller Squadron officials announced.

ATAAPS is a web-based application that allows users to enter, update, concur and certify their time and attendance through a data entry and repository system, which then feeds payroll data to the Defense Civilian Payroll System.

"ATAAPS has been used for more than ten years by the U.S. Army," said Kristy Schoolcraft, 66th Comptroller Squadron civilian pay specialist. "The Air Force gradually adopted ATAAPS in 2010 as its time and attendance system."

Through the application, employees can enter labor, view leave balances and enter night differential or hazard time.

Personnel will be required to submit leave requests through the application. Premium requests for overtime or compensatory time will require approved paper documentation outside of ATAAPS prior to approval in the system.

The system is expected to mitigate the amount of errors on timecards by involving employees in the process, Schoolcraft said.

"Certifiers, timekeepers and employees each have certain roles in the pay process," said Schoolcraft. "ATAAPS lessens the burden on the timekeeper and involves the employee and certifier more."

She went on to say that the timekeeper's role now will be making sure employees complete their time cards when due.

Primary and alternate certifiers are then able to approve timecards during a two-day "certification window" which opens the second Thursday of the pay period. Employees must also submit their time by this date.

Employees are unable to certify their own timecards.

"All time must be reported by employees in order for a certifier to approve a timecard," said Schoolcraft. "This provides the certifiers better visibility of their employees."

Timekeepers will remain involved in other ways, too.

"If an employee were to go TDY or calls in sick and is unable to complete their timecard, the timekeeper can step in and complete it for them," Schoolcraft said. "Timekeepers will also let the SuperUsers (66th Comptroller Squadron) know when a new employee or certifier is in your organization."

Missing timecard reports will be done now at more than one level, Schoolcraft went on to say.

"Missing timecard reports can be done by the timekeeper, certifier and SuperUsers (comptroller personnel) as an 'uncertified employee report' within ATAAPS," Schoolcraft said.

The last paper timecards were accepted last pay period, the pay period ending Aug. 10. ATAAPS went in use the pay period Aug. 11 through Aug. 24.

Employees must have now logged into the system with a provided user id and password.

The new system will also eliminate the amount of paperwork generated each pay period from leave slips and timecards.

"We won't need as many filing cabinets anymore because we won't need that documentation to keep the timecards or any supporting documentation," said Schoolcraft.

Comptroller officials suggest anyone experiencing issues should address them first with their certifiers or timekeepers. If a question cannot be answered by them, timekeepers can coordinate the questions through the comptroller squadron.

"Certifiers or timekeepers have probably already had that question before, or need to know if the question is asked by another employee," said Schoolcraft.

For further information on ATAAPS, personnel can access the secure SharePoint site that has tutorials and other information at https://org.eis.afmc.af.mil/sites/66ABW/66CPTS/ATAAPS/Forms/AllItems.aspx.