How Pay and Charge Rates Work in Arez Operate

How Pay and Charge Rates Work in Arez Operate 

Pay Rates, Charge Rates and Worker Overrides Explained

Preface

In facilities management and security operations, rates directly affect worker pay, client billing and operational margins. An incorrectly configured rate can result in payroll discrepancies, invoice disputes or incorrect margin reporting.

Arez Operate keeps Pay Rates and Charge Rates separate while allowing controlled worker-level exceptions.

Standard rates can be configured through client and site contracts, while worker-specific Pay Rates can be used where an individual worker requires a different rate.

This guide explains:

• The difference between Pay Rates and Charge Rates

• Where rates are configured

• The Pay Rate priority used by Arez

• How worker-specific rates work

• How contract rates work

• How rates are applied to shifts

• How to make temporary or permanent rate changes

• Rolled-up rates and Pay Rate Tags

• How to review Rate History

1. Pay Rates and Charge Rates

Arez separates rates into two distinct types.

Pay Rate (£/hr)

The Pay Rate determines how much the worker is paid.

Pay Rates are used for:

• Rota calculations

• Paysheets

• Payroll

• Worker cost reporting

Charge Rate (£/hr)

The Charge Rate determines how much the client is charged.

Charge Rates are used for:

• Client billing

• Invoicing

• Revenue calculations

• Margin reporting

These rates are deliberately kept separate.

For example:

The worker is paid £13.00/hr, while the client is charged £20.00/hr.

Changing the worker's Pay Rate does not change the Charge Rate.

2. Contract Rates

provide the standard PaContracts y and Charge Rates used by Arez.

To manage contract rates:

Clients & Sites → Clients → Open Client → Contracts

From the Contracts tab, you can review the contracts associated with the client.

Contracts can be configured at:

• Client level – provides standard rates across the client's sites

• Site level – provides rates specifically for an individual site

Site-specific contracts can therefore be used where rates differ from the client's standard commercial arrangement.

Configuring Contract Rates

Open the required contract to configure rates against individual roles.

For each role, you can define:

• Charge Rate

• Pay Rate

• Margin

For example:

The Margin shows the difference between the Charge Rate and Pay Rate, providing visibility of the expected commercial margin.

3. Worker Pay Rates

Contracts provide the standard Pay Rate, but Arez also allows individual workers to have their own Pay Rates.

Worker-specific Pay Rates are configured from:

Worker Profile → Pay Rate

These rates are useful where the worker's agreed Pay Rate differs from the standard contract rate.

Examples include:

• Specialist workers

• Experienced workers receiving a higher rate

• Site-specific agreements

• Individually negotiated Pay Rates

Worker Pay Rates override the Pay Rate held against the contract.

They do not affect the contract Charge Rate.

4. Pay Rate Priority

Arez automatically selects the highest-priority active Pay Rate available for the worker.

The priority is:

1. Worker Site Pay Rate

Used when an active Pay Rate has been configured for the worker at the specific site.

↓

2. Worker Default Pay Rate

Used when there is no active Site-Specific Pay Rate.

↓

3. Client/Site Contract Pay Rate

Used as the fallback when the worker has no active Site Pay Rate or Default Pay Rate.

Pay Rate hierarchy

Worker Site Pay Rate → Worker Default Pay Rate → Client/Site Contract Pay Rate

Arez automatically follows this order when determining which Pay Rate should apply.

5. Worker Site Pay Rate

A Worker Site Pay Rate allows a worker to have a different Pay Rate at a specific site.

To add one:

1. Open the Worker Profile.

2. Select the Pay Rate tab.

3. Select Add Site-Specific Rate.

4. Select the required Site.

5. Select the applicable Role.

6. Enter the Pay Rate (£/hr).

7. Set the status to Active.

8. Select Confirm.

Once active, Arez will use this Pay Rate when the worker is assigned to applicable shifts at that site.

Example

A worker has:

• Site Pay Rate: £14.00/hr

• Default Worker Pay Rate: £13.00/hr

• Contract Pay Rate: £12.00/hr

When the worker works at the site where the £14.00 rate is configured:

Pay Rate used = £14.00/hr

This is because the Site Pay Rate has the highest priority.

6. Worker Default Pay Rate

A Worker Default Pay Rate can be configured where a worker normally receives the same Pay Rate across multiple sites.

From:

Worker Profile → Pay Rate

locate the Worker Default Pay Rate section and select Edit.

Enter the required Pay Rate and set the rate to Active.

Once enabled, the rate applies across all sites unless an active Site-Specific Pay Rate exists.

.

Example

A worker has:

• Default Pay Rate: £13.00/hr

• Site A Pay Rate: £15.00/hr

Arez will use:

• Site A → £15.00/hr

• Other sites → £13.00/hr

The Site Pay Rate takes priority at Site A, while the Default Pay Rate applies elsewhere.

7. Contract Pay Rate as a Fallback

If a worker has:

• No active Site Pay Rate, and

• No active Default Pay Rate

Arez uses the Pay Rate defined in the applicable client or site contract.

This provides a fallback so that the standard contractual Pay Rate can still be applied where no worker-specific rate has been configured.

8. How Charge Rates Work

Charge Rates follow a different rule.

Charge Rates are always controlled through client or site contracts.

Worker Pay Rate settings do not override or change the Charge Rate.

For example:

Arez will use:

Worker Pay Rate = £14.00/hr

Client Charge Rate = £20.00/hr

The worker override changes what the worker is paid but does not change what the client is charged.

9. Rate Preview

The Worker Pay Rate screen includes a Rate Preview.

This provides examples of which Pay Rate Arez will use under different circumstances.

For example:

This is useful when checking which rate is expected to apply before reviewing individual shifts.

10. How Rates Flow Through Arez

Rates configured in Arez are used directly within operational and financial processes.

Rates → Rota → Payroll and Billing

Step 1 – Rates are configured

Rates can be defined through:

• Client contracts

• Site contracts

• Worker Default Pay Rates

• Worker Site Pay Rates

Step 2 – Rates are applied to the shift

When a worker is assigned to a shift, Arez determines:

• The applicable Pay Rate using the Pay Rate priority

• The applicable Charge Rate from the contract

Step 3 – Shift rates drive financial calculations

The applicable shift rates are then used for:

• Payroll calculations using the Pay Rate

• Client billing using the Charge Rate

This is why it is important that rates are configured correctly before payroll or invoicing is processed.

11. Viewing and Changing Rates on a Shift

Rates can also be reviewed from an individual worker shift.

Open the shift and navigate to:

Edit Rota → Additional Information → Shift Detail

The shift displays:

• Charge Rate

• Pay Rate

Authorised users can update the Pay Rate directly from here where required.

12. Saving a Shift Pay Rate

When a Pay Rate is changed from a shift, Arez provides additional options for how the rate should be saved.

Apply to this shift only

Select this option where the rate should only apply to the current shift.

The worker's permanent Site Pay Rate remains unchanged.

This is useful for one-off circumstances such as:

• Bank holiday work

• Emergency cover

• Overtime

• Night work

• Temporary agreed rates

Apply Permanently

Select Apply Permanently where the new rate should become the worker's Pay Rate for that site.

Arez saves the rate for future applicable shifts at that site.

This should be used where the change represents an ongoing agreement rather than a one-off exception.

13. Rolled-Up Pay Rates

When entering a Pay Rate from a shift, Arez provides a Rolled-up rate option.

A rolled-up rate includes the worker's holiday pay within the overall hourly amount.

When selected, Arez automatically calculates the underlying base rate and separates the holiday pay element.

For example, the screen may show:

Entered Rate

£13.99/hr

↓

Calculated Base Rate

£12.48/hr

The calculation is handled automatically by Arez.

This provides visibility of both:

• The total rolled-up amount

• The underlying base Pay Rate

14. Save as Entered

Where holiday pay is handled separately, the Pay Rate can instead be saved using Save as entered.

In this case, Arez saves the entered value as the Pay Rate without treating it as a rolled-up rate.

Select the option that matches how the worker's rate has been agreed and how holiday pay is managed by your organisation.

15. Pay Rate Tags

When updating a Pay Rate from a shift, you can also apply a Pay Rate Tag.

Available tags may include:

• Bank Holiday Rate

• Emergency Cover Rate

• Night Shift Rate

• Overtime Rate

These tags help identify why a different Pay Rate has been applied.

For example, if a worker receives an enhanced rate because they covered an emergency shift, the Emergency Cover Rate tag can be selected.

16. Holiday Pay

Where applicable, Arez displays the worker's Pay Rate as a breakdown.

For example:

Base Rate + Holiday Pay = Total Paid Per Hour

Example:

£12.00/hr Base Rate

• £1.45/hr Holiday Pay
  = £13.45/hr Total Paid Per Hour

This helps users distinguish between the worker's base hourly rate and the overall amount payable once holiday pay is included.

17. Rate History

The bottom of the Worker Pay Rate page contains the Rate History.

This provides an audit trail of Pay Rate-related changes and actions.

The history can include:

• Rates created

• Rates updated

• Pay Rate change requests

• Site-specific rate changes

• Relevant shift or paysheet rate changes

• The user who performed the action

• Date and time of the change

This is particularly useful when investigating why a worker's rate changed or reviewing previous Pay Rate decisions.

18. Example Scenarios

19. Important Points

Worker Pay Rates override Contract Pay Rates

Where an active worker-level Pay Rate exists, Arez uses it according to the configured priority.

Site Pay Rates have the highest priority

An active Worker Site Pay Rate takes priority over both the Worker Default Pay Rate and Contract Pay Rate.

Default Pay Rates apply across sites

A Worker Default Pay Rate is used across sites unless an active Site Pay Rate exists.

Contract Pay Rates provide the fallback

If no active worker-specific Pay Rate exists, Arez uses the applicable Contract Pay Rate.

Charge Rates are controlled through contracts

Worker Pay Rate changes do not alter the Charge Rate.

Shift-level changes can be temporary or permanent

When changing a Pay Rate from a shift, check whether the rate should apply only to that shift or become the worker's ongoing Site Pay Rate.

20. Best Practice

To keep your rate configuration accurate and manageable:

• Use contracts for your standard Pay and Charge Rates.

• Use Worker Default Pay Rates where an individual has a standard agreed rate across sites.

• Use Worker Site Pay Rates only where the worker requires a different rate at a particular site.

• Use shift-only changes for genuine one-off exceptions.

• Use Pay Rate Tags to clearly identify enhanced or exceptional rates.

• Review the Rate Preview before investigating an unexpected Pay Rate.

• Review Rate History when auditing rate changes.

• Ensure configured Pay Rates comply with any applicable minimum wage requirements.

• Review rates before processing payroll or invoicing.

Summary

Arez separates worker pay from client billing so that both can be controlled independently.

The Pay Rate priority is:

1. Worker Site Pay Rate
↓
2. Worker Default Pay Rate
↓
3. Client/Site Contract Pay Rate

Charge Rates remain controlled through the applicable client or site contract.

Worker Pay Rates can be managed from the worker's profile, while one-off or permanent changes can also be made directly from a shift.

Together, these controls allow Arez to support standard contractual rates while still handling individual worker and site-specific exceptions without affecting client billing.

Need Help?

If you are unsure which rate should be configured or why a particular rate has been applied, review the Pay Rate Priority, Rate Preview and Rate History first.

For further assistance, contact your Arez Support Team.