Payroll Payment Process

1. Purpose

This Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) describes the steps required to process monthly contractor payroll through Mercury Bank. It ensures that all contractors are paid on time, in compliance with internal policies, and that accurate records are maintained.

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2. Scope

This SOP applies to the Operations Department and covers:

• Payment of monthly and hourly contractors.

• Timesheet collection and verification.

• Uploading of payment receipts to the LowCode Dashboard.

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3. Responsibilities

• Executive Assistant (EA):

  • Monitor invoice submissions on Slack.

  • Download timesheets from Plutio.

  • Update and review the Timesheets Excel file (Monthly tab).

  • Prepare payroll amounts for each contractor.

  • Process payment requests via Mercury Bank.

  • Upload payment receipts to LowCode Dashboard.

• Operations Manager (Cecilia):

  • Review contractors’ total hours each month.

  • Notify contractors who do not meet the minimum expected hours.

  • This review does not affect or delay contractor payments.

• Founder (Jesús):

  • Authorize and approve all payments in Mercury Bank before execution.

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4. Procedure

Step 1 – Confirm Payroll Period

• Payroll must be processed between the last day of the current month and the first day of the following month.

Step 2 – Verify Contractor Invoices

• Ensure all contractors have submitted their invoices via the #hr-invoice-requests Slack channel.

• Cross-check invoice details (hours, payment amount, contractor information).

Step 3 – Download Timesheets from Plutio

• Log in to Plutio.

• Download the timesheets for each contractor.

• For payroll at the end of the month:

  • Download only the second half of the month’s timesheets.

  • Add them to the “Monthly” tab in the Timesheets Excel file.

  • Sum the hours of both halves of the month to get the total monthly hours.

Step 4 – Share Hours with Operations Manager

• Once all timesheets are recorded, notify Cecilia (Operations Manager).

• She reviews whether contractors are meeting the minimum expected hours.

• If hours are below the expected minimum, she issues a reminder or warning to the contractor.

• Payments are not affected by this review.

Step 5 – Process Payments via Mercury Bank

• Ensure all contractor bank details are registered in Mercury Bank:

  • Bank account number

  • Routing number

• Note: Contractors can choose any platform that provides a U.S. bank account number (e.g., Wise, Payoneer, Dolarapp, Zelle). Payments must always be processed through Mercury Bank only.

• Process payments for:

  • Hourly contractors → Pay based on total monthly hours (from the Excel sheet).

  • Full-time contractors → Pay their fixed monthly salary (ensure timesheets are reviewed).

Step 6 – Payment Authorization

• Submit all prepared payments for final approval by Jesús (Founder).

• Once authorized, payments are executed via Mercury Bank.

Step 7 – Download Payment Receipts

• After payments are successfully processed in Mercury Bank, download all payment receipts.

Step 8 – Update LowCode Dashboard

• Log in to the LowCode Dashboard.

• For each contractor invoice:

  • Mark the invoice as Closed/Finalized.

  • Upload the corresponding payment receipt as evidence.

• Important: Always set the payment date as the last day of the month, regardless of the actual payment date, to maintain accurate records.

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5. Quality Control & Verification

• Double-check all entered hours against downloaded Plutio timesheets.

• Verify that payroll amounts match invoices and timesheets.

• Ensure all payment receipts are correctly uploaded and accessible in the Dashboard.

• Confirm with Jesús that all contractor payments were authorized and completed.