With the Mepco Absence Export integration, absences are added to the export buffer in real time as they are recorded in Nepton. The data in the buffer is transferred to Mepco at selected intervals. The integration uses Mepco's deletion and addition entries ("P" and "U"). When editing an absence, both will be sent.
Good to know
- Employees with employee number 0 are not included in the data.
- The integration only handles absences. Please note this when creating integration rulesets. For example, work events are not processed, but an event type that has the behavior of "absence" is included (i.e. the integration handles events with activitytypecategoryid = '2').
- If an absence is started in the calendar without an end time, the integration will not process it. The integration will process the absence event when it is ended with a specified end time.
- When recording an absence, only that event is processed and exported to the SFTP server. Other events from the same day are not included in the data.
- An absence is only transferred if it is new, deleted, or has been changed in a way that affects the information being transferred. Check the export file data below to see which information is being transferred. For example, adding a comment to an absence event does not create new data.
-
If only approved events are to be moved, you must add isApproved = 'Y' to the integration rule.
- An absence can be recorded even if there are problems with the integration. For example, an incorrect integration rule or a problem with the SFTP server will not prevent the absence from being recorded. The user will be warned about the error.
- For each absence event and rule set, a separate file is created and transferred to the SFTP server. If the same absence event forms data in two different rule sets, two different files are created.
- A deleted absence or a previous version of a modified absence is marked with a "P" in the data.
- A new event or the latest version of a modified absence event is created with "U" in the data.
- Editing an absence creates two lines. The first line contains the version of the absence before editing with the tag “P”. The second line contains the updated version of the absence with the tag “U”. The first and second lines are created in separate files.
- It is possible to define multiple rule sets for an integration. If multiple rule sets are defined, recording an event may take slightly longer.
If absences are deleted from a person's calendar via mass actions, the deleted rows are created in a single file, even if there are multiple absence events. When copying absence events, a separate file is created for each event.
Settings
1. Defining persons' IDs
Persons' IDs can be defined in Employees > Person's information > Identifiers.
If the person's Mepco ID has not been set, employee number will be used.
2. Adding a target server
If there is no target server for the integration yet, add it in the Working Community settings under Integrations > Target servers. See Target servers for work time exports for general instructions on how to add a target server and set the SFTP settings.
SFTP settings for the target server must specify at least the SFTP server address, SFTP username, and SFTP password (or public key authentication).
3. Integration settings
In order to enable the integration, a rule set must be defined to generate the absence data. In the export options, select Accountor Mepco HRM (Absence or Annual leave) as the export format.
Select the target server for the integration, that you added in step 2.
The exact timestamp [timestamp-ms] must be added to the export file name, like in the example below. If a timestamp is not used, each file will have the same name and they will overwrite each other.
In Worktime > Administration > Working community settings > Integrations > Accountor Mepco HRM you can find general settings for what's included in the export data, with further instructions here.
4. Export scheduling to the target server
Finally, you need to set the export schedule for the target server buffer. You can read more about this in the article Target servers for worktime exports.
File format
The transfer file is UTF-8 formatted text data separated by semicolons (;) . There is no maximum length for the fields. in order for Mepco to receive the data, the same columns and settings are defined in Mepco.
The data transfer can also be done with just one project target.
Export data fields
| Column | Field | Ruleset field name | Format | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | Employee number | Automatically added, not replacable | string | Person's Mepco ID / employee number. |
| B | Absence start date | StartDateTime | date | The start date of the absence. |
| C | Absence end date | EndDateTime | date | The end date of the absence. |
| D | Person's name | Automatically added, not replacable | string | Person's last and first names. |
| E | Project code 1 | ProjectCode1 | string | Can be overridden in a rule set with field OverrideProjectCode1
|
| F |
Project code 2 |
ProjectCode2 | string | Can be overridden in a rule set with field OverrideProjectCode2
|
| G |
Project code 3 |
ProjectCode3 | string | Can be overridden in a rule set with field OverrideProjectCode3
|
| H |
Project code 4 |
ProjectCode4 | string | Can be overridden in a rule set with field OverrideProjectCode4
|
| I |
Project code 5 |
ProjectCode5 | string | Can be overridden in a rule set with field OverrideProjectCode5
|
| J | Salary code | SalaryCode | string | Can be overridden in a rule set with field OverrideSalaryCode
|
| K | Amount | Amount | decimal | The length of the absence, can be in hours or days. The decimal separator is a period (.). |
| L | Row type | Automatically added, not replacable | string |
Defines, whether the data is to be deleted or added in Mepco. Deletion: Addition: |
The data below shows a modified absence. A 6-hour absence has been modified to 8 hours. A deletion line ("P") is created from the previous version and an addition line ("U") is created from the new version.
1918;2024-12-12;2024-12-12;Meikäläinen Matti;1001;;;;;123;6.00;P 1918;2024-12-12;2024-12-12;Meikäläinen Matti;1001;;;;;123;8.00;U
Performing integration when recording an event
In the example below, an absence has been copied for five days in the calendar view.
When saving, each event creates its own file on the SFTP server, containing the data generated by the rule set. Please note that it is important to specify an exact timestamp [timestamp-ms] in the event name so that the files do not overwrite each other.
Performing integration manually
The integration can be performed manually inWorktime > Administration > Integrations > Accountor Mepco HRM absence export. This may be necessary, for example, when you want to completely rerun or delete data for a certain period.
Row and file type can be selected from the Context dropdown. For example, option "Deleted" creates deletion file with "P" rows.
The example below uses a previously created rule set "Populus absences". The integration rule is mandatory.
Overriding row type in integration rule
Sometimes it may be necessary to skip the generation of "P" or "U" rows when processing certain types of absences. To do this, three different variables can be used in the integration rule:
- :integrationContext - context, in which the integration is being executed ("P" or "U")
- :integrationContextForDeletedOrEditedActivities - Generation of row "P"
- :integrationContextForNewActivities - Generation of row "U"
The example below describes in a simplified way how only the addition markings "U" are created for paternity leave, but the deletion marking "P" is not created in connection with deletion or editing.
SELECT *, SUM(Amount) AS OverrideAmount,
MIN(SalaryRenderingDate) As OverrideStartDatetime,
MAX(SalaryRenderingDate) AS OverrideEndDatetime,
CASE
WHEN AbsenceTypeId = 11 THEN 'KERTAUS' -- Kertausharjoitukset
WHEN AbsenceTypeId = 3 THEN 'ISYYSVAPAA' -- Isyysvapaa
ELSE
'MUU VAPAA'
END AS OverrideSalaryCode
FROM UserSalaryData
WHERE CompensationType = 'BasicTime'
AND
AbsenceTypeId IS NOT NULL
AND
(AbsenceTypeId != 3 OR :integrationContext != :integrationContextForDeletedOrEditedActivities) -- Lähetä ainostaan U-rivit isyysvapaalle
AND isApproved = 'Y' -- Lähetä ainoastaan hyväksytyt tapahtumat
GROUP BY ActivityId
When a new paternity leave is added to the calendar, a file that includes the paternity leave with the addition mark "U" is created. If the paternity leave is edited, new file is created with the addition mark "U", but the previous version of the absence is not created with the deletion mark "P". If the paternity leave is deleted completely, no file is created.
If any other absence is added to the calendar, it will be processed according to the normal operating procedure of the integration.
Problem situations
Adding and deleting absences from Mepco
If you want to delete a larger number of absences entered in Mepco at once during a certain period, you can do so by performing a manual integration. Manual integration can also be used in the same way to add absences.
Setting changes
It is not recommended to make settings changes that affect the payroll data afterwards. For example, changing the length of the working day in the calendar view can also change the paid absence days. When making such changes, the integration is not run and any previously imported information about the absences will remain in Mepco. In such a situation, the following should be done:
- Delete the previously created absence in Mepco.
- Delete the current absence from Nepton. This will send a "P" line, which has no equivalent in Mepco.
- Add the absence again. This will create a "U" line, forming the data using the current settings.