# Absences, holidays and the seventh day

> How to record absences and holidays so payroll pays (or deducts) the seventh day and holidays correctly.

Source: https://resources.aragro.com/en/absences-holidays-seventh-day/
Language: en

Relative links and media resolve against the source URL.

> **Availability:** Absences, holidays and payroll depend on the features enabled in your account and your role's permissions. If an option does not appear, [contact Aragro support](mailto:hola@aragro.com).

Three things decide how much is paid for days not worked: **absences**, **holidays** and the **seventh-day** rules in your payroll structure. If one is missing, payroll won't match what you expect. This guide explains how they fit together.

## How they fit together

- **Work orders** record the days worked.
- **Absences** explain the days not worked: whether they are paid, and whether they cost the seventh day.
- **Holidays** mark the period's public holidays.
- **The payroll structure** uses that data in its formulas (for example, `attendedDays`, `paidLeaves`, `holidays` and `holidayPay`). See [Payroll component formulas](/en/payroll-formulas/).

## Absences

1. **Create the absence reasons** once, following your company policy and your country's law. For each reason, set whether it is **paid** and whether it **costs the seventh day**. For example, a `Social security leave` reason can be unpaid.
2. **Assign the absence** to the worker in **Absence assignments**, with its reason and a **date range**. One record covers several days.
3. **Complete the assignment** so payroll takes it into account.

The step-by-step with screens is in [Absences](/en/absences/).

## Holidays

Set up holidays in **Holidays** before generating the period's payroll. A holiday can apply **nationally** or to a single **farm**.

How they are paid depends on your rules and your country. Some examples we often see in Guatemala (confirm them with your accountant):

- The holiday is paid in full to workers on a fixed or daily wage, whether they work or not.
- If someone works on a holiday, that work is recorded on its work order like any other day.
- Some companies don't pay holidays to piecework-only workers. In that case, the rule must be in the formula, or the amount is deducted in the payroll entry.

## Seventh day

The seventh day is the paid weekly rest day. The most common rule is: if the worker completes the week, they get the seventh day; if they have an absence that costs the seventh day, it isn't paid.

In Aragro that rule lives in two places:

- **The absence reason** says whether that absence costs the seventh day.
- **The seventh-day formula** in your payroll structure says how it is calculated and what it is worth (for example, the daily wage for each full week).

Check both when a seventh day comes out different from what you expect.

## If payroll doesn't match

| What you see | Likely cause | What to do |
| --- | --- | --- |
| A worker is missing the seventh day | A work order is missing for some day, or they have an absence that costs the seventh day. | Check their work orders in the [pre-payroll](/en/run-payroll/) and their absences for the period. |
| A holiday isn't paid | The holiday isn't set up for that farm or date, or the formula doesn't include it. | Check **Holidays** and the holiday component's formula. |
| A holiday was paid to someone it shouldn't be | The formula doesn't distinguish the type of worker. | Adjust the formula or deduct the amount in the payroll entry. |
| The absence isn't reflected | The assignment isn't completed, or it was recorded after payroll was generated. | Complete it and click **Generate Payroll** again. |

### If the payroll is already completed

To add an absence that was missed in a closed period:

1. Revert the work order for the affected day.
2. Record and complete the absence.
3. Re-create the work order without that worker, or with the correct data.
4. If the payroll entry is still in Draft, click **Generate Payroll** again. If it was already completed, revert it (it moves to Reverted) and generate a new entry for that period.

See [Correct a completed work order, purchase or payroll](/en/correct-completed-documents/).

If you have a question this guide does not answer, contact us in the Aragro chat or write to [hola@aragro.com](mailto:hola@aragro.com).