Define Your Own Selection Criteria

If you select Criteria Table, the Criteria Table page opens, displaying the criteria you have previously defined using the Criteria Builder or FoxPro Expression Builder.

Use the Criteria Table to select a previously-defined code, or click Add New Code to open the FoxPro Expression Builder so that you can define your own criteria on an as-needed basis. You can also select the FoxPro Expression Builder from the drop-down list.

If you are using Sage HRMS, you can define Criteria codes for the selection criteria that you use. When you select a specific Criteria code, the system uses the corresponding expression defined for that code as the selection criteria.

Set up the Criteria code table in Sage HRMS to store the selection criteria you use most frequently. For instance, you might use these criteria to select specific employees or groups of employees for inclusion in a report or for participation in a benefit plan.

For more information see About Code Tables.

If you select Criteria Builder from the Custom Criteria drop-down list, the Criteria Builder page opens.

The Criteria Builder assists you in creating your own selection criteria. It enables you to build complex expressions by prompting you to select fields from the Personnel (HRPERSNL) database, relational operators, and values for comparison. The Criteria Builder also formats the expression for you.

The Criteria Builder references the Personnel file (HRPERSNL), meaning that all the fields you can select in the Field drop-down list originate from the Personnel file. To illustrate how to use the Criteria Builder, complete the following example. Suppose you want to select all employees with an original hire date before January 11, 2016.

1. Click the Field drop-down list and then select a field. For this example, select Original Hire Date.
2. Select the relationship you wish to establish between the field and the value. For this example, select Less Than.
3. Enter the value you want to test. For this example, enter the date January 11, 2016, as 01112016.
4. Click Done when you are finished, and click OK to return to the Mass Update Pay Rate dialog box. The expression now appears in the Custom Criteria drop-down list.

Tip: To help avoid data processing errors, wait until you are comfortable using expressions and are more knowledgeable of the Sage HRMS databases before creating these codes.

An expression for a selection criteria consists of three parts: a condition, a relationship, and a value of comparison. You can use the Expression Builder to help you build these three parts. From the Custom Criteria drop-down list, select Visual FoxPro Expression Builder to access the Expression Builder.

The Expression Builder helps you create the three parts of the expression for the Custom Criteria field. The box at the top of the Expression Builder is where your expression appears as you build it. You can use the other boxes to help build the expression.

To Build the Condition

The condition is the information you want to test for the selection criteria. For example, we want to test the original hire date for each employee.

In the Fields list, locate the field, p_orighire, in the list and double-click it. The Expression Builder inserts the field name into the Expression box as Pe.p_orighire.

For more information about database files and fields, see Data Dictionary.

To Select the Relationship

In the Logical list of the Functions group, locate the less than (<) symbol (to specify records with an original hire date less than a specific date) and double-click it. The Expression Builder inserts < into the Expression box.

To Build the Comparison Value

You can enter the value directly in the Expression box. Different types of values must be entered in different formats.

• Character values must be enclosed with "quotation marks"
• Date values must be entered as numbers and enclosed with {braces}
• Logical values (such as T or F for True or False) must be enclosed in periods: .T.
• Numeric values are entered directly: 235.12mast

1. With your cursor located at the end of the expression, enter the comparison value, June 1, 2016, and surround it with braces as follows: {06/01/2016}
2. The completed expression resembles the following example: Pe.p_orighire < {06/01/2016}
3. Click OK to close the Expression Builder.