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How to Set Up Game Fees

If you're an assignor or administrator looking to set up pay rates for game assignments, then this article is for you.

Bibs Leitzmann avatar
Written by Bibs Leitzmann
Updated over 6 months ago

If your organization is like the majority of the others on our platform, then you pay your officials for the games that they work.

We recognize that not every organization sets up game fees in the exact same way:

  1. Age Group-Based Structure. Some organizations have a simple fee structure, and base fees off of a game's age group (most common).

  2. League-Based Structure. Others have a more complex structure, and base fees off of a game's league or club.

  3. Experience-Based Structure. And some groups incorporate pay scales (tiered pay) into their process, paying officials different rates depending on each official's level of experience (least common).

We've created ways to set up (and track) each of these types of game fees, so you can build out the one(s) that are most relevant for you.

How to Set Up Game Fees.

1. Set Up your Site's Patterns & Positions.

πŸ‘‰ To set up a Pattern, follow the steps in this article.

Patterns are set up from the Maintenance β†’ Patterns page.

2. Set Up your Site's Age Groups and/or Leagues.

πŸ’‘ If your game fees are based off of only Age Groups, and not Leagues, then you can technically omit setting up Leagues. With that being said, if your games are part of multiple leagues anyway, then we recommend still setting them up.

πŸ‘‰ To set up Age Groups, follow the steps in this article.

Age Groups are set up from the Maintenance β†’ Ages & Fees page.

πŸ‘‰ To set up Leagues, follow the steps in this article.

Leagues are set up from the Maintenance β†’ Leagues page.

3. Add your Site's Game Fees.

Where to add your Game Fees:

If all of your Leagues (or clubs) pay the same game fees, then you'll want to set up your fees from the Ages & Fees page. This will apply fees to each game assignment based on the game's Age Group, Pattern, and Position.

If your Leagues (or clubs) have different game fees from one another, then you'll want to set up your fees from the Leagues page. This will apply fees to each game assignment based on the game's League, Age Group, Pattern, and Position.

Whether you're setting your game fees up from the Ages & Fees page or Leagues page, you can add those game fees...

  1. One Age Group or League at a time, by selecting Edit next to each,

  2. Or in Bulk, from the Batch Update Game Fees... button, at the top of either page.

How to add your Game Fees:

How to add Game Fees one Age Group or League at a time:

If your organization bases game fees on Age Groups only (regardless of League), you'll add your game fees from the Maintenance β†’ Ages & Fees page.

If your organization bases game fees on Leagues (and Age Groups), you'll add your game fees from the Maintenance β†’ Leagues page.

Then, you'll want to follow these steps:

1. Select the Edit button to the right of a league or age group, and scroll to the bottom of the page.

2. Update the Game Fees table.

You'll notice a table that lays out each pattern and position in your site, and will include a spot for a Default Fee for each.

If you're adding game fees by league, you'll also see patterns and positions broken down by age group in each game fees table.

πŸ’‘ Type your Default Fees into the table. You'll want to fill in fees for any/all age groups, patterns, and positions where officials will be owed a game fee.

3. Select Save.

When you're done with the age group or league you're working on, select Save.

4. Repeat these steps for each of your age groups or leagues.

How to add Game Fees in Bulk:

If you'd like to update fees in bulk (across multiple leagues, age groups, patterns, and positions), you can do so from the Batch Update Fees... button. This button can be found at the top of either the Ages & Fees or Leagues page.

Simply follow the on-screen prompts to:

  1. Add a game fee,

  2. Multi-select whatever criteria you want to be tied to that game fee,

  3. And Save your updates.

That's it! Again, just be sure to add a default fee to every age group, pattern, and position that could be found in a game assignment.

Game Fees β€” Frequently Asked Questions

1. How do I get the right game fees to show up for the right game assignments?

First, you'll want to set up your game fees, as we've walked you through in this article. πŸ‘† Then, when you add your games to the system, be sure you've added the correct League, Age Group, and Pattern to each game.

The system will tie the game fees you've set up for each Age Group, League, and Pattern to each corresponding game. You can learn how to import your games into the system here.

2. My organization pays officials different amounts, depending on how much experience each official has. How do I handle this on the platform?

We've created Pay Scales for exactly that! Pay Scales allow you to pay officials different amounts based on their level of experience. For example, if an official with 10 years of experience would make more money than a new official (for the same assignment in your organization), then Pay Scales would be a great option for you. You can learn how to set up Pay Scales here.

NOTE 🚨 If your organization pays officials different amounts based on games' Age Groups and/or Leagues only, then you do NOT need Pay Scales. Instead, you should follow the instructions in this article (above πŸ‘†). Pay Scales are ONLY for situations where pay differs based off of individuals' experience levels.

3. I have a specific game / assignment that has a unique game fee amount. Can I override the default fees or pay scale fees for one-off game assignments, as needed?

Yes! To do this, you'll want to follow these steps:

  1. Navigate to Games β†’ All Games.

  2. Next to the game you want to add an override fee to, select Edit.

  3. Under Assigned Officials & Fees, left click into whatever Game Fee text box needs updating, and type in the correct override fee.

  4. Repeat step 3 for whatever assignments need an override fee.

  5. Select Save.

4. How do I know which game fee will be used for a specific assignment?

The platform will calculate a specific assignment's game fee based on the following priorities (ranked first to last):

  1. An override fee assigned to a specific assignment (explained in FAQ #3 πŸ‘†).

  2. A league & pay scale fee, when a game's league has pay scale fees set up, and the assigned official is assigned to a given pay scale.

  3. The league default fee for that game's league, age group, pattern, and position.

  4. An age group & pay scale fee, when a game's age group has pay scale fees set up, and the assigned official is assigned to a given pay scale.

  5. The age group default fee for that game's age group, pattern, and position.

If a particular fee is left blank, the platform will look at the next fee in the list. For example, if the assignment override fee is blank, the league's default fees and pay scale fees are blank, and the age group's pay scale fees are blank, then the age group's default fee will be used for that assignment's pattern and position.

If the override fee is set to zero, the official will not be paid for that game.

5. Can officials view game fees for different assignments?

Officials cannot view game fees before they are assigned a game. Once they are assigned a position, they'll be able to view how much they'll make on that assignment.

6. Will officials be paid game fees even if they do not accept their assignment in the system?

Yes. If an official has been assigned to a game, they will be paid for the game, regardless of whether the status of the assignment is accepted, declined, or pending.

To prevent an official from being paid for a particular game, you can do one of the following things:

  1. Set the game's status to Canceled (no pay),

  2. Remove the official from the game, or

  3. Set the override fee to zero.

7. If I update Game Fees for an Age Group or League, will fees for past games in that Age Group/League update, as well?

Yes, if you update game fees within an Age Group or League, all games tied to that Age Group or League (whether past, present, or future) will reflect the updated game fees.

🚨 If you use the platform to pay your officials via direct deposit, then updates to game fees will not update any already-paid game payments. In other words, while the game fees that show up under the Games menu will always reflect the most up-to-date game fees, any prior game fee payments will remain as is.

8. How can I view a report that shows all game fees owed (or paid) to officials for a given date range?

Our Payroll Detail Report will give you this information! This can be done from the Reports menu item. You can learn more about running reports here.

Still have questions? Reach out to us at [email protected]! πŸ‘

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