When an employee is linked through the Rotaready integration, their Payroll ID field in Paycircle is automatically managed based on the Payroll ID held in Rotaready. The sections below explain how that mapping works, when the field is locked, and how to make changes if you need to.
Payroll ID mapping
Situation in Rotaready | Outcome in Paycircle |
No Payroll ID set | Paycircle assigns its own sequential ID. Field stays editable. |
A unique Payroll ID | Applied to the Payroll ID field. Field is locked, greyed out. |
A Payroll ID already in use when the employee is first created | Paycircle assigns its own sequential ID instead. A warning appears in the Rotaready Updates log. Field stays editable. |
A Payroll ID added later, once the employee already exists in Paycircle | The Payroll ID field updates to the new value and locks. |
A Payroll ID already in use, on an update to an existing employee | The existing Paycircle Payroll ID is kept unchanged rather than regenerated, and a warning appears in the log. This protects employees who have already been paid or submitted to HMRC from having their Payroll ID silently changed. |
Payroll ID removed in Rotaready | Paycircle keeps the existing value, but unlocks the field, and a warning appears in the log. |
Why the field may be locked
When Rotaready is managing an employee's Payroll ID, Paycircle locks the field to keep the two systems in step. You'll see a message next to the field explaining this:
This field is managed by your integration. To make changes, update the Payroll ID in your connected system.
Making a change to a locked payroll ID
If the field is locked, update the Payroll ID in Rotaready rather than in Paycircle. The updated value will flow through, and Paycircle will update automatically.
Warnings in Rotaready's update log
You may see the following messages in the Rotaready Updates log:
đNote: If you see one of these warnings, check and correct the Payroll ID in Rotaready to keep both systems aligned.
Payroll ID already in use, employee first created:
Payroll ID [X] supplied from Rotaready for [Employee Name] is already in use. A sequential ID has been assigned. Please amend the Payroll ID in Rotaready.
Payroll ID already in use, existing employee updated:
Payroll ID [X] supplied from Rotaready for [Employee Name] is already in use. The existing Paycircle Payroll ID has been retained. Please amend the Payroll ID in Rotaready.
Payroll ID removed in Rotaready:
The Payroll ID for [Employee Name] has been removed in your connected system. The field is now editable in Paycircle. Update with care.
Recommended actions
Keep Payroll IDs unique across your Rotaready organisation to avoid conflict warnings.
Make Payroll ID changes in Rotaready when the field is locked in Paycircle, rather than trying to edit it directly in Paycircle.
Check the Rotaready Updates log for Payroll ID warnings and resolve them promptly, particularly for new starters.
This behaviour applies in multi-payroll setups too â the same locking and warning logic applies regardless of how many payrolls an employee's records span.