How salon staff commission works

What counts as a staff member's work?

Their work is what customers actually paid for the services that person performed: after any discount, and without the tax or the tip. A discount given at the counter therefore lowers commission, and tax never inflates it.

When one bill covers services by two people, each is credited with a share of it in proportion to the price of their own services.

Commission is worked out on services. A product sale can be recorded against the staff member who made it, so you can see what each person sold, but it does not add to their commission.

What is a commission cutoff?

A cutoff is an amount of work each staff member covers before commission starts. Hajza takes it off their total work for the pay period once, not off each bill, then applies the rate, and commission never goes below zero.

The salon sets one cutoff for everyone, and a staff member can have their own instead.

How do bonus tiers work?

A bonus tier pays a fixed amount when a staff member's work for the period reaches a target. With several tiers, the highest one reached is paid, not the sum of all of them.

Daily, weekly or monthly pay?

Each staff member is paid daily, weekly or monthly. Daily staff are settled on the shift report when the day closes. Weekly and monthly staff are settled on the payroll view over their own week or month, so the cutoff and any bonus apply once across the whole period.

Where do wages and overtime come in?

A staff member can have a base wage for their period as well as commission. Overtime is the hours worked times the salon's overtime rate, and the rate is saved with the entry, so changing it later does not change pay already worked out. Total pay is wage plus commission plus bonus plus overtime.

Does changing a rate rewrite past pay?

No. Each booking keeps the commission rate and the cutoff it was taken at. Raise a stylist's rate today and her earlier bookings are still paid at the old rate.

Worked examples

Each figure below is worked out by the same code Hajza uses to pay staff, and a test fails if this page and that code ever disagree.

1. A daily cutoff

   The situation

   A stylist is paid daily at 20% commission, and the salon's cutoff is Rs 1,000. Today she does a Rs 5,000 colour and a Rs 3,000 cut, with no discount.

   The working

   Her work for the day is Rs 8,000. Taking off the Rs 1,000 cutoff once leaves Rs 7,000, and 20% of Rs 7,000 is Rs 1,400.

   Commission for the day: Rs 1,400

2. A discount at the counter

   The situation

   A barber on 10% commission, with no cutoff, does a Rs 2,000 service, and the customer is given a Rs 200 discount.

   The working

   The customer pays Rs 1,800, so that is his work. 10% of Rs 1,800 is Rs 180, where the full price would have earned Rs 200.

   Commission: Rs 180

3. Bonus tiers

   The situation

   A therapist on 10% commission, with no cutoff, does Rs 12,000 of work in a day. The spa pays a Rs 100 bonus at Rs 5,000 of work and a Rs 300 bonus at Rs 10,000.

   The working

   Her commission is 10% of Rs 12,000, which is Rs 1,200. She has reached both targets and the highest one pays, so her bonus is Rs 300, not Rs 400.

   Commission Rs 1,200, bonus Rs 300

4. A monthly salary with commission and overtime

   The situation

   A stylist is paid monthly: a salary of Rs 30,000 and 10% commission, with the salon's Rs 1,000 cutoff. This month she does Rs 8,000 of work in one shift and Rs 4,000 in another, and works 5 hours of overtime at Rs 100 an hour.

   The working

   Her work for the month is Rs 12,000. The cutoff comes off once, leaving Rs 11,000, and 10% of that is Rs 1,100. Overtime is 5 hours at Rs 100, which is Rs 500. Her pay is Rs 30,000 plus Rs 1,100 plus Rs 500.

   Pay for the month: Rs 31,600