System Overview

The Payroll/Personnel Inquiry System (PINQ) procedure provides instructions for querying employee payroll data in the Payroll/Personnel database. PINQ Payroll/Personnel Inquiry System is an inquiry system of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). It provides immediate access to one calendar year of employee data.

PINQ Payroll/Personnel Inquiry System and the Information Research/Inquiry System (IRIS) are used by Agency offices as tools for researching inquiries received from employees and other sources. Some users may require the National Finance Center's (NFC) assistance in resolving inquiries and/or explaining the data displayed in the PINQ Payroll/Personnel Inquiry System/IRIS Information/Research Inquiry System screens.

The data displayed in PINQ Payroll/Personnel Inquiry System/IRIS Information/Research Inquiry System is generated from three types of data processed in Payroll/Personnel System (PPS).

• Payroll Actions. Payroll actions are processed through NFC National Finance Center's entry systems, or transmitted through Employee Express, and then applied to the Payroll/Personnel database.
• Personnel Actions. Personnel data is entered through NFC National Finance Center's entry systems and front-end systems used by the Agency, and are applied to the Payroll/Personnel database.
• Time and Attendance (T&A) Data. T&A Time and Attendance data is prepared, certified, and electronically transmitted to NFC National Finance Center from Agency locations. The T&A Time and Attendance is then processed and edited through the Time and Attendance Validation System (TIME), and the data is applied to the Payroll/Personnel database.

Note: Although other entry systems may be used, for the purposes of this procedure, certain PINQ Payroll/Personnel Inquiry System screens may reference the Web-based Entry, Processing, Inquiry, and Correction System (EPIC Web); Front-End System Interface (FESI); or EmpowHR.

After data is processed in the various subsystems, it is retrieved from the different areas of the database and displayed in the applicable PINQ Payroll/Personnel Inquiry System/IRIS Information/Research Inquiry System screen(s).