The problem it solves: Adjusting a leave balance used to mean changing one number. It worked – but it left no trace of why. Was that +5 days a correction to an entitlement? A reversed taken day? A carry-forward update? The record gave no answer. For HR teams handling audits, disputes, or staff handovers, that opacity created real risk.
On top of that, bulk leave operations – year-end corrections, back-dated approvals, legacy migrations – required separate processes or manual workarounds. There was no single, structured path to load both adjustments and taken leave in one go.
What we built: HR Blizz now lets you adjust leave balances at the component level – not as a single opaque figure. Every change captures a reason, a timestamp, and a source. And a single bulk upload can now carry both balance adjustments and leave taken records in the same file.
What this means for your team
Audits move faster
every adjustment is traceable to a specific component, a reason, and a user, with no reconstruction needed
Disputes are easier to resolve
instead of “the balance changed sometime last month,” you see exactly what changed, when, and why
Handovers become cleaner
incoming HR or payroll staff inherit a complete, self-explaining leave history rather than a set of unexplained figures
Year-end corrections, back-dated approvals, and legacy
migrations can all be executed in a single coordinated batch upload
What you can now adjust
Leave balance adjustments are made at the component level. The Total Balance is always calculated automatically – you never edit it directly.
| Component | What it represents |
|---|---|
| Entitlement | Total days granted for the current period |
| Entitlement Taken | Days already consumed from the entitlement |
| Carried Forward | Days brought in from a previous period |
| Carried Forward Taken | Days consumed from the carry-forward balance |
Bulk leave records – one upload, two types of data
The bulk upload screen now accepts both balance adjustments and leave taken records in a single file. You no longer need separate uploads or separate processes for each.
Ideal for:
- Year-end balance corrections across large employee populations
- Back-dated leave approvals that need to be reflected in the system quickly
- Migrating leave data from a legacy system or outgoing payroll provider
- Applying a one-off policy change across your entire workforce in a single batch
Best for: Organisations managing leave across large or distributed teams, particularly during year-end cycles, system transitions, or following policy changes that affect historical balances.
Important: How this feature works – read before first use
These are deliberate design decisions, not limitations. Please share these with your HR and payroll teams before using the feature for the first time.
Current-period and Draft status only
Adjustments are permitted only for the current payroll period, and only while it is in Draft status. Once a period moves to Review, Approved, or Closed, no further adjustments are accepted for that period. Future-dated adjustments are not supported.
Why this matters: This is intentional. It prevents reopening closed payroll runs and preserves the financial integrity of past periods. Plan your adjustments before the period moves out of Draft.
Total Balance editing has been removed
Direct editing of the Total Balance field is no longer available. All changes must be made through the underlying components. The Total is calculated automatically from those components.
What changed: If your team previously edited Total Balance directly, they will need to identify which component the change belongs to going forward. This is a one-time transition – the new process is faster and far more auditable.
Formula-driven leave types are excluded
Leave types calculated by a formula – such as maternity leave tied to gender, or childcare leave tied to dependents – cannot be adjusted through this feature. To change these balances, update the relevant employee attribute. The leave balance will recalculate automatically on the next cycle.
Bulk uploads are all-or-nothing
If any row in an uploaded file fails validation, the entire file is rejected. There are no partial commits. The preview screen shows exactly which rows have issues before you confirm – giving you the chance to fix errors and re-upload cleanly.
5. Duplicate prevention is built in. The system will not allow you to create a second adjustment for the same employee and leave type (or the same employee, leave type, and dates for Leave Taken rows). If a record already exists, you will be directed to edit it rather than create a duplicate.
Audience at a glance
| Role | Primary action |
|---|---|
| HR Manager | Make component-level adjustments for individual employees; review adjustment history |
| Payroll Admin | Manage bulk uploads; validate files before committing; oversee period status rules |
| Auditor / Compliance | Review full adjustment trail – reason, timestamp, source – per employee per leave type |
| Implementation Consultant | Use bulk upload for leave data migrations and legacy system transitions |
Works well with: Embedded Employee Change History – adjustment records are visible in the employee profile alongside other payroll changes, giving a complete picture in one place.
Learn more
- Questions about your configuration? Contact your Mercans Account Manager