Adding Employees
Every member of your team needs a profile in StaffBrik before they can be assigned to shifts. This guide walks through creating employees manually - the most common approach when onboarding new hires.
If you already have staff set up in Xero Payroll, you can import them directly instead of entering details by hand.
Creating an Employee
Navigate to StaffBrik > Employees and click Add Employee. The onboarding wizard walks you through each section, but you can also fill in the full form directly.
Required Fields
| Field | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|
| First name | Employee's given name | Sarah |
| Last name | Employee's surname | Patel |
| Phone (UK mobile) | Used as the employee's login credential | 07700 900123 |
| For notifications and correspondence | sarah.patel@email.co.uk | |
| Employment type | Contracted, zero-hours, or casual | Contracted |
| Base hourly rate | The employee's standard pay rate | £11.44 |
| Start date | First day of employment | 01/03/2026 |
| Access level | What the employee can see and do in Brikly | Employee |
Optional but Recommended Fields
| Field | Description | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Gender | Male, female, or prefer not to say | Used for workforce reporting |
| Date of birth | Employee's DOB | Determines NI category eligibility (under 21, apprentice under 25) |
| Contracted hours | Weekly hours guaranteed in the contract | Leave blank for zero-hours staff |
| NI category | National Insurance category letter | Defaults to A if not set - see table below |
| Qualifying days | Days of the week the employee normally works | Used for SSP calculations |
| Pension opt-in | Whether the employee is enrolled in auto-enrolment pension | Defaults to opted in for eligible employees |
Phone Number as Login
StaffBrik uses the employee's UK mobile number as their login credential. When they first access the system, they receive a verification code via SMS.
Each phone number must be unique across your organisation. If an employee changes their number, update it in their profile before they try to log in with the new one.
Employment Types
Choose the type that matches the employee's contract:
- Contracted - the employee has a fixed weekly hours commitment (e.g., 30 hours per week). Enter their contracted hours alongside this selection.
- Zero-hours - the employee has no guaranteed hours but is available to be scheduled. Leave contracted hours blank.
- Casual - for irregular, ad-hoc workers such as event staff or seasonal help. Similar to zero-hours but typically with even less regularity.
Employment type affects how StaffBrik calculates SSP eligibility and contracted-hours reporting. It does not restrict how you schedule shifts - a zero-hours worker can still be given a full week of shifts.
NI Categories
National Insurance categories determine the rate of employer NI contributions. Setting the correct category ensures your data is accurate when it flows through to payroll.
| Category | Who it applies to | Employer NI rate |
|---|---|---|
| A | Standard - most employees aged 21 to State Pension age | Standard rate |
| M | Employees under 21 | Reduced rate (0% up to the Upper Secondary Threshold) |
| H | Apprentices under 25 | Reduced rate (0% up to the Apprentice Upper Secondary Threshold) |
| C | Employees at or above State Pension age (currently 66) | No employer NI on earnings up to the Upper Secondary Threshold |
If you employ young staff - common in cafes and bakeries - double-check their NI category. Setting an under-21 barista to category M instead of A can save meaningful employer NI contributions over the year.
Base Hourly Rate
Enter the employee's standard hourly rate in pounds. This is the rate used when calculating shift costs on the rota.
A few things to keep in mind:
- The rate must meet or exceed the current National Minimum Wage / National Living Wage for the employee's age group.
- If you pay different rates for different roles (e.g., a team member who earns more when they act as shift supervisor), you can override the rate at the shift level in the rota builder.
- Rate changes are tracked in the employee's pay rate history, so you always have a record of what was paid and when.
Access Levels
Each employee is assigned an access level that controls what they can see and do in Brikly:
| Level | What they can do |
|---|---|
| Owner | Full access to everything - settings, billing, all locations, all employees, all reports |
| Manager | View and manage employees and rotas for their assigned location(s). Cannot access billing or organisation-wide settings |
| Employee | View their own shifts, request time off, and see published rotas. Cannot edit rotas or view other employees' pay details |
Be careful assigning the Owner level - it grants access to billing and organisation settings. Most venue managers should be set to Manager.
The Onboarding Wizard
For a guided experience, use the onboarding wizard (launched automatically when you click Add Employee). It walks through:
- Personal details - name, contact information, date of birth, gender.
- Employment setup - type, start date, hourly rate, contracted hours.
- Payroll details - NI category, qualifying days, pension opt-in.
- Access and location - access level and which location(s) the employee belongs to.
- Review and confirm - summary of all details before saving.
You can skip back and forth between steps. Nothing is saved until you confirm on the final step.
Multi-Location Assignment
If you operate multiple sites, you will be asked to assign the employee to one or more locations during setup. An employee can belong to more than one location - useful for staff who float between venues (e.g., a head baker who splits time between your production kitchen and a retail shop).
What Happens Next
Once an employee is created:
- They appear in the employee list for their assigned location(s).
- They can be scheduled on the rota builder.
- They receive an SMS with instructions to log in (if they have the Employee or Manager access level).
- Their details are available for payroll export to Xero.