Find out more how your firm can maximize efficiency in Payroll while offering a valuable benefit to your employees

1. Paper or Plastic: A Guide to Payroll Cards
How to take advantage of convenient, paperless payroll
distribution for your workforce.

2. Let us ask you a question - what would your organization do with an extra $100,000
dollars a year? We can’t say for sure, but we’re going to guess your answer isn’t to
issue more paper paychecks. But the truth of the matter is, if you’re issuing checks
to around 1,000 employees, that’s roughly how much you’re spending annually to
do so. Ouch! Good news – payroll cards are here to make you and your employees’
Fridays a little brighter (and cheaper).
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What is a Payroll Card and How Does it Work?
Payroll cards are an alternative to direct deposit or paychecks and are typically issued to an employee
at the onset of employment, though they can be issued at any time. They are automatically or manually
loaded every pay period using the exact process as your existing direct deposit, allowing employees to
use them as they would a debit card.
The chart below shows the four main steps involved in setting up a payroll card program.
You send your provider
a file containing
information for
employees who should
receive a card.
Update your existing
payroll system with
routing and account
numbers provided by
your provider.
Your provider delivers
payrolls cards to
employees.
Send payroll funds to
cardholders using the
exact same process
you use for other direct
deposit employees.

3. 2
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Why Should My Organization Use Payroll Cards?
Organizations are turning to payroll cards as an alternative to paper paychecks due to the numerous benefits for
organizations and their employees.
1
American Payroll Association
2
American Payroll Association
3
FDIC
4
Consumer Federation of America
5
MasterCard International
EASY, COST-EFFECTIVE WAY TO DISTRIBUTE EMPLOYEES’ WAGES
The average cost to produce and distribute a paper paycheck is $4.401
. That number doesn’t sound too scary until you
take into account the number of individuals you’re paying each pay period. Remember that $100,000 we discussed
earlier? By implementing a payroll card program, you’ll save money by eliminating the costs associated with paper
checks and by freeing up internal resources…every single pay period.
REDUCE FRAUD ASSOCIATED WITH LOST AND STOLEN CHECKS
Approximately 4 million payroll checks are lost or stolen each year2
, and considering time and fees, one replacement
check can easily cost up to $40. Not to mention they are arduous for your payroll department to process. Payroll cards
are easily replaced by the provider, and are much safer and more secure for employees than carrying large amounts of
cash.
HELP PAY UNBANKED OR UNDERBANKED EMPLOYEES
In 2014, approximately 17 million adults in the U.S. were unbanked3
and only one-fourth of the lowest-income workers
receive their wages via direct deposit4
. That is a significant population of employees receiving paper checks, which could
easily be replaced by payroll cards.
PROVIDE ADDITIONAL BENEFIT FOR EMPLOYEES
Payroll cards aren’t just for the unbanked. In fact, over 80% of payroll cardholders also maintain bank accounts5
!These
employees see the value in having a card that functions as a separate account, often with additional features and
benefits not offered by their bank.

4. ADMINISTRATOR BENEFITS EMPLOYEE BENEFITS
EASILY ISSUE AND REPLACE PAY
If a card is lost, instead of reissuing a paper check and incurring the
expenses associated with that process, the administrator has the option
to easily block the card and issue a new one to the cardholder in a matter
of minutes. Or, with many providers, the cardholders themselves can
order replacement cards directly.
REDUCE COST FOR EMPLOYEES TO CASH CHECKS
It is expensive for employees to cash checks, as in $11.20 on average
per check6
. That is a substantial withdraw from your employee’s pay,
and as a conscientious employer, you want to help your staff make the
most out of their earnings.
PAYING SEASONAL EMPLOYEES
Payroll cards are particularly useful for businesses with seasonal
or temporary workers. They make it easy to manage short-term
employees due to a quicker employee setup and immediate term pay.
And fewer checks mean reduced compliance and escheatment risks.
SAFETY AND SECURITY
Most employees will immediately cash their paycheck, which should
be one of the best parts of their week, but there are a couple of issues.
One, they are probably getting charged a fee like we discussed earlier.
Moreover, they now have to carry around large amounts of cash, which
is not nearly as secure as carrying around a payroll card.
HELP KEEP YOUR COMPANY RUNNING
Knock on wood, but unforeseen closures due to natural disasters,
power outages or a zombie apocalypse can happen…and your
employees will still need to be paid. Since payroll cards are
automatically loaded, exactly like direct deposit, you’ll be able to still
pay all your employees without interruption.
VISIBILITY INTO PURCHASES
Do you ever think you have cash but forgot you already spent it? This
happens to your employees, too, but it doesn’t have to. With a payroll
card, your employees can check their account balance by using a
mobile app or web portal, receiving text message alerts or calling an
IVR so they are always in-the-know about their pay.
REDUCED TIME AND EXPENSE
Printing checks, and re-printing lost checks, not only costs your
organization money but also consumes valuable time from your payroll
department’s day. By implementing payroll cards, they can use the
newly freed up resources to implement other strategic initiatives that
can also save you time and money. It’s the gift that keeps on giving!
CONVENIENCE WITH IMMEDIATE ACCESS TO FUNDS
Payroll cards are loaded automatically, which means there is no waiting
for distribution or unnecessary travel for an employee to receive their
pay. Plus, payroll cards give your employees accessibility to their funds
that cash does not provide. They will now have the ability to shop online
or withdraw cash when needed.
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Chexar Networks

5. What Should I Look for in a Payroll Card Provider
When researching payroll card providers, there are several things you should take into consideration:
• Extensive cardholder education: training materials should be available in multiple languages to support
the end user.
• Onsite training capabilities: your provider should be available to travel to your company to educate your
payroll staff and your end users on their new payroll cards.
• Experienced, dedicated client service representatives: whenever you have problems or questions, you
should be able to call the same person, not just a 1-800 number.
• World-class cardholder customer service: your employee’s paycheck is on the line, if they have an issue,
they should be able to get a hold of customer service 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
• Employer-facing web portal: enables your employees to order cards, register cardholder information, load
cards in real time, reporting, etc.
• Multiple options for funding cards in real time: options for funding off-cycle or termination pay using a
corporate line of credit, or by pre-funding a corporate account.
• ePaystub/W2 integration: the path to a truly paperless payroll environment can only take place with
electronic paystubs and W2s.
• Ability for cardholders to self-enroll for bank account transfers: plus multiple options for distribution of
funds to cardholder bank accounts.
• Additional cardholder benefits: such as merchant discounts, fuel rewards or healthcare provider discounts
will help all your employees appreciate the value of payroll cards as an additional employee benefit.
A payroll card program has many benefits for both your business and your employees. It can reduce costs, streamline
processes and mitigate risk for your business. What’s more, the convenience it offers your employees can serve to
strengthen your relationships. When looking for a payroll card provider, there are several key things to keep in mind.
Most importantly, look for a trusted, payment industry leader who offers a dedicated support team to ensure that your
business succeeds with its payroll card program.
To learn more, contact Comdata at
1.800.COMDATA or payments@comdatda.com
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6. For more than 45 years, Comdata has been a leading provider of innovative B2B payment and operating technology. By
combining our unique capabilities in technology development, credit card issuing, transaction processing and network
ownership, we help our clients build electronic payment programs that positively impact their bottom line and operate
their businesses more efficiently. We continuously evolve our products by focusing on our customer’s needs to provide
security, accessibility, and profitability.
Comdata is part of one of the largest payment companies in the world and is the second largest commercial issuer of
MasterCard in North America. Our 8,000 employees partner with companies in 53 countries to manage more than 1.9
billion fleet, corporate purchasing, payroll and healthcare transactions annually.
About Comdata
www.comdata.com
1.800.COMDATA
payments@comdata.com
The Comdata MasterCard is issued by Regions Bank, pursuant to
a license by MasterCard International Incorporated. MasterCard is
a registered trademark of MasterCard International Incorporated.
Comdata is a registered trademark of Comdata Inc.
©2016 Comdata Inc. All rights reserved.
20171019_WP_Payroll-CFOs
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©2017 Comdata Inc. All rights reserved.