What do I need to access Maine Street?

You will need a computer with internet access and your userid and password.

If you currently have an UNET account (usually an email address ending "@maine.edu" or a login and password used to access UNET dialup modems), that same account will provide access to PeopleSoft. If you do not have an account, contact the USM HelpDesk at 780-4029.

Maine Street works with Windows ( XP & Vista) and Mac OS 9 and OS X and works with the latest web browsers. Always ensure you have the latest browser, since other browsers and other platforms may work fine, but are not supported by USM. Generally Mozilla and other browsers seem to work fine in Linux and other platforms. Again, browsers other than the approved IE may cause data loss, so use them at your own risk. Also see the Official Maine Street site Hardware Requirements page..

How often should I report my time?

You should coordinate with your department on how they are expecting you to report your time. The recommendation from Payroll is to enter time daily - at the end of each period of time worked.

What happens after I enter my time?

Each night the PeopleSoft system will check any time that has been entered. If any errors are found (working too long without a break, exceeding work study, forgetting to punch out, etc.) an error is flagged to the payroll Time Manager. They may contact you to resolve problems. Then, after a week's worth of time has been entered, your supervisor will access the system to approve your time (usually, by Monday at noon being the latest). Then you get paid.

When do I use the break punch?

Breaks are to be reported when you work for 6 (or more) straight hours. It is used to indicate a 10-15 minute paid break, not a situation where you punch out for lunch and punch back in when you come back. To record a break simply indicate when it occurred, you don't need to punch back from the break. An example is given in the Tutorial on Punch Time (see left column on this page).

Will the new system affect when I get my pay?

No. Time will be entered daily and approved weekly, but paychecks will be issued on a biweekly basis. You'll recieve your check on a Friday.

What about direct deposit?

We encourage this. There's a form on this page you can use to set this up. You can also change your direct deposit yourself on the PeopleSoft self-service screens.

I'm trying to save my time but get error "dates are out of range".

When you entered the time entry screen you were asked to select a date (which defaults to the current date.) The punch entry screen allows you to enter punches for that day and 6 days afterwards. The valid dates will be shown in the blue bar above where punches are recorded.

When saving my time I get error about two consecutive 'OUT' or 'IN' punches.

Carefully check your time and make sure that one of your punches was not accidentally recorded as AM instead of PM (or vice versa). Remember that if you do not specify 'PM' it assumes AM. So if you left work yesterday at 2:00PM, punched in today at 10:00AM and left at 12:30PM and recorded your out time as "12:30" without the 'P' then it sees you leaving at 2:00PM yesterday with another OUT at 12:30 this morning, with no IN in-between which causes the error.

I made a mistake with entering of my time, can I fix it?

If you just entered the time today, then go in and make the adjustments and resave the time. If it is later in the week (like the next day) and you are correcting a previous day, delete both the 'IN' and 'OUT' for the time you want to change -- even if you are only changing one of the times. Then re-enter both punches for that day. If it is the previous week or pay period, work with your supervisor. He may have already approved the time, and he will have to go back to re-approve any changes. Follow the same procedure as above to delete and re-enter time. If you or supervisor have any questions on altering time that has been approved, one of you should call the Student Payroll office at 780-5202.

HELP! My time is gone, where did it go?

Always remember to save your time. If you closed your web browser or signed out without saving, you will need to reenter the time. Also be aware that the punch screens only show the dates listed in the blue bar. So if yesterday was 7/7 and you entered and saved your time, and today you go in and just look at 7/8 through 7/14, you won't see yesterday's punches unless you click 'Return To Search' and enter 7/7. You may find it easiest to always work from the Sunday date of the week you're reporting in.

Additional Questions can be submitted via email to payroll@usm.maine.edu.