Transaction S95 - Death

General Information | Audit Instructions | Audit Messages

Permanent separation used to separate an employee upon his/her death.

PIMS Coding Matrix

General Information

1. When an employee occupies more than one position at the same campus, at different campuses or at civil service agencies, a separation document must be prepared for each position. In situations where the employee worked at more than one campus or agency, the campus first notified of the death should coordinate the separation by notifying the other campus or agency to insure that the date and time of death are reported correctly. An S95 transaction must be processed for all deceased employees, except for A54 (Temporary Appointment - Special Payment) positions.

2. The effective date (Item 210) of the S95 is always the actual date of death, and it may not be extended. The following conditions affect the final salary payment:

1. If an employee was on sick leave, vacation, or CTO at the time of death, or the workday prior to death, they will receive payment for the day of death.

2. If the date of death occurs on a holiday, payment is made for the holiday.

3. If the date of death occurred while the employee was on-the-job, payment is made for the entire day.

4. If death occurred while the employee was on-the-job and was the result of an industrial accident, payment is made for the entire day.

5. If the employee became ill on-the-job and was placed on sick leave prior to death, payment is made for the entire day.

6. Accumulated vacation and overtime must always be paid by lump sum. Fractions of hours are to be reported in tenths.

7. Additional vacation may be credited by projecting the lump sum as if the employee had remained on the payroll and had taken the time off. Holidays falling within the period covered by lump sum increase the number of vacation days to be paid.

8. Wages paid to a deceased employee are not subject to either Federal or State Income Tax withholding. An E03 transaction, Withholding Allowance Change, must be processed with the separation for pay to generate correctly. (See EAR Section III, Part IV.)

9. Refer to SCO Payroll Letter #95-005 regarding direct deposit and SCO notification requirements.

10. If an employee's death occurs prior to the end of a pay period and a master warrant has already been issued, that warrant must be returned to payroll services for adjustment because code deductions are treated differently when a separation is for death. Never attempt to "cover" unworked time or transfer funds; return the warrant for adjustment.

11. If the employee participates in a tax shelter annuity, refer to the SCO Payroll Procedures Manual Section I 318 and Technical Letter 91-07 regarding warrants with TSA's.

Audit Instructions

1. If separating a temporary faculty unit employee with a three-year appointment pursuant to Provision 12 of the Collective Bargaining Agreement, delete the information in Item 704B by entering ’*’ EOF. For more information, refer to Technical Letter HR/EHDB 2004-01.

2. If the S95 is effective mid-month for an academic, 8/12, 10/12, or 11/12 employee, then Item 810 must reflect all pay due for the pay period.  

3. If the employee was on the FERP program, Item 962 must be deleted.

4. If a year-end settlement adjustment was requested via PIP because of a time base change or dock and the employee subsequently passed away in the same pay period, the S95 should reflect the amount paid in Final Settlement Pay (Item 810). Submit the PPT to CSU Audits for processing. Submit the PPT to CSU Audits for processing.

   • If the separation was keyed without settlement pay, a corrected transaction with Item 810  completed can be keyed at the campus.

   • Refer to General Instructions (above) for additional information for employees whose death occurs prior to the end of a pay period.

5. If the separation must be voided and/or re-entered, refer to Lump Sum To Be Paid (Item 621) and Settlement Pay (Item 810).

Audit Messages

None

Last Updated: September 13, 2023