Understanding Onboarding Employment Dates

About this article: PickTrace uses five employment dates, each with a different purpose, system trigger, and level of editability. Knowing which date does what prevents errors on federal and state compliance forms.

Date	Definition	System Trigger	Editable?	Included in Federal/State Forms?
Start Date	First working day of the active employment period.	Defaults to date of onboarding. For non-onboarded employees: first timecard check-in.	Yes	I-9, W-4 [First Date of Employment]
Hire Date	First-ever hire date with this employer.	Defaults to date of onboarding.	Yes	Michigan W-4 [Date of Hire]
Rehire Date	Date the employee is rehired after termination.	Not set automatically — must be manually entered.	Yes	No
Onboarded Date	Date the onboarding workflow is completed.	Set automatically when onboarding is completed.	No	No
Termination Date	Date employment has ended.	Set automatically when employee is archived.	Yes	No

The Employment History Timeline

Employment dates don't exist in isolation — they live inside the Employment History Timeline, a visual record on each employee's profile that shows all of their employment periods in sequence. Each period displays a hire date (green icon) and a termination date (red icon). Past periods stack below the most recent, giving you a clear, chronological view of the employee's full work history with that employer.

When you archive an employee, their current period ends and a termination date is recorded. When you rehire them, a new period begins. The timeline updates automatically to reflect both.

If an employee has worked under multiple employers, use the employer name selector at the top of the Employment Information section to switch between their separate timelines.

How Employment Dates Behave When Rehiring

Rehiring an employee is one of the most common scenarios where date errors occur. Here's what to expect and what to check:

Action	What Happens Automatically	What You Must Do Manually
Archive an employee	Termination Date is set to today	Adjust Termination Date if the actual end date differs
Rehire (unarchive) an employee	Start Date and Hire Date default to today; a new employment period begins	Correct Start Date and Hire Date if needed; enter the Rehire Date

To adjust any employment date after a rehire: go to the employee's profile and select Edit Employment. The Employment History Timeline is your best reference for confirming that all periods are recorded accurately.

Important Notes for Employment Dates

• Start Date and Hire Date both default to today during onboarding — confirm they reflect the employee's actual dates before submitting.
• Rehire Date must be entered manually. It is not set by any system action.
• Onboarded Date is the only date that cannot be edited.
• Michigan employers: Hire Date appears as Date of Hire on the state W-4.