When sending a document to an employee, such as an employment contract, you'll typically use the same original document but replace key pieces of information, such as the date, someone's name, address, job title or pay rate.
Instead of copying in the information manually, you can use Rotaready Merge Tags. Think of a merge tag like a placeholder that'll be automatically substituted with the correct value for the person you're sending the document to.
Take their name, for example. If you include {employeeName} anywhere in your document, it'll be automatically replaced with the full name of whoever you send the document to. There's also a tag to control where the signature box appears.
If you haven't already read our guide on Document Signatures, it's worth a quick glance first.
Using a Merge Tag
A Merge Tag is just a string of text; there's nothing special you need to do besides including it in your document.
When using a merge tag, make sure you do so exactly as shown in the examples below. It always begins with an open curly brace and ends with a closing curly brace. The text between the braces must be in camelCase and there must not be any spaces.
⚠️ A couple of things to bear in mind:
Some merge tags are permission-sensitive. This means you can't use a merge tag to substitute someone's pay rate if you don't have permission to view their pay rate. If you try, it'll be replaced with [***] instead.
Some merge tags might not have a value to substitute. For example, if you use the {employeeLineManager} merge tag, but the employee doesn't have a line manager, it'll be replaced with [???] instead.
Merge Tags
Capturing signatures and other input
These tags allow you to capture a signature, name or date.
Tag | Description |
{inputEmployeeSignature} | This controls where the signature box appears. It should be placed on its own line with at least 4 blank lines beneath, so the signature box doesn't overlap with anything else in your document. |
{inputEmployeeName} | This is replaced with an input box, requiring the employee to type their full name. |
{inputEmployeeDate} | This is replaced with an input box, requiring the employee to type a date. |
{inputEmployerSignature} | Only use this if your document requires a second signature on behalf of the employer. Much like the employee signature box, ensure this sits on its own line with at least 4 blank lines beneath. |
{inputEmployerName} | An input box for the employer signatory to type their name. |
{inputEmployerDate} | An input box for the employer signatory to type a date. |
Today's date
The following tags allow you to include today's date and time. The example substitutions below assume you're using Rotaready in the United Kingdom. If you're in a different locale, an appropriate representation will be used instead.
Tag | Example |
{date} | 30 March 2021 |
{dateShort} | 30/03/2021 |
{dateWithTime} | 30 March 2021, 14:34 BST |
{dateWithTimeShort} | 30/03/2021, 14:34 |
Employee tags
The following tags allow you to include information about the employee the document is being sent to.
🔒 Note: the Permission Required column denotes what permissions the sender must have, relative to the recipient employee, for the tag to be correctly substituted. If the sender tries to use a tag for something they aren't permitted to see, it will be replaced with [***]. If the document also requires a signature on behalf of the employer, the chosen employer signatory must have access to view the tags too. Always use the Download Preview option to test your document before sending it.
Tag | Description | Permission Required |
{employeeName} | Full name, e.g. John Smith |
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{employeeFirstName} | First name |
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{employeeLastName} | Last name |
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{employeeOtherNames} | Other name(s) |
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{employeePreferredName} | Preferred name |
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{employeeId} | Rotaready ID, e.g. 182 | Personal |
{employeeHRID} | HR ID | Personal |
{employeePayrollID} | Payroll ID | Personal |
{employeeEmail} | Email address | Personal |
{employeePhone} | Primary phone number | Personal |
{employeeAddress} | Full address, with line breaks | Personal |
{employeeAddressLine1} | Address line 1 | Personal |
{employeeAddressLine2} | Address line 2 | Personal |
{employeeAddressCity} | City/town | Personal |
{employeeAddressCounty} | County | Personal |
{employeeAddressPostCode | Post code | Personal |
{employeeAddressCountry} | Country | Personal |
{employeeBirthDate} | Date of birth in full format, e.g. 30 June 1984 | Personal |
{employeeStartDate} | Join date in full format, e.g. 17 April 2021 | Employment |
{employeeStartDateShort} | Join date in short format, e.g. 17/04/2021 | Employment |
{employeeEndDate} | Last day of employment in full format, e.g. 21 August 2021 | Employment |
{employeeEndDateShort} | Last day of employment in short format, e.g. 21/08/2021 | Employment |
{employeeNoticePeriod} | Notice period, e.g. 3 week(s) | Employment |
{employeeEmploymentNumber} | Employment number | Employment |
{employeeJobRole} | Job role | Employment |
{employeeLineManager} | Line manager name, e.g. Katherine Smart | Employment |
{employeeSite} | Site name | Employment |
{employeeDepartment} | Department name | Employment |
{employeeCompany} | Company name | Employment |
{employeeContractBasis} | Contract basis, e.g. full time | Employment |
{employeeContractualObligationAmount} | Contractual obligation amount, e.g. 37.5 | Employment |
{employeeContractualObligationUnit} | Contractual obligation unit, e.g. hours | Employment |
{employeeContractualObligationPeriod} | Contractual obligation period, e.g. week | Employment |
{employeePayrollCalendar} | Payroll calendar name, e.g. Salaried employees | Employment |
{employeePayrollCalendarFrequency} | Payroll calendar frequency, e.g. Monthly | Employment |
{employeeAllowanceScheduleOfAccrual} | Holiday allowance schedule of accrual, e.g. per year, per month, accruing for each hour worked | Employment |
{employeeAllowanceUnit} | Holiday allowance unit, e.g. days, hours | Employment |
{employeeAllowanceTotalAccrued} | Holiday allowance entitlement, e.g. 28 | Employment |
{employeeAllowanceEffectiveDate} | Holiday allowance effective date in full format, e.g. 1 January 2023 | Employment |
{employeeAllowanceEffectiveDateShort} | Holiday allowance effective date in short format, e.g. 01/01/2023 | Employment |
{employeePayAmount} | Pay rate without currency symbol, e.g. 12.50 | Pay |
{employeePayAmountType} | Pay amount type, e.g. hourly rate | Pay |
{employeePayFrequency} | Pay frequency, e.g. fortnightly | Pay |
{employeePayrollPaymentMethod} | Payroll payment method, e.g. Electronic Transfer, Cheque, Manual | Pay |
Employer tags
If your document also requires an employer signatory, these tags allow you to include information about the employer who will be signing.
Tag | Description | Permissions |
{employerName} | Full name, e.g. Richard Brown |
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{employerFirstName} | First name |
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{employerLastName} | Last name |
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{employerJobRole} | Job role |
|