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ovk_insulators
Level 1

Employee Showing as existing

Hi.

 

I am trying to add an employee, but I am getting the error that the name is already being used. Previously, when we first got the program, we had gone into the add employee screen and entered the name, just as a test to have a look at how things are set up. We did not save that entry and just backed out of the screen. No employee was created on the list. It even prompts to set up payroll and create first customer. The odd thing is, if i were to say, create an expense. The name shows up as an employee under the Payee dropdown as an employee. 

 

Can anyone help me with this?

Solved
Best answer December 31, 2018

Best Answers
ovk_insulators
Level 1

Employee Showing as existing

Thanks for the reply.

 

I solved the issue with a specialist over the phone.

The problem was that there was no employees in the list whatsoever to click and delete, despite it showing up as potential payee and taking up the space as a name. For some reason it was saving them as some sort of meta-data (?) for the time I went in and entered the name and exited. 

What ended up working:

  • Click Reports
  • Typed "customers" in the search bar
  • Clicked "customer contact list"
  • in the url, changed "CUST" to "EMP" to get an employee contact list report.       

That report showed these hidden? employees and i was able to make them inactive from there.

 

View solution in original post

6 Comments 6
SophiaAnnL
Moderator

Employee Showing as existing

Hello there, ovk_insulators.

 

I've replicated this and found that even if the initial set up was not saved, it will still be recorded in QBO. This happens if you entered the employee's W-4 details and closed the screen. QBO will auto save the information you entered in the program and will create a profile for the employee.

 

To fix this, you can delete the employee from the list and start over.

 

Here's how:

  1. Click Workers on the left panel.
  2. Select Employees.
  3. Click the employee's name on the list.
  4. In the employee's profile, click Delete employee at the bottom.
  5. Click Yes when prompted.

Please leave a reply if you're able to successfully set up the employee.

ovk_insulators
Level 1

Employee Showing as existing

Thanks for the reply.

 

I solved the issue with a specialist over the phone.

The problem was that there was no employees in the list whatsoever to click and delete, despite it showing up as potential payee and taking up the space as a name. For some reason it was saving them as some sort of meta-data (?) for the time I went in and entered the name and exited. 

What ended up working:

  • Click Reports
  • Typed "customers" in the search bar
  • Clicked "customer contact list"
  • in the url, changed "CUST" to "EMP" to get an employee contact list report.       

That report showed these hidden? employees and i was able to make them inactive from there.

 

KhimG
QuickBooks Team

Employee Showing as existing

Hi there, @ovk_insulators.

 

Thanks for the update. I’m glad to know you were able to resolve the issue.

 

If you need anything else, feel free to post again or leave a comment below. I’m always available here for all of your QuickBooks needs. Wishing you and your business continued success!

kevin-kotorynski
Level 2

Employee Showing as existing

Hi, I'm trying to add an employee using QBO.   I see "The name supplied already exists" error message at the top.  The employee does NOT show up when I list employees (Payroll->Employees).

Any ideas?  (I tried the workaround Reports solution on this thread, but the url does not have CUST in it...)

kevin-kotorynski
Level 2

Employee Showing as existing

A bit more info: I do see CUST_CONTACT in the url and when I change it to EMP_CONTACT I do see a list of active and inactive employees.  What I do not see is the name of the person I'm trying to add... help?

Thanks!

Maybelle_S
QuickBooks Team

Employee Showing as existing

Thanks for joining the thread, @kevin-kotorynski.

 

This error usually occurs when an employee, vendor, or customer is already using this name. Since you're done verifying the list of your employee, we can check each vendor's profile to see the duplicate.

 

Here's how:

  1. Go to the Expenses menu and then choose Vendors.
  2. Click each vendor to access its profile.
  3. Select the Edit button.
  4. Check the name entered in the Display name as section.
  5. If you’re able to find the duplicate, edit the format to “last, first” or add a digit at the end of the name.
  6. Click Save once done.

However, if you’re unable to find the duplicate from the vendor list, we can review your customers’ records and edit the display name. Here's the link: Error: The name supplied already exists.

 

I've added this article about adding an employee in QBO: Add, edit, or inactive an employee. It also includes the steps to make an employee inactive.

 

Don't hesitate to drop a comment below if you have other questions. I'm more than happy to help. Take care!

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