The work year begins with the Refresh Week at the end of October — the close of the previous year's Q4 cycle and the start of the new one. Every month runs exactly 28 days. Every week runs Saturday through Friday. No broken weeks. No split pay periods. A calendar built around how work actually happens.
The Gregorian calendar — the one the government, the IRS, and most employers use — was designed for record-keeping, not for work schedules. Months range from 28 to 31 days. Weeks get split across month-end. Pay periods land in the middle of a workweek. The result is confusion: workers never know exactly where they stand.
CHAPPS operates on a different premise: every pay cycle must be a complete week, and every month must contain complete weeks. When your pay period never starts on a Thursday or ends on a Tuesday, everything becomes clear. You always know exactly how many hours you have accumulated, how many days remain in the quarter, and when your next quarterly salary refresh arrives.
The CHAPPS fiscal year starts in November — not January, not October. It was built that way intentionally, anchored outside the government's fiscal year, outside the retail calendar, outside the tax season. The CHAPPS year belongs to the worker.
28–31 day months, weeks split across month-end, no predictable pay period alignment
28-day months exactly, weeks run Sat–Fri, pay periods always begin on Saturday
November marks the beginning of the fourth quarter of the standard calendar year — when many companies are finalizing budgets, when workers are evaluating their position, and when the decisions about the next year are being made. Starting the CHAPPS fiscal year here puts the worker ahead of the conversation every time.
Every CHAPPS member follows the same calendar structure. These four rules govern every pay period, every accumulation cycle, and every quarterly refresh.
The CHAPPS fiscal year begins with the Refresh Week at the close of October — Q4 pays out, accumulation resets, and the new year begins. Week 1 falls in late October into November.
Every month in the CHAPPS system is treated as exactly 28 days — four complete weeks. This standardizes accumulation across all 12 months so February is never short-changed.
Every CHAPPS work week begins Saturday and ends Friday. SAT → SUN → MON → TUE → WED → THU → FRI. A complete 7-day cycle. Every week. No exceptions.
Every 15 weeks — once per quarter — accumulated hours from the “Next Year’s Salary” category convert to the worker’s active salary. The cycle resets. The accumulation begins again.
Every CHAPPS month uses exactly 28 days (4 weeks). Leftover days from standard calendar months accumulate — when 7 days stack up, an extra week is added to the next month, creating a 5-week month. This happens 4 times per year (Months 4, 7, 9 & 12), pushing the year to 60 total weeks and producing 2 carry-over months (13 & 14). Every week runs Saturday through Friday. Checks issue every 21 days (3 weeks) for 80 hours of work — 20 pay periods per fiscal year.
Within the CHAPPS 40-hour work week, 10 hours per week are classified as “Next Year’s Salary.” These hours are non-taxable and they accumulate week after week, untouched. At the end of each 12-week quarter, that accumulation converts — directly, automatically — into the worker’s salary for the next quarter.
This is self-funded salary advancement. No bank loan. No government program. No employer approval. You worked 12 weeks. You pre-funded yourself. The money is yours.
This mechanism is also what makes CHAPPS retirement work. After enough quarters of accumulation, the salary pre-funding continues paying even after a worker stops clocking in — because the structure was never dependent on active employment. The clock keeps running.
See How Retirement Works| Hourly Rate | 10 hrs/wk × 12 wks | Quarterly Accumulation | Taxable? |
|---|---|---|---|
| $20/hr General worker |
120 hours | $2,400 | No |
| $30/hr Skilled trade |
120 hours | $3,600 | No |
| $50/hr Supervisor |
120 hours | $6,000 | No |
| $100/hr Specialist |
120 hours | $12,000 | No |
| Annual Total (4 quarters) | 4× quarterly amount | None | |
The accumulation is pre-funded from the worker’s own labor — it is never a gift, a grant, or a benefit that can be cut. It is earned, documented, and owned.
These tables show exactly how each fiscal year maps months, weeks, and clockable hours — from the October refresh week through the following October.
| MOS | WKS | HRS | CALENDAR YEAR |
|---|---|---|---|
| OCT | 1 | 40 | Wk 1 — Fiscal Year Refresh / Carry-In Week |
| NOV | 4 | 160 | Wks 2–5 |
| DEC | 4 | 160 | Wks 6–9 |
| JAN | 5 | 200 | Wks 10–14 |
| FEB | 4 | 160 | Wks 15–18 |
| MAR | 4 | 160 | Wks 19–22 |
| APR | 5 | 200 | Wks 23–27 |
| MAY | 4 | 160 | Wks 28–31 |
| JUN | 4 | 160 | Wks 32–35 |
| JUL | 5 | 200 | Wks 36–40 |
| AUG | 4 | 160 | Wks 41–44 |
| SEP | 4 | 160 | Wks 45–48 |
| OCT | 4 | 160 | Wks 49–52 |
| TOTAL | 52 | 2,080 | 40 hrs/wk × 52 wks — 5-week months: JAN, APR, JUL |
| MOS | WKS | HRS | CALENDAR YEAR |
|---|---|---|---|
| OCT | 1 | 40 | Wk 1 — Fiscal Year Refresh / Carry-In Week |
| NOV | 4 | 160 | Wks 2–5 |
| DEC | 5 | 200 | Wks 6–10 |
| JAN | 4 | 160 | Wks 11–14 |
| FEB | 4 | 160 | Wks 15–18 |
| MAR | 4 | 160 | Wks 19–22 |
| APR | 5 | 200 | Wks 23–27 |
| MAY | 4 | 160 | Wks 28–31 |
| JUN | 4 | 160 | Wks 32–35 |
| JUL | 5 | 200 | Wks 36–40 |
| AUG | 4 | 160 | Wks 41–44 |
| SEP | 5 | 200 | Wks 45–49 |
| OCT | 4 | 160 | Wks 50–53 |
| TOTAL | 53 | 2,120 | Extra week adds 40 hrs — 5-week months: DEC, APR, JUL, SEP |
| MOS | WKS | HRS | CALENDAR YEAR |
|---|---|---|---|
| OCT | 1 | 40 | Wk 1 — Fiscal Year Refresh / Carry-In Week |
| NOV | 4 | 160 | Wks 2–5 |
| DEC | 5 | 200 | Wks 6–10 |
| JAN | 4 | 160 | Wks 11–14 |
| FEB | 4 | 160 | Wks 15–18 |
| MAR | 5 | 200 | Wks 19–23 |
| APR | 4 | 160 | Wks 24–27 |
| MAY | 4 | 160 | Wks 28–31 |
| JUN | 5 | 200 | Wks 32–36 |
| JUL | 4 | 160 | Wks 37–40 |
| AUG | 5 | 200 | Wks 41–45 |
| SEP | 4 | 160 | Wks 46–49 |
| OCT | 4 | 160 | Wks 50–53 |
| TOTAL | 53 | 2,120 | Extra week adds 40 hrs — 5-week months: DEC, MAR, JUN, AUG |
| MOS | WKS | HRS | CALENDAR YEAR |
|---|---|---|---|
| OCT | 1 | 40 | Wk 1 — Fiscal Year Refresh / Carry-In Week |
| NOV | 5 | 200 | Wks 2–6 |
| DEC | 4 | 160 | Wks 7–10 |
| JAN | 4 | 160 | Wks 11–14 |
| FEB | 4 | 160 | Wks 15–18 |
| MAR | 5 | 200 | Wks 19–23 |
| APR | 4 | 160 | Wks 24–27 |
| MAY | 5 | 200 | Wks 28–32 |
| JUN | 4 | 160 | Wks 33–36 |
| JUL | 4 | 160 | Wks 37–40 |
| AUG | 5 | 200 | Wks 41–45 |
| SEP | 4 | 160 | Wks 46–49 |
| OCT | 4 | 160 | Wks 50–53 |
| TOTAL | 53 | 2,120 | Extra week adds 40 hrs — 5-week months: NOV, MAR, MAY, AUG |
The CHAPPS fiscal calendar defines when you get paid. The tour schedule defines how you work. Together they create a system where nothing is left to guesswork.