[$175] Trinet - An error message is displayed when choosing Manager or Basic approval

[applause-bot]

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Version Number: v9.4.94-0
Reproducible in staging?: Yes
Reproducible in production?: Yes
If this was caught during regression testing, add the test name, ID and link from BrowserStack: https://test-management.browserstack.com/projects/2219752/test-runs/75702454/folder/49506715/112855922/1798270240?sort=-identifier
Email or phone of affected tester (no customers): applausetester+zenefits@applause.expensifail.com
Issue reported by: Applause Internal Team
Bug source: Regression TC Execution
Device used: Windows 11 / Chrome, Android 16 / Samsung Galaxy A06
App Component: Workspace Settings

Action Performed:

1. Login to staging.new.expensify.com using an account with Trinet connection
2. Go to Workspace, HR
3. Change Approval Mode to either Basic or Manager

Expected Result:

There is no error message on any approval mode, the approval mode is changed correctly

Actual Result:

Can't connect to TriNet error is displayed when choosing Basic or Manager, but no Custom

Workaround:

Unknown

Platforms:

• Android: App
• Android: mWeb Chrome
• iOS: App
• iOS: mWeb Safari
• iOS: mWeb Chrome
• Windows: Chrome
• MacOS: Chrome Safari

Screenshots/Videos

Bug7269550_1790357024625.Recording__420.mp4

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Applause Internal Information
Exported by: Svetlana Lazutkina
Bug ID: 7269550

Upwork Automation - Do Not Edit

• Upwork Job URL: https://www.upwork.com/jobs/~022103576202414930589
• Upwork Job ID: 2103576202414930589
• Last Price Increase: 2026-09-25

[applause-bot]

While Applause doesn't embed attachments for this bug, here are the links for quick view:
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[MelvinBot]

Issue Analysis

Root Cause: This appears to be a backend/internal issue. A separate internal investigation is needed.

The App sends a valid request and only displays a sync failure the server reports. It does not create this error itself.

Recommended Fix: No App change. An internal engineer needs to investigate why the TriNet sync fails after you switch to Basic or Manager.

Why the App isn't the cause

• One code path for all modes. Basic, Manager, and Custom all call UpdateZenefitsApprovalMode with {policyID, approvalMode}. Only the value changes. The values match Gusto's exactly. See CONST/index.ts:3364-3378 and Zenefits.ts:24-86.
• The App's Onyx data never sets the banner state. The optimistic, success, and failure data only touch config.approvalMode and its pending and error fields. If the request itself failed, you would see a generic error under the Approval mode row, and the mode would revert.
• The banner depends on data the server owns. "Can't connect to TriNet" appears only when connections.zenefits.lastSync.isSuccessful === false and errorDate is set. See connections/index.ts:308-315 and MergeProviderCard.tsx:87-90. No App code writes a failed lastSync for TriNet.
• Why Custom works. Changing the approval mode starts a server-side sync. Basic and Manager ask the server to build approval workflows from TriNet data. Custom ("I'll manually set up approval workflows") skips that step. So the failure most likely happens while the server builds those workflows.
• No recent App regression. The TriNet write path has had no functional changes in the last 2 months.

Not verified: I couldn't check production logs, so I haven't confirmed which step of the sync fails.

Related: [$175] Web - TriNet - Not here page appear after change approval mode and open Workflows is a separate App navigation bug in the same flow.

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Next Steps: Escalate to an internal engineer to investigate the TriNet sync for this test account. Reply with @MelvinBot <your feedback> to refine this analysis.

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[melvin-bot]

Triggered auto assignment to Contributor-plus team member for initial proposal review - @ChavdaSachin (External)

[melvin-bot]

Job added to Upwork: https://www.upwork.com/jobs/~022103576202414930589