Nope it's not automatic - since it's all on-chain. The user needs to confirm the TX to make it happen. It is literally the press of 2 buttons to get the TX to go through..
Also consider how other payout platforms work. Often paying out in monthly or weekly chunks. A user can earn LEO for 1 month or more and then click a button and have those rewards sent as ETH to their address. That makes it easier than ever to get payouts from the Hive blockchain on another platform/exchange.
Posted Using LeoFinance Beta