Pay
Guidelines
Salaries for new employees are calculated based upon:
- The candidate’s related education, training and experience
that exceed the MUSC education and experience
requirement for the particular class.
- The salary of others in the same classification within the “hiring”
unit and “hiring” department as well as the University
and, in some cases, the State are taken into consideration.
- other factors such as difficulty in recruitment and external
market conditions.
Within the pay system, there are several options for pay increases.
Some of these increases are mandated by the State Appropriation
Act, which grants the increase to all employees who meet specific
criteria. Other increases are given at the discretion of the department,
subject to the availability of funding, and require approval from
Human Resources Management.
Supervisors/Managers should consider salary equity with current staff
when considering starting salaries for new employees and pay increases
for existing employees:
- General Increase:
Legislatively mandated increase authorized by the Appropriation
Act which usually involves the same percentage increase to all
FTE employees meeting specific criteria. (a.k.a. Cost of Living
Increase)
- Merit Increase:
Legislatively mandated performance increase authorized by the
Appropriation Act.
- In-band Increase - up to 15%:
A pay increase that is awarded within the employee’s pay
band for specific reasons.
- Exceptional Performance Increase
- A pay increase that is requested by a department and justified
by the employee's most recent evaluation (EPMS).
- Additional Skills or Knowledge Increase
- A pay increase given to recognize the additional skills
or knowledge gained by an employee which is directly related to
the job.
- Additional Job Duties or Responsibilities Increase
- A pay increase given to recognize the additional duties
or broader responsibilities assigned to an employee in his/her
current position. Such increase should only be granted when the
incumbent of a position assumes duties that require higher level
skills and abilities. When submitting a request for an additional
duties increase, a completed current updated position description
(PD) should be included with the request. HRM will compare the
existing PD on file with the newly submitted one to determine
whether the new duties require a higher skill level. A salary
increase may not be justified if the additional duties added to
the employee’s job description are merely replacements for
other duties and do not require additional skill levels.
- Retention - Special external market
conditions may require a pay increase to help retain certain employees
in high demand. Check with Human Resources Management regarding
specifics. Only one retention increase is allowed per year.
- Promotional and Reclassification Increase:
When promoting or reclassifying, the classification code,
classification title, and slot will change (and FTE# for promotion).
If changing bands and if the previous salary is lower than the
new pay band minimum, then such salary increase is mandatory to
bring the employee's salary to at least the minimum of the new
band. Otherwise, no pay increase is mandatory, but it may be granted
up to 15%. In the case of promotion only, it can also be granted
up to the mid point of the band or up to 15%, which ever is greater.
The increase must be approved by the Department of Human Resources
Management and may require approval from the State Office of Human
Resources Management.
- Other Types of Pay Incentives and Rewards:
- Bonuses - Bonuses cannot exceed $2,000
per employee. An employee may receive no more than one bonus in
a fiscal year. Bonuses may be awarded to recognize the accomplishments
and contributions of individual employees. Examples of appropriate
reasons for awarding bonuses are:
- Contributions to increased organizational productivity,
- Development and/or implementation of improved work processes,
- Exceptional customer service,
- Realized cost savings, or
- Other specific contributions to the success of the organization.
- Incentive Programs - An incentive
is a one-time lump sum payment granted to recognize individual
and/or group productivity. Incentive increases are limited to
$2,000 per participating employee and are generally awarded for
operational cost reductions within a defined unit. In order to
participate, a department must pre-establish target goals and
identify performance measures and criteria. Group productivity
plans must also define the unit to be recognized and include a
list of all participating employees within the unit.
- Non-Monetary Awards - Ameal, plaque,
certificate, or other similar type of recognition, which is granted
to reward innovations or improvements by individual employees
or employee teams that enhance the quality of work or productivity.
Important Notes
All requests for pay increases should be routed through the appropriate
administrative channels of each unit prior to submission
to Human Resources Management. With the exception of legislatively
mandated pay increases, PEAR forms must be submitted along with
supporting documentation to Human Resources Management, room 105
, Harborview Tower.
Effective dates for salary changes are determined
by Human Resources Management for all increases and are contingent
upon receipt of all required documentation.
A salary increase cannot be granted to an employee accepting a
position of a lower or equal pay band.
An employee's salary does not "transfer" from
a classified position to a non-FTE position, or vice versa.
When an employee accepts another type of position, salary is recalculated.
General increases, merit increases and in-band increases are not
guaranteed, unless legislatively mandated. Some type of pay increases
require approval form the State Office of Human Resources. |
