Merit Program Draft Proposal
May 16th, 2008 by Pat Zehr
Thank you for your patience while the MPTF has developed this draft proposal for the President. We would welcome any feedback to this draft proposal. Please provide feedback to meritpro {at} iwu(.)edu or drop your comments into one of the two suggestion boxes (located at the Business Office window and near the Physical Plant time clock) no later than Tuesday, May 27.
The MPTF will meet the last week of May to consider all feedback and finalize our proposal for submission to the President. We appreciate all of the feedback we have received to date and look forward to receiving your comments on this draft.
Thank you.
* *
* DRAFT*
*Merit Program Task Force*
*MERIT PROGRAM PROPOSAL*
*May 2008*
* *
Fall Semester 2007, the Merit Program Task Force (MPTF) was formed at the request of President Wilson to study the issue of a merit program for exempt and non-exempt staff. The MPTF was asked to generate ideas, propose them to the campus community and to get feedback and input, using the most transparent forms possible. The MPTF met regularly and proposed some ideas and questions to the campus community. MPTF created an online blog for regular feedback, conducted three open forums during varying work shifts, created suggestion boxes for written responses and encouraged ideas or feedback to be provided to any committee member via email, telephone or in-person communication. The MPTF members communicated with Staff Council through two of its regularly scheduled meetings. The MPTF solicited and received information on merit pay programs implemented by our peer universities from HEDS (Higher Education Data Sharing) through a questionnaire developed by Mona Gardner. MPTF also solicited information on merit pay programs in the corporate world from Board of Trustee members Patricia M. Armstrong, senior vice president and director of human resources, Wells Fargo & Company, and Susan D. Waring, senior vice president and chief administrative officer, State Farm Life Insurance. In addition we reviewed merit pay programs from not-for-profit organizations and educational institutions.
We would like this to be considered as the inaugural merit pay program which should be revisited after completion of its first year implementation. Any modifications to the program should be addressed after this first year by the MPTF or others as appointed by the President.
This inaugural merit pay plan will take effect August 1, 2009 and will be funded by .5% of 1% of the total exempt and non-exempt staff salary pool. There will continue to be a standard annual pay increase as approved by the Board of Trustees and as the budget allows. For example, if the total exempt and non-exempt staff salary pool increase is 4% and the standard increase is determined to be 3.5 %, then .5% of the total exempt and non-exempt salary pool will go into the merit pay pool.
We propose both exempt and non-exempt employees be eligible to receive merit pay increases. The number of merit pay increases will be divided up proportionately, according to the number of staff within each Cabinet Officer’s* area. The number of merit pay increases awarded to exempt and non-exempt staff will generally approximate the ratio of exempt to non-exempt employees within a Cabinet Officer’s staff.` Merit pay increases will be added to the employee’s base pay and employees will be eligible to receive a merit pay increase each year. To maximize the number of employees who will be able to receive a merit pay increase, flat amounts of $500 will be awarded. The number and the amount of awards which can be allocated each year will be determined by the current year’s economic climate.
There is much variance in the type of work performed in the different departments, and what warrants a merit increase for an employee in one department may not be deemed appropriate in another department. We have concluded a single methodology for awarding merit increases will not work for the entire IWU community.
Therefore, each Cabinet Officer will develop a methodology, which will work for his/her respective departments/offices, to award a merit pay increase to the most exceptional employees under their jurisdiction. There may be several different methods used by each Cabinet Officer to realize the needs of their different departments/offices.
For example, possible ways to allocate money to respective departments/offices are as follows:
1) A Cabinet Officer begins with a specific number of merit increases. The directors who report to the member of the Cabinet bring forward the names of those deserving merit and “makes a case” for merit to the other Directors. This creates a norming process for the Directors. The group then helps to decide those most deserving of merit, which then goes to the Cabinet Officer for final approval.
2) Each Cabinet Officer allocates a specific number of merit increases to departmental supervisors. Supervisors make their recommendations directly to their Cabinet member, who makes the final decisions.
The annual performance review process is a communication vehicle intended to provide supervisors with a tool to review an employee’s performance in relation to performance expectations. This information may be used to identify exceptional performers who may be eligible for a merit increase. Performance reviews for all staff will be completed in January and February. Merit pay recommendations will be presented to Human Resources by Cabinet Officers, by May 30, with compensation letters going out in June and July.
Human Resources will continue its commitment to provide training and support for supervisors to sustain the work of both the merit increase and performance review programs.
_*2008-2009 Academic Year Recommendation:*_
We recommend initiating an “Immediate Reward Program”. One hundred $25 gift cards will be allocated among the Cabinet Officers for distribution. These gift cards are to be used at the discretion of a supervisor to immediately reward an employee for an outstanding job performed.
At the end of the 2008-2009 academic year, the Immediate Reward Program will be revisited to determine whether it will be incorporated into the overall program.
*Cabinet Officers:
President
Vice President for Advancement
Vice President for Business & Finance
Vice President for Public Relations
Vice President for Student Affairs
Dean of Admissions
Dean of Enrollment Management
Provost