Salary Increase Requests for Faculty
Overview
This procedure outlines the process for permanent increases to base salary for EHRA faculty employees.
Increases are adjustments to base salary excluding the normal EHRA annual raise process (ARP), a salary supplement (not part of base salary) or from a job change resulting from either a competitive recruitment or waiver of recruitment.
Justification for a Salary Increase
1. Salary Adjustments:
Salaries for any individual that lead to a salary level of greater than 20% AND $15,000 on an individual or cumulative basis per fiscal year (this includes stipends/supplements) shall continue to require pre-approval by the UNC System Office (SO). All requests should be emailed to apir@unc.edu using the Faculty Salary Increase Request Form. An increase resulting from a change in contract period, (i.e. 9 months to 12 months appointment conversions), or FTE adjustments where the pay-rate does not change is not subject to pre-approval.
2. Exceeding the Established Salary Range:
Instances in which the salary of any EHRA employee is requested to exceed the established salary range must also be submitted for pre-approval.
Approving ePars During Payroll Lockout
Compensation ePars cannot be approved during lockout, unless there are extenuating circumstances and a payroll exception is being requested. These requests will be reviewed on a case by case basis.
For APO to approve an ePar during payroll lockout in which a payroll exception is being requested, you will need to:
- Submit a ticket request in ServiceNow with the payroll exception sheet attached.
- When you receive the email that the ticket has been opened, please forward to Brandon Brooks and your assigned HR Consultant. Once the email forward is received, APO can approve the ePar.
Note: This process should occur in rare and unique circumstances.
Faculty Pay Policy
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill recruits and hires faculty of the highest caliber to teach our students. The process for compensating our faculty and recording their credentials must reflect the university’s high standards. It is essential that our policies and processes are in compliance with both Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) accreditation requirements and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) regulations at all times.
To ensure such compliance, the Office of the Provost, in conjunction with the Finance department, has established the following policy:
- All persons designated as teaching (not including student teaching assistants), co-teaching, or working with students who earn credit for the course, must have a faculty appointment.
- Faculty hired to teach for academic credit cannot be paid as Independent Contractors. Faculty salaries must be paid through the university’s Payroll office.
- Faculty listed as “zero salary” may not be paid via invoice to third party consulting agencies. They must be paid in one-time payments through the university’s Payroll office.
- To learn more about Faculty Credentialing Requirements, click here.
Consistent with the University’s Faculty Pay Policy, all individuals assigned as an Instructor with 10% or more responsibility for the overall effort for the course section must hold an active faculty appointment at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (tenured, tenure-track, fixed term, part-time, temporary, etc.) during any term in which they teach. Those responsible for less than 10% of the total effort for the course section may be required to have a faculty appointment or meet other standards at the discretion of the dean. This applies to individuals who are currently employed by the University with a primary appointment in a non-faculty position, including administrators, student support services, post-doctoral, and other professionals. The academic unit that assigns a non-faculty employee to a teaching role must ensure that the employee has an active secondary faculty appointment.
Non-Resident Alien Faculty Exceptions
Faculty members employed through the use of a “B” visa will continue to be paid as Independent Contractors. These are faculty employees who are still working in their home country and who come to work at UNC for a very brief period (a few hours to a few days). Work visas are not appropriate for these employees due to the brevity of the visit.
The UNC-CH Payroll Office requires direct deposit to a U.S. bank account. Faculty who conduct all of their work from their home country (outside of the U.S.), shall continue to be paid as Independent Contractors or via a vendor invoice if they do not have a U.S. bank account.
In complying with this policy, schools will at times need to distinguish between guest lecturers and those co-teaching a course. For the purpose of this policy we consider those teaching or co-teaching a class to have oversight and input on the class. They influence the grades, contribute to the curriculum, and assign the projects and tasks. If a guest lecturer leads more than 10% of the class time for a course or engages in the activities above, the school should consider him/her “teaching or co-teaching” and the school must then comply with the requirements for faculty appointments as noted above.
If you have questions about non-resident alien faculty payments you may contact the Non Resident Alien Compliance division of the Payroll office at 919-962-5077.
Salary Increase Reporting Requirements
Quarterly salary increase reports to the Office of State Personnel, the Office of State Budget and Management, and the Fiscal Research Division are still required. The UNC System Office will continue to collect and compile the system-wide report.
Faculty Recruitment and Retention Fund
Allocations from the fund shall be made for salary increases at the discretion of the President of The University of North Carolina only for the purpose of recruiting and retaining faculty members as necessary at constituent institutions. The procedures previously established for the Faculty Recruiting and Retention Fund will continue.
Process and Approvals
Documents required:
Please note that calculations of the percentage (%) increase amount are based on the employee’s previous June 30 base salary and not their July 1 or current salary.
Approved required documentation must be attached to a ConnectCarolina salary action routed through normal administrative channels electronically to the Office of the Provost.
Determining the Effective Date
Except when correcting an administrative error or other exceptional circumstances, salary increases are authorized only on a current and not a retroactive basis. This includes salary increases that are below the current thresholds; APO will allow a one month retroactive effective date in extenuating circumstances. Please refer to the Faculty Salary Increase Request Submission and Effective Date Schedule.
Actions requiring System Office approval of faculty increases will be allowed an effective date as early as the 1st of the calendar month in which approval is given by the requisite authority (BOG or President).