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EXEMPT & NON-EXEMPT POSITIONS OBJECTIVES The objectives of the Georgia Highlands College compensation program are: To provide
an effective compensation program (i.e., one that enables the College
to attract and retain excellent employees in all areas); POLICY DEVELOPMENT & ADMINISTRATION The Human Resources Department and the President’s Cabinet are responsible for developing and maintaining the Georgia Highlands College Compensation Program. The administration of the Compensation Program in a fair and equitable manner is the responsibility of each Vice President, Director, and Budget Manager. This policy refers primarily to monetary compensation (direct pay and fringe benefits), but Georgia Highlands College also recognizes the importance of non-monetary compensation such as recognition of employees, working conditions, and work assignments.
Current Positions All current positions have been classified according to the Board of Regents job classification system, including the assignment of the appropriate "B-code." B-codes are numerical designations of jobs that group them by job family, and they indicate the employee class status (staff, professional-administrative, and faculty), job classification, and occupational classification. Staff jobs have been assigned to specific Georgia Highlands College pay grades based on a job evaluation that assigned higher pay grades to jobs requiring greater knowledge, skills, and abilities. New positions All new positions are classified on the basis of their job description and comparison to similar positions at Georgia Highlands College or other USG institutions. Supervisors should develop the job description and recommendations for job title, B-code, and pay grade. The Director of Human Resources reviews all new position recommendations and forwards his/her recommendation to the President’s Cabinet. All new positions require verification of sufficient funding and the appropriate budget position from the Vice President for Finance and Administration.
Professional-administrative jobs (these jobs are exempt from the overtime requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act) are compensated in accordance with Georgia Highlands College budget and relevant labor market considerations. Georgia Highlands College does not maintain pay grades for exempt positions. Professionals are hired at competitive salaries for their positions within the limits of the funds available. The non-exempt personnel receive annual merit increases in salary based upon work performance and in accordance with the guidelines established by the BOR annually. Staff jobs (these jobs are not exempt for the overtime pay requirement of the Fair Labor Standards Act) are compensated in accordance with the assignment of that job classification to a specific pay grade. Non-exempt jobs are assigned to different pay grades based on a job evaluation that assigns higher grades to jobs requiring greater knowledge, skills, and abilities. The pay grades can be adjusted each year for inflation, and they may be periodically adjusted to maintain external wage equity. The Director of Human Resources is responsible for making recommendations for changes in the pay grade structure to the President’s Cabinet. The current Georgia Highlands College pay grades and the job positions assigned to each pay grade are attached. A. Determination of Position Pay within Pay Grades The minimum, midpoint, and maximum wage levels define each pay grade. The minimum represents the salary level for which a qualified individual would begin working. The pay grade midpoint is the average of the minimum and maximum, and it is typically different from the average wage of employees within the pay grade. Often the average wage within a pay grade is less than midpoint, since wages between midpoint and maximum are associated with superior performance over a longer tenure of years in a position. The maximum represents the highest wage level an employee could expect to attain in a particular job, although occasionally exceptions are made in cases of extremely long service. The range of a pay grade is the difference between the maximum and minimum pay levels. Starting wages for new employees will be at the minimum or within 10% of the minimum wage. Certain exceptions can be made for new employees who are bringing substantial experience and/or skills to the position. In such cases the starting wage may be up to the mid-point of the pay grade, but in no case will new employees start at higher than the midpoint. Normally pay grades have a range of 30-50% of the midpoint. The typical progression of an employee would be to start at the minimum wage and progress to the midpoint in 8-10 years. Employees with 20 years experience within the same pay grade may be close to the maximum, but only in exceptional cases should the maximum be exceeded. The pay grades structure will be reviewed annually by the Director of Human Resources who will make a recommendation for adjustment to the pay grade based on inflation. As well, the Director of Human Resources will regularly gather wage data to determine if external equity adjustments are needed. See Section E. below. Progression within the pay grade will be determined primarily by an individual’s job performance and secondarily by the level of funding for pay raises. B. Annual merit pay increases Annual wage increases will be based upon merit in accordance with the guidelines established by the BOR annually. Input into the merit raise decisions comes from the employee’s performance evaluation, the supervisor’s assessment, the appropriate Vice President’s assessment, and finally the President’s assessment with assistance from the President’s Cabinet when requested. Merit raises will be determined in the spring, and typically they are effective on October 1. C. Promotion within Current Job Employees may be considered for promotion based on the recommendation of their supervisor, approval of the appropriate Vice President, and budgetary approval of the Vice President of Finance & Administration. Recommendations for promotion are considered as a part of the budget approval process each year. The President makes the final decision on all promotions. Typical of such promotions would be the promotion from Clerk I to Clerk II, or from Secretary to Senior Secretary. These promotions reflect the growth and development of the incumbent and the responsibilities of the position. Guidelines for current position promotions are: Minimum of
two years in current position Promotions at Georgia Highlands College typically include upward advancement in positions designated by roman numerals (e.g., Clerk I to Clerk II, Recorder I to Recorder II, Custodian I to Custodian II). Certain positions which may sound similar (e.g., Secretary and Administrative Secretary) may reflect a different job duties and responsibilities and may not be part of the standard job family promotion ladder. The list of job family promotion ladders is maintained in the Human Resources Office. The current list of promotion ladders is attached. Georgia Highlands College employees are also eligible to apply for job openings outside of their current job function. In fact, employees are encouraged to apply internally for jobs when they are announced. Internal candidates will have to compete with other internal candidates and outside candidates for these positions. Please see the section on Internal Candidates below. D. Reclassification of current positions Occasionally current jobs may have changed so much that they need to be reclassified. All reclassifications should be related to organizational, technological, or other changes that have substantially affected the tasks and responsibilities of the position. Supervisors can request reclassification of a position and direct that request to the Human Resources Office or the appropriate Vice President. Upon approval of the appropriate Vice President, the Human Resource Office will conduct a job analysis – typically including completion of a job analysis questionnaire and an interview of the incumbent. The Director of Human Resources will then make a recommendation based on the job analysis for the appropriate classification of the job. That recommendation will go to the President’s Cabinet for discussion and to the President for final approval. Reclassifications may involve changes in pay grade. In such changes, employees will receive the higher of a 5% wage increase (or higher if within merit raise guidelines) or the minimum wage of the new pay grade. Because reclassifications may involve pay changes, they are normally considered in conjunction with the annual budget process. E. External Equity Adjustments Equity adjustments may be made when comparable wages within the relevant labor market are exceeding current Georgia Highlands College wages. The Human Resources Office will regularly collect relevant wage data from relevant organizations to ensure that the pay levels remain competitive. As appropriate the Director of Human Resources will recommend to the President’s Cabinet that external equity adjustments be made to particular job family pay grades or to the pay structure system as a whole. All such equity adjustments need approval of the Vice President of Finance & Administration and the President.
All job openings are posted in the Human Resources Office and on the Georgia Highlands College Human Resources web page. Georgia Highlands College employees are welcome to apply for other positions at the college, but they have no advantage over outside applicants. Normally job openings are posted internally and externally at the same time, but it shall be the prerogative of the President to restrict some position openings to internal candidates only prior to being published outside the college. In this case, the job posting period for internal candidates shall be at least two weeks, but no more than one month. The selection process, including the search committee, will be the same for both internal and external applicants. Internal applicants may keep their application confidential from their supervisor at the time of application and through the initial screening process. At the point when the Search Committee has selected the final candidates (usually 3-5) who will be invited for interviews, the internal application must be announced to the applicant’s supervisor – or the internal applicant may rescind his or her application. Internal candidates normally retain the same pay level when accepting a new job within the College at the same pay grade provided that departmental funds are available. When internal candidates move to positions in higher pay grades, they will receive the higher of the minimum of the new pay grade or a 5% increase in wage level if the departmental budget allows. When internal candidates move to positions in lower pay grades they will retain their present wage, provided departmental funds are available and this wage does not exceed the new position's pay grade maximum. If sufficient funds are not available or if the employee’s present wage exceeds the lower pay grade’s maximum, the internal applicant has to accept a lower level of wages. If an internal applicant is selected, the transfer to the new position must be at a start date that is acceptable to current the Director or Department head and future Director or Department Head.
Georgia Highlands College retains the right to reassign employees to different job positions and campus locations as needed. Employees are typically hired for specific jobs at specific locations, but as conditions change employees may be reassigned to other jobs and other campus locations. Pay is not changed upon reassignment.
Georgia Highlands College retains the right to demote employees who are not performing well in their current positions. Employees will be given written notification of performance deficiencies and have 90 days to meet the standards set by their supervisor before any demotion occurs. Demoted employees will be reassigned to a position is a lower pay grade, and their wages will be decreased accordingly. Part-time
or Temporary employment for non-exempt positions will be paid equivalent
to the pay grade or pay rate for full-time employment in similar positions.
Under extenuating circumstances, a part-time or temporary employee may
be paid at a varying rate with written approval from the appropriate Vice-President
and President.
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Compensation
Program