State Agencies Bulletin No. 796

Subject
April 2008 Public Employees Federation (PEF) Longevity Lump Sum (LLS) Payment
Date Issued
March 3, 2008

Purpose

To inform agencies of OSC’s automatic processing of the LLS payment and to provide instructions for payments not processed automatically.

Affected Employees

Longevity-eligible employees in BU05 with an Increment Code of 1976-2002, 0010 or 0110

Effective Date(s)

Payment will be processed in a separate check dated April 16, 2008 (Administration) and April 24, 2008 (Institution). There will be no direct deposit for this payment.

Background

Chapter 419 of the Laws of 2004, which implements the negotiated agreement between the State and the Public Employees Federation (PEF) provides for a Longevity Lump Sum payment of $1,250 or $2,500.

The agreement states that employees who were eligible for an LLS payment in April 2007 and who still meet the eligibility requirements shall remain eligible for subsequent LLS payments in each succeeding April, at the same rate received in April 2007, until a successor agreement is negotiated. Payments will be made to such employees in April 2008.

The agreement further states that any employee who becomes eligible for an LLS payment for the first time on or after March 31, 2008 shall not receive the payment until a successor agreement is negotiated.

Eligibility - PEF Employees

Employees in graded positions (Grades 001-037) and NS (Grade 600) positions which are equated to grade are eligible for the payment provided the employee:

  • Is on the payroll on March 31, 2008 (Active, on Paid Leave of Absence or on Workers’ Compensation or Military Leave) in a BU05 position; and
  • As of March 31, 2007, has five (5) or more or ten (10) or more years of continuous service* at a base annual salary equal to or greater than the Job Rate for the employee’s current grade; and
  • Did not receive an “Unsatisfactory” evaluation during the rating period between January 1 and December 31, 2007. Employees who were not rated during the period will receive the payment.

*Continuous service, as used in determining eligibility for the LLS payment, is paid service (including part-time annual-salaried service, paid Military Leave and Sick Leave at Half Pay) or time on Workers’ Compensation Leave or Military Leave without Pay.

The following employees will become eligible for the LLS payment upon processing of Performance Advances in Pay Period 1L:
  • An employee occupying a position that has been previously reallocated, whose salary was equal to or greater than the Job Rate of the lower grade and whose salary upon application of the October 2007 or April 2008 Performance Advance reaches the Job Rate of the reallocated grade is entitled to the Job Rate credit of the lower grade.
  • An employee who received the October 2007 Performance Advance has an Increment Code of 0710 and an employee receiving the April 2008 Performance Advance has an Increment Code of 0001. For employees with Increment Code 0001, OSC will automatically update the Increment Code to 2008. These employees will not receive an automatic LLS payment; therefore, the agency must submit transactions in Pay Period 2L to make the payments and update the increment codes. For instructions, see the section below entitled “Agency Actions – Payments to Employees Not Paid Automatically.”
The following employees will become eligible for the LLS payment during 2008-2009:
  • An employee who otherwise qualifies but is on an approved Leave of Absence without Pay or on a preferred list on March 31, 2008 and who returns from such leave between April 1, 2008 and March 31, 2009 is eligible for the payment. There is no minimum service requirement following the employee’s return to active payroll status. The agency should request the LLS payment in the same pay period the employee returns to active payroll status.
  • An employee who is not eligible for the payment becomes eligible if the employee returns to a lower graded position between April 1, 2008 and March 31, 2009, provided the employee would otherwise have been eligible if the employee had been in the lower position on March 31, 2008 and remained in the lower graded position for at least six (6) pay periods; and
  • The promotion was temporary and the employee has been reinstated to their previous position or has been appointed to another lower graded qualifying position; or
  • The promotion was permanent, but a demotion occurred:
    • in lieu of layoff; or
    • voluntarily during the probationary period; or
    • as a result of failure of a probationary period.

The agency should request the LLS payment after the completion of six (6) full pay periods in the lower grade using the same effective date as the demotion.An employee demoted as a result of a disciplinary action or who takes a voluntary demotion from a permanent position after the completion of a probationary period in the higher grade is not eligible for an LLS payment in the lower grade.

OCS Actions - Automatic Processing

OSC will automatically insert a row on the employee’s Additional Pay page to make the payment using the Earnings Code LLS. The payment amount is $1,250 for six (6) or more years and $2,500 for eleven (11) or more years or a prorated amount, as described below:

  • Employees who are full-time on March 31, 2008 or full-time employees who are on a Paid Leave of Absence, Worker’s Compensation or Military Leave or on a Voluntary Reduction in Work Schedule (VRWS) receive the full payment amount.
    Note: For employees on the Voluntary Reduction in Work Schedule program, the agency must verify that the Full/Part Time Indicator on the Job Data/Job Information page is “Voluntary.”
  • Employees who are part-time on March 31, 2008 receive a prorated payment based on the employee's part-time percentage on March 31, 2008.
  • Part-time employees who are on a Paid Leave of Absence, Workers’ Compensation Leave or Military Leave on March 31, 2008 receive a prorated amount based on the employee's regular part-time percentage prior to the leave.

The Additional Pay page will be populated for eligible employees with the following:

Earnings Code: LLS
Effective Date: 4/1/08
OT Effective Date: 4/1/08
Annual Additional Earnings: Payment Amount
Earn End Date: 3/31/09

Agency Actions - Payments to Employees Not Paid Automatically

To pay an employee after the automatic payment has been processed, enter the following information on the Additional Pay page:

Earnings Code: LLS
Effective Date: Enter eligibility date*
OT Effective Date: Same as effective date
Annual Additional Earnings: Payment Amount
Earn End Date: 3/31/09

*For example: If an Institution agency enters a transaction in Pay Period 2L for an employee who returned to the payroll on April 10, 2008, the effective date is 4/10/08. If an Administration agency enters a transaction in Pay Period 1L for an employee who returned to the payroll on April 3, 2008, the effective date is 4/3/08.

To Correct an Increment Code

If the employee did not receive an automatic LLS payment because the increment code was incorrect, the agency must, in addition to submitting the LLS payment, submit a Job Action Request using the Action/Reason code of DTA/CIC (Data Change/Correct Increment Code). The appropriate increment code must be entered in the Increment Code field.

Retirement and Overtime Calculation Information

The LLS is a one-time, lump sum payment which is included as salary for retirement purposes and in the calculation of overtime compensation (refer to “Overtime Compensation,” Part III, Page 1 of the OSC Salary Manual). The 2008 Longevity Lump Sum payment will be included in the calculation of overtime earned from April 1, 2008 through March 31, 2009.

Control-D Reports and Preparation for Payment

Prior to the automatic processing, the following report will be available:

NPAY756 PS&T Longevity Eligibility Listing

This report is a preliminary listing of employees eligible for the LLS payment as of the date the report is run (March 3, 2008).

Agencies should review this listing carefully, with particular attention to employees who are ineligible due to an “Unsatisfactory” evaluation between January 1 and December 31, 2007.

Corrections to the preliminary listing should be submitted on the Correction Sheet. (The form may be duplicated if additional copies are needed.) This form must be used to:

  • Add employees who do not appear on the listing, such as:
  • Eligible employees in NS positions where the equated grade does not appear on the Position Data page.  Agencies must submit documentation of the salary equation with the Correction Sheet.
  • Eligible employees who are in composite positions (identified by Increment Code 2222).
  • Eligible employees who received a downward reallocation (identified by Increment Cod 0069).
  • Delete employees who should not appear on the listing.
  • Change incorrect information pertaining to an employee appearing on the listing.

Do not add employees whose:

  • Eligibility will change due to transactions that will be processed prior to Pay Period 26 (Administration) or Pay Period 1 (Institution).
  • Increment Code is 2003 or 0210.

Corrections should be submitted as soon as possible and must be received no later than March 21, 2008. Please fax corrections to (518) 474-2601 or (518) 402-4949 and send an email to [email protected] to inform the Salary Determination Unit that a correction has been faxed.

After the automatic processing is completed, the following report will be available:

NPAY770 One Time Payment Report

This report identifies all employees who received the automatic LLS payment.

Deductions and Withholding Taxes

Deductions will be taken for Federal, State, New York City and Yonkers City taxes, Social Security/Medicare, retirement normal contributions, garnishments and Federal levies. There will be no special tax calculations. For employees receiving the payment who have an additional tax amount in their record, the additional tax also will be included in the tax calculation for this payment.

Payroll Register and Employee’s Paycheck

The Earnings Code LLS and the amount will be displayed on the payroll register. The earnings description, PS&T Longevity LSP, and the amount will be printed on the employee’s paycheck.

This payment will be made in a separate check regardless of when paid. There will be no direct deposit for this payment. The separate check will be issued along with the employee’s regular paycheck or direct deposit advice for the check date submitted.

Questions

Questions regarding this bulletin may be directed to the Salary Determination mailbox.