State Agencies Bulletin No. 882

Subject
New Method of Calculating Salaries for Employees Upon Movement From a Public Employees Federation (PEF) Non-Statutory (N/S) Position to a Graded Position in Any Bargaining Unit
Date Issued
March 2, 2009

Purpose

To provide agencies with information and procedures regarding the calculation of affected employees’ salaries and the processing of necessary salary corrections.

Affected Employees

Non-Statutory employees represented by PEF who move to a graded position in any bargaining unit effective on or after April 11, 2008

Background

Pursuant to Chapter 114 of the Laws of 2008 which amends Civil Service Law, Section 131.5 and the N/S to Grade side letter to the 2007-2011 PEF agreement, OSC is issuing instructions for the new method of calculating salaries for affected employees retroactive to April 11, 2008. This method is in addition to the Civil Service Law, Section 131.5 rules still in existence. The side letter to the 2007-2011 PEF agreement expires on March 31, 2011.

Effective Date(s)

The new method of calculating salaries for affected employees is effective April 11, 2008.

Agencies may begin to submit transactions immediately.

Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible for the new method of calculation, an employee must have been in a PEF N/S annual or hourly position immediately prior to moving to a graded position. This method does not apply to appointments from a Summer Session position to a graded position.

N/S service in any of the following will not be considered as creditable service when reconstructing the employee’s salary:

  • Office of Court Administration
  • City University of New York (CUNY)
  • Thruway Authority
  • Teachers’ Retirement System
  • Dormitory Authority
  • State University of New York Grade 980s
  • Legislative Payrolls
  • Judicial Payrolls
  • Pay Basis Codes of FEE and BIW
  • Summer Session Position

General Information

The methodology contained in Section 131.5(c) of the Civil Service Law still may be used to calculate the salary for employees who move from an N/S to a graded position if it results in a higher salary than the methodology contained in the N/S to Grade side letter to the 2007-2011 PEF agreement.

In addition, this Section has been amended to remove provisions that restrict the resultant salary of an employee having moved from an N/S to a graded position from exceeding the salary which previously had been received in the N/S position. However, the resultant salary cannot exceed the job rate of the graded position.

New Method of Calculation

Determine Type of Appointment (Promotion, Demotion, Lateral)

Agencies must use the PEF N/S position in effect immediately prior to the move to the graded position to determine the type of appointment. If the position is:

  • Annual N/S Equated to Grade – Compare the equated grade of the N/S position to the grade of the graded position to determine if the appointment is a promotion, demotion or lateral.
  • Annual N/S Not Equated to Grade – Use the N/S salary to assign the highest grade level (using the hiring rate) to which such salary can be assigned on the PEF salary schedule in effect on the appointment date to the graded position and compare it to the grade of the graded position to determine if the appointment is a promotion, demotion or lateral.
  • Hourly N/S – Convert the hiring rate of the graded position from the PEF salary schedule in effect on the appointment date (regardless of the graded position’s bargaining unit) to an hourly rate by dividing by 2088 if the N/S position is a non-teaching title or by 1736 if the N/S position is a teaching title. Compare the resultant hourly rate to the employee’s hourly rate immediately prior to the move to the graded position to determine if the appointment is a promotion, demotion or lateral.
Revised Method of Calculation Based on Type of Appointment
Promotion

From any PEF N/S position

  • Annual N/S Equated to Grade – Using the employee’s equated grade, apply the appropriate promotion percentage provided in Article 7.10 to the employee’s N/S salary. The employee may be eligible for a promotion recalculation.
  • Annual N/S Not Equated to Grade – After assigning a grade as explained above, apply the appropriate promotion percentage provided in Article 7.10 to the employee’s N/S salary.
  • Hourly N/S – Convert the employee’s hourly rate immediately prior to the move to the graded position to an annual salary by multiplying by 2088 if the N/S position is a non-teaching title or by 1736 if the N/S position is a teaching title. Use this salary to assign the highest grade level (using the hiring rate) to which such salary can be assigned on the PEF salary schedule. Apply the appropriate promotion percentage provided in Article 7.10 to the employee’s ‘hourly converted to annual’ salary.

The Longevity Lump Sum (LLS) portability will be factored in the promotion calculation provided the employee received an LLS payment within the twelve (12) months prior to the promotion.

A new anniversary date and increment code will be determined based on the effective date of the promotion.

Lateral and Demotion

From a PEF Annual N/S Position

  • Equated to Grade - Reconstruct the salary beginning with the hiring rate of the graded position, giving credit for all service where the salary (including hourly and annual regardless of bargaining unit) is at least equal to the hiring rate of the graded position. Service in a teaching title will be counted only if it totals at least 150 work days during each individual academic year.
  • Not Equated to Grade – Reconstruct the salary beginning with the hiring rate of the graded position, giving credit for all service where the salary (including hourly and annual regardless of bargaining unit) is at least equal to the hiring rate of the graded position. Service in a teaching title will be counted only if it totals at least 150 work days during each individual academic year.

Upon reconstruction, the salary should be limited to the job rate of the graded position but may exceed the employee’s last N/S salary.

If the employee has the required years of job rate credit, the Longevity Lump Sum (LLS) will be payable after six (6) pay periods retroactive to the effective date of the appointment to the graded position.

If the employee attained the Merit Advance Rate in an equal or higher grade, that rate of pay will serve as the employee’s N/S salary for the purpose of computing the new graded salary.

If the employee has not attained the Merit Advance Rate in an equal or higher grade, the Merit Advance Rate for the graded position will be payable after six (6) pay periods, retroactive to the effective date of the appointment to the graded position, provided the employee has sufficient years at or above the job rate of the graded position and all other eligibility criteria are met.

It is the agency’s responsibility to submit transactions for employees due the Longevity Lump Sum or Merit Step payment and to indicate in General Comments if an employee has met all merit step eligibility requirements.

The anniversary date will be determined using the appointment date to the graded position adjusted by the amount of creditable service.

The anniversary date will determine which performance advance cycle and increment code should be used.

From a PEF Hourly N/S Position

  • Use only those hours paid where the employee’s hourly rate is at least equal to the hiring rate of the graded position. In order to determine if the employee’s hourly rate is equal to or above the hiring rate, divide the hiring rate of the graded position from the PEF salary schedule for the applicable year by 2088 if the N/S position is a non-teaching title or by 1736 if the N/S position is a teaching title and compare to the employee’s hourly rate for the same year.
  • Do not include hours paid as overtime when reporting creditable hours.
  • Hourly employees for whom hours have not been reported during the last year will be considered to have a break in service of one (1) or more years. Credit for service prior to the break will not be counted.
  • The number of creditable hours reported by the agency for an 8-hour-day hourly employee will be divided by 8 to determine the number of full work days to be used as creditable service. The number of creditable hours reported by the agency for a 7 ½-hour-day hourly employee will be divided by 7.5 to determine the number of full work days to be used as creditable service.
  • N/S service in hourly and annual positions can be combined to determine the amount of creditable service.
  • Service in a teaching title will be counted only if it totals at least 150 work days during each individual academic year.
  • It is the appointing agency’s responsibility to report in General Comments all qualifying hours, the range of dates to which the hours apply and the employee’s required hours per day (7 ½ or 8) to be used in determining creditable service including hours worked in another agency.
  • The anniversary date will be determined using the appointment date to the graded position adjusted by the amount of creditable service.
  • The anniversary date will determine which performance advance cycle and increment code should be used.
  • Reconstruct the salary beginning with the hiring rate of the graded position, giving credit for all service (including hourly and annual regardless of bargaining unit) where the salary is at least equal to the hiring rate of the graded position.
  • Upon reconstruction, the salary should be limited to the job rate of the graded position but may exceed the employee’s last N/S salary.
  • If the employee has the required years of job rate credit, the Longevity Lump Sum (LLS) will be payable after six (6) pay periods. It is the agency’s responsibility to submit transactions for employees due an LLS payment.

Service calculation examples are included with this bulletin.

OSC Actions

Control-D report NHRPTMP13 (appears as NHRPTP13 in the Control-D Report List) identifies employees who have moved from a PEF N/S position to a graded position in any bargaining unit effective on or after April 11, 2008.

Agency Actions

It is the agency’s responsibility to submit transactions for employees affected by the new methodology.

Salary corrections must be submitted by agencies retroactive to the date of the graded appointment (provided the appointment was effective on or after 4/11/08) if the methodology provided in the N/S to Grade side letter to the 2007-2011 PEF agreement results in a higher salary than the methodology in Section 131.5(c) of the Civil Service Law.

Agencies must submit Pay Change Requests using the Action/Reason code of PAY/NSG (Pay Rate Change/NS to Grade) for all rows requiring a salary correction on the employee’s Job Data history. If a salary correction is not applicable but the employee’s anniversary date, increment code and/or FIS must be changed, the Action/Reason code of DTA/NSG (Data Change/NS to Grade) must be submitted.

Qualifying hours used to determine creditable service, the range of dates to which the hours apply and Merit Step eligibility must be reported in General Comments.

Control-D Report

NHRPTMP13 Report

This report identifies employees who moved from a PEF N/S position to a graded position in any bargaining unit on or after April 11, 2008 and may be eligible to have their salary recalculated using the new methodology. The report identifies EmplID, Name, Rcd #, Pay Basis Code, Bargaining Unit, Employee Status, Pay Cycle and Move Date (Effective date and Sequence of initial movement from N/S to graded position).

Questions

Questions about this Bulletin may be emailed to the Salary Determination mailbox.