Human Resource Management

SUNY Also Receives Compensation Procedures and Guidelines for Professional Staff

At Buffalo State University

Purpose:
The following are guidelines to assist when requesting approval for Also Receives in consultation with your cabinet member to recommend to the Provost, Vice President, or President for approval.  In alignment with the spending control procedures Also Receive requests must be forwarded on the consent agenda.  

Overview and Definitions:
Academic and Professional employees may be asked to assume responsibilities for additional duties and/or assignments (typically within their primary department) which may be unrelated to, or independent of, their normal or standard work responsibilities.  When such assignments are clearly not part of the employee’s normal work responsibilities, additional compensation via Also Receives may be permitted at management’ discretion.  
Also Receives is an amount paid to an unclassified service employee which is used to supplement the direct compensation of an employee, providing a temporary salary increase not added to base, for a temporary assignment in addition to their regular duties that may be completed during their regular professional obligation (although additional work hours may be necessary), and when the assignment will end.

Also Receives recognizes that additional service is being provided for which the base employee obligation and the corresponding annual salary does not address. The service period is not determined to be long-term and/or the service type is not appropriate to include in both the employee’s long-term obligation and the employee’s annual base salary.  

Also Receives differs from Extra Service in that the assignment for which Also Receives is compensated may be completed during the employee’s normal obligation (for example, serving as the Interim Director of Student Accounts).  An Also Receives assignment is generally not easily quantifiable from a time perspective or tied to a set schedule.  Extra Service is applicable to performance of service outside the typical workday and/or beyond that normally required by the professional obligation as defined by the individual’s performance program or established faculty workload (example, a full-time faculty member teaching an additional class).  Extra Service is generally quantifiable or tied to a set schedule/number of additional hours.

Also Receives Examples:

• An acting officer is one who fills in during a temporary absence such as a sabbatical leave, illness, or other pause, after which the other employee is expected to return.  The expected return of the employee is a significant factor in the kinds of decisions which the acting officer might take.
• An interim officer is more often thought of as one serving between the departure of one officer and the installation of another permanent one.  For example, someone serving as Associate Vice President after a retirement, or other departure, and until a new one is permanently installed, will more appropriately be designated as Interim Associate Vice President.  
• Performing additional assignments that substantially increase or expand the scope of the employee’s responsibilities, are often anticipated to be temporary in nature or for a specific project, and will conclude when the assignment and/or funding ends (for example, a faculty member having additional duties in an administrative role during a program review or an employee’s scope of responsibility being substantially increased due to a long-term absence of a co-worker with similar responsibilities). 
• Employee taking on additional duties/responsibilities on a temporary basis – i.e., the Director leaves and a staff member takes on the Director role while a search is being conducted and is paid an also receives for additional duties.
• When an employee assumes a significant amount of higher-level responsibilities in addition to their own responsibilities on a temporary basis when that service is expected to be for a period of one month or longer. 
• Performing ongoing work or providing availability outside of typical business hours that would end of the work schedule or operational need to be available changes or is ended. 
• An unexpected absence that may necessitate an acting/interim (officer in charge) be named.

Also Receives is not appropriate in these situations:

• While adding direct reports alone would not automatically trigger a requirement to provide additional pay, it needs to be considered how significant a change/addition this is to the employee’s normal duties.  If adding what could be construed as a significant increase without deleting any duties or responsibilities, the employee may be justified in expecting additional compensation.  A review is required of what is added and what (if anything) is taken away during the temporary period.  
• When the employee assumes responsibilities for a subordinate. If the amount of work or duration of the work is significant, the supervisor should hire a temporary employee or re-distribute duties.
• When the employee is serving as an acting/interim in a position when the employee’s current salary meets or exceeds that of the temporary position.  
• When the employee is serving in an acting/interim capacity for a period of less than one month. 

Approval Process:
The Also Receives approval process will begin with a review of the proposed assignment by the employee’s supervisor against the current performance program or established faculty workload to ensure the proposed assignment is not duplicative, is substantially different from the current duties, and will not interfere with the employee’s current responsibilities.

The supervisor will prepare documentation which includes a detailed explanation of the additional assignment that will be performed, how it is in addition to, and substantially different from the current performance program, and how it will be completed during the normal obligation.  The anticipated beginning and end dates of the assignment are required.  This written summary can be placed on the Staffing Justification form.

Also receive requests may not exceed 6 months. If after 6 months the additional duties are still warranted, an extension request must be submitted. If an initial request exceeds 6 months, a statement for justification must be provided (i.e., appropriate time necessary to review proposed department organization change) for review.

Upon evaluation of the documentation to support the additional service that is being provided in consultation with your cabinet member you will make a recommendation to the Provost, Vice President, or President. The amount of Also Receives will depend on the duties assumed.  Consultation with Human Resources must occur to review the justification and the Also Receives recommended compensation.   

The Provost, Vice President, or President will review, consult and approve the compensation rate.  An approved staffing justification form is sufficient.  

Typically, Also Receives may be 5-15% increase of the individual’s salary for the year or proportion of the duration, not to exceed 20% of the amount/salary of the incumbent’s position.  The amount of an Also Receives paid for the above situations is limited to 20% of the employee’s salary on an annual basis (payments are calculated and based on an annualized amount). This is consistent with policies in place for Extra Service.  

Exceptions to the Also Receive amount in excess of 20% must be requested in writing from the President and must be sent to the Office of University-wide Human Resources for approval.  The request must include an outline of the additional duties, a justification for the additional amount, and the expected duration (which, unless there is a specified time provided in the appointment letter, will be no more than 6 months; an extension request may be submitted if needed).  

Notification to Employee:
Written approval by the Provost, Vice President, or President must be obtained prior to the start of the assignment.

Employees will receive an official notification letter of the amount of the Also Receives (annualized amount) including its anticipated duration, a summary or outline of the temporary additional duties, and any change in supervisor, professional obligation, or local title).

If the Also Receives is extended, an additional communication will be sent to the employee. For extensions, supporting documentation will be required which need to include a statement indicating the work has been performed in a satisfactory manner and is required to continue.  

HR will draft the letter for the employee in consultation with the supervisor for signature by the Provost, Vice President, or President.

The letter will clarify expectations and help avoid any misunderstandings about how long the additional payments will last. Please be careful not to make firm commitment as we have discretion to end assignment and compensation at any time. 

If the assignment ceases before the documented end date, it is the supervisor’s responsibility to notify Human Resources and their Cabinet member immediately.

Monitoring:
The employee’s supervisor must monitor the Also Receives on an ongoing basis, but not less than every six months to determine continued appropriateness of the Also Receives and the need for renewal.  Human Resources will also monitor.

If the assignment for which Also Receives is being paid is determined to be an ongoing and a permanent part of the employee’s responsibilities, the Also Receives must be discontinued and the employee should be given an appropriate base salary increase commensurate with the duties.  Please consult with your Cabinet member and Human Resources.