Elon University
PAE-11: Sustainable Compensation

Elon University complies with all laws governing compensation and pay practices, including the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”). FLSA governs compensation in many ways including establishing minimum wage, requiring overtime pay for non-exempt (hourly) employees and establishing pay classifications and accompanying rules on deductions for those classified as exempt (salary) or nonexempt (hourly). In addition, Elon makes every effort to assure that salaries are competitive with or above those in the community, local industry and among peer institutions. The university has as part of its long range plan, the Elon Commitment, a specific goal aimed at employing a world class faculty and staff. To achieve this goal, the university understands the importance of offering very competitive salaries in order to secure the best employees to move the university forward. In its effort to assure that salaries paid at Elon rank in the top three of the university’s peer institutions, the university is implementing a salary plan that will further increase salaries of faculty and staff in a three-phase program that began in December 2013. This salary initiative will be in addition to the university’s annual review process and salary increase pool for employees. The university has had a salary increase pool each year unlike many other colleges, universities and businesses which have not provided salary increases for employees. Additionally, there have been no layoffs at Elon despite the economic downturn in the country. To further support the goal of competitive salaries, the university is also in the process of completing a review of its current salary ranges to re-establish a minimum, midpoint and maximum annual salary for each pay grade. Elon will again be collaborating with its contracted food service vendor and campus book store vendor requesting that they consider using the same overall minimum salaries for pay ranges so as to maintain alignment with the university’s initiative. Pay ranges are being determined using local, regional and national survey information. More specifically, the university is utilizing the College and University Professional Association for Human Resources’ annual salary survey, the HEITS Salary Survey for employees working in Information Systems positions and numerous state and regional salary surveys of positions at the university that are commonly found in business and industry. Elon also seeks to identify salaries for common positions at other colleges and universities that are considered to be Elon’s peers as well as a number of institutions that the university aspires to be more like. The university has contracted with an Atlanta firm to assist in the development of its pay range system, and the salary study should be completed in spring 2014.