Missouri State University
PA-9: Employee Compensation

Staff - Compensation Philosophy - Missouri State University's workforce is its most vital resource and it is the intention of the University that the compensation plan demonstrates the high value the University holds for its employees. Therefore, the Missouri State University System strives to maintain a total compensation package for faculty, staff, and administrators that is directed toward attracting, retaining, and rewarding a highly qualified, engaged, committed, and diverse workforce to serve the University's students and the State of Missouri. Compensation shall be externally competitive when compared to the appropriate market, internally equitable, and based upon individual performance, qualifications required, and the complexity, scope, and impact of the work performed. Performance should be directly linked to obtaining pay rewards of sufficient magnitude to be valued. Strategically, the compensation system, in conjunction with other human resource strategies, contributes to workplace conditions that support employees at all levels of the University in meeting or exceeding performance standards. Performance management and compensation increases are directly linked with the furtherance and achievement of the University's strategic goals; there should be a strong correlation between the strategic goals of the University and the goals and objectives set by supervisors and their employees. Employee performance is evaluated in relationship to achievement of employee goals and objectives. Staff - Classification and Compensation, Chapter 4 http://www.missouristate.edu/human/staffhandbook/Chapter4.htm Faculty – Salary Policy and Goals- While Missouri State University does not have a formal salary schedule for faculty and other academic employees, it is the ideal of Missouri State University to attain throughout the University essential parity in salaries among faculty members with comparable backgrounds and responsibilities. It is the practice at Missouri State University, however, to offer higher salaries and/ or other financial incentives to faculty members in some teaching areas where experience has shown that there is difficulty in recruiting and retaining qualified faculty because of higher competitive market salaries. Improvement of faculty salaries shall receive high priority each year in budget construction. The University will attempt to budget as an annual priority a salary raise pool for faculty and staff of sufficient magnitude that the institution will be able eventually to achieve and sustain its salary goals. The size of this raise pool depends primarily on the amount of funds appropriated by the legislature and the amount of funds generated by required student fees. The University's salary goals for faculty include raising salaries such that average salaries by rank will equal or exceed averages published in the CUPA "C" National Faculty Salary Survey of public, masters-level universities. Salary Policies, Chapter 5 http://www.missouristate.edu/assets/policy/FacultyHandbook_2014-06-20.pdf Collective Bargaining Agreements IBEW http://www.missouristate.edu/human/IBEWMemorandum.htm Teamsters http://www.missouristate.edu/human/TeamstersMemorandum.htm All full-time employee jobs, except faculty, executives, coaches, and physicians and attorneys, have been evaluated using compensable factors appropriate for the nature of the work performed, such as level of management responsibility, skill level, education and experience required, span of control, independence of action, consequences of error, types of interactions with others, etc. The job evaluation score results in the placement of the job in one of 37 pay grades; the midpoint of the associated salary ranges reflect the market rates for benchmarked jobs in each pay grade. The salary ranges are adjusted annually by changes to the Employment Cost Index (ECI) to reflect changes in market pay rates. Full-time faculty, executives, coaches, and physicians and attorneys don’t have pay ranges in order to allow maximum flexibility to pay at market pay rates to attract and retain top talent. More details at http://www.missouristate.edu/human/32401.htm Part-time non-faculty employees are paid at least the Missouri minimum wage which is indexed to the annual cost-of-living index. Part-time faculty are paid by the credit hour taught at rates unique to each discipline. Chartwells corporate HR does an analysis of the wage paid in the surrounding community to make sure we are equal to or above the local wage for similar positions.

The 2014 federal poverty level for a family of four is $23,850 annual income or $11.47 per hour. 2,059 full-time faculty and staff receive annual compensation above the 2014 poverty level for a family of four. For part-time employees: There are 400 part-time faculty paid on a per course basis and 22 part-time staff paid on a salary basis; these methods of pay have no hourly or annual pay rate equivalent. Unable to determine hourly pay rates for part-time hourly employees on Fall 2013 Census

The lowest paid full time employees receive the same benefits as the highest paid full time employees (insurance, vacation, sick leave, disability and life insurance, 15 credit hour fee waiver per year, and the retirement plan). The pay grades that contain the lowest paid jobs have a midpoint set to the market rate for jobs in the grade; the pay grades are adjusted annually by changes to the Employment Cost Index published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The lowest paid part-time employees are paid at least the Missouri minimum wage which is adjusted annually by the Consumer Price Index. The lowest paid part-time employees are eligible for the same benefits all other part-time employees (eligible for participation in the 403B retirement savings plan).

The lowest paid temporary employees are paid at least the Missouri minimum wage which is adjusted annually by the Consumer Price Index. There are no benefits other than the University’s contribution for Social Security and Medicare under FICA and state unemployment fund.

The lowest paid part-time faculty are paid by the credit hour for courses taught each semester. The lowest paid part-time faculty are eligible for the same benefits as all other part-time employees (eligible for participation in the 403B retirement savings plan).

Student employees are paid at least the Missouri minimum wage. There are no benefits other than the University’s contribution to the state unemployment fund. Graduate Assistants are paid a stipend on an academic year or semester basis and receive a tuition waiver.