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If your question is not answered below, please contact a member of the HR Team at 258-3300 or hr@princeton.edu. We're here to help you!
- Merit Increase Program
- 1. What is MIP?
MIP is an acronym for the Merit Increase Program, a compensation program for staff designed to motivate and reward excellent performance.
- 2. What is the objective of MIP?
The objective of the merit increase program is to recognize the performance of each employee based on goals and expectations set during the previous 12 months.
- 3. When are salary increases effective?
Monthly-paid staff member increases are effective July 1, 2012.
Biweekly-paid staff member increases are effective June 11, 2012.Staff members who work less than 12 months receive their increase in in their first paycheck after returning to work.Staff members in departments with differently timed merit cycles receive their increase in the respective cycles.Union employee increases are subject to terms of their contracts.
- 4. Who is eligible for a FY2013 merit increase?
All nonunion regular benefits-eligible employees hired prior to March 1, 2012, are eligible. Union employees are eligible in accordance with their union contracts.
- 5. Who is not eligible for a FY2013 merit increase?Employee not eligible for a MIP increase in FY2013 are those who retire or terminate on or before July 1, 2012, are currently on term appointments not extended past June 30, 2012, or are currently receiving long term disability benefits.
- 6. When are MIP guidelines and related materials distributed?
MIP materials and guidelines are distributed during the first week of March. Refer to our MIP Web page.
- 7. When are merit increase pools distributed?
The Office of Human Resources distributes the MIP salary pools electronically to the most senior level of management and to the director of academic management at the beginning of March. Those individuals then distribute their department’s pool over subsequent days to the next level or levels of management designated previously.
Salary managers receive an e-mail from the PeopleSoft Salary Administration Module (SAM) when the pool is available for allocation.
- 8. When are merit increase recommendations due?HR recommends that salary managers in administrative departments submit their recommendations by March 23, 2012, to their vice president or dean; they may set other deadlines and/or procedures based on operational needs.Academic department managers should send submit their recommendations to the director of academic management by March 30, 2012.
- 9. When will the merit increase letters be distributed?
HR will produce salary letters for each eligible employee and will distribute the letters to all senior officers in administrative departments. Academic letters will be held at the Office of Human Resources for pick up by each department. All letters will be available during the week of May 14, 2012.
- 10. How is the merit pool determined for each MIP cycle?
The merit pool is recommended by the Priorities Committee each year and approved by the Board of Trustees. It is administered by the Office of Human Resources for HR employees. The Office of the Dean of Faculty administers a similar but separate merit-based program for faculty and nonfaculty academic employees.
- 11. What is the MIP pool for FY2013?
The MIP pool for FY2013 is three percent. Performance is the only factor that salary managers should consider when determining merit increases for their staff.
- 12. How are merit increases processed when there are temporary overrides or other unusual situations?
For employees with temporary overrides, the merit increase for FY2013 is calculated on the salary with temporary override. When the temporary override ends, Human Resources will remove the override and apply the same recommended merit increase percent to the base salary to determine the employee's new FY2013 base salary.
- 13. How are merit increases processed when reclassifications or other salary increases become effective?
If the department approved and submitted merit increase recommendations for the department to HR and if, between March and July 2012, an employee has an increase in salary due to a reclassification or other salary adjustment, Human Resources will apply the same merit increase percent to revise the employee’s base salary accordingly. If the department has not submitted the merit increase recommendations to HR, SAM will be updated with the employee’s adjusted salary.
- 14. When is it appropriate to give no increase?
It is appropriate to give no increase to employees who have demonstrated unsatisfactory performance; are being disciplined for misconduct and/or were recently hired with a salary set for the next fiscal year; are scheduled for termination for employment, including retirement; anticipated on or before July 1, 2012.
- 15. What were the salary increase pools for the last 5 years?
Refer to our MIP website .
- 16. Why are performance appraisals done at this time of year?
Providing employees with performance feedback and annual appraisals is a critical supervisory responsibility. Performance is the only factor managers should consider when determining merit increases for staff. Therefore, all managers are encouraged to complete the performance appraisal process prior to deciding how to allocate the department’s merit pool.
- 17. When are classes and lunchtime matinees regarding performance management being offered?
The class schedule can be found on the learning and development Web page or at the Employee Learning Center where individuals can register to attend.
- 18. When are merit increase recommendations due for academic managers?
Salary increase recommendations are submitted by Friday, March 30 to Karen Haskin, director of academic management, in the Office of the Provost.
- 19. When are the merit increase letters distributed?
Letters are distributed to officers and academic chairs and directors during the week of May 16, 2011 .
- 20. How are salary increases handled for new employees hired before 3/1?
Depending on date of hire and performance, increases should be prorated based on the length of time that the employee worked at Princeton.
- 1. What is MIP?
- Overtime
- 1. What is overtime?
The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) requires that nonexempt, biweekly-paid employees who work more than 40 hours in one defined workweek be paid at a rate of not less than one and one-half times their base rate for the excess hours.
- 2. How is overtime calculated?
Effective March 1, 2011, the method of calculating overtime as described University policy 7.1.1 Overtime Pay, the Services Employees International Union (SEIU) contract, and International Union, Security, Police and Fire Professionals of America (SPFPA) contract was modified to calculate overtime based on actual hours worked only. In other words, nonproductive paid time (or paid absences) are not considered as time worked for the purpose of calculating overtime.
Prior to March 1, 2011, University policy 7.1.1 Overtime Pay and union contracts had provided University employees with two extra benefits not available under FLSA: (1) time worked in excess of eight hours on a regularly scheduled workday had been paid at time and one half the employee’s hourly rate and (2) nonproductive paid time (paid absences) had been considered as time worked for the purpose of calculating overtime pay.
- 3. What is considered nonproductive paid time?
Any paid absence for which an employee may be compensated under University policy and/or contract is considered nonproductive time. For purposes of the overtime policy, this includes any combination of the following:
Bundled time or PTO bank - 4. Is an employee who regularly works an eight-hour shift, Monday through Friday entitle to overtime if, on Monday, the employee works ten hours?Yes. Under both the old and modified policy, employees who are regularly scheduled to work eight hours in a day are entitled to overtime for all hours worked in excess of eight on any regularly scheduled workday. Exceptions apply for employees who regularly work 10 or twelve 12 hour workdays.MondayTuesdayWednesdayThursdayFridaySat.Sun.Payment1088880040 hours of straight time and 2 hrs of overtime
- 5. An employee regularly works an eight hour shift, Monday through Friday. The employee uses eight hours of paid time off (PTO) on Monday, works Tuesday through Friday and then works eight hours on Saturday. Is the employee entitled to overtime for all hours worked on Saturday?
No. The eight hours of PTO used by the employee on Monday are not included in the calculation of a 40-hour work week for overtime purposes. By the end of Friday, the employee will have worked 32 hours that count toward the overtime calculation. Accordingly, the employee will be paid regular straight time pay for the right hours worked on Saturday.
MondayTuesdayWednesdayThursdayFridaySat.Sun.Payment8 hours of PTO8 hours8 hours8 hours8 hours8 hours40 hours of straight time and 8 hours of PTO - 6. Same example as question 5 with the exception that the employee works an additional four hours on Sunday. Is the employee entitled to overtime for all hours worked on Sunday?
Yes. As of the end of the employee’s shift on Saturday, the employee will have worked 40 hours in the same workweek. Any additional hours worked on the Sunday will be in excess of the 40 hour workweek and eligible for overtime.
MondayTuesdayWednesdayThursdayFridaySat.Sun.Payment8 hours of PTO8 hours8 hours8 hours8 hours8 hours4 hours40 hours of straight time, 8 hours of PTO and 4 hours of/overtime - 7. An employee works a 9 a.m.-5 p.m. shift Monday through Friday. On Monday, the employee uses eight hours of jury duty leave and does not work the regular shift. The employee is called in to work from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. on that same Monday. Is the employee entitled to overtime for work done during the hours of 7 p.m. to 11 p.m.?
No. The employee would only be paid regular straight time pay for the hours worked on Monday. The eight hours of jury duty leave are considered nonproductive paid time, which does not count as time worked for purposes of calculating overtime.
MondayTuesdayWednesdayThursdayFridaySat.Sun.Payment8 hours of jury duty and 4 hours worked8 hours8 hours8 hours8 hours36 hours of straight time and 8 hours of jury duty leave - 8. An employee regularly works an eight hour shift, Monday through Friday. In one week, the employee works 10 hours Monday through Thursday and then is off on Friday due to a holiday. The employee then works eight hours on Saturday. How much overtime is the employee entitled to for the week?
The employee would be paid eight hours of overtime based on time worked in excess of eight hours in a day for Monday through Thursday. Although the employee had worked forty hours in a workweek, the hours worked on Saturday would be paid at straight time because the employee would have already received overtime payment for the extra eight hours worked Monday through Thursday.
MondayTuesdayWednesdayThursdayFridaySat.Sun.Payment10 hours10 hours10 hours10 hours8 hours of holiday8 hours40 hours of straight time, 8 hours of overtime and 8 hours of holiday - 9. An employee regularly works an eight hour shift, Monday through Friday. On Monday, the University is closed due to a weather emergency. The employee is called in to work as a critical services employee and works eight hours during the University emergency closure weather. The employee then works the regular shift Tuesday through Friday. The employee also works an additional eight hours on Saturday in a noncritical services capacity. Is the employee entitled to overtime for the hours worked on Monday?
No. However, the employee would be entitled to premium pay compensation under the University policy 5.0.4 Work Schedules Affected by a Weather Emergency or applicable union contract for the work performed as a critical services employee.
- 10. In the same example in question 9, is the employee entitled to overtime for the hours worked on Saturday?
The employee will be entitled to eight hours of overtime for the work performed on Saturday since the employee worked forty hours during that week prior to Saturday. While the hours worked on Monday were in the context of a weather emergency, they still count as time worked for the purpose of calculating overtime.
MondayTuesdayWednesdayThursdayFridaySat.Sun.Payment8 hours of critical services8 hours8 hours8 hours8 hours8 hours32 hours of straight time, 8 hours of overtime and 8 hours of premium pay for weather emergency
- 1. What is overtime?
- Salary Administration Module (SAM) Technical Support
- 1. Is documentation available to help me use the Salary Administration Module (SAM)?
Documentation is available on the HR website.
- 2. Who can I contact for technical support?
Contact the Office of Human Resources at (609) 258-3300 or hr@princeton.edu for assistance.
- 3. Can I use my Macintosh computer to administer this process?SAM can be accessed on Mac computers with Safari or Firefox.
- 4. The SAM Job History (or Summary Report) does not run when I click on the report name. What should I do?Most likely your browser is blocking pop-up windows. The report needs to opens a new browser window or tab before it can display the report. Please turn off your browser’s pop-up blocker while you are logged into PeopleSoft SAM.
Note to Mac users: While SAM works with Safari, you will be required to globally allow pop-ups, which may not be a security setting you want to keep long-term for other websites. We recommend you use Firefox where you can allow pop-ups only for specific sites, like the PeopleSoft SAM system.
- 1. Is documentation available to help me use the Salary Administration Module (SAM)?
Website feedback: hrweb@princeton.edu