RESPONSIBLE CITY AGENCY: Division of Human Resources
KEYWORDS: Classification, reclassification, salary, pay, compensation, policy exception, reduction, red circle.
1. General
1.1 Within its fiscal constraints and at its discretion, the City will endeavor to provide fair and equitable compensation that is competitive with other public and private sector markets. To this aim, the City will seek guidance from the Citizens Compensation Advisory Committee.
1.2 The City pays employees within established pay ranges. City employment classifications are reevaluated periodically to reflect current market trends.
1.3 Supervisors, under the direction of department heads, are responsible for maintaining descriptions of employees' current job duties and performance expectations.
1.4 When setting individual pay rates for managerial and professional employees, supervisors are responsible to ensure that, considering the work group as a whole, there is reasonable comparability of pay among all employees of similar responsibility, experience, and performance.
1.5. Policy exceptions require the approval of the Mayor or the Mayor’s designee.
1.5 Definitions:
A. Policy exception: Any wage payment or increase not made for or at hire, merit step advancement (stepped plans only), fiscal-year beginning or other period designated for a general adjustment, acting assignment, or promotion.
B. Promotional Increase: a base pay addition given as a direct result of upward classification through job bid, appointment, or career ladder upward movement. This does not include movement to a higher pay grade as a result of a position review or audit finding. Any base pay addition given in this case must be recommended by the City compensation manager and approved by the Mayor or the Mayor’s designee.
C. Market: a sampling of compensation practices in organizations that contain jobs similar to jobs in the City.
D. Citizens Compensation Advisory Committee: a seven-member citizens volunteer committee consisting of compensation and/or HR professionals. Three members are appointed by the Mayor; three are appointed by the City Council; and those six members appoint the seventh member, who is usually associated with labor at a leadership level. The committee recommends compensation philosophy/strategy and market participants for pay practice comparisons.
E. Pay Range: a specification of base pay opportunities -- minimum rate required to maximum rate allowed -- assigned to City jobs, based on analysis of job responsibilities and tasks and determination of comparable market practices for similar jobs.
2. Pay Adjustments
2.1 Supervisors may adjust individual base wage rates within the assigned pay range of a position to implement merit step increases as specified in labor contracts and/or adopted pay plans. :Otherwise, supervisors may, in accordance with procedure set out in the City’s Compensation Guidelines and Procedures, and with the approval of the Mayor or the Mayor’s designee, adjust individual rates within a position’s assigned pay range as follows:
A. In plans without steps, to recognize skill and competence levels of employees whose base wage rates have not reached the midpoint of their pay ranges.
B. To address special conditions or to correct inequities that exist in a work group but are not related to differences in responsibility, experience, or performance.
C. To recognize exceptional performance or contributions by Appointed Employees,
2.2 When no promotional increase or routine step within grade is involved, any base pay adjustment, by itself or when added to another pay adjustment of any kind within the same fiscal year, shall not exceed 10 percent in such fiscal year without the written approval of the Mayor or the Mayor’s designee.
2.3 As necessary, supervisors will adjust the pay rates of employees who move into a job with a higher pay range as a result of a job bid, appointment, or career ladder step up:
A. Except in cases involving grant-funded positions, the pay rate cannot be less than the minimum of the new pay range.
B. The new pay rate will achieve reasonable equity within the work group based on a consideration of the responsibilities, levels of experience, and performance of other members of the group as well as the reassigned employee.
C. Except for movement to a range minimum, seasonal or hourly positions paying less than $15 per hour after a pay increase, or as described below, the new pay rate will not exceed a 10 percent increase above the old pay rate, unless approved in writing by the Mayor or the Mayor's designee. More than a 10 percent increase may be allowed without Mayoral approval if BOTH the following conditions are met:
(1.1) The employee is being moved to or within a pay structure with steps, and the step that comes closest to a 10 percent increase is over 10 percent by less than 3/10ths of one percent.
(1.2) A written explanation is provided to the City compensation manager of the business or equity purpose for not electing the next lower step.
D. For pay plans without steps, if the old pay rate is within the range of the new pay grade, supervisors may defer making a pay adjustment until the next annual pay review date. If the old pay rate is higher than the midpoint of the new pay range, and is reasonably consistent with pay equity in the work group, based on similarity of responsibility, experience, and skill, supervisors should defer making a pay adjustment until the next annual pay review date. If the new pay rate is in a pay plan with steps, supervisors may select a higher pay step if the alternative would be a pay decrease.
2.4 Supervisors may make a temporary pay adjustment, not to exceed the pay range maximum or ten percent of the current pay rate, whichever is less, for employees who accept responsibility to serve in an "acting" or “interim” capacity for a period that will exceed one month. Except as provided under working-out-of-class provisions in union contract, pay adjustments for employees who serve in an acting capacity for periods less than one month must be recommended by the City compensation manager and approved by the Mayor or the Mayor’s designee.
3. Red Circle
3.1 The city "red circles" an employee's salary when the responsible department permits the salary to exceed its assigned pay range. Reasons for red circling may include job reassignment, reclassification, or inclusion of pay premiums and/or allowances into the base rate of pay.
3.2 No base pay increases are allowed until the top of the assigned pay range exceeds the red circled salary.
3.3 Use of the red circle is not appropriate for employees who voluntarily move to a position of lesser salary or who are reassigned for disciplinary, competency, or fitness-for-duty reasons, intradepartmental reorganization, or unavailability of work or funds. Acceptance of a lower-paying City position while on lay-off status will not be treated as “voluntary.”
CURRENT REFERENCES:
Compensation Guidelines & Procedures
Employment, Hiring, and Termination policy
Disciplinary Guidelines policy
Salt Lake City Compensation Plan for
Appointed Employees and Elected Officials
PRE-1995 REFERENCES: City policy 3.01.306
4.01.300
90-1
4.01.301
4.01.303
4.01.304
4.01.900
91-2
INITIAL EFFECTIVE DATE: October 1, 1995
DATE APPROVED BY CABINET: September 6, 1995
REVISED: December 13, 1995
January 11, 1996
June 7, 1996
May 31, 2000
September 15, 2000
January 8, 2001
December 11, 2002
February 26, 2003
Effective Date of Current Revision (Date signed by Mayor): July 1, 2008
(Signed by David Everitt for the Mayor)