SAS Procedures for Requests for Staff Reclassifications and Salary Adjustments 

The purpose of mid-year salary adjustments and reclassifications is to appropriately classify and/or compensate staff who have taken on significantly more responsibility, accountability, complexity, and commitment. A reclassification/salary adjustment may also address internal or external equity issues. Additional work/new assignments of similar complexity, time in the job, newly completed education, and the incumbent’s skill set generally are not valid reasons to reclassify a position or adjust a salary.

Please see the University’s policy on Reclassifications and Salary adjustments for more details: https://www.hr.upenn.edu/myhr/resources/policy/compensation/reclassification. Frequently Asked Question and Answers on Position Reclassification and Salary Adjustments SAS Human Resources will evaluate submissions twice a year with deadlines of August 31 (effective date of September 1) and January 31 (effective date of February 1).  Submissions are reviewed collectively for the school.  Final decisions can take 4 to 6 weeks and will be communicated to the submitter.  Any adjustments resulting from the reviews will be effective September 1 and February 1, respectively. Please submit the required information electronically to SAS HR to the attention of Paula Pritchett. Requests for reclassification and/or salary adjustment must be submitted by the direct supervisor and/or Department Chair or Director.  Documentation requesting position reclassifications and salary adjustments must demonstrate significant evidence of increase in responsibility, accountability, complexity and commitment. The duties must have changed significantly before a request for change in the staff member’s job profile/classification and/or salary is considered. It will be the manager’s responsibility to demonstrate in a measurable way the increased responsibility. In these circumstances, the staff member must have performed the new responsibilities for a minimum of six months before a reclassification/adjustment is considered.

All requests must include:

  • Memo including the rationale for the request: What are circumstances that led to the additional responsibilities? What impact has this position’s increase in responsibilities had on the department overall? How long have the new responsibilities been in place?
  • Last official PIQ for the position.
  • New PIQ reflecting the changes in scope and responsibility. This should be as detailed as possible and highlight the specific areas that have changed.
    • Signed by supervisor
    • Signed by department chair/ director
    • Signed by employee (recommended)
  • Employee resume

Evaluation Process SAS HR and University Compensation will review the request based on:

  • Job content, salary, required skills, education and years of experience to others in similar positions in the School and the University.
  • A comparison with the appropriate external market.
  • For equity requests, it must be determined that there is a significant equity discrepancy when comparing the incumbent’s current salary to the average salaries of similarly situated staff members in the same job title and classification. A determination includes consideration of the level of education, experience and skills the incumbent brings to the position. Performance will also be considered.
  • If necessary, a member of SAS HR will meet with the appropriate manager/supervisor to obtain additional information or clarification.
  • SAS HR will consult with the Division of Human Resources/Compensation prior to making a recommendation to the Vice Dean for Finance and Administration for final approval. Any exceptions to these guidelines must be approved by the Vice Dean for Finance and Administration. Approval to submit a request to the Department of Human Resources, Compensation does not guarantee approval.

Acting Rates

An acting rate is considered when a staff member assumes significant duties from a higher graded position for an extended period of time (minimum 2 months) while typically continuing to perform current duties. An acting rate can not exceed 10% of staff member’s current salary.
It can not be approved beyond 6 months at which time it will need to be reviewed again if the duties are still being performed.

Please review the Additional Pay Policy for full details.

For consideration of an acting rate the following must be provided:

  • A current PIQ.
  • A letter from the department chair or director describing the additional duties to be performed by the employee, the reason why they will be performing the duties and for how long.

Additional Pay

This is a pre-approval request for additional pay for extra services performed outside the scope of the SAS staff member’s job classification.

  • Prior to the onset of work, the SAS staff member who will perform the service should ensure the form is completed jointly by the department requesting extra services, and the SAS Regional Business Office (if the extra services are in SAS).  If the extra services to be performed are outside of SAS, it is the responsibility of the SAS staff member who is to perform the extra services to ensure that the form is completed and submitted properly. The completed form (with approvals from the requesting department, SAS staff member’s current supervisor, and SAS Regional Business Office) is to be submitted to SAS Human Resources (humanresources@sas.upenn.edu) for review prior to the work being performed.
  • Signatures of the Requesting department, SAS Staff Member’s Current Supervisor and the “paying” SAS Regional Business Office (RBO) Business Administrator are required prior to forwarding the form to SAS Human Resources.
    • SAS RBO is to review the budget to ensure funding prior to completing the work.  Unfunded requests should be denied.  If funding source is from a grant, SAS RBO should confirm allowability before signing the pre-approval request.
  • Note: There is a risk that payment will not be approved if the form is not submitted prior to the work/activity being performed.  If extra services are performed during regular working hours, the staff member must take PTO time from his/her regular job or forego additional compensation. Exceptions to this must be approved by the SAS HR Director.  (To request an exception please attach the reason for the exception to this form.)
  • SAS Human Resources will forward the pre-approval request form with the final decision to the requesting department.  If approved, the requesting department is permitted to hire the SAS staff member to perform the necessary extra services.  Following the completion of the extra services, please include the approved pre-approval form as documentation when submitting into Workday the actual additional pay request for payment. 

Additional Pay Pre-Approval form

Pre-Approval Guidelines

  • Requesting department and/or SAS staff member is to send the completed pre-approval request form via email attachment to SAS Human Resources, (humanresources@sas.upenn.edu) for review.  The form must be received at least 10 days prior to the work being performed.  There is a risk that payment will not be approved if the form is not submitted prior to the work/activity being performed.
  • SAS Human Resources will forward the pre-approval request form via email attachment to the Requester with their final decision.  If approved, the Requester is permitted to hire the SAS staff member to perform the necessary extra services.
  • Processing the Additional Pay
    • Requester notifies the “paying” department’s Business Office, where one or more individuals are designated in Workday as HR Analysts, to enter a One Time Payment or Period Activity Pay request.
    • One Time Payment – Workday Business Process for additional pay for a one-time payment for completion of work that is outside the scope of the staff member’s job profile.
    • Period Activity Pay – Workday Business Process that allows an existing staff member to be paid for additional teaching or research for a fixed-term time period.
    • Documentation required to submit online request:
      • Letter from Requester that provides justification for and description of work to be completed, amount to be paid (number of hours worked x hourly rate of pay if applicable), signatures of Requester and SAS staff member who performed work.
      • Copy of approved pre-approval request form
      • Further documentation may be required in certain circumstances
  • The pre-approval request form that has been approved by SAS Human Resources is to be included as an attachment when requesting the actual additional payment in Workday.  An additional pay request without the submission of this form will be rejected.

Definition of Terms

Additional Pay – The function and purpose of an additional pay is the payment of money above and beyond a staff member’s weekly/monthly paycheck.  Examples include work performed outside of or beyond usual job duties, , and payment of permissible allowance expense. Extra Services –  Completion of work which is outside the scope of the staff member’s job classification, is not performed on a continuing basis or during the regular work schedule of the staff member, and, typically, is not work performed for the staff member’s supervisor.  Also used for on-call pay when staff member is required to be available for emergencies and must respond during hours which are outside their scheduled work hours. SAS Staff Additional Pay Pre-Approval for Extra Services Request form (pre-approval request form) – Approval for additional pay is required prior to the staff member performing the extra services.  The pre-approval request form is the document to ensure that additional pay qualifications for extra services are satisfactory, which includes allowability (based on type of work, when work is performed, compensation amount, and budget) and approval signatures (from the requester of services, the current supervisor of the staff member to be hired to perform services, the “paying” SAS regional business office business administrator and SAS HR).  An approved pre-approval form is an essential document that is to be included when submitting an additional pay through Workday (after the work has been completed).  The Pre-approval request form is located on the SAS Human Resources website – The person initiating the extra services of an SAS staff member.  The Requester is a University faculty or staff member who can be employed outside of SAS.  The Requester is the person who asks for pre-approval before hiring the SAS staff member and who asks that an additional pay be processed (per HR approval) for services performed by an SAS staff member when the work has been completed. SAS Staff Member – A weekly- or monthly-paid person employed by the School of Arts and Sciences.  Faculty and graduate students are not included in the pre-approval process for extra services. Home Department – The department associated with the staff member’s primary job at Penn. Paying Department – The department that oversees the funding from which the staff member is to be paid for performing the extra services. Submitter – The person who uses the WorkDay online system to create and manage all aspects of an additional pay request.  The additional pay entry is to be entered by the Submitter in the Paying Department.  Additional pay request and documentation is provided to the Submitter by the Requester.  The Submitter must ensure that requests are properly authorized, budgeted and documented.