College Policy Number/Title:

• 63.04     Compensation

Salary range schedules are based upon information obtained from area industry, other Maryland community colleges, local public agencies and other relevant sources.  Salary schedules are evaluated every several years and adopted by the college's board of trustees upon recommendation of the president.  While individual salaries may be subject to negotiation at the time of hire, no appointee's salary may exceed the budgeted funds approved for the position.

SALARY PLACEMENT at the TIME of INITIAL APPOINTMENT

The method of establishing salary at the time of appointment should be consistent with the experience and training of each selected candidate.

A faculty member is assigned rank by the criteria stated for initial appointment.  If the candidate is minimally qualified for the rank, he/she usually receives the minimum beginning salary at the rank as contained in the salary range schedule.  Additional compensation beyond the minimum salary level for the given rank may be awarded for experience and training above minimum requirements for the rank as follows:

1. Each year of full-time post-secondary teaching experience in the discipline to be taught at Howard Community College beyond that used to meet minimal rank criterion may result in a $750 increase in the beginning salary.
2. Each year of full-time secondary teaching experience in the discipline to be taught at Howard Community College beyond that used to meet minimal rank criterion may result in a $375 increase in the beginning salary.
3. Each year of full-time, directly related experience in industry or military service may result in a $750 increase in the beginning salary.
4. Each year of full-time, related experience in industry or military service may result in a $375 increase in the beginning salary.
5. An earned doctorate prior to appointment will increase the beginning salary by $750.
6. Part-time employment is normally not considered for the purpose of salary placement.  It may be considered only when it is extensive.  It will be equated to a full load (30 credits = 1 year) and initial salary will be increased by $375 per equated year.

No appointee's salary may exceed the budgeted funds for the approved position.  The vice president of academic affairs recommends salary placement to the president and may, in unusual circumstances, consider other factors such as availability of personnel in a specific discipline.

The starting rate of pay will normally be the minimum salary of the grade in which the position being filled is classified.  A starting pay above the minimum and up to ten percent above the minimum of the salary range may be warranted in some instances to acknowledge exceptional experience or training along with college strategic initiatives.  Appointments above the minimum salary may be considered in the following cases:

1. The candidate presents extraordinary qualifications related to experience and education.  In this event, a value would be placed upon this experience in a manner similar to that outlined above for faculty and this experience will be documented in detail. 
2. The recruitment has yielded an extremely limited number of qualified applicants and an increased salary is necessary to fill the position.  
3. An assessment of the effect on employees in the same job classification (internal equity) has been made and it has been determined that such a placement would not have an unanticipated and deleterious effect on current salary placements.
4. Budgets allow for the additional funds.  

In addition, in rare cases, salary placements up to the midpoint of the salary range may be considered when, in addition to points 1 and 2, above, a candidate with extraordinary and rare qualifications is needed to meet college strategic initiatives.

All salary placements above the beginning level must be documented including detailed rationale on an interview evaluation form by the hiring supervisor; an interview evaluation form must be provided for each interviewed candidate.  Human resources will then initiate the hiring approval process through appropriate administrative channels including human resources, the vice president of administration and finance and the president of the institution.

Appointments Below the Beginning Salary Grade Level 

When fully qualified candidates are not available, new employees who do not meet the minimum requirements of the job may be hired as trainees.  This situation is subject to the approval of the hiring supervisor through the appropriate administrative channels.  The supervisor will provide a written plan and deadlines for meeting minimum qualifications.  The trainee will be hired at a salary up to ten percent lower than the minimum assigned to the job class until the minimum requirements are reached.  When the minimum requirements are reached, the employee will receive the entry-level rate of the assigned salary grade.

Salary Placement of Employees Who are Promoted 

The salary of a full-time employee who has been promoted to a higher level full-time position will be increased to the minimum rate of the higher graded position or by five percent per grade level, whichever is higher. A higher increase may be considered in the following cases:

1. The promotion results from a competitive selection process resulting from an external advertisement, in which case the new salary will be determined for the promoted employee just as it would for a successful external candidate.
2. There is a specific and critical issue related to the college mission or strategic initiatives to be addressed in this job and the president’s team has directed a higher increase for this reason.

If the promotion takes place at the beginning of the fiscal year, at the same time as any merit increase, the employee’s merit and promotion increases will be calculated separately based on the current fiscal year salary or hourly rate.  The merit and promotion increase would then be added to the current fiscal year compensation to calculate the new fiscal year salary or hourly rate.  

Note:  Division chair positions and associate division chair positions are appointments and not promotions.             

The salary of employees who transfer to positions at the same grade level will be maintained at the same level and not adjusted upward as in the case of a promotion.  The compensation level of employees who voluntarily transfer to a position at a lower grade level will be lowered by five percent per grade, and will not exceed the maximum of the new range.  A similar process may be followed if the individual is transferred to a lower level position by college administration.  If the individual's salary is above the new grade's maximum, the individual's merit increase in the future will be non-base increases (see "Merit Pay" procedures 63.04.06 and 63.04.07).  Any employee in a new position will be placed on probation in the new position.

The salary of an employee, whose current position has been reclassified as a result of a college-wide job evaluation study, will be increased to the minimum of the new level if applicable and if the budget allows; otherwise, there is no change in compensation.  An employee whose position is assigned to a lower grade as a result of a reclassification will normally be placed in the lower pay grade schedule without a reduction in pay if the budget allows.  The employee's salary will be "red-circled" as an exception within the new grade if it exceeds the grade maximum; however, future merit increases will be non-base increases (see "Merit Pay" procedures 63.04.06 and 63.04.07).

 Current Salary Schedules