Additional Compensation for Professional Services to the University

University Policy: 
101
.15
Executive Summary: 

For full-time EHRA faculty and staff members, the salary approved by the Board of Governors is the full compensation to be expected during the period of appointment. This policy describes the very limited circumstances in which such an individual may be eligible for additional compensation for additional services, and the procedures related to such payments. Individuals with less than full-time appointments can increase their commitment up to full-time with additional compensation, but they may not exceed full-time commitment status unless authorized as an exception in this Policy.

I.  Scope

This Policy applies to additional compensation paid to UNC Charlotte faculty and staff through the University Payroll Office. This Policy is not intended to modify any of the existing policies or procedures governing the administration of University salaries or payments for external consulting (see University Policy 102.1, External Professional Activities for Pay).

II. Definitions

For the purposes of this Policy, the following definitions apply:

Academic Year for Nine-Month Faculty. For the purposes of this Policy, the Academic Year for Nine-Month Faculty is August 15 through May 15.

Summer Term for Nine-Month Faculty. For the purposes of this Policy, the Summer Term for Nine-Month Faculty for this period is from May 16 through August 14.

Base Salary. The annual permanent salary of the employee as it appears in the employment contract of the employee or subsequent letters of notice of salary increase/decrease plus any supplemental administrative stipends of one full year or more.  

Additional Compensation.  All one-time or special payments paid to faculty and staff through the University Payroll Office beyond the Base Salary when paid for activities of short duration including, but not limited to, activities such as conducting seminars, workshops, and training in other than the home department; teaching continuing education or summer school courses; dual employment payments from other state agencies; internal grant stipends from the Office of the Provost; University sanctioned awards; sponsored program payments during the Summer Term for Nine-Month Faculty, and other interim and temporary assignments of less than one year.

EPAF.  The Electronic Personnel Action Form (EPAF is the method of notification to the Payroll Office of payment or changes in status.)

III. General Policy 

For a full-time member of the faculty or EHRA staff, the salary approved by the Chancellor (or delegate), Board of Trustees, or Board of Governors is the Base Salary.  No Additional Compensation may be paid to a full-time member of the faculty or EHRA staff for University duties that are generally related to the position to which the individual is appointed.  No Senior Academic and Administrative Officer (see University Policy 102.9) may be paid, in addition to their salary, for any services rendered to any institution-related foundation, endowment, or other entity that (a) is established by officers of the University, (b) is controlled by the University, or (c) is tax-exempt based on being a support organization for the University.

For nine-month faculty. Upon appropriate approvals, the faculty member can earn up to 3/9ths Additional Compensation from all sources paid through the University Payroll Office during the Summer.  The 3/9ths maximum is calculated on the Base Salary.

For eleven-month faculty.  For department chairs under 11-month contracts the maximum Additional Compensation that may be earned from all sources paid through the University Payroll Office is 1/11th of the employee’s base salary.

IV.   Payments for Teaching or Additional Teaching

A.    Overload Instruction for Credit Courses in the Academic Year

Faculty should generally not receive Additional Compensation in the academic year for teaching credit courses that are in addition to their normal course load. Instead, other arrangements may be made, such as a corresponding course reduction in the following semester.  Under extraordinary circumstances (e.g. coverage for another faculty member on emergency medical leave) and with approval of the chair and dean, overload pay may be approved for faculty that agree to teach additional credit courses beyond the departmental standard load, if there are no external candidates available to hire and if it does not cause a conflict of commitment with the other duties of the faculty member.

B.    Seminars, Workshops, and Training (other than through the Office of Extended Academic Programs)

Approval may be granted for Additional Compensation for conducting non-credit short courses or presenting special lectures, seminars, workshops and conferences.  These services must be outside the home department to qualify for Additional Compensation and require advance review and approval by the appropriate supervisor. They are not considered part of the Base Salary.

C.    Teaching Continuing Education Programs

Faculty may be approved by their chair and dean for Additional Compensation during the academic year and/or Summer to teach Continuing Education (non-credit) programs offered through the Office of Extended Academic Programs as long as such work does not cause a conflict of commitment with their regular job duties. Compensation rates are generally dependent on generation of program revenue.  Compensation for teaching Continuing Education programs during the Summer Term is subject to the 3/9ths maximum allowed by the Policy.

D.    Summer School Instruction

The amount of the compensation for faculty approved by an academic department to teach Summer School courses is determined by the department chair in accordance with the department’s Summer School allocation and the compensation guidelines for Summer School that are approved by the Office of Academic Affairs and administered by the Office of Extended Academic Programs.  The faculty member is responsible for determining if their total Summer School pay, in addition to other pay s/he is scheduled to receive during the “Summer Term for Nine-Month Faculty,” would result in more than the 3/9th maximum allowed by the Policy.  If so, the number of courses or the compensation for teaching during the Summer Term, or the faculty member’s other work and/or payments, would need to be reduced.

E.    Teaching by SHRA or EHRA Staff

Non-teaching staff, both EHRA and SHRA, whose duties are tied to the normal workweek schedule of the University, may be allowed, subject to advance approval by the appropriate supervisor, to take on a University teaching responsibility for Additional Compensation, assuming the employee possesses special skills not readily available in the marketplace.  A staff member’s primary employment responsibilities take priority over any additional part-time teaching assignments. Generally, this teaching responsibility must be carried out at times other than during the normal working hours established for full-time employment responsibility.  However, in extraordinary circumstances, when the teaching responsibility must take place during the course of the employee’s normal working hours, exceptions may be made but must be approved in advance by the appropriate dean, department chair, or vice chancellor through the EPAF justification process.

Paid leave may not be used to account for the time the employee is working the additional assignment, but Leave Without Pay (PIM-05) is an option if approved by the supervisor.  If Leave Without Pay is not used to account for the time away from normal working assignments, an alternate work schedule must be approved and forwarded with the appropriate assignment documentation for inclusion in the employee’s official personnel record (EHRA to Office of Academic Affairs, SHRA to Human Resources). The appropriate dean or vice chancellor must review and recertify such arrangements annually, and, if necessary, coordinate for continued concurrence with the appropriate supervisor.

V.  Payments from External Funds

A.    Summer Term for Nine-Month Faculty.  

Additional Compensation can be earned during the Summer Term for Nine-Month Faculty for externally-funded sponsored program activities as approved by the department chair, dean, and Research Cost Management. For nine-month faculty, total compensation from all sources for service to UNC Charlotte during the summer period may not exceed 3/9ths of an individual’s Base Salary (see definition).  Summer compensation can include summer teaching, temporary summer chair/director stipends, course development stipends, payment for attending UNC Charlotte summer institutes, and any other payments made on a temporary basis through the University payroll system in addition to research pay in any proportion, the total of which may not exceed 3/9ths.  (Please note that some funding agencies implement more restrictive guidelines regarding summer pay and the awarding documents/funding agency regulations shall be the ultimate authority on allowable expenses.)

This 3/9ths limit is calculated using the Base Salary only. 

Example A:  Professor X’s academic year salary is $72,000.  She teaches one overload class in the fall and earns $5,000 and serves as the temporary Associate Chair for the department for the Spring Semester, and earns $2,500.  The maximum additional amount she can earn during the summer months through the UNC Payroll is $24,000 (3/9ths of her $72,000 base salary).  The compensation earned for the overload payment and the temporary associate chair stipend (for less than one year) is not included in this calculation of base salary. Please note that consulting services outside of the University and the compensation earned from those services would have no impact on the 3/9th limit. 

Example B:  Professor Y’s academic year salary is $60,000.  In addition, he is in Year 2 of a 3-year appointment as the Graduate Coordinator for his department for which he earns $5,000 per year which would be included in his base salary. The maximum he can earn during the summer months through the UNC Payroll is an additional $21,667 (3/9ths of his $65,000 base salary).

Example C:  Professor Z’s academic salary is $80,000.  She earns no Additional Compensation during the Academic Year.  During the summer she will receive 2/9 of her Base Salary from an NSF grant.  She has been asked to teach 2 Summer School classes at $6,000 each.  The maximum she can earn during the summer months through the UNC Payroll is an additional $26,667 (3/9th of $80,000).  Since her grant will pay her $17,778, she will only be able to teach one of the Summer School classes. ($26,667 - $17,778 = $8,889) 

B.    During the Academic Year for Nine-Month Faculty

Typically, research sponsors do not permit compensation beyond the base rate of pay during the Academic Year for Nine-Month Faculty.  As a general rule, faculty members (all appointed types) involved in funded research during the Academic Year for Nine-Month Faculty should have their other assigned responsibilities reduced through release time or request replacement costs. In unusual cases, Additional Compensation above the Base Salary is allowable provided that such activities are specifically required by the agreement with the sponsor, approved in writing by the chair, dean and sponsoring agency, and in accordance with federal regulations. 

In unusual cases where work is being performed at a remote operation, and the work performed is in addition to the regular departmental load, any charges for such work representing Additional Compensation above the Base Salary are allowable provided that such arrangements are specifically provided for in the agreement or approved in writing by the sponsoring agency.  These payments are processed on an EPAF and require the approval of the department chair and dean/business manager along with an explanation of the source of the funds and must be reviewed and approved by Research Cost Management.

VI.        Other Examples of Additional Compensation that could be approved during the Academic Year for Nine-Month Faculty and/or during the Summer Term for Nine-Month Faculty

A.    Internal Grants

Faculty members can receive Additional Compensation in the form of a one-time stipend from internal research and curriculum development projects.  This includes, but is not limited to, Faculty Research Grants and SoTL (Scholarship of Teaching and Learning) Grants funded by the Provost’s office.  These faculty development stipends are usually paid on May 15, and the maximum amounts of the stipends are set by the respective committees that approve these awards.  For a nine-month faculty member, a payment received on May 15 would be received during the Academic Year for Nine-Month Faculty and would not be part of the Base Salary.

B.    Dual Employment

Dual employment occurs when a University employee agrees to perform services for another North Carolina state agency on a part-time or contractual basis.  Approval must be obtained from the supervisor of the primary employment position before the service is provided in order to ascertain whether the obligation will interfere with the job duties and commitments of the primary position.  If approved, all payments for the employee’s services must be sent (along with Form CP-30) from the borrowing agency to the University and paid through the University payroll.  The Office of State Personnel policy on dual employment can be accessed at www.osp.state.nc.us/manuals/man3.html.

C.    Administrative Assignments

Faculty members and EHRA staff occasionally assume administrative duties for which Additional Compensation, usually in the form of a temporary stipend, is appropriate.  Examples include assignments as coordinators of undergraduate, graduate, or special programs. Interim appointments to a higher level of administrative responsibility, such as interim department chair, dean or director, may also result in Additional Compensation.  For nine-month faculty, these payments will be considered part of the Base Salary if the assignment is for one year or longer.

D.    Other One-Time Special Payments

In some cases, a special (one-time) payment may be paid to faculty or EHRA staff. An example might be a one-time payment for developing a new distance education course during the Academic Year for Nine-Month Faculty or during the Summer Term for Nine-Month Faculty.  Another example could be a payment to a nine-month faculty member for participating in a Summer Institute on diversity or other atypical activities that are not part of the job duties of the employee and may be performed outside of their normal working hours.  Summer stipends that are part of the start-up commitment of a new faculty member would also be considered a special payment. One-time special payments must be reviewed and approved in advance by the department head and dean/business manager or supervisor and appropriate vice chancellor. A written justification for these payments must be included on the EPAF

Service activities (e.g. serving on a search or review committee) are viewed as routine employment expectations; therefore, faculty and EHRA staff employees should not expect Additional Compensation for such activities.  In no case may a one-time special payment be used as a bonus to compensate an employee for past performance.

Except as set forth in Section IV.5 above, SHRA employees are not eligible for one-time special payments. SHRA employees who are eligible for overtime under FLSA regulations may not be given supplemental pay in lieu of overtime.  In cases of SHRA employees who are not subject to overtime, the department head may, at their discretion, consider recognizing the extra time worked on an hour-for-hour basis.  In cases where the department head has questions concerning the relationship of work to be performed to an employee’s normal job responsibilities, the department head should consult with Human Resources for guidance prior to allowing the employee to enter into such work assignment.

VII.  Procedures for Payment of Additional Compensation

A.    Timing of Requests

Any payments of Additional Compensation must be requested on an Academic Personnel Form (EPAF/special payment) in advance of initiation of the work. The department requiring the effort must initiate the request stating the nature and duration of the project.  Project duration, compensation rates, and timing of payment must be resolved prior to the beginning of projects.  The EPAF will indicate the number/timing of payments. As proposals are reviewed and approved, an individual's total time commitments will be considered.

All requests for Additional Compensation must be initiated prior to the start of the work period.  All one-time special payments require a justification for these payments.  

B.    Approvals

The department chair and dean/business manager of the faculty member or the supervisor and the Vice Chancellor of the staff member for whom the payments are requested must approve the request for payment of Additional Compensation. Additional Compensation in the form of stipends for internal research and curriculum development activities funded through the UNC Charlotte Faculty Development Program (administered by the Office of the Provost) are authorized by the Provost.  Requests for Additional Compensation on sponsored program activities must also be approved by Research Cost Management.

For SHRA employees, all documentation must be reviewed and approved by Human Resources prior to the commencement of paid activities and such documentation must be retained in the employee’s personnel files.

If the employee receiving Additional Compensation is in a different department/unit from the requestor of the work or assignment, the department chair/supervisor of the employee must be consulted for approval in order to consider such issues as work-load management. The EPAF must be approved by both the requestor and the chair/supervisor of the employee before approval at the next level.

C.    Method of Payment and Deductions

Payment of Additional Compensation will be processed as compensation to employees (and not as payments to independent contractors) through the Payroll Office, and federal/state taxes and other appropriate deductions will be withheld. Payments will be identified as Additional Compensation above the amount paid as the Base Salary.

Revision History: 

Initially approved March 15, 1991

  • Revised January 30, 1995
  • Revised January 6, 2003
  • Revised January 14, 2004
  • Revised June 29, 2005
  • Updated August 2, 2007
  • Revised February 22, 2012
  • Updated July 19, 2021

Authority:  Chancellor

Responsible Offices:  Academic Affairs and Business Affairs

Related Resources: