Compensation

Philosophy

The University of San Francisco provides a competitive and sustainable compensation and benefits package designed to help recruit, retain, and recognize a qualified, diverse, and mission-driven workforce. Our compensation practices are based on a philosophy that:

  • rewards employees for the skill, responsibility, and effort required for their positions as well as individual performance,
  • ensures market competitiveness and internal equity by reviewing job descriptions, pay ranges, and rates of pay within these ranges,
  • promotes consistency in pay practices across the University, and
  • demonstrates fiscal responsibility.

Information for Employee Groups

Policies and Procedures

Each hiring department is responsible for identifying their need to hire for a position. For new positions or existing positions that have not been reviewed in the past two years, the hiring department writes a new job description with assistance from Human Resources (HR) as needed. The job description and salary grade must be reviewed and approved by Compensation. For more information, refer to the USF Staff Hiring Policy.

A job and/or salary re-evaluation may be required if an employee experiences a significant change in duties caused by a:

  • position change (i.e. when the responsibilities of the position change significantly)
  • position or organizational restructure (i.e. when schools or departments determine that an organizational change is necessary, which may affect the reporting relationship between existing positions and/or may require that job responsibilities change for one or more positions)

Employees should discuss job and salary re-evaluations with their supervisor. Supervisors will then follow the steps outlined below to facilitate this process, if warranted, and discuss the outcome with their employees:

  • the supervisor revises the job description, with assistance from Compensation if needed
  • the supervisor then submits the job description to Compensation
  • Compensation reviews the job description and determines the position’s classification, grading, and compensation range, if applicable

Union employees should refer to their collective bargaining agreement for information on job and or salary re-evaluations.

At times, non-exempt employees may be required to travel for work-related functions. In these cases, non-exempt employees may be entitled to travel time pay. Compensation for travel time is included in the salary and other benefits paid to exempt employees.

Employees are not entitled to travel time pay for regular commute between their homes and the location where they are to first report to work.

Employees are not entitled to travel time pay for time spent sleeping in a hotel, eating meals (unless the meal is business-related), or on personal or sight-seeing activities. For more information, employees should speak directly with their supervisor or human resources. For information about travel reimbursement, please refer to the Travel and Entertainment Policy, which is available on the ABS policies web page.

  1. How can I get a copy of my position description? Ask your supervisor or contact HR Compensation for this document.
  2. What if my job description isn’t up-to-date? Job descriptions provide important detail on a position’s scope, impact, key responsibilities, and requirements. Best practice is to review your job description annually with your supervisor during the performance appraisal process. If substantial changes have occurred and the supervisor agrees that a review by HR Compensation is warranted, the supervisor will revise the description and forward it to HR Compensation for review.
  3. How long does it take for a position (i.e. job description and salary) to be evaluated? Expect approximately 7–10 business days from receipt of all necessary information for a job evaluation to be completed based on a job description submission. Please contact compensation@usfca.edu if you have any questions in the interim.
  4. How can I access my total compensation statement each year? Visit the total compensation statement web page for detailed instructions. 
  5. What are the characteristics of an exempt and a non-exempt position? The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) determines which positions are classified as exempt and non-exempt. An exempt position is exempt from the overtime pay provisions of the FLSA, the employee must be paid on a salaried basis, and must perform work duties that the FLSA defines as exempt, based on the major job functions. A non-exempt position is eligible for overtime pay and the employee must be paid minimum wage.
  6. What is a performance appraisal? As part of the University’s overall performance management program, the formal performance appraisal is a summary of the year-long communication between supervisor and employee on the employee’s work goals and behaviors and the progress made toward achieving them. The annual appraisal typically occurs each spring. For more information, please review the appropriate section above under "Compensation Information" for your particular role or for your employee's role.
  7. What if I have a question that isn't listed here? Further questions regarding general compensation practices may be directed to HR Compensation by calling (415) 422-6707 or by emailing compensation@usfca.edu.