Additional Pay Policy

Effective Date October 1, 2013
Last Updated December 7, 2017
Responsible University Officer Donna Davis, General Counsel
Policy Owner Martha Peugh-Wade, Associate Vice President, Compliance
Policy Contacts Diane Nelson, Assistant Vice President, Human Resources

Policy Statement

This Policy governs the payment of additional pay earned by a University faculty or staff employee. In lieu of paying an existing employee additional pay to undertake an assignment that is not part of the employee’s primary job, departments can hire a temporary worker through the University’s preferred employment agency, HR Options. For more information, visit the Hiring Temporary Staff web page.

Additional pay represents compensation that is not part of an employee’s regular pay for the performance of their primary job. Such additional pay includes, but is not limited to, payments for the following assignments and activities:

  • Faculty Overload Teaching,
  • Staff Teaching Assignments,
  • Non-Teaching Duties Related to Teaching,
  • Out-of-Classification Assignments,
  • Assignments Performed for Another Department, and;
  • Other Payments.

This Policy does not address the payment of overtime, shift differential, and similar forms of additional pay earned by an employee for time worked. In addition, the terms and conditions set forth in a collective bargaining agreement between the University and its employees shall govern if they differ from those included in this Policy.

Compensation paid to students hired by the University is subject to the Student Employment Policy, available on the Student Employment web page.

Reason for Policy

This Policy includes the standards for the approval, payment, and tax reporting of additional pay provided to an employee in connection with an increase in responsibility or other compensatory activity. The Policy conforms to the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and the Internal Revenue Code and applicable Treasury Regulations.

Who Should Read this Policy

Any employee who receives additional pay under this Policy; the members of the Leadership Team, as well as supervisors and Business Officers who administer or authorize the payment of additional pay.

Policy Text

An employee’s eligibility to receive additional pay from the University may be dependent on their status as an exempt or non-exempt employee under the FLSA and whether the individual’s position is covered under a collective bargaining agreement.

The following assignments, duties, and activities are eligible for the payment of additional pay, subject to the availability of funds:

Faculty Overload Teaching

A full-time faculty employee may receive additional pay for teaching a course beyond a fully assigned teaching load.

Staff Teaching Assignments

An exempt staff employee may receive additional pay for teaching an academic course. Staff teaching assignments are subject to the requirements included in the collective bargaining agreement between the University and the USF Faculty Association and the Staff Who Teach Policy.

Non-Teaching Duties Related to Teaching

A faculty or an exempt staff employee may receive additional pay for performing non-teaching work related to their teaching assignment or other teaching activity. Non-teaching duties may include conducting independent research; providing preceptor or tutorial services; or serving as a department chair, program coordinator, or performing other administrative duties beyond those normally expected of a faculty or exempt staff employee with teaching responsibilities.

Out-of-Classification Assignments

A faculty, exempt staff, non-exempt staff, or OPE staff employee may be eligible to receive additional pay for temporarily assuming the duties, in whole or part, of an immediate supervisor or other colleague within the employee’s department who has left their position or is on an extended leave of absence. Such services must be short-term in nature and clearly beyond the scope of the employee’s primary job. The additional pay, however, should not be paid in lieu of an upward reclassification or promotion if the new duties represent a permanent expansion of the position.

If an employee is approved by their department to receive out-of-classification pay, the additional pay must be paid to the employee over a defined period of time that is limited to one year in duration. The total amount of additional pay may not exceed 25% of the annual pay rate associated with the employee’s primary job. Any exception to these requirements requires prior approval in accordance with the procedures set forth in this Policy. See Authorization below.

The payment of additional pay to a represented employee for working out of classification within their department is subject to the collective bargaining agreement covering the employee’s position with the University. In the absence of specific requirements contained in the agreement, the requirements described above shall apply.

Assignments Performed for Another Department

A faculty or exempt staff employee may take on additional assignments for another department such as giving a music recital, providing photography services, leading an exercise class, etc. If this work is performed during the employee's regular working hours, an Additional Assignment Authorization Form, available on the HR Forms web page, must be submitted and approved.

Other Payments

Employees may received additional pay in connection with one of the following activities:

  • Honorariums:  A faculty or an exempt staff employee may receive an honorarium for performing a short-term scholarly or professional service such as a guest lecture, program review, or similar activity. An honorarium should be paid as a one-time payment in USFWorks subject to the requirements in the Honorarium Payments Policy, available on the ABS policies web page.
  • Non-Earnings:  Non-earning payments should be paid as a one-time payment in USFWorks. A faculty, exempt staff, or non-exempt staff employee may receive a non-earnings payment for an activity that does not require the individual to perform any additional duties, which include, but are not limited to, the following:
    • Payment of a rental subsidy approved for a new USFFA member as reimbursement for the first and last months’ deposit. The subsidy may be paid to a USFFA member before they begin service with the University, subject to the submission of appropriate receipts. See the Moving Reimbursement Policy on the ABS policies web page and the Rent and Relocation Reimbursement web page.
    • Payment of a uniform allowance or similar allowance to an employee who is required to wear certain work-related clothing as stipulated by their collective bargaining agreement.

Such additional pay items must be paid through the payroll system so that applicable income and employment taxes may be withheld.

An additional pay assignment or allowance plans may not represent an employee’s only source of compensation from the University except for a rental subsidy payment or similar relocation payment, paid to a new USFFA member prior to the individual’s employment date with the University. In addition, a one-time payment may not be paid in lieu of retroactive pay (e.g., back pay) owed to an employee.

A summary of the additional pay categories authorized under this Policy is included in Appendix A.

Procedures

Authorization

Except for faculty overload teaching assignments, all additional pay assignments must be requested and approved at least fourteen (14) business days in advance. 

  1. The employee eligible for additional pay will complete an Additional Assignment Authorization Form and submit the form to their direct supervisor. 
  2. The supervisor will determine if the arrangement is in the best interest of the University and will sign the form to indicate their approval. 
  3. If approved by the supervisor, the employee will submit the signed form to their supervising vice president or dean.
  4. If approved and signed by the supervising vice President or dean, the employee will submit the signed form via email to Human Resources at humanresources@usfca.edu. Hardcopies will not be accepted
  5. Human Resources will notify the employee and the employee’s supervisor upon receipt of the form.

The payment of additional pay must be reviewed and approved in advance by Compensation and by the employee’s Business Officer, who is responsible for determining that budgeted funds are available for the additional pay and that the pay complies with this Policy.

Any exceptions to this Policy must be approved by the Supervising Vice President and the Associate Vice President of Human Resources at least fourteen (14) days in advance.

Method of Payment 

All additional pay disbursed to an employee shall be paid through the University’s payroll system as wages reportable on Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Form W-2 and subject to withholding of applicable income and employment taxes. To initiate a payment, the department must enter a period activity pay, one-time payment, or allowance plan depending on the type of additional pay through USFWorks. For more information, visit the USFWorks training web page.

Violations

A violation of any portion of this Policy may result in disciplinary action, up to and including termination of employment and/or legal action.

Related Information

Type Name and Location
USF Collective Bargaining Agreements
USF Compensation Information
USF Payroll Services and Pay Practices
USF Honorarium Payments Policy: on the ABS policies web page
USF Moving Reimbursement Policy: on the ABS policies web page
USF Staff Who Teach Policy
USF Student Employment Policy: on the Student Employment web page
External IRS Publication 15 (Circular E), Employer’s Tax Guide

Definitions

Term Definition
USFWorks The cloud-based human resources capital management and payroll system used for many business processes of the University.
Business Officer An employee, designated by the President, Vice President, Vice Provost, or Dean, who is the financial manager for the University account(s) being used for the expense. This may include the President, Vice Presidents, Vice Provosts, or Deans.
Exempt Employee An employee who, based on duties performed and the manner of compensation, is exempt from the provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). In general, exempt employees are paid a guaranteed minimum salary and perform exempt job duties as defined under FLSA regulations. Exempt employees are only required to report leave and not time worked.
Non-Exempt Employee An employee who, based on duties performed and the manner of compensation, is subject to the FLSA, including the minimum wage and overtime provisions of the law. Non-exempt employees are paid on an hourly basis; the number of hours worked in any given workweek is reported along with any leave time used.
Primary Job An employee’s principal job with the University. Such positions may be either full-time or part-time. If an employee has a secondary job, the primary job should be determined based on such factors as the position with the largest percentage time worked, longest duration, academic standing, etc.

Additional Contacts

Subject Contact Phone Email/URL
Human Resources Diane Nelson (415) 422-2441 dlnelson3@usfca.edu
Payroll Services Christine Ness (415) 422-2402 cness@usfca.edu

Forms

Name and Location Use
Additional Assignment Authorization Form To request approval for an additional pay assignment.

Responsibilities

Employee to receive additional pay

  • For all additional pay requests except for Faculty Overload Teaching, the employee to receive additional pay completes an Additional Assignment Authorization Form, which requires signatures of approval from the employee’s supervisor and supervising dean or vice president, and submits the form to Human Resources at humanresources@usfca.edu. Hardcopies will not be accepted.

Employee’s Supervisor

Department/Business Officer

  • Prepares documentation to substantiate a request to pay an employee additional compensation for an activity authorized under this Policy and sends to Compensation to request additional pay range and approval for payment. 
  • Reviews and approves requests to authorize the payment of additional pay for employees under their supervision.
  • Secures the services of a temporary worker using the University’s preferred employment agency.

Compensation/Human resources

  • Reviews and approves all additional pay requests.

Payroll Services

  • Processes additional pay through the payroll system and reports such payments and applicable withholding in accordance with IRS regulations.

Vice Presidents

  • Reviews and approves all exceptions to this Policy.

Associate Vice President, Human Resources

  • Reviews and approves all exceptions to this Policy.

President, Vice Presidents, Vice Provosts, and Deans

  • Ensure that additional pay disbursed to their employees is in compliance with this Policy.

FAQ

N/A

Appendices

Appendix A

Additional Pay for Authorized Payment

The following table summarizes the categories of additional pay authorized for payment under this Policy:

Pay Category Eligible Employee Purpose
Faculty Overload Teaching  Full-time Faculty                 Additional teaching beyond a fully assigned teaching load.
Staff Teaching Assignments Exempt Staff Academic teaching.
Non-Teaching Duties Related to Teaching

Faculty, Exempt Staff

Additional non-teaching duties performed related to teaching (e.g., conducting research, tutoring, administrative duties, etc.).
Out-of-Classification Assignments Faculty, Exempt Staff, Non-Exempt Staff, OPE Staff Additional duties undertaken due to a position vacancy or extended leave of absence of another employee within the department.
Assignments Performed for Another Department Faculty, Exempt Staff Work performed for another department such as giving a music recital, providing photography services, leading an exercise class, etc.
Other Payments:  Honorarium Faculty, Exempt Staff A gratuitous payment for performing a short-term scholarly or professional service.
Other Payments:  Non-Earnings Faculty, Exempt Staff, Non-Exempt Staff A payment that does not require the performance of additional duties, such as a rental subsidy for first and last months’ deposit for USFFA members, a uniform allowance or similar allowance, etc.