Q: How much was the signing bonus and who received it?
Q: Who gets the 2% regular increment?
Q: What happens if an employee is less than 2% below the target point for their salary range?
Q: In what order do employees receive the negotiated increases?
Q: What if my current salary is above the maximum for my salary range?
Q: When do I receive the salary changes and retroactive payments?
Q. What changes were made to the benefits plan?
Q: What are the changes that have occurred to the process for being granted permanent status?
Q: How does the extension to the housing allowance work?
Q: What were the results of the 2007/2008 merit process?
Q: What changes are there for 2008/2009 merit process?
Q: What are the changes to maternity/adoptive/parental leave supplemental benefits plan?
Q. Are there any changes to the Accountable Professional Development Account (APDA)?
Q. What changes have been made to the posting procedures?
Q: How much was the signing bonus and who received it?
A: A signing bonus of $1,000 was processed for all eligible employees in January of 2009. Bonus payments were pro-rated based on full-time equivalency (37.5 hours per week). To be eligible for the signing bonus, employees had to have been active in an ASPA position on December 12, 2009 (date of signing). For those members on leave as of December 12, 2009 bonus payments will be processed upon their return to work. The provision of paying bonus payments upon return from leave will expire at the end of the current contract (April 30, 2011). Casual employees were not eligible for the signing bonus.
Q: Who gets the 2% regular increment?
A: All employees who are currently below the target point of the salary range for their phase will receive the 2% increment up to the target point. The increment is contingent on satisfactory performance.
Q: What happens if an employee is less than 2% below the target point for their salary range?
A: If an employee is less than 2% below the target point, they will receive the portion of the increment that brings their salary to the target point.
Q: In what order do employees receive the negotiated increases?
A: The negotiated increases are implemented in the following order:
Q: What if my current salary is above the maximum for my salary range?
A: Any employee who is currently being paid above the maximum for their new salary range will not receive salary adjustments until their salary range increases to a level where their salary is within the range again. Salary ranges increase by 4% in 2008, 2009 and 2010. Employees being paid above the maximum of their salary range are still eligible for lump sum bonus merit awards.
Q: When do I receive the salary changes and retroactive payments?
A: New salaries, reflective of the 2008 negotiated increases, will appear on the February 2009 pay. Retroactive payments will appear on the March 2009 pay and will incorporate retroactive payments effective to May 1, 2008 or date of hire (if later).
Q. What changes were made to the benefits plan?
A. The changes to the benefits plan are effective January 1, 2009 and include:
Q: What are the changes that have occurred to the process for being granted permanent status?
A: Employees who are in the same position and in the same department, at 0.5 FTE or greater, and are not replacing a permanent member on an approved leave, will automatically be granted permanent employee status after a period of 2 consecutive years of employment. Previously, permanent status was granted upon application after 3 consecutive years of employment.
If an employee is granted permanent status their position will still remain term and be subject to the same renewal requirements. Please note that permanent members in term positions will have access to rights under Article 16 – Layoff, if their term cannot be renewed.
Q: How does the extension to the housing allowance work?
A: The housing allowance repayment for employees has been extended from 3 years to 5 years. This allows two additional years to pay back the interest-free loan that support the purchase of a new home
Q: What were the results of the 2007/2008 merit process?
The 2007/2008 ASPA merit process ran during the fall of 2008 with salary adjustments retroactive to July 1, 2008. The merit pool and distribution amounts were based on .35% of ASPA payroll being allocated to base salary merit awards and .45% of ASPA payroll being allocated to lump sum bonus merit awards. This allowed for a distribution of up to
10% of eligible ASPA members receiving base salary merit and up to an additional 15% receiving a lump sum bonus.
Award amounts were calculated by dividing the negotiated merit monies by the combined salary of all members awarded each type of merit. Using this calculation, it was determined that the award amounts for 2007/2008 were 3.6% for base salary adjustments and 3.3% for lump sum bonuses.
In total, 10.7% of eligible members received a base salary award and 14.3% received a lump sum bonus. The reason for the slight variation in the distribution is the fact that some smaller units received allocations that could be used for either a base salary or lump sum award since they were not large enough for a regular distribution.
Q: What changes are there for 2008/2009 merit process?
The major change for the 2008/2009 ASPA merit process is the increase in the merit pools that were negotiated in the most recent collective agreement. The pool for base salary merits was increased from .35% to 1.0% of ASPA payroll and the pool for lump sum bonus merits was increased from .45% to 1.0% of ASPA payroll.
Ensuring that the merit awards will still represent between 2%-4% of a member’s salary, the distribution will also increase allowing up to 30% of eligible members to receive a base salary award and up to 30% to receive a lump sum bonus award. This means that up to 60% of eligible members in ASPA could receive merit in future years. The exact merit award percentages for 2008/2009 will not be known until the total salary of those awarded can be determined.
Further information on eligible members and College/Unit allocations will be distributed in March. The deadline for merit decisions for this year will be May 15th, 2009.
Merit Audit Committee
As described in Article 9.3.3.4 of the ASPA collective agreement, a Merit Audit Committee, chaired by the Associate Vice-President, Human Resources and consisting of four representatives from ASPA and four from the University will be formed to assess the effectiveness of College/Unit merit processes and make recommendations for improvement to the program.
If a member or manager is dissatisfied with the outcomes of the merit process, either party may request a systematic review be conducted by the Merit Audit Committee. The deadline to request a review is March 6th, 2009.
If you wish to request a review of your College/Unit’s process, please submit this request in writing, including details of the concern, to Human Resources by March 6, 2009.
Q: What are the changes to maternity/adoptive/parental leave supplemental benefits plan?
A: The parties agreed to an additional two-week top-up of 95% of the normal weekly earnings during the period of time an employee is normally without pay while awaiting Employment Insurance (EI) to begin. This change provides continuous income during the first 2 weeks of their leave.
Employees will qualify for this benefit if they:
Q. Are there any changes to the Accountable Professional Development Account (APDA)?
A. The APDA maximum accumulation cap has been increased from $6,000 to $7,500 effective May 1, 2009. This will allow members greater access to the funds for professional development.
Q. What changes have been made to the posting procedures?
A. Employees are now required to identify their membership in ASPA when applying for positions within scope of ASPA. This identification will help to ensure that employees who meet the minimum qualifications are interviewed for positions. (Article 7.3 Consideration of Member Applicants)
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