Salary calculation

As members of academic bargaining unit, all partial-load and full-time faculty (professors, instructors, librarians, and counsellors) are paid according to a salary grid found inside your collective agreement (p. 27 for full-time, p. 51 for partial-load). Calculating your initial salary step is based on a formula and points system found on p. 122.

Your initial salary step is determined based on the education credentials and work experience you possess that are relevant to your job. The hiring manager should ask for a complete CV, or ask you for a detailed list of your education and work experience. Based on this information, your starting salary step is determined.

Hiring managers may, at their discretion, give employees up to 5 additional steps on the pay grid beyond what the calculation determines (but not exceeding the max step). After the college has made you a job offer, if you feel that your skills, professional designations, experience and/or education are not properly recognized by the formula, you should have a discussion with your manager to consider providing you with one or more discretionary steps. The college’s desire to hire you, coupled with the fact that you may be taking a pay reduction from your previous job, can result in the hiring manager increasing your starting pay rate.

It is also important to understand that when the college system was established over 50 years ago, a PhD (or even a Masters degree) was not a requirement for most academic positions at colleges. The current formula cannot accurately capture a PhD in the education section of the calculation either. However, the Union believes that PhDs should be recognized. With the current formula in place, this can be done through discretionary steps or years of experience. Do not hesitate to ask the hiring manager for consideration in this regard.

If you would like to estimate your initial salary step, you can use this template initial salary calculator spreadsheet. For a sample calculation with explanation, see below.

Relevant work experience is counted in years, although your college may break that down into years and months for more accuracy. Years of experience have the following tiered points system:

• Up to 5 years:   1 point per year
• Next 9 years:    2/3 point per year
• Next 12 years:  ½ point per year

(Note: this means maximum years of experience counted is 26 years)

Example: an individual with 10 years of relevant work experience equates to 8.33 points.

• 5 years x 1 point = 5 points
• 5 years x 2/3 points = 3.33 points

Total: 8.33 points

Years of education are counted as 1.5 points per year, with maximum caps set for 3 categories of credentials (college: 4 years max, university: 6 years max, work-study programs or certified journeyperson: 5 years max). The collective education maximum for all 3 categories is 7 years.

Any credentials that are counted must be increasing and successive in level of expertise. In addition, the curriculum must not duplicate that of any previous credential, and all credentials must be relevant to your hired position. If the job posting has listed a credential as required or asset, they should be counted in your salary calculation.

Example: a person with a 4-year bachelors degree and a 2-years masters degree:

• 5 points x 6 years = 9 points (University category)

By comparison, a person with a 4-year bachelors degree, a 2-years masters degree, and a 4-year PhD:

• 5 points x 6 years = 9 points (university years has been maxed at 6 years)

In this case, the PhD should be recognized under experience or using discretionary steps.

However, a person with a 4-year bachelors degree, a 2-years masters degree, and a 1-year post-grad certificate (assumes post-grad certificate provides a more specialized credential required for your job, and is not a duplicate of any university education):

• 1.5 points x 6 years = 9 points (University category)
• 1.5 points x 1 year = 1.5 points (post-grad certificate – CAAT category)

                                              Total: 10.5 points

The individual’s initial salary step is calculated by adding the points from education and experience, then subtracting the sum by 8 (for professors, librarians, and counsellors) or by 6 (for instructors). If the final answer is a decimal, round up to the next whole number.

Example: a counsellor with 10 years relevant experience and a 4-year bachelors, and 2-years masters:

• 33 (Experience points) + 9 (Education points) – 8 = 9.33 points à round up to 10.

Initial step is Step 10.

If you have any questions regarding your salary calculation, don’t hesitate to contact your local.