Merit Process

The following employees who are actively employed by the university prior to April 1, 2024, are included as part of the 2024 merit process, and their salaries will be in the aggregate pool of dollars available for increases:

• Tenure, clinical/teaching/practice and research track faculty regardless of FTE.
• Regular unclassified staff regardless of FTE.
• Regular classified staff regardless of FTE, including non-bargaining unit staff hired prior to April 1 who are still completing an initial or promotional probationary period as of September 1 (bargaining unit staff are subject to merit increase rules as dictated by their bargaining agreement).
• Regular non-Board purview executives.

Job Movements and End of Employment

Employees defined above who move internally to a merit-eligible position (transfer or reclassification, including promotion) and/or receive another type of pay increase on or after April 1 are eligible. This includes employees who move from a position that was previously outside of the merit pool (bargaining unit and temporary/term positions) to a merit-eligible position.

• For these individuals, their salary will be included in the aggregate pool of the new employing unit when the effective date of the job movement falls between April 1 and August 1.
• The provision of a merit increase to these individuals is at the discretion of the employing unit. However, any merit increase provided should be done as part of the merit process and not included in the salary offer associated with the internal job movement.

Employees who will still be in an active employment status as of the merit effective date of August 15 (for faculty) or September 1 (for staff) will remain eligible for merit consideration and included in the aggregate merit pool, even if the employee will be leaving Ohio State after the merit effective date.

• Awarding a merit increase to these individuals is at the discretion of the employing unit. However, any merit increase must be provided through the merit process (and as part of the aggregate merit pool) in the form of an increase to base salary (unless the base salary for that individual is over the maximum of their assigned pay range).

The following employees are ineligible for the merit process and their salaries will not be included in the aggregate merit pool:

• External hires or rehires effective on or after April 1, 2024. These individuals should still receive appropriate feedback about their performance at regular intervals.
• Faculty in the last year of a probationary period who have not been reappointed or received tenure.
• Employees who are not in an active employment status as of the merit effective date of August 15 (for faculty) or September 1 (for staff).
• Employees who did not complete the “Report = Support!” training by April 26,2024, at 11:59 p.m. Units are responsible for confirming their ineligible employees who did not complete this training. For these individuals:
  • Units must enter a 0% merit increase with the comment of “failure to complete Report = Support! training”.
  • Medical Center employees who did not complete Report=Support! will reflect a 0% merit increase for the budgeted amount on the P3 budget spreadsheets that will be Managers should assign these employees a performance rating but should not change the budgeted increase amount.
  • Questions regarding the non-compliant list should be directed to equityeducation@osu.edu.

While not included in the aggregate pool of dollars available for increases (e.g., not included in the college/unit’s 3.0% aggregate pool calculation), the following employees should receive performance reviews and, at the college/unit’s discretion, may be considered for a merit increase consistent with the guidelines for eligible faculty and staff:

• Staff in term and temporary positions.
• Associated faculty paid by salary or course.
• Graduate Associates returning to equivalent appointments.

Beginning with next year’s FY26 merit process, the eligibility cutoff date will move to June 1. Although time will be limited to fully assess a new employee’s performance, moving the date will decrease the amount of time a new hire needs to wait for a pay adjustment. The change also helps to better align pay between new and current employees. Advance notice of this change is offered so that colleges and units may plan appropriately.

The effective date of merit increases are as follows:

The timeline for academic units, including College of Medicine and Office of Health Sciences is as follows:

The timeline for Health System units is as follows:

Colleges/units may provide a discretionary or non-discretionary bonus to an employee at the same time that a merit increase is provided; however, the bonus must be processed manually by the college/unit as a one-time payment.

Discretionary and non-discretionary bonuses are processed as one-time payments, and thus, are not part of the merit process and are excluded from the calculation of the aggregate merit pool.

Discretionary and non-discretionary bonuses that will be paid in August or September do not require a compensation exception form to be submitted. However, per the Reward and Recognition Policy 3.15, discretionary “rewards should be given for significant outstanding performance that advances unit goals and should be tied to a specific accomplishment” in FY24.

Unit leadership approval should be obtained for all bonuses prior to initiating the one-time payment in Workday.

Monetary payment to reward and recognize performance, such as appreciation provided under a defined and approved rewards and recognition program or for recognition for years of service, etc. Refer to Reward and Recognition policy 3.15. Defined programs may include a nomination and selection process. It is provided at the sole discretion of the unit and there cannot be any expectation that the reward will be given. The defined program cannot be linked to specific performance metrics/numbers or used as an incentive.

Units that wish to create a new reward and recognition program or revise an existing program should consult with HR Compensation.

Monetary payment for extraordinary effort as an individual, team or unit to complete a project, milestone or other significant contribution. This is commonly referred to as an on-the-spot bonus/spot bonus and should be given shortly after the completion of the body of work; however, units may elect to provide the spot bonus in conjunction with the merit process. The amount of the bonus should be commensurate with the employee’s level of contribution to the work (see below). It is provided at the sole discretion of the unit and there cannot be any expectation that it will be given.

Generally, an employee should receive only one spot bonus per fiscal year. If a circumstance arises where a unit wishes to provide a second spot bonus to an employee, it must be pre-approved by HR Compensation.

A discretionary bonus that is awarded as a flat amount e.g, $1,000 must be processed using Bonus – Discretionary Performance Incentive (Amount). It will be paid in one installment as a lump sum. The discretionary bonus (amount) is not subject to OPERS or OPERS ARP retirement contributions. It is subject to STRS and STRS ARP retirement contributions, as dictated by Ohio Revised Code and Ohio Administrative Code.

A discretionary bonus that is calculated as a percentage of base pay (e.g., 1.5%) must be processed using Bonus – Discretionary Performance Incentive (Percent). It will be paid in one installment as a lump sum. The discretionary bonus (percent) is subject to all retirement contributions, including OPERS, OPERS ARP, STRS and STRS ARP, as dictated by Ohio Revised Code and Ohio Administrative Code.

Monetary payment to reward performance based on metrics/achievement measures, as defined in a written contract, agreement, letter of offer or formal plan document. Documentation must include the specific metrics/measures, payment amount associated with each metric, payment schedule and the process to ensure accurate tracking and reporting. These criteria must be agreed upon, documented and signed in advance by the employee and the applicable unit leader before the work should begin. Employees who fulfill the terms and conditions of the agreement should have an expectation that they will receive the payment as defined.

A non-discretionary bonus cannot be used to compensate employees who render services beyond the scope of their current position.

The contract, agreement, letter of offer or plan documenting the details of the non-discretionary bonus must be attached to the one-time payment transaction.

Employees who are included in a defined written contract, agreement, letter of offer or formal metric/achievement measures incentive plan are generally not eligible to receive any discretionary bonus.

Note that a non-discretionary bonus (amount) is included in the calculation of the regular rate of pay for overtime.

A non-discretionary bonus that is defined in the contract or agreement as a flat amount (e.g, $1,000) must be processed using Bonus – Non-Discretionary Performance Incentive (Amount). It may be paid as one or more installments. The non-discretionary bonus (amount) is not subject to OPERS or OPERS ARP retirement contributions. It is subject to STRS and STRS ARP retirement contributions, as dictated by Ohio Revised Code and Ohio Administrative Code.

A non-discretionary bonus that is defined in the contract or agreement as being calculated as a percentage of base pay (e.g., 1.5%) must be processed using Bonus – Non-Discretionary Performance Incentive (Percent). It may be paid as one or more installments. The non-discretionary bonus (percent) is subject to all retirement contributions, including OPERS, OPERS ARP, STRS and STRS ARP, as dictated by Ohio Revised Code and Ohio Administrative Code.

Discretionary bonus awards will be subject to the provisions of the Rewards and Recognition Policy 3.15, including the maximum bonus amount, which is currently being reviewed and will be updated accordingly.

Bonus awards exceeding that amount may only be made in conjunction with a previously documented and approved incentive plan, contract/agreement, or letter of offer, making them non-discretionary.

What is the guidance for discretionary and non-discretionary bonuses that will be handled through one-time payments outside the merit process?

Colleges/units may provide a discretionary or non-discretionary bonus to an employee at the same time that a merit increase is provided; however, the bonus must be processed manually by the college/unit as a one-time payment.

Discretionary and non-discretionary bonuses that will be paid in August or September do not require a compensation exception form to be submitted. However, per the Reward and Recognition Policy 3.15, discretionary “rewards should be given for significant outstanding performance that advances unit goals and should be tied to a specific accomplishment” in FY24.

Unit leadership approval should be obtained for all bonuses prior to initiating the one-time payment in Workday.

My college has employees who are in a regular 12/12 job family, but our college considers them associated faculty. How do I remove them from merit?

Academic Campus only (Not applicable to Health System)
Academic campus employees who are regular, regardless of FTE, will be included in the merit process as well as the merit aggregate pool. Based on their performance, you should enter the appropriate merit increase.

Associated faculty, such as lecturers and senior lecturers (even 9/12) who are regular are excluded from the Workday merit process. They are still eligible to receive a merit increase, which will need to be processed manually as a Request Compensation Change using the merit off-cycle reason or included in the Period Activity Pay for semester lecturers.

Can you confirm if employees who are promoted to a new position after April 1 will be included in the aggregate? If they are in a new position through recruit to hire, is that still the case?

Academic Campus
Existing Academic Campus employees who transfer from one job to another on or after April 1 (promotion, reclassification or otherwise) will be included in the merit process, are eligible for a merit increase, and will be included in the current unit’s aggregate. Employees who are external hires or rehires on or after April 1 will automatically be excluded from the merit process. Refer to the Eligible and Ineligible section for more details regarding merit eligibility.

Health System
The information used during the Health System merit process is locked as of March 31. External hires or rehires on or after April 1 will not be reflected in the Health System data. Existing employees who have a job movement or pay adjustment that occurs on or after April 1 will be included in the Health System data and eligible for a merit increase; however, the data (salary, job title, unit assignment, etc.) will be as of March 31.

Will individuals who did not complete Report Equals Support be automatically excluded from the merit process?

Academic Campus
No, Academic Campus units will have to manually enter the 0% increase with a comment about failure to complete the Report=Support! training. Anyone who did not complete the training will not receive an increase. However, you need to include them in the aggregate calculation and distribute their merit pool allocation to other employees.

Health System
Health System employees who did not complete the Report=Support! training will be reflected with a 0%. This will be locked and unable to be edited in the Budget Planning Tool. However, managers still need to designate the performance rating.

Will employees who had a lateral transfer and did not receive a base pay increase on or after April 1 be excluded from merit eligibility?

Academic Campus
Existing Academic Campus employees who transfer from one job to another on or after April 1 (promotion, reclassification or otherwise) will be included in the merit process, are eligible for a merit increase, and will be included in the current unit’s aggregate.

Health System
The information used during the Health System merit process is locked as of March 31. External hires or rehires on or after April 1 will not be reflected in the Health System data. Existing employees who have a job movement or pay adjustment that occurs on or after April 1 will be included in the Health System data and eligible for a merit increase; however, the data (salary, job title, unit assignment, etc.) will be as of March 31.

Will employees who receive a market adjustment or reclassification after April 1 be automatically excluded from merit?

Academic Campus
Existing Academic Campus employees who receive a pay adjustment on or after April 1 will be included in the merit process and eligible for a merit increase. Refer to the Eligible and Ineligible section for more details regarding merit eligibility.

Health System
The information used during the Health System merit process is locked as of March 31. Existing employees who have a job movement or pay adjustment that occurs on or after April 1 will be included in the Health System data and eligible for a merit increase; however, the data (salary, job title, unit assignment, etc.) will be as of March 31.

Will an employee who submitted a termination for the month of July automatically be removed from the Workday merit or do we need to enter a 0% for them?

Academic Campus
Terminations and retirements effective prior to their respective merit effective date will be removed automatically from the merit process.

Health System
The information used during the Health System merit process is locked as of March 31. Terminations or retirements effective prior to their respective merit date but after March 31 will be included in the data. These employees should have a 0% increase entered.

Are employees who are terminating or retiring after their respective merit effective date eligible for a merit increase?

Yes, employees who are still in an active employment status as of the merit effective date of August 15 for faculty or September 1 for staff will remain eligible for merit consideration and included in the aggregate merit pool, even if the employee will be leaving Ohio State after the merit effective date. Refer to the Eligible and Ineligible section.

Awarding a merit increase to these individuals is at the discretion of the employing unit. However, any merit increase must be provided through the merit process (and as part of the aggregate merit pool) in the form of an increase to base salary (unless the base salary for that individual is over the maximum of their assigned pay range).

Do increases for bargaining unit staff come out of the unit’s aggregate merit pool?

Merit increases for bargaining unit staff do not come from the merit aggregate pool.

We have an existing employee who will receive a pay adjustment effective July 1 and plan to include an additional amount for merit at this time.  Since the employee will have received their merit increase, will they still be included in the merit process and the merit aggregate pool?

Academic Campus only (Not applicable to Health System)
It is recommended that the merit increase be given during merit, separate from any other pay adjustment.  However, if the employee receives a pay adjustment on or after July 1 that includes an amount for merit, they will still be included in the college or unit’s merit and merit aggregate pool.

If someone gets promoted and receives a pay adjustment for the promotion, but that adjustment does not include any merit consideration, are they eligible for merit? What will that do to our merit aggregate pool?

Academic Campus
Merit increases can be paid to existing Academic Campus employees who receive a pay adjustment following an internal move (transfer, promotion or reclassification) and/or receive another type of pay increase on or after April 1. This includes employees who move from a position that was previously outside the merit pool (e.g., bargaining unit and temporary/term positions) to a merit-eligible position.

For these individuals, their salary will be included in the aggregate pool of the new employment unit when the effective date of the job movement falls between April 1 and August 1.

The provision of a merit increase to these individuals is at the discretion of the employing unit. However, any merit increase provided should be done as part of the merit process and not included in the salary offer associated with the internal job movement.

Refer to the eligibility rules for more details regarding merit eligibility.

Health System
The information used during the Health System merit process is locked as of March 31. Existing employees who have a job movement or pay adjustment that occurs on or after April 1 will be included in the Health System data and eligible for a merit increase; however, the data (salary, job title, unit assignment, etc.) will be as of March 31.

Refer to the eligibility rules for more details regarding merit eligibility.

If a postdoctoral scholar has an incorrect employee type (e.g., Regular), will they be included in merit?

If a postdoctoral scholar’s employee type is entered as Regular, they will be included in the merit process and aggregate. However, the Office of Postdoctoral Affairs requires that postdoctoral scholars be in the Term employee type with a 100% FTE. If there are postdoctoral scholars who are in Workday as Regular, this should be corrected (requires recruit to hire process). It may not be possible to correct the employee type prior to the June 30 the data snapshot. Because these individuals are eligible for a merit increase anyway, you may process a merit increase for any who are still Regular through the formal merit process until the data can be corrected.

What is the effective date of the merit increases?

Refer to the Effective Dates and Timelines section.

When can we enter increases for temporary and term employees?

All temporary and term employees will be processed outside of the Workday merit process by initiating a Request Compensation Change using the merit off-cycle reason. You can enter them anytime, noting that faculty increases are effective August 15 and staff are effective September 1.

A compensation exception form does not need to be submitted.

The merit aggregate is calculated by job family group. In which job family group will associate deans be included?

Academic Campus only (Not applicable to Health System)
Associate deans are in the Executive Non-Board Purview Faculty job family, which will be included with other faculty for the calculation of the merit aggregate.

If an employee has multiple positions with each position in a different unit, will each unit have their own merit aggregate and be able to enter the merit individually for that same employee?

Yes, the merit increase for each position will be entered independently of the other position(s) and will be independently reflected in that unit’s merit aggregate.

My college/unit has more than one HR Consultant who will have access to enter merit increases. Can more than one HR Consultant access and enter merit data for the same unit simultaneously?

Academic Campus only (Not applicable to Health System)
Yes, more than one HR Consultant may access and enter data simultaneously for the same college/unit. You may wish to coordinate so that you are not overlaying someone else’s work.

Will the Workday Inbox notifications to HR Consultants and HR Business Partners to alert them that their data entry window is open be separated by college and unit?

Academic Campus only (Not applicable to Health System)
Yes, the Inbox notification to the HR Consultant or HR Business Partner will be sent at the balance unit hierarchy level 6. In some instances (such as Academic Affairs), it may be at level 7.

Should HR Consultants click on the Submit button when they have completed their data entry? Should HR Business Partners click on the Approve button?

Academic Campus only (Not applicable to Health System)
No, please do not click on either the Submit or Approve buttons. Once the button is clicked, there is no ability to undo it, if needed. Please let HR Compensation lock and advance at the appropriate time.

When my employee is in a supervisory org that sits in another college/unit, when and how should the merit information be provided to the other area that needs to enter it?

Academic Campus only (Not applicable to Health System)
HR Consultants will have the first two weeks of July to enter merit increases. Since each college/unit will need to organize their own data entry (who enters for what supervisory orgs, etc.), be sure to submit your information as soon as possible to the other college. Decide in advance the best method to share information (email, spreadsheet, etc.), which may depend on the volume of employees, as well as who needs to receive the information (e.g., the HRBP, specific HRCs). Refer to the Effective Dates and Timelines section.

If some of our employees are showing up in a different college/unit because their supervisor’s position is there, will our HRCs have access to those individuals? Or will the HRC for the other college/unit need to enter their merit increase?

Academic Campus only (Not applicable to Health System)
You will need to collaborate with the other areas to provide information so the HRC for the other college/unit may enter the merit increase.

Do zero increases in the merit file require an explanation in Workday?

Academic Campus
Yes. Documentation with sufficient justification is required when a college/unit elects to provide no merit increase to an eligible employee. The documentation should be maintained in the college/unit, but a comment entered in Workday is also required to document the transaction.

Health System
Documentation with sufficient justification is required when a college/unit elects to provide no merit increase to an eligible employee. The documentation should be maintained in the college/unit.

How will faculty promotions be processed?

Academic Campus only (Not applicable to Health System)
Faculty tenure and promotions are approved by the Board of Trustees during the May Board meeting. After the May Board meeting, faculty promotions are centrally processed in Workday. This includes the title change on both the position and employee records. The new titles are effective on the date of the May Board of Trustees meeting. In addition, the 6% faculty promotional increase funded by the Office of Academic Affairs is centrally processed in Workday with the August 15 effective date. Both the title and promotional increase will be processed in early June so the data will be reflected in Workday merit.

Is a merit lump-sum amount different from a discretionary (spot) bonus or non-discretionary bonus?

Yes, the merit lump-sum amount is merit-based and included in the merit aggregate. Discretionary (spot) or non-discretionary bonuses, while related to the employee’s performance, are not merit-based and should not be entered in the merit lump sum-field. These payments need to be done as one-time payment actions.

Is it necessary to enter costing information when a lump sum merit award is given?

No, it is not. The lump sum merit amounts will automatically be expensed using the actual costing allocations.

What description will be displayed on the payslip when an employee receives a merit lump sum award?

It will show up on the payslip as Merit Lump Sum or Merit Lump Sum (No FLSA for Prior to Go-live Coverage Dates). Campus employees will only see Merit Lump Sum; Medical Center employees may see either one or both.

What is the difference between a lump sum processed through merit and a bonus processed outside of merit as a one-time payment?

The lump sum merit is a performance-based merit award that is provided as an amount that the employee will receive all at once as a single payment, as opposed to an increase to their base salary, which is paid throughout the year. Lump sum merit awards for staff should only be provided when the individual’s base pay is at or over the current maximum of their pay range. Since it is a merit award, it needs to be initiated through the merit process and will be included in the aggregate calculation.

A discretionary bonus is processed as a one-time payment and is used to reward an employee for extraordinary effort above and beyond (typically referred to as a spot bonus) or appreciation for years of service or under a defined rewards and recognition program (e.g. nomination and selection process), as outlined in the Rewards and Recognition Policy 3.15.

A non-discretionary bonus is also processed as a one-time payment but is used to reward an employee based on pre-defined and documented (via a contract, letter of offer or agreement, or plan document) metrics/achievement measures.

When will the merit roster report be available?

Academic Campus only (Not applicable to Health System)
The roster cannot be made available until Workday merit is launched, which is typically the last business day of June. Use the Employee and Position Data report to do your planning prior to that date.

When will employees have visibility to view their own merit increases in Workday?

Employees can see their own information on the effective date. On Aug 15, faculty will be able to see their new salary in employee self-service. On Sep 1, staff will be able to see their new salary in employee self-service e.g., worker history and pay change history.

In addition, employees will receive a notification letter in Workday. For employees who are in the Workday merit module, this notification will be generated and released in early August. For other employees, the notification will be generated upon completion of the merit transaction in Workday.

Employees whose pay is processed via Period Activity Pay will not receive notification letters associated with merit.

How will employees in the Workday merit process be notified of their merit increase?

Academic Campus only (Not applicable to Health System)
After the merit process is finalized, a merit notification letter will be generated automatically. This letter will provide the employee with the base pay increase and/or any lump sum merit award, as applicable. Employees who have multiple positions will receive a merit notification for each position. Merit notification letters generated through Workday will also be stored in the personnel folder in OnBase. Employees who receive neither a base pay increase (0%) nor lump sum merit award will not have a merit notification generated.

My college/unit has employees who may receive a discretionary bonus or non-discretionary bonus, in addition to their base pay merit increase. Will the discretionary or non-discretionary bonus be reflected in the merit notification letter?

No. The notifications will only encompass what has been processed through Workday merit. If desired, the college/unit should provide the employee with a letter regarding their bonus. In addition, the letter must be submitted to the personnel file in OnBase.

How will employees in the Health System be notified of their merit increase?

Health System only (Not applicable to Academic Campus)
Upon completion of the performance review by the manager and employee, the employee’s merit increase and/or merit lump sum award is processed into Workday. At the successful completion of these transactions in Workday, the appropriate notification letter(s) will be generated and be available in the Workday inbox. Employees will be asked to acknowledge receipt of the notification letter; although this step is not mandatory. Acknowledging receipt of the notification letter does not indicate that the employee agrees with the merit increase.

We provide faculty with administrative attachments based on a percentage of their base salary. When will we be able to process those payments?

Process these allowance plan updates using the Request Compensation Change process after Workday merit finalizes in early August.

How can we validate data after the Workday merit process is finalized?

Academic Campus
Use the Compensation Change – OSU report. This report will provide you with all base pay compensation changes, including merit increases. In addition, use this report to identify any Academic Campus employees whose base pay change decreased, as this may indicate an error to be corrected.

Health System
Use the Compensation Change – OSU report. This report will provide you with all base pay compensation changes, including merit increases. In addition, use this report to identify any Health System employees whose base pay change decreased, as this may indicate an error to be corrected. You will also want to use the Merit Reconciliation report.

How to we submit a correction to a merit increase, if we discover an error during validation?

Submit a Request Compensation Change to request the correct salary, using the reason of merit off-cycle. You may use the effective date of August 15 (faculty) or September 1 (staff). This Request Compensation Change will have a later action date and will override the previous merit row.