Staff Pay Practices

Virginia Tech is committed to providing a fair, consistent, and competitive staff compensation program that will attract, retain, and reward high-performing employees and is free of discrimination.

Compensation Goals

Attract and retain highly qualified employees with the required education, experience, and skills necessary to achieve the university’s mission
Compensate employees at a level consistent with comparable market benchmarks or other appropriate job markets for similar skills, responsibilities, educational qualifications, and working conditions
Maintain internal equity for all employees performing similar functions based on the requisite knowledge, skills, complexity, autonomy, experience, contacts, scope, and decision-making or supervisory responsibility required to perform those functions
Set salaries for new or vacant positions at market levels that recognize skills and experience required for the position while considering the salary level of current employees within the same or similar positions
Recognize superior performance and to encourage development of qualifications that enhance the employee’s potential
Comply with all applicable federal and state laws and regulations
Be fiscally responsible

Salary Action Considerations

The following considerations should be used in deciding on salary actions.

Position	Person	Competitive Pay
Complexity of position: Evaluate decision making/responsibility/judgement Scope of work: Evaluate the range of activities Determine level and/or reporting relationship New role: Evaluate degree of increased complexity of new role	Knowledge: Subjects, topics, and items of information that an employee should know at the time they are hired or moved into the job Skills: Capabilities or proficiencies developed through training or hands-on experience Abilities: Personal and social attributes that can help a person do a job Proficiency level: How skilled is the employee in meeting the requirements of the new job Future Capabilities: Beyond compensation what motivates the employee to achieve highest levels of performance	Compare current pay in relation to the targeted pay range Compare recommended salary with that of others in the same or similar job In the context of internal equity, compare the employee’s current salary with that of salaries to those in their new peer group Consider impact of longevity in role on current salary

Pay Practices Guidelines

Use the table below for common staff pay practices and associated pay guidelines. For practices that have a corresponding transaction page, click the link in the first column to view instructions for the transaction.

Pay Practice	Application	Pos. No. Change?		Competitive/Non-Competitive	Pay Guidelines (applies to both university and classified staff)
Starting Pay	- New Hires - Rehires	N/A		Competitive	- Negotiable from minimum of pay band, not to exceed posted hiring range or pay band maximum - Exceptions approved by Compensation Team or Compensation Delegate
Promotion	- Movement to a different role in a higher pay band where the position has assumed higher levels of authority or broader scope - Typically includes adding direct reports (increasing span) and organizational levels	Different Pos. No.		Competitive or Non-competitive	- Promotional increases are typically between 5% and 15%, depending on the increased level of responsibility and other considerations - Salary may not be below the minimum of the new pay band
Transfer - Transfer - Non-competitive	Movement within the same role or to a different role in the same pay band at the request of the employee	Different Pos. No.		Competitive	Negotiable from minimum of pay band, not to exceed posted hiring range or pay band maximum
Transfer - Transfer - Non-competitive		Different Pos. No.		Non-competitive	- Negotiable from minimum of pay band not to exceed posted hiring range or pay band maximum - Transfer must be within Virginia Tech
Demotion	Movement to a different role in a lower pay band	Different Pos. No.		Competitive or Non-competitive	- Negotiable from minimum of pay band up to current salary not to exceed pay band maximum - Non-Competitive change must be within Virginia Tech
Temporary Pay (temporarily assuming new duties/ responsibilities)	Different role in a higher pay band	Same Pos. No.		Non-competitive	- Amount of the temporary pay is typically between 5% and 20% of current base salary depending on the degree of complexity of the additional responsibilities in addition to the scope of duties, not to exceed pay band maximum - Managers should consider the impact of adding duties that are typically performed in the higher pay band
	Temporary pay for same or different role in the same pay band	Same Pos No.		Non-competitive	Amount of the temporary pay is typically between 5% and 10% of current base salary depending on the degree of complexity of the additional responsibilities in addition to the scope of duties, not to exceed pay band maximum
Role Change	- Upward movement to a different role in a higher pay band - No change in organizational level or span	Same Pos. No.	Non-competitive		- Negotiable, not to exceed pay band or alternate pay band maximum - Salary may not be below minimum of new pay band - Managers should consider if the new position has assumed higher levels of authority and is a promotion
	Downward movement to a different role in a lower pay band	Same Pos. No.	Non-competitive		- No change in salary unless above maximum of the lower pay band - If salary exceends pay band maximum, reduce to maximum after six (6) months
	Lateral movement to a different role in the same pay band	Same Pos. No.	Non-competitive		Negotiable; not to exceed exceed pay band or alternate pay band maximum
In-Band Adjustment	No change in role title but may be granted due to: - Change in duties - Application of new knowledge/ skills/ abilities from education, certification, licensure, etc. - Retention - Internal alignment	Same Pos. No.		Non-competitive	Negotiable; not to exceed pay band or alternate pay band maximum
In-Band Bonus	No change in role title but may be granted due to: - Change in duties - Application of new knowledge/ skills/ abilities from education, certification, licensure, etc. - Retention - Internal alignment	Same Pos. No.		Non-competitive	- No maximum based on current salary or fiscal year duration -Bonuses can be used to recognize how an employee has accepted new responsibilities, exceeded their normal job scope, or completed task with especially high levels of impact - A bonus may also be awarded for achieving an educational milestone, either formal through a degree or through less formal training - A retention bonus or alignment bonus should only be used when base funding is not available
Competitive Salary Offer (Retention)	Outside offer (including other state agencies)	Same Pos. No.		Non-competitive	- Retention offer not to exceed pay band maximum - Employee may return to former position within 30 days with senior management approval at former salary or the salary that was offered during competitive offer process
Reassignment within Pay Band	- Departmental staffing or operational needs - Same or different role in the same pay band	Different Pos. No.		Non-competitive	- No change in base salary except to adjust for greater Washington, D.C. area or competitive differential change - After any such adjustment, employee’s salary must be within the pay band or alternate pay band of new position
Cost of Living Pay (Differentials)	Competitive differentials based on local market conditions or out of state differentials	Same Pos. No.		Non-competitive	- Differentials are authorized to provide payments as base pay adjustments to make salaries more competitive with the market - Based on market salary benchmarking