Daily Bulletin

Friday, June 21, 1996

A pay boost for staff

The increase is retroactive to May 1, the beginning of the 1996-97 fiscal year. Thanks to the Ontario government's Social Contract, staff pay has been frozen for exactly four years as of that date (and reduced through "unpaid days" for some of the time).

Staff members will see the money in their paycheques starting in August (with a retroactive payment for May, June and July included in that end-of-August cheque). At least, "we hope" all the paperwork can be done in time, says Catharine Scott, associate provost (human resources). "There's a lot of work to do between now and then," she added, because the salary increase process hasn't been used since 1992. She noted that individual staff members' pay increases depend on the results of their performance evaluations, and urged departments to finish up any evaluations that haven't been done yet.

The 1 per cent increase applies to salary scales. Individual increases depend on a staff member's performance ("merit") and current salary, above or below the "job rate" for that position. A very poor performer could get zero increase; the increase for an excellent performer whose salary is low in the scale could be as high as 6 per cent. The average, Scott said, will be about 2.5 per cent. "It's significant, I think," she commented.

The increase was worked out by the provost's advisory committee on staff compensation, and was approved on Wednesday by the executive committee of the board of governors. Among its provisions, besides the pay boost:

• Three additional paid holidays this year, "to be used by June 30, 1997. Departments are encouraged to consider the possibility of selecting a common day of holiday, for example, December 23, 1996."
• "A review of the current performance appraisal system to ensure that the system is one that appropriately recognizes and rewards high-level performance."
• "A review of the Hay evaluation program" (by which individual jobs are classified) and "a review of the comparability of the UW salary structure with that of public and private sector employers".
• A second look at the pay increase, and possible change in it, "in the event the financial position of the University substantially changes or in light of salary settlements reached by the Faculty Association of the University of Waterloo (FAUW) and Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) Local 793."

Does that mean there could be new losses of jobs as a result of the pay increase? "That can't be ruled out," Downey said. He added that negotiators in the staff compensation committee understood that possibility when they agreed on the package that's now been announced.

Waterloo's on the Web

University of Waterloo, Best University Overall In Canada
- National Reputational Ranking - 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, McLean's Magazine.

• The Elora Festival, starting in mid-July, at http://www.sentex.net/elora/index.html.
• The Stratford Festival at http://www.ffa.ucalgary.ca/stratford/home.htm.
• The Olympic Summer Games, starting in Atlanta in just a month, at http://www.atlanta.olympic.org/.

Solar cars visit tomorrow

The Waterloo stop is at parking lot N, near Matthews Hall. Cars will be stopping by at various times between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. tomorrow, and visitors are welcome. UW's own Midnight Sun III isn't making the cross-country trip, but will be on display at lot N from 9 to 1. Other cars and projects built by UW engineering students will also be there, including the Formula SAE Car and Concrete Toboggan.

Now that summer's here

• A party is set for this evening to honour Bruce Hutchinson and Ralph Haas, both retiring from the department of civil engineering. "Former students are coming from Hong Kong, New Jersey, three from Calgary, Quebec City, and several from Ottawa," one of the organizers reports.
• The Chinese Students and Scholars Association has a dance party scheduled for tonight in the Math and Computer building, "to ice out our members".
• The Student WatGreen Network has its Laurel Creek cleanup set for tomorrow, starting at 9 a.m. "The need for improving Laurel Creek is no big secret," says organizer Jeremy Steffler. "The SWN wanted to take a first step, no matter how small." So faculty, staff, students, and anybody else interested is invited to help out: meet at the Physical Activities parking lot and break up into groups to tackle various sections of the creek on campus. More information: watgreen@watserv1.
• Electrical power, heating, cooling and ventilation will be turned off in South Campus Hall tomorrow morning from 7 to 11. (Turn off your computers before you go home for the weekend.)
• As the International Conference on Computing and Information winds up in the Village II conference centre, hockey players, trainers and referees will be arriving for a series of camps and seminars organized by the Ontario Hockey Association. They include a "referee school" with some 80 participants, running Saturday through Wednesday.

Chris Redmond -- credmond@watserv1.uwaterloo.ca
Information and Public Affairs, University of Waterloo
(519) 888-4567 ext. 3004

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