Purpose

To provide the State University Construction Fund instructions for processing the retroactive April 2016 and April 2017 SCF CSEA Salary Increases

Affected Employees

Employees in the bargaining unit 97 who meet the eligibility criteria

Background

The State University Construction Fund’s Board Resolution 2017-12 authorizes the Memorandum of Agreement covering the period 04/01/2016 through 03/31/2021 between the State University Construction Fund and the Civil Service Employees Association (CSEA) signed 10/06/2017 which provides for a salary increase of two percent (2.00%) for fiscal year 2016-2017 effective 04/01/2016 and two percent (2.00%) for fiscal year 2017-2018 effective 04/01/2017.

Effective Date(s)

The April 2016 and April 2017 SCF CSEA Retroactive Salary Increases will be paid using the following effective dates and check dates:

Eligibility Criteria

The following employees are eligible to receive the April 2016 and April 2017 SCF CSEA Salary Increases:

• Employees with a Pay Basis Code of ANN who are in an NS position (Grade 600)
• Employees with a Pay Basis Code of ANN who are in an NS position (Grade 600) which is equated to a grade (Grade 001-031)

As of the date of this bulletin, there are no positions with a Pay Basis Code of HRY or FEE. Information relating to minimum wage is not addressed in this bulletin.

Agency Actions – Pay Period 16L

Payment Processing

To process payment of the April 2016 and April 2017 SCF CSEA Retroactive Salary increase to eligible employees, the agency must submit a Pay Change on the Job Action Requests page using the following Action/Reason code(s) as appropriate:

• Reason code SAC (Mass Salary Increase) – for transactions effective:
  • 2016 Increase – 04/07/2016
  • 2017 Increase – 04/06/2017
• Reason code CSL (Correct Salary) for ANN Pay Basis for transactions effective:
  • 2016 Increase – after 04/07/2016
  • 2017 Increase – after 04/06/2017

Calculating the New Compensation Rate

The salary on each inserted row should be calculated as follows:

2016 Retroactive 2% Increase Processing

• If the employee has a Pay Basis Code of ANN and a Grade equal to 600 (not equated to a grade), increase the salary by applying 2.00% rounded to the nearest dollar.
• If the employee has a Pay Basis Code of ANN, a Grade equal to 600 with an equated grade equal to 001-031 and the salary is equal to a salary step of the employee’s equated grade on the effective date based on the 04/01/15 SCF CSEA Salary Schedule, increase the salary to the same salary step on the 04/01/16 Salary Schedule.
• If the employee has a Pay Basis Code of ANN, a Grade equal to 600 with an equated grade equal to 001-031 and the salary is not equal to a salary step of the employee’s equated grade on the effective date based on the 04/01/15 SCF CSEA Salary Schedule, calculate the salary as follows:
  • If the salary is less than the Job Rate of the employee’s equated grade on the effective date based on the 04/01/15 SCF CSEA Salary Schedule, increase the salary by applying 2.00% rounded to the nearest dollar. If the resulting salary is greater than the Job Rate based on the 04/01/16 SCF CSEA Salary Schedule, reduce the salary to the Job Rate.
  • If the salary is greater than the Job Rate of the employee’s equated grade on the effective date based on the 04/01/15 SCF CSEA Salary Schedule, increase the salary by applying 2.00% rounded to the nearest dollar OR increase the salary to the Job Rate based on the 04/01/16 SCF CSEA Salary Schedule, whichever is greater.

Composite Positions

The agency must review employees in composite positions (identified by Increment Code 2222) to determine payment eligibility in one or both of the positions and calculate the salary as described above. Information regarding the composite position must be included on the General Comments page.

2017 Retroactive 2% Increase Processing

The 2017 Retroactive 2% Increase should be applied using the same process described above for the 2016 Retroactive 2% Increase. The compensation rate updated with the 2016 Increase should be compared to the 04/01/16 SCF CSEA Salary Schedule when determining if the salary in effect is equal to a salary step of the employee’s equated grade. The result of this comparison will determine the appropriate calculation for the compensation rate effective on or after the payment effective date (04/06/17).

Agency Actions - Retroactive Processing

Reporting Retroactive Adjustments

Time Entry earnings codes that are submitted with an amount will not be adjusted automatically. Therefore, beginning in Administration Pay Period 17L, the agency must report the adjustment amount for earnings codes such as Extra Time Override (EXO) and Regular Salary Override (RGO).

Correcting an Automatic Retroactive Adjustment

When certain conditions exist in an employee’s record, the automatic retroactive adjustment may be incorrect. Therefore, the agency is responsible for identifying employees who meet the following conditions and, if necessary, submitting the necessary adjustment.

• If an employee has a check returned or exchanged on an AC-230 for dates on or after the effective date of the payment, the payroll system does not consider the AC-230 when calculating the automatic retroactive adjustment.
• If earnings were previously reported using Earnings Code RGS and a date range that exceeded the number of days reported, the system will calculate the adjustment of earnings based on the number of workdays within the range.
• Adjustments for earnings that are calculated automatically, such as OT for Annuals (OTA), will be calculated incorrectly if the dates previously reported as a single entry on the Time Entry page overlap the effective date of the payment. The system will calculate an adjustment for all earnings reported in a single entry based on the salary in effect on the Earnings End Date.
• For employees who had a change reported on the Job Data page, since the effective date of the payment and the action resulted in an overpayment of earnings, the automatic negative retroactive adjustment may not have been processed because the overpayment was either not recoverable or was recovered using an overpayment earnings code or an AC-230. In this case, the negative retroactive adjustment may be re-generated when the payment is processed. OSC will turn off (not process) the automatic negative adjustment for these employees, since in most cases these overpayments were either not recoverable or recovered using another method.

If an overpayment of earnings is identified after the automatic payment is processed but before the paycheck is received by the employee, the employee must be notified of the overpayment and the adjustment that will be reported in a subsequent pay period.

Submitting an Adjustment

To process a retroactive adjustment or correct an automatic retroactive adjustment, agencies must submit the following information on the Time Entry page or the Time Entry Interface (NPAY502) using the Earnings Code AJR.

Military Stipend Leave

OSC will recalculate the military stipend amount for employees who were placed on a Paid or Unpaid Military Stipend Leave on or after the effective date of the payment as the result of new military orders.

• If the employee received a stipend, OSC will insert a row on the employee’s Job Data page effective the date the employee is entitled to the increase using the Action/Reason code of Pay Rate Change/MSC (Military Stipend Change) and will increase the employee’s biweekly stipend amount. In addition, updates will be made to all subsequent rows requiring an increased biweekly stipend amount.
• If the employee did not receive a stipend but becomes eligible for a stipend as a result of the payment, OSC will insert the following in PayServ.
  • A row on the employee’s Job Data page effective the date the employee is entitled to a stipend using the Action/Reason code of Paid Leave of Absence/MLS (Mil Stip) and the new biweekly stipend amount.
  • A row on the employee’s Job Data page for each affected subsequent row using the Action/Reason code of Pay Rate Change/MSC (Military Stipend Change) and the new biweekly stipend amount.
  • A row on the Time Entry page using the Earnings Code MSP (Military Stipend Payment) to pay the stipend for each pay period the employee is eligible.
  • Any additional adjustment that is required due to the increased biweekly stipend amount that will not be calculated automatically will be reported by OSC on the Time Entry page using the Earnings Code AMS (Adjust Military Stipend).

Deduction Information

All general deductions for employees whose Payroll Status is Terminated, Retired or Deceased will be automatically cancelled by OSC with the exception of percentage based dues and agency shop fees and the following:

Tax Information

These monies are taxable income and are subject to all employment taxes and income taxes, will be included in the employee’s taxable gross and reported on the employee’s Form W-2.

The adjustments (AJR and Retro (RXX)) are supplemental taxable income and will be included in the employee’s taxable gross subject to all employment and income taxes.

Federal, State and New York City income tax withholding will be calculated using the Aggregate method. Yonkers income tax withholding will be calculated using the Flat Rate method. Yonkers Flat Rate is 1.61135% for Yonkers residents and 0.50% for Yonkers non-residents.

Undeliverable Checks

Checks issued to eligible employees who are now deceased should be returned with a completed Next of Kin Affidavit (Form AC 934-P) and a Report of Check Exchange (Form AC 1476-P). If a Next of Kin Affidavit has been previously submitted for a deceased employee’s payroll check, OSC will accept a photocopy of this form along with a new Report of Check Exchange.

Payroll Register and Employee’s Paycheck/Advice

All retroactive adjustments will be displayed on the Payroll Register using the appropriate Earnings Code and the amount paid and will be displayed on the employee’s paycheck stub or direct deposit advice using the appropriate Earnings Description and the amount paid unless the number of earnings codes exceeds 13. Agencies should utilize Locked Query #49 to identify a complete list of regular earnings and retroactive adjustments if there are more than 13 earnings codes.

Questions

Questions regarding this bulletin may be directed to the Payroll Earnings mailbox.

Questions regarding Position information may be directed to the Position Management mailbox.

Questions regarding military information may be directed to the Military Stipend mailbox.

Questions regarding general deductions may be directed to the Payroll Deduction mailbox.

Questions regarding withholding taxes may be directed to the Tax and Compliance mailbox.