Business Procedures Manual

Fiscal Affairs Division

5.3.2 Components of Pay

5.3.2 Components of Pay

(Last Modified on February 21, 2025)

5.3.2.1 - Institutional Base Pay (IBP) Definition

Institutional Base Pay (IBP) is an employee’s annual rate of pay. IBP is applied to both faculty and staff and is an employee’s standard pay rate, which does not include other compensation. IBP can be expressed as an hourly rate, monthly, annual, or academic-year contract salary and remains stable unless an employee receives a pay rate change (merit, interim position, demotion, promotion, reclassification).

The IBP is used to calculate annual merit increases, vacation payouts, premium-based deductions, and an employee’s total rewards statement compensation rate. In addition, the IBP is used for federal reporting including IPEDS, state, and other USG reporting requirements.

Other types of pay, such as incentives, supplements, consortium, staff and student temporary assignments, allowances, and overload pay are not included in the IBP.

Faculty Institutional Base Pay

A faculty member’s institutional base pay (IBP) includes compensation based on a faculty member’s contract and includes a mix of scholarly or creative work, instruction, service, administration, or other instructional activities. For faculty, the IBP will include any of the following components:

  • Regular Earnings (Rate Code CNTRCT)
  • Special Chair Earnings (Rate Code MCCHR)
  • Academic Administrative Faculty Assignment (Rate Code MCAFA)

The IBP is used to calculate summer pay for faculty. The IBP does not include overload teaching, continuing education appointments, monetary awards, compensation earned for services performed external to the University, as approved under the compensated outside activities policy, or administrative faculty assignments exclusively performed during the summer (not assigned during the previous academic year).

Please reference the Non-Standard and Supplemental Pay matrix for specific compensation components.

Applicable Policies and Procedure Links

5.3.2.2 - Supplemental Pay, Including Temporary Assignments

Supplemental pay is compensation to an employee in excess of the employee’s annual base salary and is appropriate only in limited situations. Types of supplemental pay include, but are not limited to:

  • Supplemental pay for tasks performed in a part-time capacity outside of the employee’s regular job duties and regular work schedule
  • Allowances for specific expenses such as car allowance, housing allowance, subsistence or relocation expenses
  • Employee awards in accordance with approved institutional processes
  • Overtime pay for hours worked by non-exempt employees, refer to Section 5.3.2.1 of this BPM for additional information
  • Pay for dual appointments, refer to section 5.3.3 of this BPM for additional information
  • Extra pay for part-time employment with a non-USG state agency, refer to Section 5.3.2.3 of this BPM for additional information
  • Overload pay for academic contract faculty for duties in excess of their defined workload

The HRAP manual’s section on Classification, Compensation, and Payroll Interim and Acting Assignments provides that employees may be assigned additional responsibilities of a higher level position on a temporary basis and may receive a temporary interim or acting appointments. These assignments may result in temporary salary adjustments.

Supplemental pay requests should be completed and approved by the appropriate institutional personnel.

Employees that have been determined by the institution to be non-exempt, as defined by the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), and are performing duties outside of the employee’s normal job responsibilities could qualify for overtime pay. Therefore, non-exempt employees should be paid the appropriate overtime rate if the employee physically works over 40 hours in the workweek.

If an FLSA exempt employee performs task(s) during the employee’s regular work schedule that is(are) not part of the employee’s normal job responsibilities, or temporary assignment job responsibilities, the employee must utilize annual leave for the portion of time during which the additional task(s) is(are) performed.

Under no circumstances should an employee receive supplemental pay for a task while receiving regular compensation for the same time period.

Generally, supplemental compensation does not add to earnings used for retirement calculations, and retirement deductions/contributions are not taken/made. However, each retirement plan (TRS, ERS, or ORP) has its unique definitions relative to earnings that are “pensionable” (subject to retirement calculations) and the retirement plan provider has the final determination as to whether earnings are pensionable. The Supplemental Pay Procedure process in the SSC SOP (PRA-PY-001-PR-001) provides guidance relative to determining if supplemental pay is earnable compensation (subject to retirement contributions) by the various retirement plans. Please consult the SSC for assistance in making these determinations.

Employees receiving supplemental pay shall be paid said supplemental compensation via the institution’s payroll system. Supplemental compensation paid to employees who are on the institution’s payroll shall not be paid as per diem and fees or as stipends. Supplemental compensation is subject to withholding in accordance with Internal Revenue Service and appropriate state taxing agency regulations.

Supplemental pay should be expended utilizing the appropriate general ledger account(s) as defined in Chapter 2 of this BPM.

For institutions that have implemented the OneUSG Connect system, supplemental pay may be processed via various mechanisms. One of these mechanisms is the utilization of the additional pay functionality.

5.3.2.3 Overtime

The HRAP Manual’s section on Classification, Compensation, and Payroll provides policy provisions and definitions relative to overtime hours.

The standard workweek for institutions of the University System of Georgia is forty (40) hours.

The distribution of hours within the workweek is a work schedule decision made by the institution.

Overtime hours are hours physically worked that exceed the forty (40) hours within the standard workweek and are paid at the rate of one and one-half times the employee’s hourly rate for FLSA non-exempt employees.

Hours in excess of forty (40) hours that are not physically worked are additional straight time hours and are paid at the regular rate of pay. (Example: Employee has 8 holiday hours and 35 regular hours, physically worked, for a total of 43 hours for the workweek. The 3 hours above 40 would be paid at the regular rate of pay.)

Employees classified as non-exempt under FLSA may work overtime hours only if the hours are deemed necessary and approved by authorized personnel. Non-exempt employees must receive payment for overtime work in accordance with FLSA or receive compensatory time as in accordance with section 5.3.2.2 below.

Employees that are classified as exempt under FLSA shall not be paid for overtime hours for the performance of their job duties.

For employees with multiple jobs, the overtime pay is based upon the regular rate of pay. FLSA regulations define how the regular rate of pay is calculated when an employee receives varying pay rates, including supplemental pay.

The OneUSG Connect system utilizes a blended rate to calculate the overtime pay for employees with varying rates of pay. For employees receiving supplemental pay processed in the OneUSG Connect system utilizing the additional pay process, the supplemental pay rates should be determined and used to ensure the calculated supplemental pay amount complies with FLSA regulations regarding multiple rates of pay. The institution should contact the SSC to obtain further guidance regarding overtime rates for employees with varying rates of pay and supplemental pay items.

5.3.2.4 Compensatory Time (Comp Time)

Institutions may elect to provide compensatory (comp) time, in lieu of overtime pay, for approved overtime hours for employees that are classified as non-exempt under the FLSA. The HRAP manual stipulates that comp time is provided at the rate of one and one-half hours of compensatory time for each work hour in excess of the standard forty (40) hours within the standard work week. Comp time is accrued at the end of the pay period and has a maximum accumulation of 240 hours. Employees shall utilize accrued comp time prior to utilizing other leave. Comp time accruals prior to June may not be carried forward to the subsequent fiscal year. Therefore, all comp time accrued prior to June must be paid out no later than the final bi-weekly pay period in June of each fiscal year.

The institution’s official time recording system is the system of record for comp time. Comp time shall not be accrued and maintained outside of the time recording system. For institutions that have implemented the OneUSG Connect system, the Time and Labor module is the system of record.

Employees exempt under the FLSA are not eligible to accrue comp time.

The employee must be paid for accumulated comp time if:

  • The employee terminates employment with the institution, including retirement or transfer to another USG institution.
  • The employee’s FLSA status changes from non-exempt to exempt.
  • The employee transfers between cost centers (departments) at the institution.
  • The employee’s comp time exceeds 240 hours.
  • The employee has a comp time balance as of the pay period end date of the final full pay period in May.

When comp time is paid to the employee, it should be paid at the employee’s current regular hourly rate since the one and one-half calculation has already been applied with the time calculation.

5.3.2.5 Extra Compensation: Non USG Georgia State Agency

Extra compensation may be paid to employees for tasks performed after normal business hours for duties not included in the employee’s normal job responsibilities, provided the following three criteria are met:

  1. The tasks must be outside of the employee’s regular department, where department is a separate department of the State of Georgia.
  2. The Departmental Agreement Form, must be completed and signed by the appropriate department heads.   Departmental Agreement Form
  3. The employee must meet at least one of the criteria listed below (Criteria from the Official Code of Georgia Annotated Section 45-10-25):
    • Chaplain
    • Fireman
    • Dentist
    • Certified Oral or Manual Interpreter for Deaf Persons
    • Registered Nurse
    • Licensed Practical Nurse
    • Psychologist
    • Teacher or Instructor of an evening or night course or program
    • Professional holding a doctoral or master’s degree from an accredited college or university
    • Part-time employee

Also, an employee meeting all three criteria listed above may be paid extra compensation for a task for another department during normal job hours if the task is not part of the employee’s normal job responsibilities, and the employee takes annual leave for the portion of time that is being used for the task receiving extra compensation.

Employees that have been determined by the institution to be non-exempt, as defined by the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), and are performing extra duties qualify for overtime pay. Please consult the SSC regarding clarification of overtime pay requirements. Non-exempt employees should be paid at least the overtime rate or more.

Under no circumstances should an employee receive extra compensation for a task while receiving normal compensation for the same time period. Extra compensation does not add to earnings used for retirement calculations, and no retirement deductions are taken from extra compensation pay.

Employees receiving extra compensation shall be paid said extra compensation through the institutional payroll. Such compensation shall be subject to existing federal and state regulations as to taxability and/or withholding taxes. No compensation, as defined above and paid to employees who are on the institutional payroll, shall be paid as per diem and fees or as stipends.

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