Moving to a Higher Salary Class? Keep an Eye on Deadlines!

Los Rios faculty believe in the value of education, not only for their students, but for themselves.

Many faculty continue their education after securing a position, taking advanced classes or writing theses and dissertations in pursuit of higher degrees. They do this because they appreciate the opportunity to advance their own knowledge and understanding in their chosen field, but there is another good reason to pursue further education: higher levels of educational attainment are rewarded on the faculty salary schedules.

If you are familiar with the salary schedules in Los Rios, you are aware that the schedules contain 5 salary Classes, and that each Class equates to a particular level of post-secondary education, from an Associate’s to a Doctoral degree. Faculty are placed in a Class when they are first hired, but those who complete courses or degrees during their term of employment that qualify them for a higher Class placement can notify the District to have their Class placement improved.

If you become eligible for a Class placement advancement, you should notify the District and provide your official transcripts as soon as possible, especially if you complete the relevant education during the summer months.

Contractual Requirements

This is essential because the faculty collective bargaining agreement, or contract, contains specific annual deadlines to qualify for  Class advancement. Article 2.9.2 of the contract says:

In order for faculty members to receive class placement adjustments, evidence of work completed must be on file by August 15 for adjustment to be effective for the academic or fiscal year. Evidence shall be documents issued by the fully accredited institutions and faculty members shall certify accuracy. Official college transcripts and/or advanced degrees must be on file in the District Human Resources Office within sixty (60) days after the class placement adjustment becomes effective. Adjustments required by documentation provided after the sixty (60) day period will be made at the beginning of the next semester of employment.

The crucial date here is August 15, a hard deadline. If you complete the additional units or a higher degree during the spring or summer but do not notify Human Resources of your new educational qualifications and provide evidence of completion by August 15, your Class adjustment will be delayed until the following Fall. That is, you will have to wait a whole year to be placed at the higher class on the salary schedules.

The District Human Resources staff refer to this initial notification and evidence as a “placeholder.” You tell the District that you have completed work that qualifies you for a Class advancement, provide some evidence of that work (an unofficial transcript or similar), and the District will flag your name for Class adjustment to take effect at the start of the academic year or the fiscal year, depending on whether you are an academic or a fiscal year employee.

Possible Outcomes

If you submit the “placeholder” notification and evidence on time, you’ll have a bit more time–60 days–to gather and submit official transcripts. If you provide the “placeholder” by August 15 and submit your official transcripts within 60 days, your Class adjustment will be effective from the start of the Fall semester. Obviously, if you already have your official transcripts available when you submit the “placeholder,” you can submit them all at the same time.

If you get your “placeholder” in before the August 15 deadline but your official transcripts are late, i.e., after the 60-day deadline, your Class adjustment will be effective in the Spring semester instead of the Fall.

If you don’t provide “placeholder” evidence by August 15, your Class adjustment will be delayed until Fall of the following year. For a full-time faculty member who would otherwise qualify for advancement, the cost of missing this deadline is over $5,000 for the year. For part-time instructional faculty teaching one 0.2-FTE class and holding 18 office hours per semester, the cost is around $500. For part-time counselors and other non-instructional faculty, the cost is about $600 per 0.2 FTE.

For more information on Class placement and advancement, please see these Los Rios documents: Explanation of Class Placement and Advancement for Full-Time Faculty and Explanation of Class/Step Placement and Advancement for Adjunct/Overload Faculty. The process of Class placement and advancement works the same for full-time and part-time faculty.

If you have spent this spring or intend to spend this summer completing another step in your educational journey, and if your new level of academic attainment qualifies you to advance to a higher Class on the salary schedules, make note of the August 15 date. Missing that deadline can be costly, and the LRCFT believes that all faculty should receive the maximum possible compensation for their work.