Merit Guidelines
Lane Libraries Merit Guidelines
Developed by the Merit Implementation Committee
June 2007
Lane Libraries Merit Guidelines
Objectives of the Merit System
Advantages of the Merit System
Merit Raise-General Information
Cost of Living
Number of High Ratings vs. % of Raise
Staff at End of Pay Range
Consistency and Preventing Favoritism
360° Evaluations
Documentation
Training
Supervisor Review
Testing
Governance of the Merit System
The merit pay system is a compensation system whereby increases are determined by individual performance. Lane's present pay system is based upon across-the-board increases - every staff member in a specific grade level receives the same pay increase regardless of the quality of performance. This process really means that pay is based upon longevity with Lane. In contrast, a merit plan provides for monetary awards to employees based on documented excellent service and contribution to the mission and goals of the library. It is a pay for performance model.
Merit pay systems are not something new for public libraries of Lane's size. Some Ohio public libraries that currently use or have used a merit pay system include Middletown, Delaware County, Coshocton, Mansfield, Centerville and Clermont County.
OBJECTIVES OF THE MERIT SYSTEM:
- Ensure that all staff are evaluated annually.
- Provide evaluation forms with better guidelines to make the process easier and less subjective
- Encourage communication between staff and supervisors.
- Allow staff to closely monitor their goals during the next evaluation period.
- Provide an incentive for excellent work performance.
- Continuously improve performance outcomes for external and internal customers by focusing on and rewarding appropriate behaviors.
- Continuously improve individual staff performance through coaching and training.
- Assist supervisors in identifying employees' strengths and weaknesses and work with them to improve job performance and satisfaction.
ADVANTAGES OF THE MERIT SYSTEM:
- The process offers motivation for everyone to participate in the evaluation process.
- Encourages communication between staff and supervisors.
- Other library systems in the area have been using Pay for Performance successfully for many years.
- Anonymous peer evaluation process will encourage teamwork.
- Employees will have ownership of their performance.
- Opportunity for goal identification and development.
- Allows supervisors access to staff performance.
- Process includes performance journals for each employee.
- The 360° evaluation process will broaden the spectrum of information used in the process.
The Beta test process will take place from October 1, 2007 thru November 16, 2007. The Beta test process will use the new evaluation form, but the results of the evaluation will not be tied to salary in any way. The test will be an opportunity to tweak the new form and address any other issues before the actual beginning of the Merit Pay system. Beginning October 1, 2008 through November 15, 2008 the new evaluation form will be used for employees and the results of the evaluations will be used to determine individual employee salary increases based on the performance of each employee.
ANNIVERSARY DATES - Evaluations will not be done on employee anniversary dates. They will all be done during the evaluation period of October 1 through the first two weeks in November with the exception of new hires.
(See New Hire Eligibility below.)
- GENERAL ELIGIBILITY-The Merit Pay System will work the same way for supervisors and non-supervisors. However, the supervisors will have additional evaluation criteria.
- NEW HIRE ELIGIBILITY-Eligibility of new hires is defined using the following guidelines:
- If an employee's start date is from the end of the annual evaluation through August 31st, they will be eligible for a merit raise that evaluation year.
- If an employee's start date is September 1st up through the beginning of the annual evaluation, they will not be eligible for a merit raise until the following year, but will still receive an evaluation.
- If an employee is promoted to a different department/location or if they move to different grade level/change responsibilities, they will be eligible for a merit raise.
- PAGE ELIGIBILITY- Pages are minimum wage positions whose pay is determined by federal and state law. If the federal/state government raises the minimum wage level, pages must legally receive that increase, no matter their performance level. Page positions will be included in the merit pay system assuming they were hired within the hire date deadline. If the minimum wage increases, then they will receive at least the minimum wage increase.
If there is a minimum wage increase all Pages will receive that increase. If a Page is also eligible for a merit raise that goes above the minimum wage increase, they will receive both to equal that merit raise percentage. For example, if the minimum wage increase is 2% and the Page qualifies for a 3% merit raise, they will receive the 2% minimum wage increase and 1% merit pay to total 3%. [minimum wage increase + merit percentage (merit raise percentage - minimum wage increase) = total raise]
If their evaluation is lower than the minimum wage increase, they will still receive the minimum wage increase. The system for page increases will be evaluated on a yearly basis by the Merit committee.
- EMPLOYEES ON DISCIPLINARY PROBATION- An employee on disciplinary probation will still be eligible for Merit Pay assuming they were hired within the hire date deadline.
MERIT RAISE- General Information
Raises will be based upon the money available and the number of staff eligible for a merit pay raise.
There is a finite amount of money available for raises. This is a portion of the money allocated by the state for operations.
COST OF LIVING RAISE
Pay will be based solely on work performance.
NUMBER OF HIGH RATINGS VS. % OF RAISE
There are only so many dollars to be used for salary increases. The merit pay system determines how those dollars are allocated. If there are many people who receive high scores, the individual raises will be smaller than if there are only a few people with high scores.
Staff who are currently receiving the maximum amount of money within the designated pay range for their position will only receive additional dollars when the pay ranges are increased and they receive an evaluation which would make them eligible for a raise.
CONSISTENCY AND PREVENTING FAVORITISM
Merit pay suggests employee evaluations need to be completely consistent across the entire system to be fair.
360° EVALUATIONS - The 360° process keeps any one individual (including the supervisor and any of the contributing evaluators) from providing a renegade assessment. For example, if the Supervisor has a "pet" employee and tries to provide a favorable review when one is not warranted, the input from the peer and internal customer reviews will serve as a red flag. It also works in the opposite direction, of course, and keeps the employee from being unfairly assessed in a negative direction.
A total of four (4) individuals that would ultimately review the selected staff member:
- The employee his/herself.
- Two (2) staff members (co-workers, other supervisors, etc.)
- Supervisor
The supervisor of the staff member will determine the two co-worker (multi-raters) reviewers. The Merit committee will also be allowed to recommend an individual in case of any roadblocks in this procedure. For example, if an employee is not in a big pool of their specific department. Peer evaluations will remain confidential. Only the supervisor, branch head and Human Resources will have access to peer evaluations.
DOCUMENTATION - Due diligence on the documentation front is critical. Someone will not just be able to be rated as an Exemplary performer on a scale - they will have to explain why that rating is warranted. Differences of perspective can arise but the dialogue and problem solving occur when those divergent assessments meet head to head. That is where the true value lies in the system. For example, work expectations may have been poorly articulated and misunderstood among all parties involved. Or, the supervisor may have been valuing the wrong behaviors. This process provides the opportunity to set all of this right. All of the assessment information is passed upward so that as many eyes as possible weigh in. If a supervisor consistently tries to unfairly assess performance (either positive or negative), he or she will be held accountable.
TRAINING - All staff members will receive orientation about the evaluation process so that the process is consistent across the system.
SUPERVISOR REVIEW - Branch Heads will have access only to the evaluations completed by supervisors in their branch. The Branch Head will review the completed evaluations before the supervisors meet with the individual employees.
TESTING - The safety mechanism is the testing in the first year when there is no money tied to the evaluations. This step will allow a review of what biases and behaviors are impacting the process before any money is attached to the results. Changes in the system will be made based upon this review.
Dispute of evaluation - up to thirty (30) days after evaluation
- Written dispute given to Head of H.R.
- Head of H.R. addresses information.
- Written dispute attached to evaluation.
- Does not necessarily mean a score will be changed.
The Merit Advisory (selected staff members) and Merit Steering Committees (selected supervisors) initially created the new evaluation form with the help of a consultation. These two committees choose representatives or volunteers to continue on to the Merit Implementation Committee. One new supervisor and one new staff member were also added to the Merit Implementation Committee. After the Beta test, the Merit Implementation Committee will dissolve and the Staff Evaluation Oversight Committee will oversee the merit system.
The Staff Evaluation Oversight Committee will be made up as follows:
Two (2) Supervisors
Three (3) non-supervisory staff members
TOTAL: 5 members
Each location will have at least one representative on SWG (LPL, FFB, OXB, and LAC/BKM). The fifth member can be from any of the locations and it will vary from year to year which location has two representatives. Most of the time, the new member will be from the retiring members location, but care must be taken that one location does not have a supervisor representing them every year. Non-supervisory staff from each location should be cycled through.
Rotation of Committee Members
September 2008 - August 2009
A -Supervisor on current Merit committee (serving one year only)
B -Supervisor from any location not represented by current committee members (serving 1st year)
C -Non-supervisory staff member on current Merit committee (serving one year only
D -Non-supervisory staff member from location not represented by current committee members (serving 1st year)
E -Non-supervisory staff member from location not represented by current committee members (serving 1st year)
September 2009 - August 2010
A -Supervisor (serving 1st year)
B -Supervisor from previous year (serving 2nd year)
C -Non-supervisory staff member (serving 1st year)
D -Non-supervisory staff member (serving 2nd year)
E -Non-supervisory staff member (serving 2nd year)
September 2010 - August 2011
A -Supervisor from previous year (serving 2nd year)
B -Supervisor (serving 1st year)
C -Non-supervisory staff member (serving 2nd year)
D -Non-supervisory staff member (serving 1st year)
E -Non-supervisory staff member (serving 1st year)
September 2011 - August 2012
A -Supervisor (serving 1st year)
B -Supervisor from previous year (serving 2nd year)
C -Non-supervisory staff member (serving 1st year)
D -Non-supervisory staff member (serving 2nd year)
E -Non-supervisory staff member (serving 2nd year)
Etc….
The performance evaluation and merit pay system are designed to:
- Continuously improve performance outcomes for customers by focusing on and rewarding appropriate behaviors.
- Continuously improve individual staff performance through coaching and training.
While the formal performance evaluation occurs once a year, on-going, day-to-day performance assessment, coaching and training are primary responsibilities of the supervisor. The annual evaluation should not come as a surprise to the employee if on-going communication and coaching have occurred.
