Updated 1/11

It is the policy of Kansas Athletics to make good faith efforts to provide equitable compensation to Kansas Athletics employees and to comply with applicable laws and University guidelines. Kansas Athletics is committed to attracting, retaining, rewarding, and motivating employees by, in part, providing a total compensation package that, to the extent reasonably possible, is:

• Aligned with the workplace culture and supports the achievement of the Kansas Athletics mission, strategic goals, and objectives;
• Able to recognize and reward outstanding individual, department/sport, and organizational performance;
• Based upon each individual’s qualifications and experience to perform the position for which he/she is hired;
• Internally equitable;
• Competitive within comparable labor markets;
• Easily understood and administered;
• Administered in accordance with Kansas Athletics financial resources; and,
• Reviewed on a regular basis.

Approved salary and wage amounts are used in formulating the annual budget for Kansas Athletics. For budgetary purposes, salaries and wages for staff, as well as those for graduate assistants, transient employees and student workers, are covered in the designated unit’s or sport’s budget. In addition, any budget allocations for overtime compensation in a designated unit or sport must appear in this same budget. All salary and wage recommendations must comply with Kansas Athletics guidelines.

Job Descriptions

Kansas Athletics Department of Human Resources maintains specific job descriptions which outline the job responsibilities and duties for positions within Kansas Athletics. Administrative staff members are responsible for providing the Department of Human Resources with a current electronic version of the job description anytime a position is created or updated. New and updated job descriptions must be approved by the Director of Human Resources to determine if an exempt status change is necessary.
Compensation Committees

The final approval for Kansas Athletics salary and wage increases rests with the University’s Chancellor upon recommendation of the Board of Directors.

Board of Directors Compensation Committee

All employees meeting IRS requirements for “Disqualified Persons” must have their salaries reviewed by the Compensation Committee of the Board of Directors. Final approval for their salaries rests with the Chancellor. The Corporate Counsel works with this Compensation Committee, ensuring that the Board receives all necessary information and that proper documentation for the decisions is established.

Leadership Team Compensation Committee

A Leadership Team Compensation Committee appointed by the Director of Athletics and headed by the Director of Human Resources reviews all salaries and bonuses at Kansas Athletics. It is also tasked with setting ranges for salaries for all staff and coaching positions. The Director of Human Resources is in charge of monitoring salaries and will annually conduct a comprehensive external market analysis to ensure employee compensation is competitive with the comparable labor market for the position. The committee may recommend salary adjustments and bonuses based upon internal equities, the external market analysis, or performance criteria. Recommendations of the Leadership Team Compensation Committee are submitted to the Director of Athletics for approval and submission to the Board of Directors and Chancellor.

Staff members with supervisory responsibility may make recommendations for salary adjustments and/or bonuses for the employees under their supervision to the Director of Human Resources who will in turn submit the recommendation to the Leadership Team Compensation Committee. Supervisors should consider the results of annual performance evaluations in making recommendations for merit pay.

Kansas Athletics generally follows University practices when awarding percentage increases and employees generally receive the same annual percentage increase as University employees.

Except for unusual circumstances, salaries are set for a 12-month cycle. Most of University and Kansas Athletics staff receive notice of their salary for the coming twelve months at the beginning of the fiscal year (approximately July 1). The football, volleyball and soccer coaching staffs receive notice of their 12-month salary in February/March.

Initial Pay Rates for New Hires and Transfers

Internal and external candidates may be offered an initial salary or wage anywhere within the range for the position but typically will be between the minimum and midpoint for the position. Initial pay rates may be higher than the pay rates of current employees in the same or similar positions if warranted based on experience and qualifications. Additional payments for external new hires could include temporary housing allowances or moving expenses; additional payments are dependent on the position, recommended by the Director of Human Resources, and approved by the Director of Athletics.

Bonus Pay

The Athletics Director may recommend to the Leadership Team Compensation Committee review of one-time monetary awards to individuals in the department who have demonstrated excellence in their duties above and beyond the basic expectations assigned to their positions. Any such awards will be made at the end of the fiscal year.

Assignment of Temporary Additional Job Responsibilities

An employee may be assigned temporarily to work at a position with lesser or more significant job responsibilities with no change in pay. Temporary assignments lasting more than four weeks, made in writing and that involve the assignment of a major component of a job at a higher salary, should be reviewed by the appropriate Associate Athletics Director and the Director of Human Resources to determine if additional compensation is appropriate. If additional compensation is appropriate, the Associate Athletics Director will forward a request to the Leadership Team Compensation Committee for review and recommendation to the Director of Athletics. Additional compensation up to 5% may be granted upon the approval of the Director of Athletics.

Circumstance of an unusual or emergency nature may warrant special consideration by the Director of Athletics.

Miscellaneous Non-Cash Compensation

Miscellaneous non-cash compensation may be available to employees in a given year. It may include, but is not limited to a) tickets to University athletics events; b) clothing apparel; and c) participation in the Athletics Department automobile program. Such miscellaneous non-cash compensation is available to employees only at the discretion of the Athletics Director and may be subject to taxation.

Consulting Income

Consulting income (e.g. camps, clinics, etc.) benefits only those employees involved in such activities. Consulting income is specifically governed by other Kansas Athletics policies and agreements (e.g. camps) as well as by University of Kansas policies (e.g. conflict of interest and reporting outside income) and applicable NCAA rules and regulations (e.g. NCAA bylaw 11.2.2).

Fair Labor Standards Act

As defined by the Fair Labor Standards Act, employees are exempt from the provisions of the Wage and Hour Law if (1) their responsibilities include executive or administrative duties, or (2) their positions require an advanced educational degree or specific experience level within a designated area of responsibility and authority. The August 2004 amendment to the Act further states under §13 (a)(1) that to qualify as an exempt employee under the Act, the employee must be paid at least $455 per week; the equivalent of $23,660 per year. Employees classified as exempt from this law do not receive overtime payments. Most staff members holding professional positions are considered “exempt employees.”

Regular staff positions are reviewed on an individual basis by the Department of Human Resources to determine whether each position qualifies for overtime. Employees designated as support staff, clerical, and service personnel are identified by the Federal Fair Labor Standards Act as non-exempt employees, and as such, are protected by the provisions of the Wage and Hour Law.

Overtime is computed for all hours worked beyond the normal 40 hour week, and is paid at one and one-half (1 1/2) times the employee’s regular hourly rate. The computation to determine overtime eligibility includes actual hours worked and, if applicable for the workweek, any holiday credit (the paid time for an observed holiday when it is not worked) but does not include other forms of paid leave (e.g., sick leave or vacation leave). Budget allocations for overtime wages belong in the budget for each unit or sport. Non-exempt employees are allowed to work overtime only with the approval of the unit head.

Performance Bonus/Incentive Pay

At the discretion of the Director of Athletics, and following a review and recommendation of the Leadership Team Compensation Committee, a performance bonus or incentive payment may be paid to a Head Coach, Assistant Coach, and the Director of Operations, for the highest team accomplishment (e.g., conference regular season championship or appropriate post season selection and championships). The Leadership Team Compensation Committee may develop appropriate guidelines or criteria to ensure any performance bonus or incentive payment is performance based and applied consistently. To the extent a specific, written Employment Agreement, properly executed by the Director of Athletics, contains a clause addressing incentive payments or performance bonuses which is different than this policy or Leadership Team Compensation Committee guidelines, such employment agreement clause shall control that particular coach’s incentive or performance bonus payment.

Following a review and recommendation from the Leadership Team Compensation Committee, the Director of Athletics may also approve a sports supervisor’s request for a discretionary bonus payment to any support staff affiliated with a team that performs at a performance bonus/incentive pay eligible level as provided in the preceding paragraph.