The Compensation and Classification Office is responsible for developing compensation programs, policies, and approaches that meet the unique needs of our academic and business units.
The Compensation and Classification Office is responsible for developing compensation programs, policies, and approaches that meet the unique needs of our academic and business units.
Revised May 7, 2003
The University of Michigan provides compensation, benefits and career-related investments that:
The University of Michigan is committed to manage pay, benefits, and career-related services in a way that:
Total compensation is the sum of salary and benefits programs.
Compensation Philosophy
The University of Michigan pays employees in ways that reward contribution, recognize quality performance, and encourage growth and development.
Principles of the compensation philosophy include:
For most units, base pay is the primary way in which we offer compensation. Base and variable pay may be combined to meet the needs and circumstances of individual units.
Primary responsibility for determining pay rests at the local unit. Central oversight is practiced to assure that pay practices are legal, consistent across the University, and financially responsible.
Benefits Philosophy
The University of Michigan designs and delivers an array of benefits to provide employees and retirees with health, retirement, and other work-related benefits to address their differing needs. The University does so in the belief that a healthy and secure faculty and staff are best able to contribute to the accomplishment of the University’s mission. The University expects employees to be informed about their benefits, to make benefits choices wisely, and to understand and accept the implications of their choices.
Guiding principles of the benefits philosophy include the following:
The University of Michigan is committed to providing a set of core benefits including health care and drug insurance and retirement support. For the most part, the costs of these core benefits should be shared between the University and the employee and retiree. When employees or retirees choose to include dependents in their insurance coverage, the individual is expected to contribute the major cost for that additional coverage.
The University offers additional benefits of high value to many employees, such as dental or long-term disability insurance. Employees electing those plans or programs will contribute a greater share of associated costs than those electing only the core benefit plans. In these cases, the university may make contributions to offset costs, but the employee or retiree contributes the majority of the cost of coverage.
The University may also offer benefits, such as legal assistance, when it is able to leverage the size of the university’s employee population to provide savings for employees. The employee will contribute the full cost for voluntary participation in these supplementary benefit programs.
Market considerations, fiscal prudence, or regulatory demands may cause the University to change its compensation and benefits practices. Employees should be aware that their benefits may change over time as a result of University policy decisions.