1001 PR.01 Compensation Above Salary

Revision Date: December 23, 2025

Contents

1.      Overview

2.      Compensation Above Salary

3.      Approval Requirements

4.      Roles and Responsibilities

5.      Payment Request Approved

6.      Payment Request Denied

7.      Assigning Costing Allocations at the Earnings Level

1. Overview

This procedure describes and specifies the required University approval and payment process for Compensation Above Institutional Base Salary.

2. Compensation Above Salary

Compensation Above Salary is a payment over and above an individual’s base salary or wages and benefits, whether one-time or on-going.  Compensation Above Salary is paid for services rendered or other salary supplements, e.g., additional jobs, work at a higher level, management of additional work units, bonuses, recognition awards, and non-base building merit increases.  Departments should not offer Compensation Above Salary to employees until all required approvals have been obtained.

Note: Compensation above salary does not apply to salary paid above a sponsor’s salary cap.

3. Approval Requirements

Faculty   

There are certain activities that, with prior approval from the cognizant member of the Provost’s Office, will qualify for an exception to the policy prohibiting Compensation Above Salary during the academic year. See section XVIII.C - “Other Compensation from University-administered Funds”- of the Faculty Handbook. Please refer to section XXI. “Faculty Compensation, Benefits, and Services” of the Faculty Handbook for guidance regarding additional summer compensation eligibility for nine-month faculty appointments. 

Other circumstances that may allow Compensation Above Salary for faculty include:

  • Clinical Incentive Compensation and bonuses if not processed during the annual merit pay process;
  • Sign-on and retention bonuses;
  • Affiliated hospital pay, on-call pay, shift pay;
  • Compensation Above Salary for benefit equalization (e.g., one-time payment for newly recruited faculty member who is not eligible for child scholarship benefit); and
  • Compensation Above Salary for interim duties (e.g., interim Department Chair).

Clinical supplements – fixed, predetermined supplements that compensate for specific clinical responsibilities or roles – are considered part of regular earnings (i.e., Institutional Base Salary) and are maintained and updated as part of the regular salary administration process.

Supplements for administrative duties (other than interim assignments) are also considered part of regular earnings and are maintained and updated as part of the regular salary administration process.

Federal regulations and University policy consider faculty Intra-Institution of Higher Education Consulting to be undertaken as a University obligation requiring, with rare exception, no compensation in addition to an individual’s Institutional Base Salary.

Employee category How to request Information to include
Faculty

Submission of written request to Provost or Provost’s designee.

Form 1001 FR.01 Request for Pre-Approval for Faculty Extra Compensation
  • Faculty name, rank and department;
  • Amount requested or recommended;
  • Explanation of how amount was determined;
  • Description of duties or activities for which Compensation Above Salary is requested;
  • The services and scope of work for which compensation is being sought, which must be clearly detailed in the relevant sponsored project proposal;
  • Confirmation of review by the Office of Sponsored Projects (“OSP”), if compensation is to be charged to a sponsored award; and
  • Anticipated start and end dates of the work.
Yale School of Medicine Faculty Submission of Departmental Compensation Plan and Submission of payment request through Workday
  • Requests for non-recurring fixed performance bonus payments, incentive payments, defined additional compensation payments over $10,000 and/or Extra Compensation payments will be submitted in Workday to the Dean’s Office Medical level for review and processing.
  • Departments with defined additional compensation (e.g., on-call schedules/rates) must submit the pay schedules/rates with their department faculty compensation plan. 
  • Incentive payments will not be approved unless the department has an approved incentive plan on file in the Faculty Affairs Office and in the Finance Office.
All Employees (including faculty) Submit based on employee type
  • Extra Compensation is generally indicated in the proposal budget and/or budget justification submitted to the sponsor that identifies the individual and their role on the project. This documentation must be attached to the request for payment. OSP or sponsor approval is not needed in this situation.
  • In situations where Extra Compensation occurs during the course of an award (not related to summer salary of faculty with academic year appointments) that was not included in the proposal, OSP must be contacted to determine sponsor requirements and receive approval from the sponsor for the compensation, if needed.  This documentation of OSP and/or sponsor’s approval must be attached to the request for payment when this situation occurs.
Postdoctoral and Postgraduate Appointees Submission of written request to the Office for Postdoctoral Affairs
  • Appointee names, title, and department;
  • Amount requested or recommended;
  • Explanation of how amount was determined;
  • Description of duties or activities for which Compensation Above Salary is requested;
  • The services and scope of work for which compensation is being sought, which must be clearly detailed in the relevant sponsored project proposal;
  • Confirmation of review by the Office of Sponsored Projects (“OSP”), if compensation is to be charged to a sponsored award;
  • Review and confirmation that this follows the funder’s policy, if compensation is to be charged to a fellowship or external award;
  • Anticipated start and end dates of the work;
  • Faculty supervisor approval; and
  • Review by the Office of International Students and Scholars (“OISS”) for visa compliance if the appointee is a visa holder.

Managerial and Professional (“M&P”)

Employee category How to request Information to include Send requests to:
Managerial & Professional

Initiate business process Request One-Time Payment

Initiate business process Request Compensation Change to add or update an Allowance (Ongoing Extra Services)

See Manage Compensation (Non-Academic) Training Guide for detailed information.
  • Amount requested or recommended;
  • Description of duties or activities for which Compensation Above Salary is requested;
  • Explanation of why Compensation Above Salary is warranted:
    • Why is the special work assignment necessary?
    • In what way is the work outside the employee’s normal duties?
  • Number of hours per week for non-exempt staff, or effort required for M&P staff;
  • Anticipated start and end dates of work for which the Compensation Above Salary is requested; and
  • Authorization signatures (home department lead administrator or designee).
 Initiate in Workday

Clerical and Technical (“C&T”)

C&T Hours Labor Schedule How to process Send request to:
Additional straight time or overtime hours worked in own job at regular rate of pay Same as primary Workday
  • Supervisor
Work at a higher level Same as primary Request Compensation Change in Workday.  See Manage Compensation (Non-Academic) Training Guide for detailed information.
  • Supervisor
  • Business Administrator
  • Human Resources
Second job in home department. Straight or overtime hours paid at different hourly rate Labor schedule change as needed Workday*
  • Hiring supervisor
  • Employee’s supervisor
  • Human Resources
Second job outside home department. Straight or overtime hours paid at regular or different hourly rate Hiring department Business Manager Workday*
  • Hiring supervisor
  • Employee’s supervisor
  • Business manager in hiring department
  • Human Resources
  • ** Provost Office

Note: Information is entered in Workday by entering the proper code.

* If overtime, must use weighted average rate calculation provided by Human Resources.

** If the additional job involves teaching duties, additional approval by the Provost’s Office or the           Academic/Faculty Affairs Office (Yale School of Medicine) is required.

Note: Other bargaining units, please contact your HR Business Partner for assistance.

Sponsor Approval

Yale University is committed to ensuring that all charges to sponsored projects are allowable and transacted in accordance with sponsor terms and conditions, regulations, and University policy. In situations where Extra Compensation occurs during the course of an award (not related to summer salary of faculty with academic year appointments) that was not included in the proposal, OSP must be contacted to determine sponsor requirements and receive approval from the sponsor for the compensation if needed. 

Note: Extra Compensation for activities not charged to a sponsored award may affect commitments made to sponsors.  Extra Compensation paid to an individual who is also devoting committed effort to sponsored awards must be carefully reviewed to determine if the commitments are reasonable. Questions regarding impact to effort commitments should be directed to effort.reports@yale.edu.   

Salary for administrative personnel that is to be supported by a sponsored project is specifically restricted.  Refer to Policy 1403 Charging of Administrative and Clerical Salaries and Certain Other General Administrative Expenses to Federal Funds for guidance. 

Departments that hire a part-time C&T employee from another department for additional casual hours must contact the business manager at the employee’s home department to provide the labor schedule information for the additional hours. Refer to Workday Time & Absence Frequently Asked Questions.

Postdoctoral Associates (“PDAs”) and Postdoctoral Fellows (“PDFs”)

Any compensation above salary requests for Postdocs must be made in advance to the Office of Postdoctoral Affairs.

4. Roles and Responsibilities

The following roles and responsibilities are involved in submitting, approving, and processing Compensation Above Salary.

Role Responsibilities
Employee
  • Obtains prior approval of their primary supervisor in the case of an additional assignment outside of the employee’s primary unit.
Requesting Supervisor
  • Completes and submits appropriate request form for approval of Compensation Above Salary per form instructions and submits to Lead Administrator;
  • Upon approval, notifies employee of approved action and expected pay date(s); and
  • Retains records as appropriate.
Supervisor or Departmental Support Staff
  • Initiates appropriate business process in Workday.
Lead Administrator
  • Approves on behalf of unit for budgetary purposes and ensures the appropriateness of the additional or higher level assignment;
  • Ensures sponsor approval is obtained if required;
  • Ensures appropriate paperwork and charging instructions for payroll processing is submitted or enters payment into Workday in advance of the published payroll cutoff deadline for the specific payroll associated with the extra work (e.g., work performed in October is to be paid in the applicable October payroll); and
  • Reviews Compensation Above Salary for re-approval on an annual basis.
Cognizant Senior Director (or equivalent)
  • Approves or denies request for Compensation Above Salary for all staff in the following units: Academic Services, Athletics, FAS, Library, Museums and Galleries, Yale Health, and Professional Schools. 
Human Resources Business Partner
  • In coordination with Compensation, approves on behalf of Human Resources for consistency with HR policy and practice; 
  • Notifies department of action; and
  • Retains records as appropriate.
Cognizant member of the Provost’s Office or Provost Designee
  • Approves or denies request for Compensation Above Salary for faculty;
  • Notifies department of action; and
  • Retains records as appropriate.
Medical School Dean’s Office
  • Approves or denies request for Compensation Above Salary;
  • Notifies department of action; and
  • Retains records as appropriate.
Faculty Administrative Services
  • Reviews and approves payment information in Workday for non-Yale School of Medicine faculty after approval from Provost’s Office; and
  • Retains records as appropriate.
Postdoctoral Affairs Office
  • Approves or denies request for Compensation Above Salary;
  • Notifies department of action; and
  • Retains records as appropriate.
Office of Sponsored Projects (“OSP”)
  • Approves or denies request to expense Compensation Above Salary to sponsored awards; and
  • Consults on questions related to sponsored awards, including allowability.
Sponsored Projects Financial Administration (“SPFA”)
  • Consults on questions related to sponsored awards, including allowability.

Note: After submitting the request, promptly schedule labor (enter charging instructions) in Workday for the Compensation Above Salary if needed. This ensures that when payment is approved and data is entered, the payment will be charged correctly.

5. Payment Request Approved

If the request for Compensation Above Salary for an M&P or bargaining unit employee is approved, the manager, departmental support staff, or Human Resources Business Partner initiates the appropriate business process in Workday. Yale School of Medicine payments are entered by the home department in Workday.  

If the request for Compensation Above Salary for a faculty member is approved, the payment should be submitted in Workday. In addition, the Office of Faculty Administrative Services (“OFAS”)  Charging Instructions for Faculty Compensation form, completed Form 1001 FR.01 Request for Pre-Approval for Faculty Extra Compensation, and supporting documentation such as an engagement letter, should be sent to Faculty Administrative Services for final Workday processing. For PDF’s, you can also refer to Compensation Above Salaryon the Office for Postdoctoral Affairs’ website.

  • In most cases, payment forms received at least five working days prior to the posted payroll deadline will be processed for that payroll cycle.

6. Payment Request Denied

If the request for Compensation Above Salary is denied, the Human Resources Business Partner or Provost’s /Medical School Dean’s Office notifies the department of the denial and reasons.

7. Assigning Costing Allocations at the Earnings Level

Workday is the mechanism to record salary expense charging instructions for faculty and certain staff (M&P, C&T, PDA, and PDF).  The earnings hierarchy provides a distinction between distribution for regular salary/wages and earnings above and beyond base compensation.

To appropriately distribute Compensation Above Base Salary, enter the COA receiving the benefit of the employee’s service(s) in either:

  • The employee’s payroll costing allocation at the position worker earning level; or
  • During the request one-time payment or period activity pay request.

When a payroll costing allocation is not present for earnings above an individual’s normal recurring pay, salary charges may be incorrectly distributed. In addition, if an individual’s labor is normally allocated to a sponsored project and no earning-level costing allocation is present, the payment may be charged to labor suspense in certain circumstances.  Either instance could result in the need for a distribution adjustment or payroll accounting adjustment.

Review Procedure 3501 PR.01 Payroll Costing for complete labor scheduling instructions.

Note: The costing allocation for work outside the employee’s home department must be entered by the home department.

  • Contact the Operations Manager or Lead Administrator at the employee’s home department and provide the appropriate costing allocation information. Use  Form 3501 FR.01 Payroll Costing Allocation Form for this purpose.
  • The appropriate earnings/pay component must be used. Confirm with Employee Services if necessary.

Related Information

Policy 1001 Compensation Above Salary

Procedure 3501 PR.01 Payroll Costing  

Form 3501 FR.01 Payroll Costing Allocation Form

Postdoctoral Affairs Compensation Above Salary

Form 1001 FR.01 Request for Pre-Approval for Faculty Extra Compensation

Policy 1403 Charging of Administrative and Clerical Salaries and Certain Other General Administrative Expenses to Federal Funds

Workday Time & Absence Frequently Asked Questions

Manage Compensation (Non-Academic) Training Guide

Compensation Above Salary

Contact Information