COLUMBUS -- OSU salaries slip compared to benchmark institutions University administrators outlined how Ohio State’s compensation packages compare to the university’s benchmark institutions and markets in a presentation to the Board of Trustees on Friday (4/6).

An analysis of salaries for faculty and staff, and of financial support for graduate associates, was provided by Edward J. Ray, executive vice president and provost; Nancy M. Rudd, vice provost for academic policy and human resources; Larry M. Lewellen, associate vice president for human resources; and J Henderson, director of compensation

For a five-year period beginning with the 1996-97 academic year, Ohio State ranks sixth out of 10 benchmark universities in total compensation increases for faculty salaries. The average five-year total is 23.9 percent; Ohio State’s total increase adds up to 19.8 percent.

Consequently, Ohio State faculty salaries have been steadily slipping beneath the average of benchmark institutions.

“Whether we compare our salary increases and overall compensation levels with our benchmark peer institutions, the CIC, or the AAU Research 1 universities, it is clear that Ohio State continues to struggle to move above the bottom third of the reference group. It is critical to our effort to implement our academic plan that we develop the financial means to increase our compensation rates relative to other leading universities,” Ray said.

The current Ohio State salary average of $73,930 is 2.9 percent below the average benchmark salary of $76,160. In 1999-00, Ohio State’s average of $70,350 was 2.5 percent below the benchmark average of $72,130. In 1998-99, Ohio State’s average faculty salary was $66,890, which was 1.9 percent below the benchmark average of $68,170. While this decline in the average is very small, it is nonetheless not the direction in which we would like to see salaries moving, Rudd indicated.

There are differences by faculty rank. Ohio State’s full professors are currently 2.7 percent below the benchmark average, associate professors are 2.8 percent below and assistant professors are 3.7 percent below.

Data were also provided regarding how Ohio State colleges' average faculty salaries compare to their counterparts in public benchmark institutions.

Rudd noted that 13 out of 17 colleges are below the benchmark average for faculty salaries. Only Social and Behavioral Sciences and Pharmacy ranked above the average, at 3 percent and 2 percent, respectively, with the majority of the colleges ranking from 1 to 4 percent below. Law and Education salaries are 10 percent below the benchmark average, and Social Work is 14 percent below.

An analysis of staff salaries matched positions to local and regional markets. Managers and administrators are 5.5 percent above market, with an average salary of $78,019. “This particular statistic is generally misleading, as Ohio State is much larger in size and scope than other employers in the staff study,” Henderson noted.

Professional employees are 7.1 percent below market, with an average salary of $41,759. Clerical and secretarial employees, with an average salary of $28,245, are 9.2 percent above market but 9.7 percent below state government.

“Clerical and secretarial are only above market because we have so many people with long service,” Henderson said. “In this group, it takes more than 10 years of service just to match the market average.”

At an average of $34,139, paraprofessional and technical employees are 8 percent below market.

The rapidly changing budget environment is complicating financial planning for the coming year. Thus, Ohio State has not yet determined what percentage increase will be offered to university employees.

Since fiscal year 1994, all new funds for raises have been distributed on the basis of merit, which includes equity and market considerations. There has been no across the board raise.

This year’s presentation provided a look at raise distribution for fiscal year 2000-01. The charts showed a bell curve distribution for tenure-track faculty, unclassified staff and classified civil service staff. At least one-third of employees received salary increases within half a percent of the average. Henderson noted that a substantial number of employees received salaries well above and below the average, indicating that salary dollars are being distributed strategically according to performance and equity considerations.

For the first time ethnicity and gender were studied for tenure-track faculty. Henderson noted that the average increase for minority faculty, who comprise 13 percent of the faculty, was 4.44 percent, while the average increase for white faculty was 4.23 percent. Female faculty, who comprise 26.6 percent of the faculty, received on average a 4.35 percent increase, while male faculty received a 4.24 percent increase. This same analysis will be conducted in the future for staff as well.

For the first time this year, administrators provided charts that displayed the ranking of graduate associate financial support in relation to benchmark and public CIC institutions.

Ohio State ranked sixth out of 14 institutions for a net institutional investment (including tuition covered by the university) of $15,432 for each resident student, but ranked 13th for the average net financial support (stipends and benefits only, without covered tuition) of $10,275 per student.

Lewellen also pointed out that Ohio State is among only three of the 14 comparison institutions that do not provide any medical benefit subsidy to graduate associates.

“It should be noted that there are 311 public graduate programs, and we have chosen to compare with 13 top programs,” Lewellen said. “Given that fact, it is not surprising that we have a gap to close.”

###

(LO)