How are merit increases determined?
What follows is a “generic” description of the process. Please seek details from your unit. The dean/director re ceives detailed instructions and a target percent increase number from the UW Administration. When all of the salary changes have been finally decided, the actual per cent increase for all academic staff as a whole in the School or College must be no greater than the target per cent. Included in the instructions to chairs and directors is the opportunity for them to set aside additional merit funds for high performers or other special circumstance. To fund such requests, Deans/directors may typically give a slightly lower figure to departments to provide themselves some flexibility. This “hold-back” may only be say 5 per cent of the target increase. So if the target were two per cent, then the dean/director may hold-back 0.1 per cent, and communicate that the chairs /directors and research center directors should use 1.9 per cent as their target. The dean/director aggregates
