Summary

The Grade Maintenance window is used to create and maintain employee grade and step amounts. Grades and steps are used to categorize and control the hourly wages or annual salaries of employees. For example, you can create a grade titled Police Officer and set up the various Police Officer salaries as step amounts (step 1 - $45,000 to $55,000, step 2 - $56,750 to $68,000, etc.). When you hire a new police officer, attach the Police Officer grade and a step to the new employee record (PR> Maintenance> Employee> Open an employee> Finance tab> Grade and Step fields), the salary level attached to the Grade and Step will populate on the employee record.

The grade and step amount also functions as a validation and control on the employee record. When the salary or hourly wage amounts are modified on an employee record, the Employee Maintenance window verifies that the amounts are correct based on the grade and step amounts attached to the employee record.

The job title or position of an employee does not necessarily have to match the grade description. For example, you can create a generic grade titled Clerk and use this grade to control the salaries of both Utility Billing Clerks and Payroll Clerks.

Grade and step amounts can be set up as a fixed salary/hourly wage amount or as a range. If you are using fixed grade and step amounts (HR> Utilities> Setup> Use fixed grade and step toggle), you can enter only one salary/hourly wage amount on each step on a grade. For example, all Police Officer I grade employees that are on step 1 would have the same salary. If you do not use a fixed grade and step amount, the hourly or salary amount of the employees assigned to each step can vary based on a minimum, average, and maximum amount. For example, all Police Officer I grade employees that are on step 1 make an hourly wage or salary amount that is between the step high and low amounts.

The step amounts attached to a grade can be modified using the COLA process (HR> COLA). This will increase the steps amounts and update the employee records based on the modified step amounts.

Grades can be attached to union units using the Union Unit Maintenance window (HR> Maintenance> Union Unit).

Step by Step

1    View the grades that have already been created.

• Open the Grade Selection window (HR> Maintenance> Grade/Step). If there is an open COLA batch in the Human Resources module (HR> COLA), an error message will display. Commit or delete the COLA batch to create or modify a grade or step.
• The Grade Selection window will displays all of the grades that have been created.
• Highlight a grade and press ENTER or click the Modify icon to view or modify a grade.
• Highlight a grade and press DELETE to delete the selected grade. Grades that are attached to at least one employee cannot be deleted.
  • If you would like to delete a grade revision, open the grade and then delete the revision from the Revisions section.
• Press INSERT or click the Create icon to add a new grade. This will open the Grade Maintenance window.

2    Create or modify a grade.

• The Grade field is used to enter a grade code. The grade code can be up to eight alphanumeric characters long.
• The Description field is used to enter a description of the grade. The description of the grade can be up to 30 alphanumeric characters long.
  • If you have a separate grade set up for each position, the description of the grade may be a position title. For example, Police Officer I.
  • If you do not have a separate grade for each position, the description of the grade may be something generic. For example, Salaried Employee I.
• The Grade Type drop-down menu is used to select the type of grade you would like to create. The selection in this field will change the functionality of the Steps section of the window.
  • Select Annual Salary if you would like to create the step values of the grade based on annual salaries. The fields in the Steps section will be used to enter a low, median, and high annual salary amount for each step.
  • Select Hourly if you would like to create the step values of the grade based on hourly wage amounts. The fields in the Steps section will be used to enter a low, median and high hourly wage amount for each step.
• The Always Eligible toggle is used in conjunction with the unions set up in the Human Resources module. Check this toggle if all employees, regardless of union, can use the grade.
  • The Always Eligible toggle determines if the grade is specific to a union. When this toggle is checked, the grade can be used by any employee.
  • When this toggle is not checked, only employees that belong to a union with the grade attached can use it (HR> Maintenance> Union Unit> Open a union unit> Grades tab).
  • If you check this toggle, you can still add the grade to a union unit and set it up as a required record, but the grade can also be attached to employees that do not belong to a union unit. For example, if you are creating a grade that is used by the members of a specific union unit, but should also be available employees that do not belong to the union unit, check the Always Eligible toggle and add the grade to the union unit (HR> Maintenance> Union Unit> Open a union unit> Grades tab).
• Click the Copy Grade icon to copy the revision and step information of an existing grade to the newly created grade.
• The Revisions section is used to create and maintain grade revisions. Revisions allow you to modify the step amounts attached to a grade and set the date the new grade will become effective. Revisions also allow you to track and view changes to the step amounts attached to a grade.
• The Revisions section will display the revisions on the grade.
  • If you are creating a new grade, create a revision to enter the step amounts. Select New Revision from the Create icon   drop-down menu at the top of the window. This will create a new line item in the Revisions section.
  • Highlight a revision and the Steps section will populate with the step amounts attached to the selected revision.
  • Highlight a revision and press DELETE to delete the selected revision.
• The Effective Date column in the Revisions section is used to set the effective date of a revision. For example, if you create a new revision, the new step amounts on the grade will take effect on the effective date.
• The Steps section displays the step amounts attached to the revision selected in the Revisions section. The function of the Steps section depends on the selection in the Grade Type drop-down menu, and how the Human Resources module is set up.
  • The Grade Type drop-down menu is used to set up either hourly or annual salary step amounts.
  • If the Use fixed grade and step toggle is checked on the Setup window (HR> Utilities> Setup), the Steps section will display a single step amount column. The Hourly/Salary column will be the single step amount that is allowed.
• If you would like to create a new step, click the Create icon drop-down menu and select New Step. This will create a new line item in the Steps section of the window.
• Highlight a step and modify the amount in any of the columns to change the step amounts. The new step amounts will be used after the effective date of the selected revision. All employee records attached to the modified grade and step will be modified.
  • Rather than modifying the step amounts on a revision, you may want to create a new revision. This allows you to track the changes made to the step amounts on the revision.
• Click the Save icon when complete.