It is important to understand that each campus has various resources, campus-specific policies and procedures and department/organizational unit differences. These differences play a part in how NU Values is administered at each campus level.
1.0 Introduction
1.1 The University of Nebraska makes all decisions regarding recruitment, hiring, promotion, and all other terms and conditions of employment without discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national or ethnic origin, age, disability, marital status, veterans status or individual characteristics other than qualifications for employment, quality of performance of duties, and conduct related to employment in accordance with University policies and rules and applicable law.
1.2 The NU Values program shall be applicable to all regular University of Nebraska Office/Service and Managerial/Professional positions.
1.3 The NU Values program is a compensation and performance management system for Office/Service and Managerial/Professional employees of the University of Nebraska. NU Values:
- Links performance of employees to the mission and the vision of the University.
- Focuses on job families as the basis for market relevance and equity in pay decisions.
- Provides the tools for growth and development of employees.
- Provides an open framework whereby the tools/processes used to make pay decisions are widely known.
- Utilizes a simple yet effective job evaluation system.
- Utilizes competencies as a basis for employee performance
The NU Values program groups all positions having similar characteristics into job families so that an effective, equitable and market relevant level of compensation may be identified. This categorization is based on an analysis of each position in order to determine the general function, the duties and responsibilities, the supervision received and exercised, and the educational background, training, and experience needed for the position.
2.0 Authorities and Responsibilities
2.1 The Vice President for Business and Finance is responsible for the maintenance and revision of the NU Values program.
2.2 The Director of Human Resources, Central Administration, coordinates the administration of the NU Values program and shall develop procedures, as required, to facilitate the consistent application and administration of policies related to NU Values.
2.3 The Chief Business Officers are responsible for the overall direction of the NU Values program at the campus level.
2.4 The Human Resources Directors are responsible for the day-to-day administration of the NU Values program at the campus level.
3.0 Job Placement
3.0.1 JOB FAMILIES: Job families are composed of jobs related through common vocations/professions. Jobs in a job family are similar in that they have a continuum of knowledge, skills and abilities from the lowest to the highest level job, related key behaviors and similar market characteristics.
3.0.2 BANDS: Each job family has its own broad salary band. This band reflects the unique nature of each job family and has its own pay characteristics. The Central Administration Human Resources Department, in conjunction with the campus Human Resources Departments, will utilize labor market wage and salary surveys to determine the pay range for each band.
3.0.3 ZONES: Zones are established within each band to reflect groupings of positions based on major differences in scope, responsibilities, qualifications and competencies. The zones are labeled Assistant, Associate, Specialist and Senior. Job families with only three zones do not have a Specialist zone.
3.0.4 JOB ANALYSIS: Job analysis places a relative value on the differing factors that distinguish one job from another: Nature and Complexity of work, Problem solving and Decision-making, Know-how, Interaction and Supervision received and/or exercised.
There are generally two situations that require analysis, either a new position is needed or an existing position has changed. All new and existing positions will be assigned to a job family and zone using the job analysis process. This process is designed to slot positions into families and zones based upon assigned duties, qualifications and competencies.
For the purposes of setting pay, job analysis identifies the relative value of positions that are not specifically surveyed in the labor market to those whose values are known. The University of Nebraska's job analysis process is based on the following objectives:
- A simplified system that organizational units will use to determine appropriate job family, zone and working job title for a position.
- A flexible process that enables organizational units to quickly or efficiently design positions to meet their needs.
- A set of easy-to-understand-and-apply steps that organizational unit leaders will use to develop employees.
3.0.5 POSITION DESCRIPTION: The development and maintenance of current and accurate position descriptions is vital to the job analysis process. The position description is a written statement that describes the work that is to be done and the knowledge, skills and abilities needed to perform the work. Position descriptions serve a variety of purposes. They introduce new employees or applicants to the position, provide basic documentation used in job analysis and compensation planning, set performance standards and help employees understand what is expected of them, provide a basis for setting goals and objectives, identify and document essential job functions to ensure compliance with applicable laws and comply with other legal and workplace requirements.
3.1 FAMILY / ZONE PLACEMENT
3.1.1 No person will be assigned to any position until it has been properly allocated to a job family and zone.
3.1.2 If a filled position is reallocated to another job family/zone, the incumbent will not be automatically qualified to continue filling the position unless he or she possesses the minimum qualifications necessary to perform the work satisfactorily. The incumbent of a position reallocated to another family zone who is not qualified to remain in the position will be reassigned if warranted, or will be separated from the University.
3.2 JOB TITLES
3.2.1 The standard job title, created by combining the job family name and the zone name, is the job title that will be used on personnel documents. For example, if an employee were in the healthcare job family and in the associate zone, the standard job title would be “Healthcare Associate.” The organizational units are encouraged to use a working title that matches position responsibilities and reflect the job family, such as Dental Hygienist.
4.0 Appeal Procedures
4.1 If there is a disagreement regarding the job family/zone assignment of a position, a request for additional review may be made by following the procedures listed in campus-specific policies. Decisions regarding job family/zone assignment may not be appealed through the formal grievance process.
Reference
NU Values Administration Policy in the University of Nebraska Administration Human Resources Handbook for Policies.