Pay for clinical academic staff on the joint staff

Part A: The University and the Provincial Health Department of the Western Cape Government (WCG) |
Part B: The University and the National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS)

Part A: Pay for clinical academic staff on the joint staff of the University and the Provincial Health Department of the Western Cape Government (WCG)

Introduction

Part A of this note deals with pay for clinical academic staff on the joint staff of UCT and the WCG's Department of Health (DOH) (more particularly clinical professors and clinical associate professors) in the Faculty of Health Sciences (FHS) paid by UCT. Clinical academic staff are academic staff who are medically clinically qualified and have both academic responsibilities (owed to the University) and clinical (health service) responsibilities (to the WCG Department of Health).
Clinical academic UCT/WCG staff on the joint staff paid by UCT include both staff on the joint staff post roll (for whom there is usually a cost-sharing agreement between UCT and the WCG) and UCT-funded clinical academic staff who are appointed ad hoc to the joint staff because they will perform clinical duties as well as academic duties.

Decision-making

The paylines for clinical academic staff paid by UCT will be set by UCT's Remuneration Committee (RemCom). Although the majority of the clinical academic staff may - and currently do - belong to the Academics Union (AU), the recognition agreement between UCT management and the AU explicitly provides that clinical academic staff are outside the bargaining unit, and that AU does not represent these AU members on pay and conditions of service. The AU does represent these AU members on matters of rights.
RemCom (through UCT's HR department) is bound to consult clinical academic staff paid by UCT on proposed paylines for them.
In reaching its decisions RemCom will take note of the pay and conditions of service of equivalent clinical academic staff in the public service, but will not be bound by such pay and conditions of service. It will have regard to the fact that where the WCG is responsible under a cost sharing arrangement (in most cases the joint agreement) the WCG limits its responsibility to
1. the proportion (usually 49%) of the cost as it would be on the public service rate for the post; or
2. the same proportion of UCT's actual cost whichever is lower.

Notes on pay for clinical academic staff

Some important differences in conditions of service between WCG-paid and UCT-paid clinical academic staff are
1. WCG clinical academic joint staff are members of the defined benefit Government Employees Pension Fund (GEPF) while UCT-paid clinical academic staff are members of the defined contribution UCT Retirement Fund (UCTRF);
2. leave and study and research leave rights and privileges differ;
3. medical aid and post-retirement medical aid cover differ; and
4. while similar (and while similar but parallel approvals processes have been put in place) the University's policy on Limited Private Practice (LPP) privileges is distinct from the WCG's policy in terms of which approval may be granted to joint staff on the Provincial payroll for Remunerated Work outside the Public Service (RWOPS).

The UCT package for clinical academic staff

The Occupation Specific Dispensation (OSD) for clinical (medical) specialist staff in the State service introduced a new post and pay structure for State-employed staff with effect from 1 July 2009. The University implemented the first phase of our implementation of a new University post and pay structure for clinical professors and clinical associate professors with effect from 1 July 2009, and deferred further implementation until the way in which the State would implement its pay and post structure became clear. The package outlined below meets the University's commitment to do this, with effect from 1 May 2011.
In the first phase of our implementation clinical professors and clinical associate professors were transferred with effect from 1 July 2009, to a new UCT payline equal to the
- OSD cost of employment (COE) grade 1, scale first notch for Heads of Department (Medical) Chief Specialists (for all UCT clinical professors, irrespective of organisational status/structure); or
- OSD cost of employment (COE) grade 1, scale first notch for Heads of Clinical Units (Medical) Principal Specialists (for all UCT clinical associate professors).
The University increased these new UCT paylines by 7, 5% with effect from 1 July 2010.
The UCT remuneration and compensation package for clinical professors and clinical associate professors (i.e. Joint Medical Staff on the joint staff of UCT and the WCG Department of Health whose primary employer is UCT) includes
- pay according to these payline;
- for heads of UCT departments, a headship allowance;
- a performance management system (including, for those who qualify, excellence awards) in terms of the Senate-approved performance criteria for clinical academic staff;
- academic conditions of service, including but not limited to study & research leave and conference travel privileges and research support to active researchers; and
- permission, under defined circumstances to do private work including limited private professional practice and/or to enter into commuted overtime contracts with the WCG.

Pay according to UCT paylines for clinical professors and clinical associate professors

The University intends, provided this is and remains affordable, to fix the paylines for clinical professors and clinical associate professors so that these are aligned to the paylines for State-employed clinical (medical) specialists at the notches of the OSD scales listed in 8 above, and to apply these to UCT clinical professors and clinical associate professors independent of the OSD stipulations for placing individuals on scales and points/notches of scales (thus independent of years of service or organisational design).
The University intends to review these annually, in line with increases and changes applied in the State service, and expects the annual review date to be 1 July, in each case after consultation with the clinical professors and clinical associate professors.
The University paylines with effect from 1 May 2011 are as set out in appendix 1 and appendix 2.

Performance management and excellence awards

Pay according to these paylines will be subject to performance management in terms of the Faculty- and Senate-approved criteria. These criteria are set out in appendix 2.
Pay at the payline will be subject to a clinical professor or clinical associate professor being rated as meeting the requirements for the clinical SASP (standard clinical academic salary package). The SASP criteria assume the standard of performance the University of its excellent staff.
Those clinical professors who qualify according to these criteria will be considered for excellence awards. There will be two categories of excellence award, and a separate payline will be set for each. The University intends, provided that this is and remains affordable, to fix the payline for excellence award level 1 so that it is aligned to the top notch of the OSD scale for Grade 1 Heads of Department (Medical)/Chief Specialists; and to fix the payline for excellence award level 2 to the first notch of the Grade 2 scale. The paylines proposed for these are set out in appendix 1. Excellence awards will be for four years, and will be renewable on application where the applicant is judged to meet the excellence criteria.
Those clinical associate professors who qualify according to the criteria will be considered for promotion ad hominem to the rank of clinical professor or for competitive merit awards; excellence and merit awards will be for fixed periods.
The OSD limits acceleration on the scale notches and from Grade 1 to Grade 2 for State-employed clinical (medical) specialists to percentages of such staff. The University expects that no more that 20% of clinical professors will qualify for excellence awards, which will be competitive, and that a smaller proportion will qualify for the excellence level 2 awards. The University's merit awards for associate professors will be limited to a fixed number, and will be competitive.
Where a clinical professor was assessed as meeting excellence criteria in 2009 he or she will be moved to the appropriate excellence payline with effect from 1 July 2009 (and similarly in subsequent years). Where a clinical professor was assessed as meeting these criteria in each round will be moved to the relevant excellence payline with effect from 1 January in the next calendar year.

Market premium

The Remuneration Committee has agreed that there will be provision for paying a premium on the payline for a clinical professor or clinical associate professor (effectively a scarcity allowance) in cases where this is motivated by the Dean and approved by the Vice-Chancellor in order to attract or retain clinical professors; the premium will be between the SASP payline up to the excellence payline; the payment of such premium is expected to be a rare occurrence.

Headship allowances

The University pays allowances to heads of University departments. The range of headship allowances will be set annually, and the headship allowance for each head will be set having regard to a matrix of factors which make allowance for size and complexity.
At current (2011) levels the bottom of the range of headship allowances will take a UCT clinical professor's package to above the top notch of the State-employed Head of a Clinical Department on Grade 1; or a UCT clinical professor on excellence 1 to above the top notch of Grade 2.

Conditions of service

The conditions under which full-time clinical academic staff may be permitted to undertake private (additional) work including but not limited to limited private professional practice and to the procedures for applying for this permission introduced recently, as set out in the following links: Private and professional work policy for academic staff on the joint staff and Procedures for private and additional work (including Limited Private Practice).

Joint staff on the WCG payroll promoted ad hominem to the rank of professor or to the rank of associate professor

Any promotion of a joint staff member is subject to the approval of the University and the Provincial Government of the Western Cape.
Where a joint staff member on the WCG payroll is promoted to the rank of associate professor there has not been and is no change to the staff member's conditions of service or pay.
Prior to 2000 clinical academic joint staff whose primary employer was the WCG who were promoted ad hominem to the rank of professor were transferred to the payroll and conditions of service of the University and were paid by UCT as chief specialists/professors. The University claimed the underlying post's COE (e.g. senior or principal specialist) cost from the Province and met the difference. This was subject to Provincial approval. Since 2000 this has not been the case.
Rem Com has agreed to pay a group of joint clinical staff promoted and hominem to the rank of professor in the period 1 January 2000 to 31 August 2008 who remain on the staff of the WCG Department of Health. The decision was made on the basis that
1. the University did not/does not have a legal or contractual obligation to make this payment;
2. the University benefits from the work that these excellent, chair-worthy staff do;
3. this will not apply to joint staff on the WCG payroll who are promoted to the rank of professor on or after 1 September 2008; and
4. the affected staff accept the payment and not claim for any further payment or back-dating.
The payment in these cases will be
1. a once-off payment, for the period 1 September 2008 to 30 June 2009 equal to 40% of the difference between the package earned by the individual from the WCG and the package of a UCT chief specialist/professor at the entry level during the period;
2. a once-off payment, for the period 1 July 2009 to 30 June 2010 equal to 40% of the difference between the package earned by the individual from the WCG and the package of a UCT clinical professor at the entry level during the period; and
3. a once-off payment, for the period 1 July 2010 to 30 June 2011 equal to 40% of the difference between the package earned by the individual from the WCG and the package of a UCT clinical professor at the entry level during the period; and
4. a once-off payment in July each subsequent year (or earlier in the event of termination before this date) equal to 40% of the difference between the package earned by the individual from the WCG and the package of a UCT clinical professor at the entry level for the preceding twelve months (i.e. to 30 June of the year in which payment is to be made).

Claims by UCT from the WCG and claims by the WCG against UCT for costs of appointments on the joint staff of UCT and the WCG's Department of Health

The Teaching Hours formula payment by UCT to the WCG

The WCG claim on UCT for the UCT share of the costs of joint clinical staff on the WCG payroll (the "teaching hours" formula payment) is indexed to defined state-service clinical (medical) specialist pay. The impact of this is shown below:
1. Teaching hours formula payment 2008
  - For period 1.1.2008 to 30.6.2008
    
    A. section 69: University's liability for the cost of teaching medical students by joint staff whose salaries are paid by the administration
    
    Approved number of teaching hours p.a. 40678 x Senior Specialist hourly tariff R167.41 = R6 809 904 x 94.5% (other 5.5% attributable to NHLS) x 6/12 = R3 217 680
    
    (Section B & C of teaching hours formula applied only to NHLS. Was later replaced by NHLS Access Fee formula)
  - For period 1.7.2008 to 31.12.2008
    
    40 678 x R211.66 = R8 609 905 x 94.5% x 6/12 = R4 068 180
2. Teaching hours formula payment 2009
  - for period 1.1.2009 to 30.6.2009
    
    40 678 x R211.66 = R8 609 905 x 94.5% x 6/12 = R4 068 180
  - for period 1.7.2009 to 31.12.2009
    Introduction of OSD, therefore hourly rate should now have been based on medical specialist mid-point but only back-dated the correction to Jul 2010, and confirmed that they would not be amending the prior periods. Therefore:
    40 678 x R234.82 = R9 552 008 x 94.5% x 6/12 = R4 513 324
3. Teaching hours formula payment 2010
  - for period 1.1.2010 to 30.6.2010
    
    40 678 x R234.82 = R9 552 008 x 94.5% x 6/12 = R4 513 324
  - for period 1.7.2010 to 31.12.2010
    
    40 678 x R304.09 (mid-point of Grade 1 Medical Specialist) = R12 369 773 x 94.5% x 6/12 = R5 844 718
4. Teaching hours formula payment 2011
  - for the period 1.1.2011 to 30.4.2011
    
    40 678 x R304.09 = R12 369 773 x 94.5% x 4/12 = R3 896 478
  - for the period 1.5.2011 to 31.12.2011
    
    40 678 x R324.76 = R13 210 587 x 94.5% x 8/12 = R8 322 670
Claims by UCT
1. For posts for which UCT claims 49% of the approved costs
  
  The University's decision to adopt a remuneration and compensation package for clinical professors and clinical associate professors requires that for each appointment we have the WCG DOH approved corresponding/equivalent position as UCT may claim the lesser of
  - 49% of UCT's package cost; or
  - 49% of the cost of the approved corresponding/equivalent post.
  The Grade and Notch system for the equivalent means that the onus is on UCT (the FHS HR office) to secure:
  - WCG agreement to the corresponding/equivalent post for each existing appointment and each new appointment
  - WCG agreement to a claim up to the Grade and Notch on which the appointee would have been had he/she been on the WCG payroll.
  - WCG agreement to the inclusion of headship allowances in the UCT package cost (subject of course to the claim limit set out above)
  - WCG agreement (a) to making excellence or scarcity payments; and (b) where justified, to the adjusting the approved corresponding/equivalent post cost on the Grade/Notch scale for the post.
  For example a UCT clinical professor, head of department at excellence 1 (thus paid at a pay point aligned as far as possible to the OSD head of a clinical department (medical) chief specialist Grade 1 Notch 5, together with a headship allowance) could be mapped to any one of the following state-service equivalents:
  - OSD head of a clinical department (medical) chief specialist at any of the five grade 1 notches or the five grade 2 notches; or
  - OSD head of a clinical unit (medical) principal specialist at any of the five grade 1 or six grade 2 notches.
    The same would apply to a clinical associate professor.
2. The legacy appointments
  All legacy appointments give rise to claims related to specified clinical posts, and the corresponding/equivalent post grade and notch needs to be established for the purpose of claims.

Commuted overtime

The State (in this case the Department of Health of the WCG through one or more of its hospitals) may contract with a clinical professor or clinical associate professor for additional work in terms of (a) an overtime contract; or (b) (more usually) a "commuted overtime" contract. A "commuted overtime" contract is a contract providing for an extension of the contracted minimum working hours per week by a specified number of hours and for specified work. The University is not a party to these contracts. However, for joint staff on the University's payroll, where the University is the primary employer, and where the individual has a commuted overtime contract, the University makes payment to the staff member on behalf of the Province Government's Department of Health, and claims the amounts paid from the Province on a quarterly basis.
Payment of commuted overtime is made in terms of the State's rules governing commuted overtime. In particular, commuted overtime is not payable during periods of study and research leave. This is a source of unhappiness among joint staff (both those on UCT conditions of service and those on Provincial conditions of service) but representations at various levels on this have been unsuccessful.

The rates at which commuted overtime are payable are based on a formula that takes into account the number of commuted hours worked and the salary of the employee.

Part B: Pay for clinical academic staff on the joint staff of the University and the National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS)

Introduction

Part A of this note deals with pay for clinical academic staff on the joint staff of UCT and the National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS) (more particularly clinical professors) in the Faculty of Health Sciences (FHS) paid by UCT. Clinical academic staff are academic staff who are usually medically clinically qualified and have both academic responsibilities (owed to the University) and clinical (health service) responsibilities (to the NHLS).

Notes on pay for UCT paid staff on the joint UCT/NHLS staff

The current salary package for pathologists and scientists at HoD level is reflected below:

Levels	Grades	Minimum	Median	Maximum
Medical Scientist HoD	MSX	1 744 606	2 005 296	2 265 984
Pathologist HoD	PHX	2 784 924	3 129 128	3 473 332

Private work

Staff on the NHLS joint staff may not engage in private professional practice. Any other private or additional work is subject to obtaining prior permission.

Schedules

Clinical pay document for 2011 as approved by the Vice-Chancellor, including the following:
- Paylines for clinical professors and clinical associate professors on the UCT payroll on the joint UCT/WCG staff.
- Standard Academic Salary Package (SASP). Performance criteria for clinical academic staff.
- Merit and excellence awards for UCT/WCG clinical academic staff.
- Rules on private work including limited private practice.
- Procedures for obtaining permission to undertake private work including limited private practice.

Page last updated: 23 July 2012