Handbook of Operating Procedures

I. POLICY AND GENERAL STATEMENT

Eligible employees are entitled to receive longevity pay. To be eligible for receipt of longevity pay, an employee must meet the following requirements:

• occupy a full-time position with the University (i.e., be regularly scheduled to work 40 hours per week);
• be a non-academic employee (either classified or management administrative and professional staff); and,
• have accrued at least two years of lifetime service credit through eligible employment with the State of Texas.

Law enforcement personnel may concurrently receive longevity pay for non-hazardous duty state service, and hazardous duty pay (based on hazardous service) while serving in a hazardous duty position. Temporary, casual or part-time employees, student employees, faculty members, academic administrative and professional personnel, elected officials and certain return to work retirees, as described in Section II.D below, are ineligible for receipt of longevity pay.

II. PROCEDURE

A. Eligibility

In addition to the eligibility requirements listed above, for longevity pay to be included in the employee’s pay, the employee must be a full-time employee on the first workday of the month and not be on leave without pay on the first day of the month.

B. Basis of Longevity

All previous state service (including employment as temporary, casual, or part-time, student, faculty, or elected official status) is counted in the calculation of eligibility for longevity pay. These rules are illustrated in the following example: An individual holds student employment for two years while attending college at a state university and then serves as a faculty member of a state university for an additional eight years. Although the faculty member has accrued ten years of state service, he is ineligible thus far. If that individual subsequently comes to work at the university as a full-time management administrative and professional employee, he would begin receiving longevity payments in the amount specified by law for ten years of state service.

An employee may meet all of the eligibility requirements for longevity pay mentioned above, but will not be credited for any full calendar month for which he or she has been on a leave without pay status. The only exception to this provision is in the case of an employee who returns to state service from a military leave without pay.

C. Amount of Longevity Pay

Eligible employees may begin to receive longevity payments on the first of the month following the completion of two years of state service. The amount of the longevity payment increases with the passage of each subsequent two year period thereafter, according to the following schedule: Longevity Pay Rate Table

Longevity pay may not be pro-rated; any change of status that affects the calculation of longevity pay will be effective as of the first of the following month. For example: a full-time, classified employee whose appointment begins on 9/1/2015 completes 24 months of state service on 8/31/2017, and the payment of longevity will commence on 9/1/2017; however, an employee whose appointment begins on 9/2/2015 completes 24 months of state service on 9/1/2017, and the payment of longevity does not commence until 10/1/2017.

D. Longevity Pay for Return to Work Retirees

Longevity pay for return-to-work retirees is based upon the employee’s retirement date and date of return to state employment, as shown in the table below.

Retirement Date	Date Returned to State Employment	Longevity Pay
On or before 5/31/2005	Before 9/1/2005	Entitled to continue receiving longevity pay in the same amount the employee was entitled to receive immediately before 9/1/2005.
Before 6/1/2005	On or after 9/1/2005	Not entitled to longevity pay
On or After 6/1/2005		Not entitled to longevity pay

For return-to-work retirees receiving longevity pay, the amount does not change over time, regardless of the amount of lifetime service credit that is accrued following reemployment.  If a return-to-work retiree subsequently leaves state employment for one day or more, longevity pay is discontinued upon return to state employment. 

E. Longevity Pay as Part of Employee Pay

Longevity pay is part of an individual's total compensation and affects federal withholding, group insurances, Social Security (FICA), and benefit and retirement contributions.

Longevity payments may not be administered as a separate lump sum.

Longevity pay is not included when calculating lump sum payment of vacation upon termination; nor is it included when calculating lump sum payment of vacation and sick leave to the estate of a deceased employee.

III. CONTACTS

• • Employee Benefits
  • 713-500-3935
  • benefits@uth.tmc.edu
  • https://inside.uth.edu/finance/benefits/contact-us.htm

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