Criteria for merit salary increase.

As a general principle, meritorious performance should be rewarded with merit salary increases. Meritorious performance is defined as performance of assigned duties at a substantially higher than satisfactory level. The time span for evaluation for meritorious performance is relatively short: recent activity as well as current level of activity should be considered.

It is recognized that there is an element of relativity in the making of recommendations for salary increases that is not present in promotion and tenure considerations. In making salary increase recommendations, the FEC should take into consideration the current salaries of candidates as well as the size of their salary increases over the last few years, especially when the raise money available to the department varies erratically over time. A candidate must take a similar view: his or her current salary, and the sum of the increases in the last few years, are a better measure of the department's consideration of the candidate's worth than the exact value of his or her latest salary increase.