This month, we're sending more than one newsletter. As previously announced, Open Enrollment will begin on or around November 15, but we have information about Health Plan rate changes to share now. 

Look for the next issue of Compensation and Staffing News later in November, with more Open Enrollment information and the release of the new materials for our revised Congregational Salary Program.

Faithfully,

Jan Gartner, Compensation and Staffing Practices Manager

Open Enrollment for the UUA Health and Dental/Vision Plans will begin on or around November 15. In the meantime, we are sharing some information about UUA Health Plan rates and costs. Rate tables and further news about benefit updates and enhancements will be available by mid-month.

For calendar year 2023, we are raising base rates by 7%. Members currently in the Health Plan will also see a small age adjustment, ranging from 0% to 3.99% – toward the low end of this range for younger members and the higher end for older members. This 7% increase is in line with changes in the health insurance market and with the rate of medical cost inflation. It also supports Plan Trustees’ best estimate of what the Plan requires for long-term financial strength. 

Our Health Plan deductibles and out-of-pocket maximums will remain the same for 2023. (They were adjusted for the 2022 Plan Year after staying nearly static since 2017; these must be indexed periodically to keep up with health care inflation.) See our Health Plan Level Comparison Grid (PDF) for details on our three Plan Levels.

Which Benefits are Included? 

Open enrollment is for the Health and Dental/Vision Plans only. (No changes to Dental/Vision Plan rates or benefits this year.) 

There is no Open Enrollment for Life or Long-Term Disability insurance. Employees must enroll in these benefits within 60 days of their start date or, if later, through an Evidence of Insurability process. (No changes to Life or Long-Term Disability benefits or rates this year.)

There is also no Open Enrollment for the Retirement Plan. All employees can (and are encouraged to!) enroll at any time for the purpose of making contributions through salary deferral. Eligibility for employer contributions is based on Plan rules.

Eligibility criteria for UUA benefits are set by the rules of the plans. For all of our insurance plans, you must offer the opportunity to enroll to all employees who are scheduled to work at least 750 hours/year. (This is about 15-hours/week, year-round.) Please share Open Enrollment information with all eligible employees.

While eligibility criteria are set by the UUA, your congregation is responsible for setting policy related to premium contributions. See UUA Benefit Recommendations.

Some of you are beginning to budget for the '23-'24 program year. We hope that the following perspective and guidance is helpful to all congregational leaders in planning for the coming year in advance of the release of our '23-'24 materials later this month.

The world of compensation (and the world, in general) is complicated. We're sharing information to help you make decisions about pay for your employees but, even after we post our new salary tables, we can't tell you exactly what to pay each of your staff members. As you know, our revised program emphasizes process. We will be providing a variety of recommendations for building equity, transparency, and economic justice into your pay policies and practices. You'll be able to reflect on and act on much of our process guidance right away! 

Our salary recommendations make use of national wage survey data, geographical cost-of-labor figures, consumer price index updates, and nonprofit salary trend forecasting. Most of that information gets updated in September and October. We do our best to strike a balance between using the most current data available and releasing recommendations as soon as possible. Additionally, this year, because we are introducing a new approach, we are taking extra time and care to make decisions, consult with key partners, review our work with our compensation advisory firm, and finalize resources. We believe we are on track to publish our new materials in mid-November.

As you know, our '23-'24 Recommended Salary Ranges will incorporate several changes in methodology, including: 1) a reduction from six size categories to four size profiles, 2) a shift from job titles to job levels, and 3) consistent ranges, with all minimums set at 90% of their respective midpoints. Depending on your congregational size, staff roles, and employees' placement within the recommended ranges, you may find considerable differences between the '22-'23 and the '23-'24 recommendations.

Please do not panic! We don't expect congregations to make substantial, abrupt adjustments to people's pay due to this one-time shift. While "on paper" it is an immediate change, you can think of it as a roadmap to follow over the next couple of budget cycles.

The median annual salary structure adjustment in nonprofits for 2023 is projected to be about 3%. This represents the expected median change in pay for a given position at a given experience level, e.g., an administrator with four years of experience. If you are using current UUA Salary Recommendations, we suggest planning on a bump of at least 3% from the '22-'23 recommendations in budgeting for new employees.

What about continuing employees? A structural increase does not take into account additional experience for those who remain in their positions. (Example: an administrator who had four years of experience in July of 2022 will have five years of experience by July of 2023.) Historical and projected wage increases (in both for-profit and nonprofit organizations) are greater than the structural increases, reflecting an experience or merit component in raises for workers.

Then there's inflation. The third-quarter Consumer Price Index (CPI-U) change from 2021 to 2022 is 8.3%. This means a typical worker needs about 8.3% more income than they did a year ago to maintain their purchasing power. While salary increases of this magnitude might not be a realistic lift for your congregation (and raises often fail to keep pace with inflation, even in the for-profit world), the concept of maintaining purchasing power is worth holding onto in the context of taking care of your staff.

Yes, compensation is complicated, and we're here to support you in being a faithful employer. Please reach out to us at comp@uua.org with any questions.