[Assistant-faculty] FW: Summer Fringe Rates for Medford Campus

["Tobin, Roger" <Roger Tobin tufts edu>]

Friends,

Please see the message below from Leah McIntosh. In case you've forgotten, 
last summer it was decided that faculty receiving summer salary from 
grants would also receive retirement contributions on that salary.  For 
faculty over 40, that means a 10% contribution from the University. 
Because of this change, the benefits rate charged to grants on summer 
salary was raised from the previous level of about 7% (which basically 
covers Social Security and Medicare) to the standard staff rate of about 
28%. Naturally, many of us complained loudly (the words "pitchforks," 
"torches," and "Ballou Hall" were uttered in the same sentence) that not 
only was this a sudden and unexpected increase in the charges to existing 
grants, but the University was giving us 10% with one hand and taking away 
20% with the other.

To calm things down, the administration agreed to absorb the extra 
benefits charges on existing grants last summer, but it was not clear what 
would happen in the future, and new grant submissions were expected to 
budget the full 28% or so for benefits on summer salary. I, and no doubt 
other chairs, have periodically reminded Leah that a fairer solution was 
needed.

The message below seems to indicate that the message got through. The new 
benefit rate of about 17% is enough to cover the actual costs (SS + 
Medicare + retirement contribution).

Please note that all of this pertains only to faculty summer salary. It 
has nothing whatsoever to do with summer salary for graduate students, 
postdocs, or staff.

Best,
Roger



Roger G. Tobin
Professor and Department Chair
Department of Physics and Astronomy
Tufts University
________________________________
From: McIntosh, Leah
Sent: Tuesday, March 22, 2011 5:27 PM
To: Fuhrman, Juliet; Utz, Arthur; Mistry, Jayanthi; Crane, Gregory; 
Spolaore, Enrico; Brizuela, Barbara; Gardulski, Anne F.; Hasselblatt, 
Boris; Schmalfeldt, Janet; Tickle-Degnen, Linda; Cook, Robert G.; Agyeman, 
Julian; Tobin, Roger
Cc: Keevan, Anthony; Coombes, Eileen M; Landis, Shannon R.; Kelley, Rich; 
McCarthy, Inez; Dejean, Jacqueline S.; Viola, Grace; Sahagian, Scott G.
Subject: Summer Fringe Rates for Medford Campus

Dear Chairs,

I am writing to bring you up to date on the question of summer fringe 
rates for the Medford campus. It is our plan to negotiate for a lower rate 
that would go into effect on July 1, 2011. Grace Viola’s current estimate 
is that this rate will be around 17%. We will not know the exact number 
until mid-June but you should feel free to use 17% for planning purposes.

Please do share this information with your faculty. Thank you again for 
your on-going patience with this issue.

Leah