RADAR, Issue 10, April 2021

Back to list of publications

RADAR, Issue 10, April 2021

SIMPLER CALCULATIONS FOR LATE ACTINGS

November 10, 2020, was the first pay to use the newly implemented “retro redesign” for calculating pay retroactively. That happens when pay has to be recalculated for pay periods prior to the current pay period. For employees, this makes it easier to understand your acting pay when the acting was entered late in the system. Before the redesign, when actings were paid for a period for which the employees had already received their substantive pay, Phoenix calculated the acting pay, created a “generated overpayment” for the substantive pay, recovered the substantive pay and then paid the entire acting pay. This made for confusing pay stubs!

Now, when employees are paid retroactively for actings, they will simply see the difference between what they were paid and what they should have been paid, with an entry called “Retro - Acting Pay.”

GOOD NEWS!

DID YOU KNOW?

More than 5,000 acting appointments are accepted by DFO and Coast Guard employees each year.

Actings and acting extensions represent nearly 40% of the work sent to the Pay Centre from DFO.

While timeliness of staffing actions at DFO has improved by 30% in the past year, timeliness of acting extensions remain a particular challenge.

Ensuring acting extensions are anticipated and submitted on time can improve pay for everyone by reducing the amount of work for the Pay Centre. Managers should reach out to their human resources business partner/advisor.

In case you missed it

Update on progress at the Pay Centre

Like everyone else, the Pay Centre had to pivot during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 to work from home. However, they did so quickly, and combined with the reduction in intake over the early stages of the pandemic, they were able to make some gains on the backlog of transactions for DFO. This progress has continued through 2020 and the backlog now stands at just over 30% of the high in 2018. Stay tuned for details about our departmental backlog reduction efforts.

Acting in an EX position

If you accept an acting in an EX position (which has a salary range instead of steps), your salary will be either the salary minimum of the executive position, or your substantive salary plus 5% of the salary maximum of the executive position, whichever is greater.

However, when the acting is first entered, the pay rate in Phoenix automatically defaults to the salary minimum. As such, manual adjustments by a compensation advisor at the Pay Centre may be required to calculate and pay the accurate acting rate.

Therefore, you may find that your initial pay is lower than your substantive pay. Although you will receive a retroactive payment once the adjustment is made, this can take some time. If this happens to you, you may contact MyPay for assistance.

Manager’s Corner

Are you or your staff taking summer holidays?

If you determine a replacement is needed, as per the Terms and Conditions of Employment, submit the acting paperwork at the same time as you submit your leave request. To confirm if acting pay is applicable, please don’t hesitate to communicate with your Labour Relations Advisor. Whenever possible, submit one acting request for the entire acting period instead of multiple, shorter actings.

Is it an acting?

When you need someone to cover for you according to the Terms and Condition of Employment, it is only considered an acting appointment if:

  • The person is required to “substantially perform the duties” of your role, which is of a higher classification, while you are absent. Simply being identified as the out-of-office replacement does not meet this requirement.
  • The person performs the duties for at least the qualifying period in the collective agreement that covers his or her substantive position. For many collective agreements, this is 3 days.

Don’t forget!

When you accept an acting, if you are eligible for any non-automated allowances, such as the Fisheries Officer Allowance, First Aid Allowance or others, a Pay Action Request (PAR) must be sent via the Trusted Source in order for the allowance to be paid during the acting. The allowance is linked to a position, not the person and, therefore, a PAR requesting the allowance must be sent each time you change position, including when you return to your substantive position. Consult the PAR Quick Reference Guide under work type Entitlements to see all such allowances.