Benefits

• Health
• Retirement
• Paid Leave
• Other
• Staff / Administration Salary Structure
• Contingent II Policies and Benefits

Health Benefits

• Preferred Provider Organization (PPO)
• Point of Service (POS)
• Health Maintenance Organization (HMO)

1. Plan summaries and standard benefits charts for each type of plan can be found in the medical section of the MD State Health Benefits booklet.
2. Premium costs vary depending on the specific plan and level of coverage selected.
3. Employees selecting a POS or HMO plan must select a Primary Care Physician (PCP). Lists of PCPs by plan are available in the Human Resources Office or on the related website. Physician selection forms, which are also available in the Human Resources Office, must then be completed and submitted directly to the insurance carrier.
4. All medical plans include vision benefits.

Prescription Drug Plan: * Comprehensive prescription drug benefits are available separate from the medical plans. Premium costs are determined by level of coverage selected. Each prescription is subject to a co-pay.  
Vendor:  Catalyst
Phone Number:  1-866-643-3004

 

Dental Plan: * A dental benefits program is available exclusively through participating dentists. Premium costs are determined by level of coverage selected. Contact Human Resources for the list of participating dentists or go to the dental plans website for an up-to-date listing of participating dentists.
Vendor:  Dental Benefits Providers DHMO
Phone:  1-877-566-3562

Vendor:  United Concordia DHMO or DPPO
Phone:  1-888-638-3384

Term Life Insurance: * Available through MetLife Insurance Company for employees and dependents. Coverage is available in amounts varying from $10,000 to $300,000. Premiums on the first $50,000 are eligible for pre-tax treatment.  Up to $50,000 coverage can be selected without a medical review at time of hire.
Vendor:  MetLife Insurance
Phone:  1-888-492-6983

 

Personal Accident & Dismemberment: * This benefit is designed to supplement an employee's life insurance needs. It provides both accidental death and dismemberment benefits for accidents that occur on or off the job. Up to $300,000 in protection can be purchased for employees and their dependents.
Vendor:  MetLife Insurance
Phone:  1-888-842-2757

 

Health Care Reimbursement Account (Flex Spending): * Permits employees to set aside up to $3,000 of pre-tax pay and then be reimbursed for health care expenses that are not covered by insurance. Reimbursement forms are available in the Human Resources Office.
Vendor:  SHPS, Inc.

Online claim form:  Click here
Phone:  1-877-358-4276

 

Dependent Care Reimbursement Account (Flex Spending): * Allows employees to set aside up to $5,000 of pre-tax pay and then be reimbursed for expenses associated with the care of dependents. Reimbursement forms are available in the Human Resources Office.
Vendor:  SHPS, Inc.

Online claim form:  Click here
Phone:  1-877-358-4276

 

* Identifies those benefits for which premiums are paid with pre-tax dollars. A complete description of these benefits can be found in the MD State Health Benefits booklet, which is available in the Human Resources Office.

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Long Term Care Insurance:  Covers care received either at home or in a facility (i.e. someone needing assistance with daily living activities).  This is not medical insurance.  Eligibility includes adult children, siblings, parents and grandparents (in-laws included).
Phone:  1-800-732-0416

(The following benefits are available through UNUM. Packets containing information about each benefit can be obtained from the Human Resources Office.)

 

Additional Term Life Insurance: Coverage is available for both employees and their dependents. Levels of coverage range from $20,000 to $750,000, not to exceed six times an individual's salary.
Phone:  1-800-421-0344

 

Long Term Disability Insurance: Provides benefits equal to 60 percent of salary following a 90 or 365-day waiting period from the onset of the disability/illness.
Phone:  1-800-421-0344

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Retirement Plans

All regular, nonexempt employees are enrolled in the Maryland State Retirement Pension System (MSRPS) at the time of employment. All regular exempt employees (faculty and unclassified administrators) have the option of enrolling in the MSRPS or selecting an Optional Retirement Plan (ORP). ORP carriers currently include: TIAA/CREF and Fidelity Investments. Packets containing descriptions of each plan and the appropriate enrollment paperwork are available in the Human Resources Office. All exempt employees are encouraged to review the hand-out Choosing a Retirement Program and the ORP Vendor Comparison Chart, provided by Human Resources, before selecting a retirement plan.

 

Maryland State Retirement Pension System (MSRPS): This is a defined benefit plan that provides a benefit based upon the employee's salary and years of service. The plan requires an employee contribution that is non-taxable for federal tax purposes. The plan provides early retirement, disability and death benefits, as applicable. Employees are vested, or guaranteed a benefit, after completing five years of eligible service. Other plan features include the conversion of unused sick leave to additional creditable service at the time of retirement, fully subsidized health insurance benefits (including spouse/dependent children for those employees who have completed 16 years of service), and an annual cost of living adjustment during retirement.

 

Optional Retirement Plans (ORP): These are defined contribution plans that provide a benefit based upon the employee's accumulated account balance. The State contributes the equivalent of a certain percentage of the employee's salary (currently 7.25 percent) each year to the employee's ORP account. These contributions are spread over 20 pay periods. There are no employee contributions to these plans. Early retirement and death benefits are based upon the employee's ORP account balances, though a federal penalty tax may apply. Employees are always fully vested in their total account balance. Employees who retire with 16 years of service are entitled to fully subsidized health insurance benefits (25 years of service are required for this benefit to include spouse/dependent children).

Updated 2008 1st Quarter ORP Performance Report

Supplemental Retirement Accounts (SRA): These plans enable employees to supplement their retirement income by contributing a portion of their salary before taxes to an investment plan of their choice. Employees can choose from among several investment options within each plan. Supplemental Retirement Accounts are available with Fidelity Investments, Maryland Supplemental Retirement Plans (MSRP) and TIAA-CREF. Packets describing all plans are available in the Human Resources Office.

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Paid Leave

Annual Leave: (not applicable to Faculty) Earned leave which may be used for different reasons, the most common being vacation.   All eligible employees accrue annual leave at a fixed rate, based on position and years of service.  Nonexempt employees earn 10 days per year for the first 4 years of employment, with additional days beginning with the 5^th, 11^th and 21^st year.  Exempt employees earn 22 days per year.   A maximum of 50 days may be carried over to the next calendar year.

 

Sick Leave: All regular employees, regardless of job title, accrue sick leave at the rate of 1.25 days per month of work. As faculty have 10-month contracts, they earn a total of 12.5 days per year while the remainder of employees, nonexempt as well as exempt, earn 15 days each year. Sick leave accumulation is unlimited.

 

Bereavement Leave: One to five days of earned sick leave may be used to cover an employee's absence when there is a death in the family. The exact amount permitted depends on the employee's relationship to the deceased and whether overnight travel is involved.

 

Pregnancy-related disabilities, childbirth, adoption: Up to thirty days of accrued sick leave may be used to care for a child immediately following the birth of a child or placement of the child with the employee for adoption.

 

Family Illness Leave: Earned sick leave may also be used for the purpose of providing care for sick family members.

 

Holidays: Eligible employees receive 11 (12 in an election year) paid holidays per year. 
 

2008 Paid Holiday	Date Earned	Date to be Taken
New Year’s Day	Tuesday - January 1, 2008	Tuesday - January 1, 2008
Martin Luther King, Jr. Day	Monday - January 21, 2008	Monday - January 21, 2008
Presidents' Day	Monday - February 18, 2008	Thursday - July 3, 2008
Memorial Day	Monday - May 26, 2008	Monday - May 26, 2008
Independence Day	Friday - July 4, 2008	Friday - July 4, 2008
Labor Day	Monday - September 1, 2008	Monday - September 1, 2008
Columbus Day	Monday - October 13, 2008	Wednesday - November 26, 2008
Election Day	Tuesday - November 4, 2008	Wednesday - December 24, 2008
Veterans Day	Tuesday - November 11, 2008	Friday - December 26, 2008
Thanksgiving Day	Thursday - November 27, 2008	Thursday - November 27, 2008
Day after Thanksgiving	Friday - November 28, 2008	Friday - November 28, 2008
Christmas Day	Thursday - December 25, 2008	Thursday - December 25, 2008
Holiday	Monday - December 29, 2008	Monday - December 29, 2008
Holiday	Tuesday - December 30, 2008	Tuesday - December 30, 2008
Holiday	Wednesday - December 31, 2008	Wednesday - December 31, 2008
Eligible PIN and Contingent II employees earn 14 (15 in an election year) paid holidays per calendar year.  All unused 2009 holidays must be taken by January 31, 2009 for PIN employees.  The maximum year-end carry-over of unused and earned Annual Leave is 50 days (400 hours). Any hours that exceed the maximum days/hours will be forfeited if not taken prior to December 31, 2009 for PIN employees and prior to the end of the contract year for Contingent II employees. Earned Personal Leave may not be carried forward. If not taken prior to December 31, 2009 for PIN employees and prior to the end of the contract year for Contingent II employees, unused Personal Leave will be forfeited.
2009 Paid Holiday	Date Earned	Date to be Taken
New Year’s Day	Thursday - January 1, 2009	Thursday - January 1, 2009
Martin Luther King, Jr. Day	Monday - January 19, 2009	Monday - January 19, 2009
Presidents' Day	Monday - February 16, 2009	Wednesday - November 25, 2009
Memorial Day	Monday - May 25, 2009	Monday - May 25, 2009
Independence Day	Friday - July 3, 2009	Friday - July 3, 2009
Labor Day	Monday - September 7, 2009	Monday - September 7, 2009
Columbus Day	Monday - October 12, 2009	Thursday - December 24, 2009
Veterans Day	Wednesday - November 11, 2009	Monday - December 28, 2009
Thanksgiving Day	Thursday - November 26, 2009	Thursday - November 26, 2009
Day after Thanksgiving	Friday - November 27, 2009	Friday - November 27, 2009
Christmas Day	Friday - December 25, 2009	Friday - December 25, 2009
Holiday	Tuesday - December 29, 2009	Tuesday - December 29, 2009
Holiday	Wednesday - December 30, 2009	Wednesday - December 30, 2009
Holiday	Thursday - December 31, 2009	Thursday - December 31, 2009
2010 Holiday
New Year’s Day	Friday - January 1, 2010	Friday - January 1, 2010
2009 Holiday Calendar - printable text version Eligible PIN and Contingent II employees earn 14 (15 in an election year) paid holidays per calendar year.  All unused 2009 holidays must be taken by January 31, 2009 for PIN employees.  Annual Leave: Eligible PIN employees may carry over a maximum of 50 days or 400 hours into the new calendar year.    Any unused annual leave hours over 400 will be forfeited.   The leave accrual process for pay period ending January 13, 2009 will reduce the balance to 400 hours.   This date does not apply to eligible Contingent II employees – they will forfeit hours in excess of 400 at the end of their contract year. Personal Leave: Eligible PIN employees may not carry a personal leave balance into the new calendar year; any remaining balance will be forfeited if not taken by the end of pay period ending January 13, 2009.   The leave accrual process for pay period ending January 13, 2009 will remove any unused balance and insert the appropriate personal leave hours for calendar year 2009.  Contingent II employees may not carry a personal leave balance into a new contract year; therefore, their personal leave balance will be carried forward until their current contract expires.

 

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Other Benefits

Direct Deposit: Pay can be automatically deposited to a checking account. Available to all employees. Forms are available online or in the Human Resources Office.

 

Employee Assistance Program: Provides confidential and professional assessment and referral services to State employees who are experiencing personal/medical problems affecting their work performance. 
 MD State Employee Relations Division Brochure

 

State Employees' Credit Union: Membership is available to all Salisbury University employees. A variety of programs are available. Brochures are available in the Human Resources Office, or you can call 1-800-879-7328 for more information.

 

U.S. Savings Bond Program: Bonds can be purchased through payroll deduction. For more information contact the Business and Finance Office at 410-543-6050.

 

Tuition Waiver: Subject to certain restrictions, tuition waiver is available to regular employees and retirees. Tuition remission benefits for spouses/dependent children of employees hired after July 1, 1992, will be available only after the employee has worked for two years prior to the anticipated date of registration for coursework. More information outlining this benefit is available from the Human Resources Office.

Live Near Your Work Program: Full-time, pin positions of Salisbury University who purchase homes in certain areas of Salisbury may qualify for a number of programs that assist financially in the purchase of homes and provide significant breaks on city property taxes.  Please see the flyer for additional details.

Contingent II Policies and Benefits

Update:  Contingent II Leave Policies - Word Document (Effective January 2004)
Contingent Employment Policy (BOR) - 

(If prompted for password, hit cancel.)

 

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