The performance financial reward of 2.5% (effective January 1, 2014) used in the examples listed below for both the base position and acting assignment is for illustrative purposes only. The performance financial reward is dependent on the employee achieving his/her objectives and other key factors, such as productivity, initiative, knowledge, impact and Toronto Public Service values. The performance review meetings are conducted after April 15. The performance financial reward is retroactive to January 1.
Performance Pay increases are subject to Council approval as part of its budget deliberations.
Part-time employees hired on an indefinite term basis are treated in the same manner as permanent employees for the purpose of this policy. Non-union temporary full-time and part-time employees on a fixed-term are generally reassigned into other non-union temporary and part-time positions.
On an exception basis, temporary and part-time employees may be placed on an acting assignment depending upon the circumstances, such as short-term duration within the same division. Please contact your Strategic Recruitment Representative before placing the employee on an acting assignment.
An increase of up to 15% is applied to the employee’s base position salary depending on their skill profile up to the maximum salary of the acting assignment. The salary offered cannot be less than the minimum salary of the acting assignment
The non-probationary employee’s anniversary date is always January 1 for performance pay purposes.
This depends on the duration of the acting assignment and if it carries over from one calendar year to the next. Three scenarios are described in the Acting Assignment Guidelines with details of when performance reviews are conducted, who conducts them and the impact on the employee’s base position salary.
Example: Mary is placed in an acting assignment on November 1, 2013 to November 2014. The base manager conducts a closing performance review with Mary before she moves to the acting assignment (but does not share the performance review level with the employee until after April 15 of the following year).
The acting assignment is at a higher pay grade and Mary receives a 10% increase over the base position salary (based on her skill profile).
After April 15, 2014, the acting assignment (AA) manager conducts a performance review and provides a performance financial reward of 2.5% that is prorated for 2 months (November and December 2013) at AA salary (and prorated for 10 months at base salary for employees placed at the minimum salary of AA, provided the performance review levels were the same for both the base and acting positions)
which are applied on a go forward basis up to the maximum salary of the acting assignment.
After April 15, 2014, the base manager completes the paperwork to adjust the base position salary by 2.5% up to the maximum salary of the base position.
In November 2014 when Mary’s acting assignment is scheduled to end, the assignment is extended till the end of February 2015, as the employee she is replacing has extended his leave. After April 15, 2015, the AA manager conducts a performance review and provides a performance financial reward of 2.5% on a go forward basis up to the maximum salary of the acting assignment. Payroll applies 2.5% to the base position salary simultaneously up to the maximum salary of the base position.
Salary illustration (does not include Cost of Living Allowance: COLA): Example #1 (AA salary within the range)
| Base salary and closing review on October 31, 2013 | $50,000 |
|---|---|
| Acting assignment salary on November 1, 2013 – temporary promotional increase applied (50,000 plus 10%) | $55,000 |
| New base salary on January 1, 2014 – Following review after April 15, 2014 of base position (50,000 plus 2.5%) | $51,250 |
| Acting assignment salary on January 1, 2014 – Following review after April 15, 2014 (55,000 plus 2.5% x 2/12 months) | $55,229 |
| New acting assignment salary on January 1, 2014 – Payroll ensures 10% salary differential between base and acting assignment salaries for assignments that started on or after June 1, 2013 | $56,375 |
| New acting assignment salary on January 1, 2015 – Following review after April 15, 2015 (56,375 x 2.5%) | $57,784 |
| New base salary on January 1, 2015 – Payroll applies 2.5% to base salary (51,250 plus 2.5%) | $52,531 |
Salary illustration (does not include Cost of Living Allowance: COLA): Example #2 (within the salary range of base position and AA salary at the minimum, and the performance review levels were the same for both the base and AA positions)
| Base salary and closing review on October 31, 2013 | $50,000 |
|---|---|
| Acting assignment salary on November 1, 2013 – promotional increase applied (50,000 plus 10% or the minimum salary, whichever is greater) | $60,000 |
| New base salary on January 1, 2014 – Following review after April 15, 2014 of base position (50,000 plus 2.5%) | $51,250 |
| Acting assignment salary – Following review after April 15, 2014 [60,000 + (2.5% of 60,000 x 2/12 months + 2.5% of 50,000 x 10/12 months)]: | $61,292 |
| New acting assignment salary on January 1, 2015 – Following review after April 15, 2015 (61,292 plus 2.5%) | $62,824 |
| New base salary on January 1, 2015 – Payroll applies 2.5% to base salary (51,250 plus 2.5%) | $52,531 |
The employee will receive an increase of 4.5% applied to his/her AA salary as of December 31, 2013 plus 1.75% COLA which will take effect on January 1, 2014.
The employee’s base salary will be adjusted by 2.5% (if within the salary range) plus 1.75% COLA as of January 1, 2014.
The employee will receive an increase of 4.5% applied to his/her AA salary as of December 31, 2013 plus 1.75% COLA which will take effect on January 1, 2014.
Upon return to the employee’s base position, he/she will receive a prorated lump sum payment (for the period of July to December) calculated on his/her base salary as of December 31, 2013 and a performance financial reward of 2.5%.
One acting assignment should be terminated and the employee returned to the base position before another acting assignment is initiated. However, if an employee goes from one acting assignment to another, the salary increase of up to 15% for any higher paid acting assignment is based on the employee’s current acting salary (if the employee has served 12 months in the role), up to the maximum salary of the second acting assignment. The salary offered cannot be less than the minimum salary of the acting assignment wage grade.
Example: Soula, an exempt employee is in an acting assignment as a supervisor from March 2012 until August 2013 when she is appointed to an acting assignment as a manager. After April 15, 2013, Soula receives a performance review. The performance financial reward of 2% is prorated from March 2012 to December 2012 and is added to her current salary. When Soula begins her acting assignment as a manager on September 1, 2013, a 10% increase is applied (based on skill profile) to the acting assignment salary, up to the maximum salary of the manager position.
The employee continues to receive his/her first acting assignment salary, up to the maximum salary of the second acting assignment. If the maximum salary of the second acting assignment is lower than the first acting assignment salary, the employee receives the maximum salary of the second acting assignment.
If an employee had completed at least one (1) continuous year in his/her first acting assignment, when the second acting assignment ends, the second acting manager
conducts a closing performance review in accordance with the Performance Management Program.
To process the performance pay increase for the employee’s initial lower-rated acting assignment, the first acting position manager completes the Performance Pay (PP) Form for the previous performance review period, and notes the effective date as the restart date of the first acting position. The performance pay increase will be pro-rated from January 1 to the start date of the second assignment. The increase will be calculated on the employee’s first acting position salary, and will be applied effective the first acting assignment restart date.
If the first acting assignment carries over to the following year, the employee will receive a full performance pay increase on January 1 of the following year based on the employee’s second acting assignment performance review level.
If an employee in an acting assignment is subsequently promoted to his/her current acting position, as a result of a competitive process, no further salary increase occurs at the time of the promotion.
Example: Jasmine, a Parks supervisor is placed in an acting assignment in a Parks manager’s position in August 2013. When Jasmine begins the assignment as a manager, she receives a 15% increase up to the maximum salary of the acting assignment based on her skill profile Jasmine is promoted to the Parks manager’s position in December 2013; at that time, she receives no further salary increase.
Using the previous example, on January 1, 2014, (on a go forward basis), Jasmine receives:
Salary illustration (does not include Cost of Living Allowance: COLA)
| Employee’s Promotion into Acting Assignment Job | |
|---|---|
| Base salary | $50,000 |
| Acting assignment increase (50,000 plus 15%) on August 1, 2013 | $57,500* |
| Promotional increase on December 1, 2013 | N/A |
| Prorated performance pay (August 1 to December 31, 2013)(2.5% of $57,500 x 5/12) | $598.95* |
| Performance Pay for Employee’s Former Position Base salary |
$50,000 |
| Prorated performance pay (January 1, 2013 to July 31, 2013) (2.5% of $50,000 x 7/12) |
$729.17* |
*New salary on January 1, 2014 is $58,828.12 ($57,500 + $598.95 + $729.17), up to the maximum salary of the promoted job.
When an employee in an acting assignment for more than one continuous year is promoted to a new higher level position, the employee undergoes a performance review. When the employee begins his/her new position, he/she receives an increase of up to 15% is applied to the employee’s base position salary depending on their skill profile up to the maximum salary of the acting assignment. The salary offered cannot be less than the minimum salary of the acting assignment.
Example: Carlos, a project co-ordinator is in an acting assignment as a supervisor from April 2012 to October 2013, when he is promoted to a manager’s position. On November 1, 2013, Carlos receives a closing performance review (but does not share the performance review level with the employee until after April 15 of the following year). When Carlos is promoted to a manager’s position in November 2013, he receives the minimum salary or an increase of 10% over his current acting assignment salary, whichever is greater, up to the maximum salary of the manager’s position.
Using the previous example, on January 1, 2014, (on a go forward basis.) Carlos receives:
When conducting the performance review, the employee’s manager should not assume that the employee was in his/her base position. The new manager asks the employee if he/she was in an acting assignment at the time of the promotion so that the performance increase can be accurately calculated.
When an employee in an acting assignment for more than one continuous year is promoted to a new position within the same pay grade, there are no changes to the employee’s salary. If the new position is at a lower pay grade, the employee maintains his/her current acting assignment salary if within the range or up to the maximum salary of the new position.
Example: Ali, a project co-ordinator is in an acting assignment from February 2012 to May 2013 as a transportation supervisor. In July 2013, he is promoted to a technical supervisor’s position that is within the same pay grade as a transportation supervisor. Ali receives a performance pay increase in January 2013 and the performance pay is prorated from February 2012 to December 2012 and applied to Ali’s current salary on a go forward basis, up to the maximum salary of the acting assignment. In May 2013, when he is promoted to a technical supervisor’s position, his salary does not change.
Yes. If an employee is placed in an acting assignment at a lower pay grade and his/her base salary is above the maximum of the acting assignment salary range, the employee is placed at the maximum salary of the acting assignment.
No. If an employee is placed in an acting assignment at a lower pay grade and his/her base salary is below the maximum of the acting
Any paid leave of absence, such as sick time, vacation, designated and floating holidays are paid at the employee’s acting assignment salary as of his/her assignment start date (change effective June 1, 2016).
Employees in an acting assignment are covered by the lieu time policy for non-union staff, effective from the first day of the acting assignment.
When on an acting assignment, employees will be reimbursed for kilometres based on the current applicable rate for the non-union position.
The employee should use or be paid for the lieu time by the base position division prior to starting his/her acting assignment, unless otherwise agreed to by the acting assignment executive director/general manager/division head or designate.
In accordance with the lieu time policy, if the acting assignment position does not qualify for a lieu time pay-out, the unused time is carried-over to the following year and the employee is required to take the time-off by March 31.
In accordance with the lieu time policy, the employee should use the lieu time if the acting assignment position does not qualify for a lieu time pay-out, prior to returning to his/her base position, unless otherwise agreed to by the base position executive director/general manager/division head or designate.
Bargaining unit employees continue to pay union dues and maintain union benefits coverage and leave of absence entitlements, with the exception of employees in the three L79 part-time bargaining units who will receive health and dental benefits applicable to non-union staff (effective August 2016).
If employees have not reached the top step of their wage grade, they continue to receive increments on the anniversary date of their appointment to their base position.
Anniversary dates for bargaining unit employees do not change when they move from bargaining unit positions to acting assignments in non-union positions.
Yes. If an employee is in an acting assignment that carries over from one calendar year to the next, a performance review is conducted after April 15. If the acting assignment is ongoing, the performance pay is applied to the acting assignment salary, up to the maximum salary of the acting assignment.
Temporary and part-time bargaining unit employees are generally placed on an acting assignment, provided the employee received approval from his/her “base” manager to be released from his/her current bargaining unit position before accepting the acting assignment.
The salary increase of 10% to 15% for any higher paid acting assignment is based on an employee’s current acting assignment salary, or the minimum salary of the acting assignment, whichever is greater, up to the maximum salary of the subsequent acting assignment.
Example: Angelo, a dispatcher begins an alternate rate as a senior dispatcher (bargaining unit position) in November 2011 and remains in that position until June 2013, when he is placed in an acting assignment as a supervisor. Angelo receives an increase of 10% over his current alternate rate assignment as a senior dispatcher, when he begins the acting assignment as a supervisor or the minimum salary, whichever is greater, up to the maximum salary of the supervisor’s position.
Two conditions must be met: a) the acting assignment becomes a permanent position subsequent to the acting appointment and b) the acting assignment was posted corporately and the posting included a statement that if the position becomes permanent, it may not be re-posted. This message alerts all employees that if they wish to compete for this position, they are required to compete for the acting assignment.
Yes, the position may be filled in an acting assignment for a period of time generally not to exceed two years.
Yes, the employee may be promoted on a permanent basis following the acting assignment, provided that the employee’s performance has been assessed and the supervisor has determined that the employee can perform the requirements of the job.
For the purposes of this policy, there is no distinction made between permanent and temporary employees. The successful candidate may be appointed/promoted to a permanent vacancy in the same way that he/she would be appointed/promoted through a competition. (See Question 9.1 above)
The acting assignment salary is based on the employee’s annual salary. For example – An employee’s base position salary is $50,000 regardless of hours worked; a 10% increase for the acting assignment places the employee at $55,000 regardless of the hours worked. It is the annual salary that is being adjusted.
See chart below
| Leave Type | Acting Assignment Rate | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| Pregnancy/Parental | Yes | The top-up of Employment Insurance would be based on the acting assignment salary for the scheduled duration of the acting assignment, or until the end of the leave, whichever occurs first. If the acting assignment was scheduled to end during the employee’s leave, top-up would be calculated using the base position salary for the balance of the leave. |
| WSIB | Yes – see comments | Depending upon the length of time off work, the rate of pay is based upon the WSIB policy |
| Jury Duty/Witness Service | Yes | |
| Earned Deferred | N/A | % of any salary earned is deferred |
| Leave without Pay | N/A | No pay status |
| Childcare and Eldercare | N/A | No pay status |
| Voluntary | Yes | |
| Long Term Disability | No | |
| Sick | Yes | If the acting assignment was scheduled to end during the employee’s leave, he/she would receive his/her base salary. |
Example: Olga starts an acting assignment in January 2016 to replace Gabor who is on a special project until January 2017. Olga starts her pregnancy/parental leave in June 2016. Gabor’s special project ends early, in September 2016, and he returns to his base position. Olga’s acting assignment is terminated in September 2016. The top-up of EI for the balance of her leave (September 2016 to June 2017) is calculated on her base position salary.
If the top up is calculated on the acting assignment salary, the division/section where the employee is on an acting assignment pays the employee’s top-up. When the top-up is calculated on the base position salary, the employee’s home division pays the top-up.
People & Equity
July 5, 2001
January 1, 2023
Acting Assignments Policy
Acting Assignments – Implementation Guidelines