Postdoctoral Associate Endowed Employee Benefit Program and Rates
For the Cornell University Contract Colleges
October 30, 2008
I. Objective
The objective of the endowed employee benefit program for contract college postdoctoral
associates is to address and alleviate cost pressures on grants and contracts caused by the New
York State-mandated employee benefit rates. Faculty have the option of including their
postdoctoral associates in the program.
The endowed employee benefit cost rate for 2008-09 is 33% as compared to the 2008-09
contract college benefit cost rate of 45.1% for federally funded activities and 50.73% for nonfederally sponsored work. This program provides a mechanism for faculty in the contract college
units only to hire postdoctoral associates into positions that participate in either the contract
college or the endowed benefits programs. The selection of either the endowed or contract
college benefits program must be made at the time of the initial postdoctoral appointment.
Determination of the appropriate benefits program is made by the hiring faculty supervisor. The
selection may not be changed during the term of the postdoctoral appointment.
Implementation of the program will be consistently administered among the four contract
colleges, follow appropriate accounting practices, and be evaluated after a three-year period.
II. Background
The Contract Colleges’ employee benefit rates have increased continually over the past
six years, as noted in Table 1, whereas the endowed colleges’ rates have remained relatively
constant, Table 2.
Table 1. Contract College Employee Rates
Source of Funds
Federal
Non-Federal
03-04
38.30
41.05
04-05
42.67
46.68
05-06
47.50
49.86
06-07
45.60
50.27
07-08
47.60
51.44
08-09
45.10
50.73
Table 2. Endowed College Employee Rates
Rate Description
04-05
05-06
06-07
07-08
08-09
09-10
10/11
Employees who receive only mandated
benefits (Social Security, Workers
Comp, Disability, Unemployment)
Fully benefits eligible employees in
academic and non-academic units
10.25
10.0
10.0
10.0
10.0
10.0
10.0
31.0
32.0
33.0
33.0
33.0
34.0
34.0
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The rates in effect each fiscal year are applied as a mandated cost against sponsored
awards and are costs that cannot be waived, nor can they be capped at the time of award. These
costs, coupled with the University’s established salary guideline for postdoctoral associates, have
resulted in a situation in which the financial resources supporting sponsored programs are
diminishing. Faculty are further disadvantaged when potential sponsors cap the rate that can be
requested or disallow this cost as a budgetary request. In such cases, unrestricted resources need
to provide the difference between the sponsor’s permitted rate and the actual Cornell rate.
Research programs have been compromised to a point where faculty are now seeking budgetary
relief from their department chairs and college administration.
Appointing postdoctoral associates as endowed employees appears to be a feasible
remedy for this situation. Postdoctoral associates are appointed for finite periods and, in most
cases, leave Cornell after their postdoctoral experience is completed. Those individuals who
continue their employment at Cornell are appointed to a new position with a different academic
or non-academic title. The latter permits an easier transition from the endowed employee
classification to a contract college classification, as explained in the “Implementation” section of
this program..
III. Implementation
A. Pre-award: At the time contract college grant applications are prepared for submission,
there will be an option of budgeting either the endowed or contract college employee
benefit rate for support of postdoctoral associates bearing in mind the conditions of the
program described herein. The rate must be articulated in the proposal.
Budget
implications for existing proposals must be evaluated to determine if sponsoring agency
approval is required.
B. Post-award: Faculty who receive sponsored awards and wish to support postdoctoral
associates under this program will be provided with specific guidelines (refer to example
template, Appendix I) for appointing postdoctoral associates with endowed benefits.
C. Roles and Responsibilities: A strong partnership among the faculty, departments, the
Division of Financial Affairs, Human Resources, Service Centers, and each College’s
administration will be needed to administer this program:
The appointment of postdoctoral associates to the endowed benefits program is optional
and at the discretion of the faculty supervisor. Regardless of the sources of funds to support
postdoctoral associates, each faculty supervisor is responsible for the individual’s employee
benefits costs while appointed as a postdoctoral associate.
College and department staff will establish procedures to ensure that faculty are apprised
of the appropriate fringe benefit rates and the correct benefit rate is charged to the faculty
member’s account(s), regardless of source of funds. Procedures will also be established to
ensure that the guidelines of the program are followed and that fiduciary oversight procedures
are effective.
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College human resources staff will seek guidance from the appointing department and
ensure that the postdoctoral associate is appointed with the appropriate benefits package and
informed of their benefits coverage. They will assist in the annual reporting requirements to
document that the postdoctoral associate is adequately tracked.
Each College’s service center will work closely with the Division of Financial Affairs to
ensure all accounts are reconciled and that sponsors are invoiced appropriately.
The Division of Financial Affairs will ensure that the sponsors are properly invoiced.
The Endowed Benefits Services staff will be apprised of the individuals participating in
the endowed benefits plan to assure that all invoicing and payments are made and received
accordingly.
The Contract College Dean or appropriate designee will ensure that all units and faculty
are informed of the program. An annual report will be submitted to the Vice Provost for
Research and the Vice Presidents for Financial Affairs, Human Resources and Planning and
Budget summarizing the activity and program outcomes. The program will be evaluated after
three years to determine if it should be continued or phased out. The evaluation will include, for
example, the number of proposals submitted to sponsors with the endowed rate, number of
contract college postdoctoral associates participating in the program, summary of the year’s
activities, including variances, and the status of their Cornell employment status after the term of
their postdoctoral appointment.
IV. Considerations
A. Applicable funding sources: Eligible postdoctoral associates will include only those
individuals initially (newly appointed at Cornell University as postdoctoral associates) supported
on external sponsored grants or sponsored funds. Funding sources include those from the federal
government, states and public entities (other than New York State appropriations), and grants
from foundations, and corporations. Postdoctoral Associates initially appointed on unrestricted
or other internal funds will be appointed as contract college postdoctoral associates and will only
be offered the contract college’s benefits package. If they subsequently transfer to grant funds
with mandated fringe benefit costs, the individual will retain their contract college benefits and
the grant account will be charged at the prevailing contract college employee benefit rate.
Hence, these individuals will be ineligible to participate in the proposed plan. The endowed
benefit plan will only be offered to those individuals who are new to Cornell and initially
appointed on grant and contract or other external restricted funds where employee benefit costs
are charged to the award.
B. Change in funding support: For contract college postdoctoral associates receiving the
endowed benefits package, should the funding source change from a sponsored account to an
unrestricted account, the faculty supervisor or his/her academic department will be responsible
for the endowed fringe benefit charge. Once a postdoctoral associate is appointed with an
endowed benefits plan, they will remain on that plan for as long as they hold the postdoctoral
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associate title at Cornell. The faculty supervisor or host department will be responsible for the
cost of the endowed benefit plan.
C. Postdoctoral Fellows vs. Postdoctoral Associates: This proposal does not affect postdoctoral
fellows. Postdoctoral fellows are not classified as employees of the University and
consequently, an employer-employee relationship does not exist. Contract College postdoctoral
fellows currently have the option of participating in the endowed health insurance benefit plan
and that option would not change.
D. Extension of the three-year postdoctoral appointment limitation: For requests made to extend
a postdoctoral associate's three year appointment limitation, the postdoctoral associate’s original
benefit status will prevail, regardless of the extension period.
E. Change in title: Should a postdoctoral associate who has received the endowed benefits
package be offered a new position (other than a postdoctoral title) in a Contract College at the
end of their postdoctoral appointment, the individual will then become a contract college
employee and receive contract college benefits. The endowed benefits package will cease.
F. Postdoctoral associates participating in the program will not be disadvantaged vis-à-vis other
postdoctoral associates. The contract and endowed benefit programs are reasonably comparable
for postdoctoral associates. If a postdoctoral associate is (or was) a member of the New York
State system prior to their new appointment as a postdoctoral associate and prefers to continue
those benefits, they will not be disadvantaged. In this case, they will remain a contract college
employee with benefits charged at the contract college rate.
G. Should there be unforeseen costs or any of the considerations fail, each Contract College’s
administration will assure that the faculty supervisor and/or postdoctoral associate will not be
disadvantaged. Any exceptions to the policy will need to be reviewed by college administration.
H. Contract College Endowed Department Codes: For administrative and financial tracking, a
separate endowed department code will be established, and sub-accounts will be created for each
award participating in this program. As needed, separate source 1200 or restricted endowment
accounts will be established for each department with a faculty supervisor participating in this
program.
I. Evaluation: The plan will be evaluated after a three-year period as described above.
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Appendix I
Guidelines for Appointing Postdoctoral Associates with Endowed Benefits
At the time contract college grant applications are prepared for submission, faculty will have the
option of budgeting either the endowed or contract college employee benefit rate for support of
postdoctoral associates bearing in mind the guidelines described herein The rate structure must
be articulated in the proposal. Budget implications for existing proposals must be evaluated to
determine if sponsoring agency approval is required.
Regardless of the sources of funds to support postdoctoral associates, each faculty supervisor is
responsible for the individual’s employee benefits costs while appointed as a postdoctoral
associate.
Considerations
A. Applicable funding sources: Eligible postdoctoral associates will include only those
individuals initially (newly appointed at Cornell University as a postdoctoral associate)
supported on external sponsored funds, such as those from the federal government, state and
public entities, (other than New York State appropriations), and grants from foundations and
corporations
Postdoctoral Associates initially appointed on unrestricted or other internal funds will be
appointed as Contract College postdoctoral associates and will only be offered the contract
college’s benefits package. If they subsequently transfer to grant funds with mandated fringe
benefit costs, the grant account will be charged at the prevailing contract college employee
benefit rate. Hence, these individuals will be ineligible to participate in the proposed plan. The
endowed benefit plan will only be offered to those individuals who are new to Cornell and
initially appointed as a postdoc on grant and contract or other external restricted funds where
employee benefit costs are charged to the award.
B. Change in funding support: For contract college postdoctoral associates receiving the
endowed benefits package, should the funding source change from a sponsored account to an
unrestricted account, the faculty supervisor or his/her academic department will be responsible
for the endowed fringe benefit charge. Once a postdoctoral associate is appointed with an
endowed benefits plan, they will remain on that plan until their postdoctoral appointment terms.
The supervisor or host department will be responsible for the cost of the endowed benefit plan.
C. Postdoctoral Fellows vs. Postdoctoral Associates: This plan does not affect postdoctoral
fellows. Postdoctoral Fellows are not classified as employees of the University and
consequently, an employer-employee relationship does not exist. Contract college postdoctoral
fellows currently have the option of participating in the endowed health insurance benefit plan
and that option will not change.
D. Extension of the three-year postdoctoral appointment limitation: For requests made to
extend a postdoctoral associate's three year appointment limitation, the postdoctoral associate’s
original benefit status will prevail, regardless of the extension period.
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E. Change in title: Should a postdoctoral associate who has received the endowed benefits
package be offered a new position (other than a postdoctoral title) in a Contract College at the
end of their postdoctoral appointment, the individual will then become a contract college
employee and receive contract college benefits. The endowed benefits package will cease.
F. Postdoctoral Associates participating in the program will not be disadvantaged vis-à-vis
other postdoctoral associates: The contract and endowed benefit programs are reasonably
comparable for postdoctoral associates. If a postdoctoral associate is (or was) a member of the
New York State system prior to their new appointment as a postdoctoral associate and prefers to
continue those benefits, they will not be disadvantaged. They will remain a contract college
employee with benefits charged at the contract college rate.
Should there be unforeseen costs or any of the considerations fail, each Contract College’s
administration will assure that the postdoctoral associate will not be disadvantaged. Any
exceptions to the guidelines will need to be reviewed by the appropriate college official(s).
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