[back to Handbook]

Phased retirement program

UNCW phased retirement policy

Effective from July 1, 2002

The major goal of the University of North Carolina at Wilmington Phased Retiremen Program is to provide additional flexibility and support for individual tenured faculty members who are approaching retirement. The program permits faculty nearing retirement to reduce their working hours while maintaining their professional commitment to students and the university. The program increases the university's contractual alternatives for accommodating faculty interests and creates a new faculty benefit.

Advantages of the phased retirement program
Characteristics of the phased retirement program
  1. The phased retirement program is a benefit that can be exercised at the option of eligible tenured members of the faculty—subject to the terms and conditions of the program outlined in program documents.
  2. The program is available to all permanently tenured faculty members who (1) have five years full-time service at the university, (2) are age 50 or older, and (3) are eligible to receive retirement benefits through either the Teachers’ and State Employees’ Retirement System (TSERS) or the Optional Retirement Program (ORP). In both cases, individuals must have at least five years of full-time service at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington. Tenured faculty occupying full-time administrative or staff positions are not eligible to participate in the Program unless and until they vacate such positions. The decision to enter the program, once made, is binding.
  3. All enrollments in the program shall commence with the fall semester of the academic year next following execution of a contract between the university and the participant for Phased Retirement Program employment whether or not services are performed in the fall semester.
  4. The Department of Human Resources will identify and notify by letter all faculty initially eligible for the program, up-date the list of eligible faculty quarterly, and provide notification of their eligibility by letter to all faculty added to the list. Human Resources will also identify those faculty ineligible to participate in the program because they currently occupy full-time administrative or staff positions.
  5. Upon entering the phased retirement program, faculty members officially retire from the university and, hence, relinquish permanent tenure. In return, they have the right to contract for half-time employment for a period of three academic years following the date of retirement. If a faculty member has not attained "normal retirement age" as defined for their retirement system, there must be a minimum 30-day break in service between their last work day and the first day of their participation in the phased retirement program. For purposes of the program, “normal retirement age” is the age at which the participating faculty member would have first satisified an age and/or service requirement for “service” (unreduced) retirement if enrolled in TSERS. If a faculty member has achieved any of the service levels required to obtain the “normal retirement age,” he or she need not undertake a break in service prior to entering the phased retirement program.
  6. Faculty members who enter the phased retirement program retain their professorial rank and the full range of responsibilities and rights associated with that rank as described in the Faculty Handbook of the University of North Carolina at Wilmington (except for the status of permanent tenure). They also acquire all benefits associated with the status of "retired faculty." Departments and schools within the university are encouraged to extend full departmental responsibilities, rights and benefits to faculty in the phased retirement program. These may include, but are not limited to, roles in tenure review and promotion, committee memberships, and professional support services offered by the department or school. In return, faculty in the phased retirement program are expected to maintain high levels of professional commitment to the university.
  7. The phased retirement program permits faculty to work half-time for half-time compensation based on their final year of full-time service. Half-time work may take the form of full-time duties one semester per year or part-time duties both semesters of the academic year, as determined by mutual agreement. In both instances, remuneration will be paid over a 12-month period.
  8. Eligible faculty members will first meet with the Director of Human Resources or designated Human Resources staff person in order to develop a full understanding of the terms of the program. After this initial meeting, faculty members wishing to participate in the program will make written application to their department chair (or dean in any school without departments).
  9. Services to be performed under the phased retirement plan will then be negotiated between individual faculty members and their department chairs. In determining the appropriate halftime work plan, the complete range of faculty activities (including teaching, research and creative activities, service, advising, work on grants, publications, etc.) should be considered. However, no work plan may include duties incident to summer school curricula. The specific description of half-time responsibilities may vary by school or college and among departments or even by individuals within the same unit. Chairs will make their recommendations concerning these applications to the dean of their respective school or college. The deans will add their recommendations concerning each application and convey them to the Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs. The Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs exercises final authority for approving half-time work plans.
  10. The negotiated agreement to participate in the program must be in writing and signed by the faculty member, the head of the employing unit, and other appropriate supervisors, including the Provost. The agreement must be executed not later than six months prior to commencement of phased retirement duties. Upon the mutual agreement of the parties involved, participation in the program may end before the end of the contractual period allowing immediate full separation from university employment.
  11. Faculty participating in the program will be subject to performance review and eligible for salary increments and merit pay based on annual evaluations, subject to applicable restrictions on retirement earnings.[1] Faculty will continue to be subject to The Code of the University of North Carolina, the Faculty Handbook of the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, and other university policies. Under Section VIII.A.1 of Policies of Academic Freedom and Tenure in the Faculty Handbook of the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, faculty in the phased retirement program may be suspended or discharged during the contractual period only for the causes and pursuant to the procedures therein specified. [1 General Administration offers this clarification: "With respect to the initial year of participation in Phased Retirement, the participant's salary . . . is one-half (50%) of the salary that the faculty member earned during the last 9- or 12-month period of full-time employment prior to entering the program. Should the faculty member be enrolled at an institution that has established the term of program participation at more than one year, the participant would be eligible after the first year of participation (and for further years) for an annual salary increase made applicable by the institution for the participant's position incident to the succeeding year."]
  12. Participation in the phased retirement program is limited to no more than 10% of the university tenured and tenure-track faculty and to no more than 20% of the tenured and tenure-track faculty positions of any individual department. Within these caps, the university anticipates no programmatic or financial limitations to participation in the program at this time. However, the university reserves the right to reduce participation levels upon a finding that financial exigency or academic-program compromise prohibit the established level of participation—with appropriate advance notification to eligible faculty. The Provost, acting on the recommendation of the deans, may raise the caps at any time—such that the opportunity for faculty participation in the phased retirement program is increased.
  13. This program will be offered for application on a continuing basis and eligible faculty members or members who become eligible may elect annually to seek to enroll in the program during the enrollment life of the program, with active participation to commence with the fall semester next following acceptance by the university for participation. Faculty may indicate their intent to enroll in the program during the annual published window of opportunity to apply for Program participation, to be published prior to October 15. If, during a given enrollment period, a greater number of faculty apply for program participation than the number of slots available (under established institutional or departmental caps), priority for participation will be extended in the following preferential order:
    1. First, to faculty who have attained "normal retirement age" as specified by the UNC Optional Retirement Program or an "unreduced service benefit eligibility" as specified by the Teachers' & State Employees' Retirement System—regardless of length of service.
    2. Second, among faculty who have attained "normal retirement age" or an “unreduced service benefit eligibility," to faculty with the greatest number of years of service within the University of North Carolina system.
    3. Third, among faculty who have not attained "normal retirement age" or an "unreduced service benefit eligibility," to faculty with the greatest number of years of service within the University of North Carolina system.
  14. Faculty who begin participation during the life of the program will be allowed to complete their contract even if the phased retirement program ends.
  15. Annual reports of faculty participation in and the impact of the program will be prepared by all academic units to aid in evaluating the Program.
  16. The Provost and the Director of Human Resources shall designate representatives of their respective offices authorized to answer questions about the program. Currently, those representatives are:
  17. Phased retirees are eligible to participate in the same set of benefit and deduction programs as other permanent half-time employees.

Text last revised 7/1/02
Approved by UNC-GA 8/8/02

See also the Human Resources phased retirement page.