UAW Agreement Sponsored Project FAQs
Expand section Introduction
Based on current calculations, we expect that the UAW agreements will result in overall costs that exceed prior forecasts by almost $16M in AY 23/24 and by at least $25M in AY 24/25.
We anticipate that the total impact on active (in-flight) grants and contracts will be approximately $17M over the next 2½ years.
Expand section Currently Active Sponsored Projects
The UAW Contracts require us to pay the negotiated amounts to all covered personnel. Therefore, if it is possible to reallocate funds within a grant, you should do that as a first step toward meeting the newly negotiated obligations.
If it’s not possible to reallocate expenses within your grant to cover the costs of new collective bargaining agreements, PIs should use any discretionary funds available to them to cover the additional costs of the new collective bargaining agreements.
You can consider reducing project scope or requesting supplemental funding. Both of these will require negotiation with your agency’s Program Officer.
If budget reallocation and available discretionary funds are insufficient, you should discuss your needs with your Department Chair/Division Head.
As you work to identify the gap and sources of funding to cover the gap, be aware that the timing of salary increases under the UAW contracts for GSRs and Postdoctoral Scholars will result in mid-year adjustments to salary. Specifically, the first salary increase for GSRs and Postdoctoral Scholars will occur in April, 2023 (impacting budgets for FY 23 which ends in June). Salary increases will occur in October each year thereafter, so grant budgets will need to be calculated so as to incorporate these increases which occur partway through the fiscal year.
Salary increases for Academic Researchers will occur on July 1 of each year.
The agreements require that all covered employees, regardless of funding source, must receive the agreed salary levels for their academic type and step. Differentials for capped salaries must be supported through other sources. PIs should use any discretionary funds they have (including unexpended gift balances). When such sources of funding are not available or are insufficient, PIs should seek support through Department/Division Chairs or through the Agreement Grant Relief Fund.
Agencies have different rules for salary coverage, and within agencies rules vary based on the type of funding. Depending on the type of capped grant and agency, there may be some restrictions on how you can cover the gap between what the cap can cover and the amount stipulated in the UAW contract. For instance, NIH allows the “cap gap” on training grants to be covered by non-federal funds only. For NIH Training Grants or Fellowship please review the NIH Grants Policy Statement.
Make sure to review the terms in the award and policies of the funding agencies for your specific award.
Contracts and grants generally allow for some level of reallocation within the existing budget during approved project period or within the non-competitive renewal periods. For most awards, we don’t anticipate that the required reallocations will require agency approval.
However, all agreements and their respective sponsor policies are different. It is prudent to review your agreement’s terms and conditions and your sponsor’s policies to understand agency-specific prior approval requirements. Please review Research Terms and Conditions (RTC) Agency Implementation statements > https://www.nsf.gov/awards/managing/rtc.jsp.
For reallocation of salary increases on an approved, current budget: Agencies have different guidelines and rules on rebudgeting, so the answer will depend on the agency as well as your strategy for reallocation. While you should review your agreement’s terms and sponsor guidelines, general guidance for NIH, NSF, and DOD is as follows:
HHS (NIH, CDC, HRSA, SAMSHA)
- NIH grants of all series should not require approval unless the reallocation impacts key personnel effort by 25% or more
- NIH approves salary levels in accordance with the institution’s official policies.
NSF
Prior approval is required for
- reduction of PI effort by 25% or more
- transfer of funds budgeted for Participant support to other categories
- any adjustment to cost sharing commitments
- all other rebudgeting between otherwise reasonable, allocable, and allowable costs is allowed, unless it represents a change in scope
DOD
PIs or Fund Managers should contact their DoD funding agency (DARPA, AFOSR, ONR, etc.) directly, as they may have differing policies regarding rebudgeting requirements and restrictions. In general, for nonconstruction awards, recipients shall request prior approvals from the cognizant grants officer for one or more of the following program or budget related reasons:
- Change in the scope or the objective of the project or program (even if there is no associated budget revision requiring prior written approval).
- Change in a key person specified in the application or award document.
- The absence for more than three months, or a 25 percent reduction in time devoted to the project, by the approved project director or principal investigator.
- The need for additional Federal funding.
- The transfer of amounts budgeted for indirect costs to absorb increases in direct costs, or vice versa, if approval is required by the DoD Component. DoD Components should require this prior approval only in exceptional circumstances. The requirement in each such case must be stated in the award document.
You can, but if you have committed any GSR to work for that year, you must find them an alternate source of funds. Postdoctoral scholars can be laid off due to lack of funding, although the university recommends making every effort to find alternative funding. Ultimately, you must determine the best mix of human resources to support your grant’s statement of work. You may be limited by sponsor requirements on how you rebudget funds to reallocate costs.
Note that you cannot reduce the overall effort of a GSR or postdoctoral scholar. If you reduce the time allocation on a grant, you must identify other sources to cover the full 50% appointment. Do not discuss layoffs and/or any reduction with the GSR or Postdoc without first consulting with Labor Relations and GEPA.Expand section New Proposals
UC and our higher education peers recognize the impact of the fact that NIH has not increased the modular budget cap in 24 years. Each year, fewer and fewer NIH applications are able to use modular budgeting as the real costs of research have increased. We strongly encourage using detailed budget requests.
The UC Vice Chancellor’s for Research are working with the University of California President’s Office to develop a strategy for agency communication. The Council on Governmental Relations (GOGR), an association of institutions of higher education that includes UC San Diego, requested in December 2022 that NIH increase the modular budget yearly limit. Working through COGR and UC’s federal governmental relations team, UC San Diego will continue to advocate for a higher modular budget limit to allow for continued use of modular budgeting.Expand section Questions specific to Academic Researchers
For both currently active grants and new proposals, PIs and Fund Managers should plan for the following salary scale range adjustments for academic researchers.
- July 1, 2023 – 4.5%
- July 1, 2024 – 3.5%
- July 1, 2025 – 3.5%
- July 1, 2026 – 3.5%
- July 1, 2027 – 4%