The original UUA Salary Recommendations were introduced in 1995. They served congregations well for over a quarter-century. In the fall of 2022, we made some changes to improve practicality, advance equity, and ensure that we are leading with integrity. New program materials can be found on our Congregational Salary Program page.

Presentations

In Mid-August 2022, the Compensation Team presented a webinar reviewing the history of the UUA Compensation Program, discussing current successes and challenges, and outlining changes in methodology planned for the '23-'24 program year, to be published in late '22. The webinar was presented 10 times to more than 300 congregational leaders and employees. If you weren't able to attend, you can view the webinar here:

• UUA Salary Recommendations Webinar (YouTube, 40 minutes)
• UUA Salary Recommendations Webinar Slides (PDF) (Viewing the presentation first is best.)

Highlights of our Shift in Methodology

Process is Primary

We're putting a greater emphasis on equity and transparency in decision-making and implementation related to pay. We'll be putting out a process document that covers general good policies and practices, along with guidance for appropriate use of our new salary structure. (See below.)

New Structure

We moved from 26 separate job titles to six job levels.

Rather than six congregational sizes based on membership, we now have 4 size profiles that start with membership but also take into account budget and staffing levels.

Compensation and Staffing Survey

Information from the spring 2022 survey fed our new recommendations. General results of the survey are on our Compensation and Staffing Survey page and will have a report available soon.

For More on Compensation

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Keep up to date on the Salary Recommendations Rethink and much more by signing up for Compensation and Staffing News, the monthly newsletter of the UUA Office of Church Staff Finances.

View General Assembly Workshops on Compensation

GA 2022: Transcending the Salary Tables: Integrity in Staff Compensation (Video, 64 minutes), with Jan Gartner and Rev. Lauren Smith. Salary tables only get us so far. As part of our commitment to institutional change, we’re furthering equity and integrity by refreshing our approach to compensation for congregational staff. We explore distributive and procedural justice, types of salary alignment, the practical and philosophical challenges of various pay methodologies, and more.

GA 2021: Compensation: Questioning Cultural Norms, Committing to Equity (Video, 82 minutes), with Rev. Michael Crumpler, Jan Gartner, Rev. Sierra-Marie Gerfao. A philosophical look at compensation, including why people are paid what they are paid and how we can live our UU values in compensating staff. Great for leadership discussion.