Salaries and Payroll
All salaries and any annual increments to them are established and voted by the Board of Trustees, usually at their April meeting, upon the recommendation of the President, in consultation with the Dean of the Faculty and the Treasurer.
1. Payroll. The fiscal year of Amherst College runs from July 1 to June 30th. Annual faculty salaries are for nine months' work but are paid in twelve equal installments on the last day of each month, July 31st through June 30th, inclusive.
On request, checks will be deposited in the account of a faculty member at most banking institutions, available on the last bank day of the month. Otherwise, they will be mail to a campus or home address.
Salary checks will be subject to the following deductions: Federal withholding tax, Social Security tax, Massachusetts withholding tax, TIAA-CREF, insurance premiums (if participating), rent (if occupying College housing), and any other amounts (College mortgages, luncheon charges, etc.) due the College for any reason.
2. Withholding. Federal withholding taxes are computed in accordance with the Federal percentage method which considers the number of exemptions claimed on Form W-4 filed in the Human Resources Office upon receipt of letter of acceptance.
Social Security tax will be computed at the prescribed rate.
Massachusetts income withholding taxes are computed in accordance with the state percentage method, which considers the number of exemptions claimed on Form M-4 filed in the Comptroller's Office. A faculty member may request a larger withholding if he or she wishes in order to approximate the actual tax more closely.
3. Summer Salaries. Members of the Faculty are permitted to receive up to two-ninths of their annual salary for additional work done during the summer as contract research or under research or foundation grants. Such grants are administered by the College and are subject to the normal allowances for overhead. Further details should be checked with the Comptroller's Office.