Because phased retirements require Board of Trustees’ approval, the formal request should be submitted six months in advance of the start date. See AR 3:2 and HR procedures. 

Please note: As per AR 3:2, phased retirement appointments will be granted only when such appointments are in the best interests of the university. A revision to AR 3:2 was approved by the Board of Trustees in May 2016 which states that faculty phased retirement proposals that exceed three years and/or .80 FTE will not be approved.  

Further, according to the Provost’s annual memo regarding faculty performance review, “All educational unit administrators who have faculty on phased retirement shall take steps to ensure that those individuals are meeting or exceeding their unit’s performance expectations in their areas of assignment.” In order to comply with this directive, starting in 2016, academic unit leaders will complete an annual evaluation on phased retirement faculty members one month prior to the anniversary date of their phased appointments. This evaluation will be very similar to an APR in that the phased retirement faculty member will submit a CV or report on activities for the prior 12 months and the chair will complete a PDF APR form. These documents should be submitted to the Associate Dean for Faculty Resources, Planning and Assessment for review by the dean and associate deans. Academic Unit Leaders will receive information about these reviews from the Associate Dean for Faculty Resources, Planning and Assessment.  

The steps to begin a phased retirement:

1. Faculty member verifies with a retirement officer in the Employee Benefits Office that he or she is eligible for phased retirement. This “service check” can be accomplished by calling 257-9519, option 3. 
2. Faculty member contacts the academic unit leader (and Unit Director, if appropriate) regarding phased retirement interest and intent. Please note: Civil Service employees are not eligible for phased retirement. They may, however, take a post-retirement assignment. See the Extension Manual for more information about Civil Service employees and phased retirement. 
3. Faculty member provides Academic Unit Leader/Unit Director with formal written phased retirement request (cover letter, completed HR form, and an outline of teaching, research, and service assignments to be fulfilled during the phased retirement period). Update, July 14, 2016, Phased retirement forms no longer need to be notarized, nor is it required to submit original copies to the Office of Faculty Resources, Planning and Assessment. Electronic signatures and scans will be accepted. 
4. Academic Unit Leader and/or Unit Director submits the request for phased retirement to the Associate Dean for Faculty Resources, Planning and Assessment, with a cover letter indicating support.

   Submit the packet to: M-G CAFE Office of Faculty Resources, Planning and Assessment, N3 Agriculture Science Center North or cafe-frpa@uky.edu

5. If approved by the Dean of M-G CAFE, the academic unit leader or unit director is notified to complete an Academic Appointment Form (E02) that reflects the phased retirement. This form is included with the other documents that go to the Provost and the Board of Trustees.
6. Once the request is approved by the Provost and Board of Trustees, the Dean’s Office contacts the unit. The completed documents reside in the faculty member’s SPF. 
7. The faculty member should work with their Academic Unit Leader/Unit Director and payroll officer to ensure the payroll assignment reflects the phased retirement agreement.
8. Before requesting phased retirement, please be sure to check with the HR Retirement officers by contacting retirement@uky.edu. 

Fair Labor Standards Act Compliance and Phased Retirement

On March 8, 2017, Associate Provost G.T. Lineberry and HR Director/Compensation Debbie Carwile met with CAFE department chairs and unit directors to discuss the FLSA. 

The UK policy on faculty and the FLSA is as follows:
The only title series on which FLSA has an impact is the Research Title Series.

This means that Research Title Series faculty, particularly those on phased retirement, must meet the minimum $47,476 threshold in order to remain salaried. Research Title Series faculty whose phased retirement assignments fall below $47,476 must be paid hourly.

The FLSA has no impact on faculty in any title series in post-retirement positions.