Analysis for Tuition Reimbursement - Essay Example

ANALYSIS FOR TUITION REIMBURSEMENT It is apparent that the issue of tuition reimbursement would affect the rate at which people enroll for the courses in the program. Essentially, there are various parameters that affect the enrollment of students as far as tuition reimbursement is concerned. The first one is the number of employees in an agency. Another factor is the policy of an agency to offer tuition reimbursement. It is crucial to consider the maximum amount that an agency has committed for each employee. The time for submission of reimbursement is also very crucial when considering the tuition fee. The report is going to analyze all these factors for each agency with respect to their employees who might be interested in enrolling for the course (Grigg & Zenzen, 2009). According to the secondary sources, it is apparent that water departments are committed to ensuring that they have a qualified work force. This is manifested in the manner by which they have committed to reimburse tuition fees to employees who opt to further studies. For example, the City of Carlsbad which has a total number of 65 of employees who are geared towards working in water related matters. The agency has committed to reimburse tuition fees up to a maximum of 60 employees. This is about 92.3% of employees who can ask for the tuition fee reimbursement in each respective year. Consequently, an employee in Carlsbad is eligible to be reimbursed the first $2,500 and 80% of any additional claim that might arise in a respective fiscal year (Grigg & Zenzen, 2009). Another conclusion I can make is that water departments which have less workforce have also decided to invest in education. For example, the City of Encinitas has 24 water employees. According to the policy of the agency, all the water employees are eligible to apply for tuition reimbursement. The qualification for this scheme includes one to be regular full-time employees who further their education during off-duty hours. Employees can apply for tuition reimbursement and related educational expenses up to a maximum of $1,200 per fiscal year. Submission of requests and approval takes place continuously based upon the availability of the funding (Grigg & Zenzen, 2009). Another observation I can make is that even agencies that huge workforce have also invested in financing the education of their employees. The City of Escondido has 726 water employees. In line with institutions policy, all the employees can apply for tuition reimbursement so long as they qualify. The City reimburses 100% of the total tuition fees and other related expenses, up to 1,500 dollars for job-related courses and up to $ 500 for professional development courses per employees each financial year (Grigg & Zenzen, 2009). Some municipals have invested astronomical sums of money. For example, Eastern Municipal Water District has 612 water employees. Successful applicants are eligible for reimbursement that should not exceed $4,200 per year. Elsinore Valley Municipal Water District has 100 water employees. They qualify for educational assistance $2,500 per fiscal year. Encina Wastewater Authority has 56 water employees. They can all apply for tuition reimbursement. EWAs attractive tuition reimbursement scheme quarterly awards systems are geared towards encouraging and reward loyal employees for persistent growth and important contributions (Grigg & Zenzen, 2009). In most cases, these water agencies are not putting a limit on the number of employees who are eligible for tuition reimbursement. For example, Fallbrook Public Utility District has 88 water employees. They can all apply for the tuition reimbursement. The district has a tuition reimbursement fund of up to $2,000 annually for employees interested undertaking approved job-related courses. Helix Water District has water population of 144 employees whereby all of them qualify for tuition reimbursement. The district offers tuition reimbursement of up to $1,000 each semester for job-related classes (Grigg & Zenzen, 2009). Another notable observation is that even the newly established water agencies have adopted the concept of reimbursing their employees tuition money. For example, Leucadia Waste Water District has 152 water employees. The institution offers tuition reimbursement to all of them. The District reimburses up to $2,000 per fiscal year for pre-approved educational expenses. Olivenhain Municipal Water has 77 water employees whereby all of them qualify for tuition reimbursement. The district offers tuition reimbursement of up to $2,000 per fiscal year for pre-approved classes. Orange County Sanitation District has 216 water employees. The tuition and recognition reimbursement programs provide financial assistance for career-related, net training courses and certifications (Grigg & Zenzen, 2009). The concept of tuition reimbursement has spread even to far flung water agencies. For example, Valley Center Municipal Water District has 64 water employees whereby all of them qualify for tuition reimbursement. Tuition reimbursement plan covers 100% of the total tuition cost plus other educational expenditures up to $9,000 each calendar year. Another example is Western Municipal Water District which has 125 employees. The districts voluntary education program offers reasonable costs for tuition, books, registration fees and one-way mileage to the regular status employees for reimbursement for job-related educational courses (Grigg & Zenzen, 2009). ANALYSIS FOR RETIREMENT INFORMATION It is crucial to analyze the information with regards to the retirement of employees in the water industry. This is because older people dont want to retire, and there is not enough younger generation have experience can do the elders job. In Carlsbad City, there is a category of employees known as Miscellaneous Classic Members. These are employees who enter the CalPERS membership initially before November 28, 2011.Apparently, the city has pegged the formula of retirement at 3%@60.It is based on the highest compensation witnessed in the final year (Grigg & Zenzen, 2009). An apparent observation is that a majority of employers have adopted efficient systems of retirement compensation. The city of Encinitas has a unique system of retirement. All normal employees automatically join (CalPERS).This is a California retirement system geared towards public employees. Apparently, vesting is destined to occur after CalPERS credited service of a minimum of 5 years. A closer look at the benefits formulas reveals that one is entitled to average compensation subject to attainment of an age of 55 years. The rate of compensation would be highly dependent on social security coverage (Grigg & Zenzen, 2009). It is true apparent that many employers prefer the services of a third party to implement the system of retirement compensation. The city of Escondido has contracted CalPERS to provide retirement services. The arrangement is such that the employer and the employee share the cost. Under the first tier, the compensation is calculated at 3% for an employee who has reached 60 years. The employees average annual contribution rate should be 8%. Under the second tier, the compensation is calculated at 2% for an employee who has reached 60 years. The employees average contribution rate for three years should be 7%. Under the third tier, the compensation is calculated at 2% for an employee who has reached 62 years. The employees annual contribution rate for 3 years should be 6.25% (Grigg & Zenzen, 2009). It is the policy of the City of La Mesa that all its public employees be members of CalPERS. The compensation formula is normally pegged on the year the employee was hired. In the Eastern Municipal Water District, the retirement benefit of employees is based on the age and the year one was hired. In Encina Wastewater authority, the public employees are part of the retirement scheme provided by Public Employment Retirement System better known as PERS. The retirement benefits are a paid based on the length of service, salary and the classification of respective employees (Grigg & Zenzen, 2009). It is also apparent that some employers use various parameters to determine retirement compensation of their employees. The Vista Irrigation District has a unique system of retirement where the rate of compensation proportionally varies with the age of retirement. Apparently it is 2% at 55 years whereby the compensation is averaged for a period of 12 months. Western Municipal Water District provides retirement compensation at a rate of the average salary of the last three years. The same principle is applied by Yuima Municipal Water District. An Elijo Joint Powers Authority has its retirement compensation package pegged at 2% for both 60 and 62 years (Grigg & Zenzen, 2009). CONCLUSION The majority of employers have adopted the concept of reimbursing their employees tuition money. Water agencies have adopted this concept to the letter. The water agencies have also adopted the modern retirement schemes. The parameters which are considered in determining the retirement package include number of years in service, the classification of the last employment and even the organization in question. References Grigg, N., & Zenzen, M. (2009). The water workforce recruiting & retaining high-performance employees. Denver, Colo.: American Water Works Association. Read More