Pay negotiations at AU

As an employee, you can submit proposals for pay negotiation once a year. The next time is between 1 - 24 February 2025. Pay negotiations will then take place from March to June between your manager and either your union representative or yourself if you have the option to negotiate on your own behalf. You will receive an answer once the negotiation has been completed at the individual units.


As an employee, your salary is automatically adjusted in accordance with the collective agreements. In addition, every year it is possible to be considered for a local pay increase within AU’s pay negotiation budget.

Your preparation

As an employee, you can make it known that you would like to have your salary negotiated by filling out a pay negotiation form in mitHR. Here, you can write a brief motivation for why you believe you should have a pay increase.

You will find information about the local framework for the negotiation on your local pay negotiation page below:


How do you fill in the pay negotiation form?

  • You find the pay negotiation form in "Flows and forms" in mitHR.
  • In the form, you will provide your motivation/reasons for a pay increase.
  • You can click "Save as draft" at any point under "More actions", and when you are ready to send, click "Done".
  • You receive a confirmation for your submission via your AU email. 
  • Going forward you can find your completed motivation in mitHR under "Flows and forms" for the next 18 months. Please note that your submission from 'Pay Negotiation 2024' is not available in mitHR. If needed, you can request a copy from your local HR department."

Your form will now be shared with the manager responsible for the pay negotiation and union representative (unless you negotiate on your own behalf) who will use the information during the pay negotiations.

Video guide

In this step-by-step guide you are guided in how to fill out the pay negotiation form:

In the video, we mention that you can access your submission in mitHR for 18 months. Please note that this does not apply to your submission for 'Pay Negotiation 2024'. If you need to view your submission, you can request the text from your local HR department.


Guides for other scenarios

Are you unable to access the form?

If you do not have the "Annual Pay Negotiation" form under "My flows and forms", please contact your local HR department.

Multiple paid assignments

If you have multiple paid assignments at AU, please note that the process for providing information for pay negotiations is slightly different.

If you wish to negotiate the salary for one of your assignments, please submit your motivation using the pay negotiation form in myHR. At the top of the motivation field, kindly specify which assigment your submission pertains to. For example, you can write "Motivation for salary improvement for my assignment: Laboratory Technician in Biomedicine."

If you wish to negotiate the salary for two or more assignments, please do not use the form in myHR. Instead, contact your local HR department.

Have you regretted sending your form?

If you have sent your form too early, please ask your local HR department to reopen the form.

What is up for negotiation?

Pay negotiation budget

Prior to the annual pay negotiations, the senior management team – following discussion in the Main Liaison Committee (HSU) – decides on an overall pay negotiation budget. The budget for the 2024 pay negotiations has been fixed at max 0.5% of the previous year's payroll costs. The dean and the university director may decide to give departments/schools (Arts)/­centres/­administration centres and administrative divisions pay negotiation budgets which are lower than 0,5%.
 

Two types of supplements can be negotiated

  • Supplement for qualifications: The supplement relates to the qualifications of the individual employee, e.g. education, experience, results, collaborative skills, innovativeness, readiness to change and commitment.
  • One-off bonuses: One-off bonuses are granted for an exceptional and important contribution in a specific period.
     

Is it possible to negotiate anything other than these supplements?

For certain groups of employees, a change of the base salary/new pay grade can be negotiated. This is set out in the trade union agreement or collective agreement applying to these groups.

You cannot negotiate extra holidays, additional pension or funding for supplementary education.

Who will be negotiating my salary?

Your union representative/executive pay negotiator will negotiate on your behalf. Some employees have the option of negotiating on their own behalf, that is

  • Managers
  • Professors
  • Part-time lecturers
  • Employees on individual contracts
  • Special and senior consultants
  • State-employeed journalists
  • Administrative officers, laboratory technicians and members of IT staff who are covered by the trade union agreement with HK (the national union of commercial and clerical employees) in specific positions with job content and salary level corresponding to salary grade 35 and 36.

This is governed by the collective agreements.