Step Pay Program for State of Colorado Employees

Resources

• Please see the DHR Pay Plan webpage for the FY 2025-26 Pay Plan
• Visit the Your Step Pay Explained webpage for helpful resources on understanding the State's Step Pay Program
   

Frequently Asked Questions

The Fiscal Year 2025-26 Pay Plan can assist individuals in identifying their job class series, classification, and pay rate in relation to their step placement. Individuals who have any questions about their specific time-in-series calculation or pay rate, should contact their State agency human resource professional.

General Questions

Why is the Step Pay Program important and how did we get here?

On Oct. 13, 2022, an agreement was made between the State of Colorado and Colorado Workers for Innovative and New Solutions (COWINS) regarding changes to State employee wages and the State’s classified employee pay structure.

As part of the agreement regarding wages, the parties committed to:

• Making employee compensation at the State of Colorado competitive with market compensation;
• Addressing any racial and gender pay disparities in State employment; and
• Complying with Colorado’s Equal Pay for Equal Work Act.

COWINS members voted with 99% support to ratify the amended agreement regarding wages on Oct. 29, 2022.

Following ratification, Governor Polis and COWINS sought funding and approval from the General Assembly to begin implementing this exceptional improvement in employee compensation.

On April 29, 2024, following the Legislature’s approval of the FY 2024-25 State budget, the Step Pay Program became effective on July 1, 2024.

Upon implementation of the program, the salaries of eligible classified employees in the State Personnel System were increased to the appropriate step rate. 

What should I expect with the Step Pay Program moving forward? 

Moving forward, these increases are granted annually on July 1 of each year, depending on legislative approval.

• Each year, the salary increases bargained by the State of Colorado and COWINS in the Partnership Agreement are included in the Governor’s budget. The State Legislature then votes whether to approve this budget, after which the increases are applied on July 1st of the new fiscal year.
• All classified employees within the State Personnel System are eligible for the step pay program. Eligible employees whose pay rates are below the step rate for their pay grade will be increased to their calculated step rate. 
• No Employee shall experience a decrease in pay if they earn more than the wage step for their pay grade and time-in-job series (Defined in the FAQ below).

What are some benefits of the Step Pay Program?

The Step Pay Program addresses pay equity issues, reduces bias, and improves employee pay progression through the pay range. This program will help to:

• Recognize and reward State employees for years of service, based on time-in-job series;
• Incentivize Coloradans to identify the State system as an ideal employer of choice;
• Promote transparency;
• Provide employees with clarity regarding potential future income opportunities;
• Improve organizational budget forecasting.

All Employees shall receive a Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) of 2.5% (formerly known as an ATB) on July 1, 2025. If employees are also eligible for a step increase, will they receive both? 

Yes. After the 2.5% COLA is applied, the salaries of employees that are still below the appropriate step rate will be increased to the step rate.

When will step increases be applied moving forward?

Step increases will be applied annually on July 1, based on an employee’s completed years in their current series as of June 30. Salary increases are not provided on employee anniversary dates of hire.

Eligibility

Who is eligible for step pay?

All classified employees in the Executive Branch and Institutions of Higher Education are eligible, except employees in positions classified under the Medical Pay Plan and State Troopers, whose compensation is set by statute. 

Non-classified staff are not eligible for the Step Pay Program.

Does step pay apply to non-classified staff who fall under the Executive Pay Plan or non-classified staff who are in the executive branch including Institutes of Higher Education?

No, step pay is only for classified employees in the State Personnel System.

How do employees identify their current job classification, job series or current pay rate?

Employees can find their classification information in their offer letter, position description, or performance review. Once the classification is located, employees can view their current job series by going to the DHR job classifications website and clicking on the classification description for their current job classification. 

For example, if the employee’s classification is an Accountant I, the Accountant classification description is the job series comprised of the Accountant I, Accountant II, Accountant III and Accountant IV classification levels.

Pay rate information can be found on an employee's current pay stub. If employees have questions about their current job classification or series, they should contact their State agency's human resources professionals.
 

Time-In-Job Series

What does time-in-job series mean?

Time-in-job series or time-in-series means an employee’s total completed number of years occupying a position in their current job series. The number of whole years is calculated as of June 30th each year.

• Important: This is not a total calculation of time spent in state service, which is referred to as years-in-service, unless the entirety of the employee’s time with the state is within the same job class series.
• Helpful definitions can be found at the bottom of this page.  

A job series, sometimes referred to as class series or job class series, is a predefined  group of job classifications with related responsibilities, such as Accountants, Client Care Aides, and Nurses. Each job series may contain different levels of job classifications. 

• EXAMPLE 1: An employee was previously classified as an Accountant I, promoted to Accountant II, and promoted again to Accountant III. Since each of those classifications are within the Accountant job series, all time spent in them will be included in the employee’s time-in-job series.
• EXAMPLE 2: An employee was previously classified as an Accountant I, transferred to a position in the Analyst III classification, and then transferred back into a position in the Accountant III classification. In this case, only the time spent in the Accountant I and Accountant III classifications will be included in the employee’s time-in-job series because Analyst III is not one of the classifications in the employee’s current job series. 

Time-in-job series is calculated based on the number of full years the employee has completed as of June 30th each year. For example, an employee with three years and eleven months in their current job series will have a time-in-job series calculation of three.

• Employees can view their current job series by going to the DHR job classifications website and clicking on the classification description for their current job title.

What about my time spent in a Temporary Aide job or Trainee Series?

Time in a temporary position or the temporary aide job classification does not count toward time-in-job series (with certain exceptions for employees hired prior to January 1999). 

Time spent in a “universal” Trainee series (for example, State Service Trainee or State Service Professional Trainee) is counted as long as:

• The employee moved directly from their Trainee series to a new job series without a break-in-service (continuity of service). The Trainee time will apply towards this new series for step calculation - as long as the employee is still within that series.
• If there is a break-in-service between the Trainee series and the new job series, trainee time will not count. 

For any questions about specific time-in-series calculations or pay rates, please contact your State agency human resource professional.

Why was time-in-job series selected as the metric to determine step placement rather than overall tenure with the State?

The State of Colorado and COWINS came together in the fall of 2022 to negotiate wages, per the Partnership Agreement. In those negotiations the Parties agreed that the new step program would be based on time-in-job series.

Step Placement

How are employees placed and steps applied?

Step rates are calculated on June 30th of each year, for application on July 1st as follows:

Time-in-job series	Step	Step Rate
0–2 years	Step 0	Pay range minimum
3–4 years	Step 3	Pay range minimum + 5%
5–7 years	Step 5	Step 3 + 5%
8–9 years	Step 8	Step 5 + 5%
10–11 years	Step 10	Pay range midpoint
12–14 years	Step 12	Step 10 + 2%
15–19 years	Step 15	Step 12 + 2%
20–24 years	Step 20	Step 15 + 2%
25 years or more	Step 25	Step 20 + 2%

Please note: step rates are calculated based on a percentage increase from the pay range minimums and midpoints listed in the State’s Pay Plan. They are not a percentage increase from an employee’s base salary at a previous step. 

How does step pay affect employees with 25 years time-in-job series or more?

Placement in the new pay plan will be based on time in their current job series. Employees with more than 25 years of service in series receive any approved COLA as a base building increase up to the pay range maximum of the pay range for their job class.

If an employee's base salary is above the amount listed for step placement, will the employee’s base pay be reduced to the salary for the step based on their time-in-job series?

No, the employee’s salary will not be reduced as a result of step pay. 

What if an employee’s job title changed, but the job class did not, do they get credit for the years in the same job series?

Yes, because job titles (sometimes also called working titles) may be different from the job series classification. For example, HR Specialist III positions may have a job title of “Compensation Analyst", "Labor Relations Specialist”, or “Benefits Specialist”.

If an employee left State employment and returned to a classification in the same job series as their classification prior to their departure, is the time previously served counted for time-in-job series?

Yes, the time in the previous job series will count if it is the same job series the employee returned to. Time-in-job series is cumulative and does not require continuous time in the job series.

If an employee is performing the same job duties as a prior position, but the classification or job series are different, will time in both roles count?

No. Time-in-job series is based on an employee’s current job series, and not job duties. This methodology is a result of negotiations between the State and COWINS, and the State is obligated to apply it consistently.

If an employee was promoted to a different class in a different job series and the prior job class and job series were substantially related, will the employee receive credit for time in the prior series for step placement?

Only employees whose classification and series has changed as a direct result of System Maintenance Studies or have been in one of the Trainee classifications may receive time-in-job series credit for their previous role(s).

Generally speaking, time-in-job series is calculated based on time in the employee’s current job series.

Will time-in-job series include the time spent in a job series that has been consolidated or deconsolidated? 

It depends. When the Department of Personnel & Administration (DPA) conducts a system maintenance study, it is possible that a job series will be consolidated or deconsolidated. A system maintenance study (SMS) is a structured review of all or a portion of the State’s classification system.

Typically, if an employee was directly impacted by a system maintenance study, time spent in a deconsolidated or consolidated series will count towards that employee’s time-in-job series, provided that:

• The employee was an active State employee at the time the SMS was implemented;
• The employee’s job classification or pay range was directly impacted as part of the SMS (in other words, the change was not part of a reallocation by the employee’s State entity, but rather a part of the SMS process led by DPA);
• The employee’s current job series is the same as it was on the date immediately following implementation of the SMS.

Helpful Definitions

• Base Pay - An employee’s salary without premium pay. Synonymous with base salary.
• Classification or Class - A group of positions whose essential character (general nature of the work and responsibilities) warrants the same pay grade, classification title, and similar qualifications for entry into the class. (For example: Accountant I, Accountant II, Accountant III, etc.)
• Class Code - A unique six -character designation assigned to each class and used to identify that class in occupational listings. As a result of system maintenance studies, class codes may be:
  • Newly created - This indicates a newly created class.
  • Converted to – This indicates that an existing class was converted to a new class. Typically, when an existing class is converted to a new class the old class is abolished.
  • Abolished – This indicates a discontinued class code. Abolished classes are not converted into a new class. These class codes are informally known as ‘legacy codes’. 
• Class Conversion - Automatic movement of a current title and grade to a new title and grade. 
• Class Description - The official written description of a class series and its levels as issued by the Department of Personnel. 
• Class Placement - Portion of a system maintenance study in which all affected positions are individually placed in the proper new class. 
• Class Series - A group of classes engaged in similar occupational work but representing different levels. Exception: time in trainee class series in occupational groups is included for time in targeted class series. (For example: Accounting, Animal Care, Program Management, etc.)
  • Newly created - This indicates a newly created series.
  • Converted To – This indicates that an existing class series was converted to a new class series. Typically, when an existing class series is converted to a new class series the old class series is abolished. These class series are informally known as ‘legacy series’. 
• Equal Pay for Equal Work Act - Requires employers to include compensation in job postings, notify employees of promotional opportunities, and keep job description and wage rate records.
• Job Series - Means the same as “class series”.
• Legacy Series - Informal reference to a job series that has been abolished (usually as the result of a system maintenance study). Time in legacy series may count towards time in an employee’s current job series.
• Pay Grade - Reflects the minimum and maximum base salary rates for work in a specific class. Individual salaries vary within the ranges depending on individual movements in accordance with these provisions. Synonymous with pay level, range, or band. 
• Pay Plans - Listing of all pay grades and their corresponding ranges for occupational groups. 
• Pay Plan (Medical) - The pay plan that applies to classified positions in specific class series within the Health Care Services Occupational Group. The statutory lid for the class series pay ranges is greater than the general statutory lid. Employees occupying these positions are compensated based solely on performance as established in the required annual contract.
• Pay Rate - Actual base pay or salary amount.
• Skills-based Hiring - Helps employers identify candidates who may not have formal education or traditional career paths, but have the right mix of skills for the job.
• Total Years in Job Series or Time-in-Job Series - An employee’s total number of years occupying a position in a job classification or job classifications within a job series, excluding temporary assignments.