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Remuneration Committee

Remuneration Committee Overview

The Remuneration Committee determines and reviews annually the salaries and employment terms and conditions of the Senior Management Group and Senior Academic Managers.

The Committee is chaired by Dr Len O'Hagan, Pro-Chancellor. It meets three times per year and reports directly to Senate, the University’s Governing Body.

Speakers

Membership

The current membership of the University’s Remuneration Committee is set out below:

Pro-Chancellors * Dr Len O'Hagan (Chair) and Ms Orla Corr
Pro-Chancellor and Chair of Senate * Dr Stephen Kingon
Honorary Treasurer * Mr Adrian Doran
External member of Senate * Ms Mairead Regan
Co-opted Member Sir Gerry Loughran

* Members of Senate, the University’s Governing Body.

In Attendance

A number of senior officers attend Remuneration Committee meetings as required. These officers are not members of the Committee and are not present for any discussion relating to their salary or terms and conditions of employment.

Details are set out below:

President and Vice-Chancellor Professor Sir Ian Greer
University Secretary Mr Alistair Finlay
Vice-President and Chief People Officer Ms Gillian Magee
Committee Secretariat

The University Secretary acts as Secretary to the Committee. The Committee is serviced by the University Secretary's Office.

Terms of reference

Terms of Reference

The Remuneration Committee’s Terms of Reference are as set out below:

  1. To determine and to review annually, on behalf of the Senate, the salaries and employment terms and conditions of the Senior Management Group and Senior Academic Managers.

    The Senior Management Group currently includes:
    • President and Vice-Chancellor
    • Pro-Vice-Chancellors
    • Vice-Presidents and University Secretary
    • Professional Services Directors
    Senior Academic Managers currently include:
    • Heads of School
    • Dean of the Graduate School
    • Directors of the GRI Institutes

    Such other senior officers as designated by the Senate from time to time.

  2. To keep under review the Senior Salaries Scheme, taking due account of wider developments within both higher education and the wider economy.
  3. To oversee severance arrangements for members of the Senior Management Group and Senior Academic Managers, in the context of specific guidance from the University’s sponsoring Department and its own policy governing all severance packages, to identify boundaries of delegated authority for agreeing packages and to determine settlements in excess of pre-agreed limits.
  4. To consider and advise on any matters concerning the terms of appointment and conditions of service of any senior officers defined in (a) above when referred to it by the President and Vice-Chancellor or the Pro-Chancellors.
  5. To consider, endorse and monitor performance against the approved key objectives of the Senior Management Group.
  6. To provide an Annual Report for consideration and approval by Senate.
  7. To promote the University’s responsibilities for equality and diversity by ensuring that relevant issues are given full consideration in all matters relating to the remuneration of all staff falling within the remit of the Committee.
Meetings for 2023/24

Schedule of Meetings for 2023/24

The Remuneration Committee Schedule of Meetings for 2023/24 is set out below:

2023 12 December 2023
2024 5 March 2024
29 October 2024
10 December 2024
Remuneration for Vice-Chancellor

Remuneration of President and Vice-Chancellor

Professor Sir Ian Greer was appointed as President and Vice-Chancellor with effect from 1 August 2018, following an extensive global search for the best qualified person to lead Queen’s University Belfast.

Professor Sir Greer’s remuneration package is determined by the Remuneration Committee and is commensurate with the size of the institution, its budget and the scale of its operations. Queen’s is a highly complex organisation, making a significant contribution to the economic and social wellbeing of the city and the region, and operating in an increasingly competitive environment which requires the very highest level of leadership.

In determining the package, the Remuneration Committee considered relevant benchmark data for Vice-Chancellors’ pay in universities of similar size and complexity. Accordingly, Professor Sir Ian Greer’s salary is £350,000. The package reflects the complexity and demands of the role and is comparable with the lower-range packages within the Russell Group of Universities. In the interests of openness and transparency, the Vice-Chancellor’s remuneration package is routinely published and publicly available on the University website, in the spirit of the guidance issued by the Committee of University Chairs.

Recent Developments

Higher Education Senior Staff Remuneration Code

Senate has welcomed the new Committee of University Chairs (CUC) Higher Education Senior Staff Remuneration Code. The Code sets out a framework through which institutions can demonstrate that they are being managed in the best interests of their key stakeholders, including staff and students. In this context, Senate has endorsed a number of updates to its current practices in response to evolving best practice across the sector.

Additional Guidance

Additional Guidance

Further information on the role of Remuneration Committees in the Higher Education sector is available as set out below:

Terms of Reference:

(a)  To determine and to review annually, on behalf of the Senate, the salaries and employment terms and conditions of the Senior Management Group and Senior Academic Managers. 
 

The Senior Management Group currently includes:

(i) President and Vice-Chancellor

(ii) Pro-Vice-Chancellors

(iii) Vice-Presidents and the University Secretary

(iv) Professional Services Directors

Senior Academic Managers currently include:

(i) Heads of School

(ii) Dean of the Graduate School

(iii) Directors of the GRI Institutes

Such other senior officers as designated by the Senate from time to time.

 (b)

To keep under review the Senior Salaries Scheme, taking due account of wider developments within both higher education and the wider economy.   

 (c) To oversee severance arrangements for members of the Senior Management Group and Senior Academic Managers, in the context of specific guidance from the University’s sponsoring Department and its own policy governing all severance packages, to identify boundaries of delegated authority for agreeing packages and to determine settlements in excess of pre-agreed limits. 
(d) To consider and advise on any matters concerning the terms of appointment and conditions of service of any senior officers defined in (a) above when referred to it by the President and Vice-Chancellor or the Pro-Chancellors. 
(e) To consider, endorse and monitor performance against the approved key objectives of the Senior Management Group. 
 (f) To provide an Annual Report for consideration and approval by Senate. 
 (g)

To promote the University’s responsibilities for equality and diversity by ensuring that relevant issues are given full consideration in all matters relating to the remuneration of all staff falling within the remit of the Committee.

Membership:

Composition Current Members
Chair:  Pro-Chancellor  Dr L O'Hagan
Ex Officio: 

Pro-Chancellor and Chair of Senate 

Pro-Chancellor

Dr S Kingon

Ms O Corr

Honorary Treasurer  Mr A Doran
Other Members:  Lay member of Senate Ms M Regan 
  Co-opted member Sir G Loughran
In Attendance: 


President and Vice-Chancellor  Professor Sir I Greer
University Secretary Mr A Finlay
Chief People and Culture Officer Ms G Magee
Relevant University Officers  As Required 

Operational Arrangements:

(i) A Pro-Chancellor shall chair each meeting of the Committee.

(ii) The lay member of Senate shall be appointed by the Nominations Committee.

(iii) Individual officers shall withdraw from any meeting when their specific salaries or conditions of service are under consideration.

Quorum: 3 members
Serviced by: University Secretary's Office
Reports to: Senate
Receives reports from: N/A

Updated: January 2024