The Budget Office is responsible for maintaining position control, the tracking of positions within the University. Positions are linked to jobs while employee contracts are associated with individuals. Positions may be permanent or temporary, full-time or part-time, filled or vacant. An employee contract by the vehicle in which an individual is placed in a position. When an employee leaves one job for another at Eastern, their position number changes.

The Personnel Authorization Request (PAR) Form initiates all transactions related to positions. A PAR is required to establish a new position, delete a position, or modify an existing position. Examples of modifying a position include: changing the source of funding; changing the percentage split for employees paid from more than one account; or adding money to a position as a result of a desk audit, temporary upgrade, or stipend. A PAR is also required to establish a temporary help position.

The PAR must be approved by the fiscal agent of the budget department (the department paying for the employee's services). In addition, vice presidential approval is required to change a position's title, source of funding (appropriated, revenue bond), work department or budget department or to upgrade a position as a result of a desk audit. Presidential approval is required to establish a new position, change the category (i.e., civil service to administrative) or to provide a salary/equity/market increase outside the regular annual salary increase process.

Position control data is maintained in the University's automated Personnel/Position Control/Payroll (PPP) system. In the Financial Record System (FRS), personal services dollars are budgeted in total (line item 2000), while in the PPP system, personal services dollars are budgeted by position (Fxxx, Bxxx, Cxxx, Axxx, Mxxx, G000, T000, D000, V000, S000, X004, X000).

Positions are further classified as "individual", "group" or "reserve". Only one employee can be budgeted to an individual position while one or more employees can be budgeted to a group position. Employees are not budgeted to reserve positions. These positions are instead used for budgeting personal services funds that will be distributed to employees (e.g., overtime/differentials) or for contingency use.

All appropriated and revenue bond accounts have a designated reserve position. When personal services funds are needed for an action indicated on a PAR form (e.g., new position, desk audit, temporary upgrade), they are taken from the reserve position. Likewise, when budgeted funds are not used on a position (e.g., vacant position), these funds are automatically lapsed back to the reserve at the end of each month.

Not all accounts will have their own reserve position. Usually there is one reserve position per administrative unit or grouping of accounts over which one manager has control. Click here for a listing of the accounts associated with each reserve position .

Fiscal agents should monitor budgeted line items and positions each month. The Financial Records System (FRS) provides monthly reports, accessible through e~Print, which provide a summary of expenditures by line item. These reports provide summary personal services data. For detailed position data, the PPP system generates a monthly report called the Personnel Expenditure Summary and Obligations (PESO) report. This report is a budgeting tool which provides detailed tracking of personal services dollars expended and obligated to date in the fiscal year. There is a section at the bottom of the PESO report which reconciles your FRS and PPP statements. Contact the Budget Office at extension 3428 with any questions about interpreting data on the PESO report and the Accounting Office at extension 6446 with questions about FRS reports.