In Kingston, inside the limestone walls of the Royal Military College, an audit team traced the paper trail behind how 260 civilian professors are paid. They found plenty of letters, but few complete records.

Between April 2021 and October 2024, every faculty file reviewed contained a letter from the principal confirming a performance rating and pay action. Yet only 12 of 56 Faculty Assessment Reports were fully filled out and signed. These reports are supposed to justify each professor’s raise, often worth about $3,400 per salary step. Up to 40 percent of faculty can earn double steps or lump sums, but the documentation proving those awards often did not exist.

The audit also found that RMC’s Salary Administration Plan still refers to rules from the 2000s. Pay practices for term teachers, who typically receive one-step increases every renewal, are not mentioned anywhere in the plan. Instead, the Dean’s office has operated on guidance from 2007 and 2008 letters issued by a former principal. Even the administrative allowances paid to senior academics drifted over time: the official Treasury Board rate from 1990 was $4,500, but deans have been receiving $8,000 and vice principals $10,000 since at least 2021, with no updated rationale on file.

Part-time and casual positions were the lone area of full compliance. Their pay matched Treasury Board-approved hourly rates and collective agreements exactly.

By October 2026, management has pledged to fix the gaps—establishing standard procedures, collecting missing reports, and storing records securely. The audit’s message is clear: without proper documentation and up‑to‑date policies, even a federal military university risks losing track of how academic excellence is rewarded.