New Chapter Pay Delivery: Our Shared Priority

To our Valued Employees,

We are pleased to share this important update about our plans for upcoming pay reviews.

We recognize your effort and hard work in helping us to deliver on our Promise – the same promise that each of you live out each day by providing incredible care to our staff, patients and families.

We began a complete review of pay across the Cook Children’s system early in fiscal year 2025. The review is a significant undertaking, has the full support of our Senior Executive Team, and will be fully completed in the summer of 2026.

We're not looking for a quick fix; we're building a sustainable path forward that will strengthen our ability to attract and retain the best talent. We are working on a number of changes to strengthen our compensation system, including the first, in a series of steps – delivering pay alignment and merit increases.

A Phased, Intentional Approach

Here's a look at the progress we've made through September in our total review of pay:

• Late 2024: Across-the-board pay adjustments to most employees – nursing and non-nursing – were made, in addition to performance-based merit increases and Care Share awards. The majority of our employees received one or two pay increases during that time.
• May 2025: Modernized our pay ranges to ensure nearly all employees are eligible for increases in base pay rates. This change impacted thousands of employees directly and improved our ability to hire new team members and provide meaningful promotional increases.

We are not stopping there.

Though we have begun with nursing, our focus, now, for all employees is on 1) awarding earned merit increases based on performance, 2) ensuring pay rates are appropriately aligned and correcting for any inconsistencies that may have resulted from the changes noted above and 3) adjusting pay rates based on changes in market.

Merit Increases (November 2025)
Performance based merit increases will be effective Nov.16, 2025.  As a result of the pay range update in May 2025, we were able to move employees, who have pay rates beyond the range max, to a position within the range so that they may receive increases to their base pay rates.

Pay Alignment Review and Adjustment (February 2026)
We are beginning the process of reviewing pay alignment to identify and address. Pay increases will be granted in February 2026, where needed.

Market Adjustment Review (Summer 2026)
After this year’s merit awards are distributed, we will immediately begin conducting a reassessment of our roles' market rates. This work will lead to individual market adjustments, where appropriate, in early summer 2026. 

Over the next several months, you will hear more about how we are building and sustaining a robust and effective pay program – taking us into 2027 and beyond. An intentional, methodical approach ensures that each individual’s pay is in line with the market and our values. This new process will be continuous, allowing us to keep pace with changing market conditions.  That means, each year, as part of a regular cadence of review, we will closely watch for changes in both the external market and internal conditions to inform future decisions about pay. By doing this annually, we hope to build your trust in the process and an understanding of our pay practices.