Staff Handbook
Attendance and Work Schedules
Work Schedules
The defined workweek begins and ends on Saturday at 12:00 midnight. Most Staff employees work a normal week that consists of five, 8-hour days, Monday through Friday. Typically, university office hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Many departments keep different work schedules. In some departments, you may have the option of working an alternative or flexible work schedule. Consult your immediate supervisor for information about your work schedule.
The importance of accurate recordkeeping cannot be overestimated. The federal regulation toward timekeeping is strict and regularly enforced. Failing to record actual hours worked is a serious violation of employment. Supervisors who permit or encourage employees to record anything other than actual hours worked and time off taken are in violation of university policy and state and federal law.
- PAO and PAU Staff and Support and Service Staff are responsible for recording all hours worked and time off taken using the university-provided timekeeping system at least weekly.
- PAE Staff are to use the ePTO system to record the use of PTO and other paid time off benefits at least monthly.
- Supervisors must approve and sign each employee’s time record before submitting it to Payroll.
Staff are responsible for recording all hours worked and time off taken.
Absences
Regular attendance is a condition of employment.
You should report any anticipated absence to your supervisor ahead of time. In an emergency, let your supervisor know as soon as possible the reason for the absence and when you expect to return.
If you are absent for three consecutive working days and do not notify your supervisor, you may be terminated.
If you are absent for five consecutive working days and do not notify your supervisor, you will be terminated.
Personal Emergency
In the case of personal emergency, advance notice to use accrued time off may not be possible; however, you are responsible for notifying your supervisor as soon as possible. Discuss the situation with your supervisor when you call so that an appropriate decision can be made.
Department heads and supervisors are authorized to give you a reasonable rest period during the workday. Under normal conditions, this rest period will not exceed a 15-minute break during each half day of work. A rest period must not interfere with the efficiency of the work unit. You cannot skip a rest period to:
- Compensate for a late arrival to work
- Compensate for an early departure from work
- Accumulate time
PAE employees are exempt under the definitions of the Fair Labor Standards Act and do not receive overtime pay. To fulfill your professional work duties, you may have to work extra hours. If you work extra hours for a sustained period because of extraordinary or seasonal workloads, the department may authorize additional time off.
You may be required to work overtime unless a personal emergency prevents you from doing so. Your supervisor will try to give you advance notice of overtime assignments and must authorize all overtime before you actually work. You may not authorize your own overtime. If you work overtime you must be compensated according to the provisions of the Overtime Pay policy. Overtime is compensated by compensatory time or pay. Discuss the method of payment with your supervisor and have any questions resolved before you work overtime. For details about overtime eligibility, usage, and limits, refer to the overtime provisions for your functional group.
If you work for a secondary department, you must be compensated by overtime payment if the work time of the combined jobs exceeds 40 hours in a workweek. For details, contact your supervisor.
When departments require overtime-eligible staff to perform a work assignment, attend class, etc., at a location away from the campus of their normal work assignment, they may be eligible for pay for the time spent traveling to the activity. The principles which apply in determining whether time spent in travel is work time depend upon (1) the kind of travel involved and (2) when the travel occurs. For specific information refer to the policy provisions for your employee group.
