CLARIFICATIONS TO SINCLAIR POLICY V.3.2, "HOURS OF WORK AND OVERTIME"

The statements on this page are clarifications to the College's position on "flex-time" and "comp time." Neither of these is a "new" policy. Both are statements of current practice. The wording was developed by the Support Staff and Administrative Mutual Gains Teams in 1997 and 1996 respectively. They are provided here for your information. Please contact the Office of Human Resources, x2514, if you have any questions.

"Flex" Time

Sinclair Community College does not have a formal "flex" time policy that allows employees to schedule their work hours around a core period during the workday at their own discretion. Therefore, flex-time is not permitted.

However, there are times when a flexible work week is essential or indicated by the responsibilities of the department or division. A "flexible work week" is defined as one in which one or a group of non-exempt (support staff) employees work forty hours, but the hours fall outside the standard 8 to 5, Monday through Friday.

Note: By law, professional and administrative staff (exempt) are paid by the job rather than by the hour. They are expected to put in the hours required to get the job done, and without additional compensation if that results in more than 40 hours in a week. They are also expected to work hours that fit the norms and/or needs of their respective departments.

The situations that may result in a flexible work week include:

Need to provide customer service at hours outside of the standard. This could refer to internal or external customers. Examples are Sinclair Conference Center, the bookstore, various Student Services departments, facilities management, campus police, Academic Advising, etc. Employee situations should be taken into account and accommodated as much as possible when departments need to flex their hours or the hours of some of their employees in order to achieve their purpose. However, departments do not flex their schedules on a regular basis to accommodate employees except as shown below.

Need to accommodate someone who qualifies under the family and medical leave policy for temporary or on-going scheduling that allows for therapy, etc. Employees are expected to schedule their "flex" hours in advance and have the approval of their supervisors so that the workflow of the department is maintained.

The "rules of thumb" are:

A non-standard schedule must be planned and agreed upon in advance, with sufficient lead time for planning office coverage and for arranging personal schedules.

A department that is planning to "flex" hours should take into account the effect on other departments and the College as a whole (a system) whose functions are interdependent.

Supervisors are not required nor expected to accommodate habitual tardiness by "flexing" an employee's schedule. It may be indicated occasionally when there are special circumstances.

Supervisors are not expected to accommodate employees who wish to attend classes (or attend to other personal business) during regulary scheduled work hours. The Board-approved Tuition Reimbursement policy of the College also prohibits the attending of classes when an employee is expected to be at work.

"Comp" Time

Sinclair Community College does not have a formal "comp" time policy that allows support staff (non-exempt) employees to take time off for overtime worked. Therefore, "comp" time is not permitted.

Note: By law, professional and administrative staff (exempt) are paid by the job rather than by the hour. They are expected to put in the hours required to get the job done, and without additional compensation if that results in more than 40 hours in a week. They are also expected to work hours that fit the norms and/or needs of their respective departments.

Any hours over 40 worked by a support staff employee in a given work week must be compensated by paying time and a half. Overtime is anticipated and planned for during the annual budgeting process. In addition, it must be scheduled in advance and have the approval of the appropriate vice president before it is worked.

Supervisors and employees can avoid getting into overtime situations by carefully managing their time and by planning ahead.

When a support staff employee works overtime when a supervisor requests it because of a need within the department, the employee can "compensate" by taking an equal amount of time off during that same work week . If that isn't possible, then the employee must be compensated monetarily at the 1.5x rate.

Support staff employees may not work "voluntary" overtime. By law (Fair Labor Standards Act) supervisors may not permit employees to work voluntary overtime.

Because the overtime regulations are based on a 40 hour week, lunch times must be considered when assessing the number of hours worked. Supervisors should not request that support staff employees skip lunch hours without compensation, and employees may not voluntarily skip their lunch hours. In addition, supervisors may not allow support staff employees to voluntarily skip their lunch hours. Lunch hours can be established and/or "staggered" to accommodate the needs of the department.