POLICY NO: 3-14
VCCS POLICY NO: 3.9, 3.14
EFFECTIVE DATE: 07/16/1990
REVISED DATE: 05/21/2020

  1. Purpose:

    To establish the terms and conditions of working hours and leaves of absence for administrative faculty, professional faculty, teaching faculty, and classified employees of the college; and to establish procedures for the processing of time records for wage employees and Work-Study student employees.

  2. Definitions:

    Administrative faculty: individuals who perform work related to the management of the educational and general activities of the college, department, or division, who are normally employed on a twelve-month basis beginning on July 1 and ending on June 30, and who are assigned a faculty rank for which they qualify.

    Call-back time: time spent responding to a call requiring the performance of duties after work hours, which does not include travel time to and from assignments at the employee’s regular place of work, and which begins when the employee reaches the place where the work is to be performed and ends when the employee completes the required work.

    Classified employees: employees who occupy positions within the occupational classes that are listed in the Commonwealth’s Compensation Plan, and who are covered by the Virginia Personnel Act as found in Chapter 10, Title 2.1 of the Code of Virginia, once they have completed the probationary period.

    Compensatory leave and pay: compensation of leave or pay that is granted to employees covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act (non-exempt) and certain exempt employees as outlined in Section IV of this policy, who have worked additional hours in a workweek; having worked on an official office closing day, a holiday, or a scheduled day off; or when a holiday falls on an employee’s scheduled day off; and when the hours worked in the workweek are 40 hours or less. Compensatory leave and pay are earned on an hour-for-hour basis.

    Exempt employees: salaried employees who occupy positions whose duties and responsibilities are such that they are not subject to the minimum wage and overtime pay provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

    Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA): a federal law enacted by the United States Congress in 1938, which sets minimum wage, overtime pay, equal pay, recordkeeping, and child labor standards for employees who are covered by the Act and are not exempt from specific provisions.

    Hours worked: time spent in activities for the benefit of the college, including hours on duty, mandatory staff meetings, and call-back time.

    Immediate supervisor: the first-level supervisor to an employee.

    Non-exempt employees: salaried and wage employees who occupy positions whose duties and responsibilities are such that they are subject to the minimum wage and overtime pay provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

    On-call time: time spent waiting, at the worksite, to receive a work assignment outside of the standard work schedule as described in Section III.C. of this policy, and which does not include time during which employees are simply required to wear a pager or travel to or from call-back work assignments.

    Overtime leave and pay: compensation of leave or pay that is granted to an employee, covered by FLSA (non-exempt), who physically works more than 40 hours in any workweek, which is compensated at the rate of “time and a half.”

    Professional faculty: individuals holding non-teaching positions with continuing responsibilities, employed on a twelve-month basis beginning July 1 and ending on June 30, who are assigned a faculty rank for which they qualify, such as librarians, counselors, coordinators, assistant coordinators, and administrative officer-level positions.

    Reasonable break time: (For nursing mothers only) includes the amount of time needed to physically express milk and the time it takes to walk to and from the designated lactation space, to prepare equipment and clothing for expressing the milk, to clean up afterwards, and to secure the milk in a refrigerator or cooler. Frequency of breaks needed may vary, but generally two or three times during an eight hour shift may be expected.

    Teaching faculty: full-time teaching faculty (including program heads) who are on nine-month or ten-month appointments that include the fall and spring semesters of the academic year, or twelve-month appointments that include summer, fall, and spring semesters.

    Unit manager: the manager for an administrative or academic unit.

  3. Policy:

    J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College (Reynolds) shall develop and implement administrative procedures consistent with all applicable personnel regulations and policies governing hours of work and leaves of absence issued by appropriate state and federal authorities.

    1. College operating hours

      1. The college’s administrative offices shall be open for business by 8:15 a.m. and remain open until 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, except for holidays or other official closings.

      2. The college’s academic campuses (Downtown, Parham Road, and Goochland) and satellite offices (Community College Workforce Alliance [CCWA], John Tyler Community College’s Midlothian and Chester campuses) shall utilize the administrative office hours listed above as well as operational hours necessary to accommodate student services, programs, or courses, as listed in the credit and non-credit college course schedules.

      3. In addition to maintaining the hours of operation for the administrative office or section of the unit, the unit manager shall also establish and maintain such additional employee work schedules as are necessary to meet the needs of the other operational activities of the unit under his or her direction.

    2. Standard workweek

      1. Unless otherwise directed by the college president, the workweek for full-time classified non-exempt employees at the college shall begin at 12:01 a.m. Sunday and end at 12:00 midnight the following Saturday.

      2. Unless otherwise directed by the college president, the workweek for wage/hourly employees and work-study student employees shall begin at 12:01 a.m. Friday and end at 12:00 midnight the following Thursday.

      3. For work units utilizing a twenty-four hour work schedule (i.e., Department of Police), the employee’s scheduled arrival time shall indicate the day of the week to which work hours shall be credited on the time record.

    3. Employee work schedules

      1. The unit manager shall ensure that all full-time non-teaching employees (administrative faculty, professional faculty, and classified employees) assigned to the unit under his or her supervision are scheduled to work forty (40) hours per week and, to the extent possible, are provided two rest days in every seven calendar day period.

      2. The unit manager shall ensure that work schedules are set uniformly for employees in the same class and organizational unit employed under similar working conditions.

      3. In emergency situations, the immediate supervisor may temporarily adjust the hours of any employee or group of employees in the work unit, provided such adjustment meets the prescribed forty hours per week, full-time employment requirement. Employee work schedules shall not be adjusted on a continuing basis solely to meet the personal needs of individual employees.

      4. Employees may request an alternate work schedule as provided by Reynolds Policy 3-17, Alternate Work Schedule. For non-exempt full-time classified employees, once the alternate schedule is approved by the unit manager, the authorized HRMS manager must enter the new schedule into HRMS on the effective date of the change. Effective dates for new schedules are always the Sunday of the next full workweek (Sunday – Saturday).

      5. Additionally, the authorized HRMS manager is responsible for entering the work schedules of newly hired non-exempt full-time classified employees and for those classified non-exempt employees who wish to utilize the alternate work schedule into HRMS. For newly hired employees the effective date of the schedule shall be their first day of work. For existing employees, effective dates for new schedules are always the Sunday of the new workweek.

      6. In the case of alternate work schedules or schedules for newly hired non-exempt classified employees, the authorized HRMS manager must select from the list of “pre-defined” work schedules in HRMS. If the work schedule does not exist in HRMS, the authorized HRMS manager should contact the associate vice president of human resources for assistance.

    4. Sixteen or twenty-four hour coverage work schedules

      The immediate supervisor(s) of units that require continuous employee coverage on a 16- through 24-hour basis to carry out activities (i.e., Department of Police, Facilities Management, etc.) shall establish the work schedules necessary to conduct such activities. The units’ initial operating work schedule shall be reviewed by the associate vice president of human resources to ensure that it is consistent with the requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act. Subsequent changes to the initial schedule shall be approved by the Office of Human Resources prior to implementation.

    5. Prescribed breaks for non-exempt employees

      1. Full-time employees scheduled to work at least six consecutive hours shall be afforded a lunch period (meal break) of at least 45 minutes, but not more than 60 minutes, a day as determined by the immediate supervisor.

      2. Wage/hourly employees and work-study student employees scheduled to work at least six consecutive hours, shall be afforded a lunch period (meal break) of at least 30 minutes a day as determined by the immediate supervisor.

      3. The lunch period shall not be included in the total required hours of work per day, except when the lunch period has been designated by the unit manager, or President’s Cabinet member, as part of the work schedule to provide coverage for extenuating circumstances, necessary services, or facility operations.

      4. Immediate supervisors may, at their discretion, grant employees working an eighthour day, a maximum of one rest break before the lunch period and one rest break after the lunch period. These breaks shall not be used to extend the lunch period. Furthermore, these rest breaks are included within the total required hours of work and shall not exceed fifteen minutes each.

      5. Lunch periods and/or rest breaks may not be used by employees to extend any of the breaks, to offset arrival or departure time to or from work, or to cover time off for other purposes.

      6. Immediate supervisors are responsible for scheduling the lunch periods and rest breaks of their employees within the limitations of the above restrictions and with the least disruption of college operations or services.

    6. Prescribed breaks for nursing mothers

      1. A reasonable break time (refer to definition) must be provided for an employee to express breast milk as needed throughout the work shift.

      2. A designated lactation space, other than a bathroom, that is shielded from view and free from intrusion from co-workers or the public must be provided. The immediate supervisor shall contact the Office of Human Resources if assistance is needed in identifying an appropriate location.

      3. Such breaks must be permitted for nursing mothers for up to one year following the baby’s birth.

      4. Such breaks shall run concurrently with any break time already provided to the employee, if possible, but may need to be scheduled outside these times.

  4. Procedures:

    1. Employee Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) status

      1. The college’s Office of Human Resources is responsible for determining each position’s Fair Labor Standards Act status. The Office of Human Resources is also responsible for notifying the unit manager and the immediate supervisor of the FLSA status of each of his or her respective position(s).

      2. The unit manager or the immediate supervisor will notify employees of their position’s FLSA status.

      3. The unit manager will ensure unresolved questions concerning the FLSA and matters related to determining the FLSA status of a position are referred to the college’s associate vice president of human resources.

    2. Time records and leave requests – Full-Time Employees

      1. The authorized HRMS manager will ensure that an individual time record is maintained weekly for each full-time classified non-exempt employee assigned to his or her unit. The time record should show the number of hours the employee is scheduled to work during the work cycle, the daily “in” and “out” times, lunch periods, and the number of hours actually worked by the employee during that period, including call-back time and leave activity. In most cases, the time record is maintained via PeopleSoft HRMS (see HRMS Manager Tool Kit and HRMS Nonexempt Employee Tool Kit). There may be occasions where a new employee has not yet been entered in the PeopleSoft HRMS system; in those situations, JSRCC Form 35-0007, Hourly Time and Attendance Record, should be used to record time.

      2. Time records are not required for exempt employees; however, the unit manager may use the time and attendance record form (JSRCC Form 35-0007) at his or her discretion.

      3. The unit manager will ensure that PeopleSoft HRMS is utilized by every employee (administrative faculty, teaching faculty, professional faculty, and classified staff) to request, approve, and record use of leave for authorized absences away from work, or, in the case of classified staff, to record earned compensatory or overtime leave. (See HRMS Manager Tool Kit, HRMS Non-exempt Employee Tool Kit, and HRMS Exempt Employee Tool Kit).

      4. Time and attendance records for full-time classified non-exempt employees must be approved via PeopleSoft HRMS by close of business each Monday for the preceding workweek (Sunday – Saturday). In addition, supervisors and managers must complete their HRMS duties for full-time employees on the 10th and 25th of the month. (The lag pay cycle ends on the 9th and 24th of each month.) Managerapproved time goes directly to the Payroll unit; therefore the supervisor/manager must ensure payable time is accurate before approving payable time in HRMS.

      5. Leave requests must be submitted via PeopleSoft HRMS through the “Absence Management – Self Service” process. Absence requests may be submitted in advance for pre-planned use of leave (annual, faculty personal days, VSDP family/personal, VSDP sick, compensatory leave, overtime leave, recognition leave, doctor appointments, planned surgery, etc.) and the next business day upon return to work, for unplanned use of leave. Electronic submission of absence requests by full-time employees is required to ensure accurate leave administration and paychecks. Additionally, the omission or falsification of HRMS absence requests may result in formal disciplinary action which may include termination.

      6. The immediate supervisor will ensure that all time records and absence requests are complete, accurate, and appropriately reported and approved through the PeopleSoft HRMS system.

    3. Overtime work and compensation

      1. Non-exempt employees

        1. Immediate supervisors should first adjust a non-exempt employee’s work schedule in the same workweek, in order to avoid exceeding forty (40) work hours in the standard workweek (Sunday through Saturday).

        2. Non-exempt employees will obtain prior approval from their immediate supervisor in advance of working overtime hours. Additionally, non-exempt employees must be available to work overtime hours as needed by the supervisor.

        3. Pay options for non-exempt employees are as follows:

          1. overtime pay (pay at time-and-a-half rate)
          2. overtime leave (leave at time-and-a-half rate)
          3. compensatory pay (pay at straight-time rate/hour-for-hour)
          4. compensatory leave (leave at straight-time rate/hour-for-hour)

        4. If overtime work hours are considered unavoidable by the employee’s immediate supervisor, advance approval must be obtained from the respective President’s Cabinet member before working overtime hours. An email containing the name(s) of the employee(s) to receive overtime, the date(s) on which the overtime will be worked, the number of hours of overtime requested specific to each employee, and a statement of justification for the overtime request will be forwarded by the employee’s supervisor to the respective President’s Cabinet member. The President’s Cabinet member will communicate the decision by return email. The supervisor is responsible for notifying the employee and all individuals in the chain of command of the decision. The employee’s supervisor will implement an alternative to overtime should the request be denied. If the overtime request is approved, a copy of the email approval must be forwarded to Human Resources. Overtime hours claimed on the employee’s timesheet without the approval document will require Human Resources to follow-up with the supervisor and/or manager; supervisors and managers are encouraged to respond to these communication requests within one (1) business day. Employees who continually fail to obtain preapproval for overtime hours worked will be subject to appropriate disciplinary action.

        5. Overtime requests should be made in advance to accommodate the approval process. Supervisors may expedite approval using a verbal request followed by a timely email communication. Documentation of prior overtime approval through email is not waived in this circumstance and remains a requirement.

        6. Approved overtime compensation will be provided to the employee in overtime leave and/or compensatory leave, and not overtime pay and/or compensatory pay. Any deviation from this compensation decision must be approved by the college president.

        7. In accordance with DHRM Policy 3.10, Compensatory Leave, there is no established threshold for accrued hours of compensatory leave. Accrued compensatory leave expires twelve (12) months from the date it is earned.

        8. In accordance with DHRM Policy 3.15, Overtime Leave, an employee may not accrue more than 240 hours of overtime leave. Should the 240-hour limit be reached, the employee will be compensated with time-and-a-half overtime pay for additional overtime hours worked until the overtime leave balance has been reduced through the use of leave or the payment of leave hours. Accrued overtime leave does not expire.

      2. Exempt employees

        1. Exempt employees are not eligible for overtime compensation.

        2. Exempt classified employees are eligible to receive compensatory leave (straight-time/hour-for-hour) when required to work on an official office closing day, if they are designated as essential employees; or for hours worked on an established holiday or when a holiday falls on a scheduled day off. Accrued compensatory leave expires twelve (12) months from the date it is earned.

        3. Administrative, professional, and teaching faculty are not eligible for compensatory leave.

        4. Requests for compensatory leave for all other types of work situations and/or conditions will require the approval of the Virginia Community College System office and the Department of Human Resource Management on a case-by-case basis.

    4. Wage and Work-Study student employee time records

      1. The authorized HRMS manager will ensure that an individual time record is maintained weekly for each wage/hourly employee and work-study student employees assigned to his or her unit. The time record should show the number of hours the employee is scheduled to work during the work cycle, the daily “in” and “out” times, lunch periods, and the number of hours actually worked by the employee during that period. In most cases, the time record is maintained via PeopleSoft HRMS and the employee is expected to complete the electronic timesheet daily for his/her supervisor’s review and approval.

      2. For those situations where the part-time employee’s record does not exist or has not been entered into the PeopleSoft HRMS system, the unit manager will ensure that the original time and attendance records (JSRCC Form 35-0007, Hourly Time and Attendance Record) are forwarded directly to the college’s Payroll unit by the close of business on Friday of each week. The unit manager will also maintain a copy of the time record and provide a copy of the record to the employee.

      3. Time and attendance records for wage/hourly employees and Work-Study student employees must be approved by the immediate supervisor via PeopleSoft HRMS by close of business on the Friday after the conclusion of the bi-weekly timesheet cycle. (The bi-weekly timesheet cycle runs for two consecutive weeks of a Friday through Thursday work schedule).

  5. Other Information:

    Authority

    Fair Labor Standards Act, Title 29, United States Code, Chapter 8, 1938

    Title 23, Chapter 29 of Code of Virginia, (1966) – State Board for Community Colleges and Virginia Community College System as amended

    Interpretation

    The Office of Human Resources is responsible for the official interpretation of this policy and procedure. Questions regarding the application of this policy and procedure should be directed to that office.

    References

    U.S. Department of Labor, Employment Standards Administration, Wage and Hour Division 

    Department of Human Resource Management (DHRM) Policy No. 1.25, Hours of Work

    Department of Human Resource Management (DHRM) Policy No. 3.10, Compensatory Leave

    Department of Human Resource Management (DHRM) Policy No. 3.15, Overtime Leave

    Virginia Community College System (VCCS) Policy No. 3.9, Faculty Leave

    Virginia Community College System (VCCS) Policy No. 3.14, General Policies

    Reynolds Policy 3-17, Alternate Work Schedule

    JSRCC Form 35-0007, Hourly Time and Attendance Record