Alternative Work Schedule

Purpose:

To provide guidelines to full-time classified staff and administrative and professional faculty for the use of reasonable and flexible work schedules as well as to provide convenient and consistent hours of operation in order to serve the needs of the college’s students, visitors, and the general public.

Definitions:

Alternate work schedule: schedules that differ from the standard five-day forty (40) hour workweek and may include, but are not limited to, four 10-hour days, four nine-hour days with one four-hour day, rotational shifts, flexible hours, and job sharing. Alternate work schedules must comprise forty (40) hours per workweek (Sunday – Saturday).

Bandwidth: the period when employees may be on-site and working at J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College (Reynolds).

College operating hours: standard business hours when the college is open for services to students, visitors, and the general public; and the timeframe coverage must be provided by each administrative and academic work unit. Additional operating hours may be offered and posted by administrative and academic work units as needed.

Employee: for the purpose of this policy, all full-time classified staff, administrative faculty, and professional faculty.

Work schedule: an employee’s regularly scheduled hours of work in the assigned workplace and/or in alternate work locations as established by the immediate supervisor.

Policy:

1. J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College encourages the use of alternate work schedule arrangements from the standard workweek provided such schedules do not impede the efficiency of college operations or increase the college’s overtime liability.

2. The use of alternate work schedule arrangements is intended to benefit both the employee and the college operations.

3. Alternate work schedule arrangements may be implemented to facilitate or reduce employee’s commuting time, reduce commuting days of the week, or to meet other family/personal needs of the employee. However, it may be necessary for college leadership to require employees to work alternative work schedules as a condition of employment.

4. Immediate supervisors are responsible for ensuring appropriate coverage during official college operating hours, providing adequate supervision to employees, and limiting overtime work assignments. College leadership reserves the right to establish and adjust the work schedules of employees (within the workweek) in order to satisfy the business needs of the college and to avoid overtime liability. At the discretion of the supervisor, employee work schedules can be adjusted to meet the employees’ personal needs.

5. When overtime is unavoidable, or necessary, the immediate supervisor is responsible for securing the necessary overtime approval as described in Reynolds Policy 3-14, Standard Work Schedule and Overtime.

6. The college's official operating hours shall be Monday through Friday from 8:15 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. with the following exceptions:

   1. Operating hours may be adjusted as needed during registration and add/drop periods. 

   2. Operating hours for individual administrative or academic units may extend beyond the college’s official operating hours.

7. Employees may request alternate work schedules within the following parameters:

   1. The college's bandwidth will be 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, and 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. Facilities Management and the Department of Police may work hours outside the bandwidth as required.

   2. The minimum length of an individual workday shall be four (4) hours.

   3. The maximum length of an individual workday shall be ten (10) hours.

   4. The first alternate work schedule can be approved for up to six (6) months. Immediate supervisors are required to periodically review the alternate work schedules of assigned staff to ensure that remaining staff members are permitted the opportunity and access to specific alternate schedules, and to ensure that the alternate work schedule continues to meet the needs of the work unit and the college.

   5. If there are no changes to the alternate work schedule after the initial six (6) month period, the agreement shall remain in place and the submission of another request form is not required. However, the immediate supervisor reserves the right to rescind the approval of the alternate work schedule at any time in order to meet business needs or in cases of the employees’ declining work performance.

   6. Alternate work schedules may not result in overtime using the college's established workweek of Sunday through Saturday.

   7. A minimum 45-minute lunch break is required for a scheduled workday of six (6) hours or more.

   8. All full-time classified staff, administrative faculty, and professional faculty are eligible for an alternate work schedule.

8. The Office of Human Resources shall publish a list of pre-defined work schedules on the Human Resources webpage: HRMS Pre-defined Work Schedules. Alternate work schedules must be selected from the list of JSRCC pre-defined schedules. If the alternate work schedule desired is not listed, the immediate supervisor or unit manager can request the unique schedule from the associate vice president of Human Resources.

9. The Office of Human Resources shall provide training to college supervisors and managers in effectively managing employees working alternate work schedules. College supervisors and managers are expected to participate in the Time, Attendance and Leave Reporting training, in order to gain an initial understanding or to obtain refresher information on this subject.

Procedures:

1. Unit managers will establish operating hours for their respective unit(s) with approval of their respective President’s Executive Cabinet member.

2. Classified staff, administrative faculty, and professional faculty, who wish to request an alternate work schedule should complete the JSRCC Form 35-0003, Request for Alternate Work Schedule.

3. Pre-defined work schedules:

   1. Classified non-exempt employees

      1. Employees may choose an alternate work schedule from the published list.

      2. Employees must complete JSRCC Form 35-0003, Request for Alternate Work Schedule, and submit it to their immediate supervisor.

      3. Upon approval from the immediate supervisor and the unit manager, the authorized HRMS manager enters the new alternate work schedule into PeopleSoft HRMS on the effective date of the new schedule. Effective dates for new schedules are always the Sunday of the new workweek.

      4. The authorized HRMS manager submits the completed original form with signatures to the Office of Human Resources and retains a copy of the completed request form on file in the work unit.

      5. If the alternate work schedule does not exist in HRMS, the unit manager should contact the associate vice president of Human Resources or the Human Resources Manager for assistance.

   2. Administrative, professional faculty, and exempt classified employees

      1. Employees may choose an alternate work schedule from the published list.

      2. Employees must complete JSRCC Form 35-0003, Request for Alternate Work Schedule, and submit it to their immediate supervisor.

      3. Upon approval from the immediate supervisor and the unit manager, and prior to the effective date of the new schedule, the authorized HRMS manager submits the completed original form to the Office of Human Resources and retains a copy of the completed request form on file in the work unit.

      4. Alternate work schedules for administrative, professional faculty, and exempt classified employees can only be entered into HRMS by the Office of Human Resources.

4. Immediate supervisors are required to periodically review the alternate work schedules of assigned staff to ensure that remaining staff members are permitted the opportunity and access to specific alternate schedules, and to ensure that the alternate work schedule continues to meet the needs of the work unit and the college.

5. The immediate supervisor has the right to rescind the approval of the alternate work schedule prior to the scheduled end date or at any time in order to meet business needs or in cases of the employees’ declining work performance.

Other Information:

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.

Authority

Department of Human Resource Management (DHRM) Policy 1.25, Hours of Work

Reference

JSRCC Form 35-0003, Request for Alternate Work Schedule