4.6 Flexible Work Policy

Introduction:

It is part of Normandale Community College’s mission to provide a welcoming and inclusive environment for students and, therefore, there is an organizational need and purpose to have employees on campus to provide a vibrant, welcoming community. Additionally, the college recognizes and appreciates the value of flexible work options and will consider flexible work arrangements while ensuring the operational and business needs of the college are met.

Supervisors must manage the daily operations and work in their assigned areas and are generally in the best position to understand the demands of the work and the capacity of each employee to succeed in a flexible work arrangement. Flexible work arrangements will generally be based on mutual agreement. However, the college may establish flexible work as a condition of employment, based on the college's business needs. In such cases, this requirement should be included in the position description, when the position is posted, and in the offer of employment.

Employees are not entitled to, or guaranteed, the opportunity to use a flexible work option. Flexible work arrangements are a management tool used at the sole discretion of the college and may be changed or cancelled at any time, with or without cause, at the college’s discretion.

All flexible work options must comply with applicable federal and state laws, collective bargaining unit agreements, and all college and Minnesota State regulations, rules, policies, and practices, and may be subject to change at any time.

Purpose:

This policy provides guidelines and criteria to be used to determine, review, and manage flexible work arrangements. The policy also outlines expectations of the individual employee who may request or accept a flexible work arrangement.

Scope:

This policy applies to employees engaged in work that involves the delivery of services, scheduled hours, or department coverage. In general, faculty are not covered in the scope of this policy as their work hours and modality are subject to the terms and conditions of their collective bargaining agreements and their individual assignments. However, faculty department chairs and deans may use the guidelines and resources to set forth appropriate expectations for faculty members.

Part 1: Definitions

Flextime - Fluctuating starting and ending times during the workday or balancing hours of work within the payroll period.

Compressed Workweek - Working the equivalent of a full-time week (40 hours) in less than 5 days.

Regular Telework - Working from home or another assigned work location off campus, primarily within the state of Minnesota, with a regular schedule and on a regular basis.

Occasional Telework - Working from home or another assigned work location off campus on an as-needed or emergency basis.

Remote Work - Work that is done primarily from outside the state of Minnesota on an ongoing basis and is embedded within the position’s description. Remote work is not within the scope of this policy.

Part 2: Process

Employees interested in a flexible work arrangement should discuss the options available with their supervisor. Requests must be reviewed according to the procedure indicated for each type of flexible work arrangement below or in the corresponding college procedure.

Unless indicated otherwise in the position’s job description, flexible work arrangements will not be granted automatically. Rather, they are considered on a case-by-case basis. In addition, having a flexible work arrangement is considered a privilege and to be eligible for consideration, the employee must meet the following minimum criteria before being approved to work an alternative work arrangement:

Consistently meets deadlines, produces quality work, and has sustained acceptable levels of work performance, conduct, behavior, and attendance as reflected in their performance appraisals. Note: employees requesting flexible arrangements work must have a current evaluation completed and on file with Human Resources. An employee’s request may not be unreasonably delayed by this requirement where the employee has completed their self-evaluation portion of the evaluation.
Not currently on probation due to disciplinary action.
The appropriate steps for requesting and obtaining approval based on the type of flexible work arrangement requested have been met.

All work arrangements must remain in compliance with applicable collective bargaining agreements for overtime, comp time, telework, and flextime scheduling.

If the flexible work arrangement alters the current schedule for non-exempt employees, as recorded in the their timesheet, the supervisor must notify Human Resources at hr@normandale.edu mail to: HumanResource@dmu.edu to update the time tracking system so it displays the appropriate schedule when employees request leave or qualify for holiday hours.

Employees who commence a flexible work arrangement without completing the required request forms or who have not received approval from their supervisor may be subject to disciplinary action.

Flextime

A flextime work schedule allows employees to adjust their arrival and departure times, subject to supervisor approval and the operational needs of the department. There is no formal request form for flextime. These discussions and agreements are made between the supervisor and employee and must be consistent with collective bargaining agreements in effect. The supervisor may require written documentation of requests for flextime.

Types of Flextime:

Scheduled - Arranging an employee’s schedule where their daily starting and ending hours may be based on considerations other than just the needs of the organization or department. Examples include variable hours during the week such as MWF working 8am – 4:30pm and TTH working 10am – 6:30pm. Staff are required to work their scheduled number of hours each day (i.e., 8 hours for full-time employees). This scheduled flextime must meet department’s operational and business needs to be approved.
Occasional - Working extra time on one day to be able to work less time on another day.

Flextime Guidelines:

Flextime for employees covered by collective bargaining agreements must occur within the same pay period and shall not result in overtime. Flextime may not be feasible within some departments or bargaining units based on their operational and business needs. Refer to the applicable agreements for additional information.

Compressed Work Week

A compressed work week allows employees to work longer days for part of the week in exchange for up to one day off each week. Compressed workweeks are most appropriate in situations in which employees do not have to keep pace with incoming daily work or where there are several team members who perform the same job.

The compressed workweek options available to employees are as follows:

Four-day Workweek (assuming 40 hours/week) - Employee would be required to work four 10-hour days and would take off one (1) work day per week. This schedule must be fixed for the term of the agreement, which means the day off cannot vary week to week or month to month.
4½-day Workweek (assuming 40 hours/week) - Employee would work four (4) nine-hour days and one (1) four-hour day each week. This schedule must be fixed for the term of the agreement, which means the day off cannot vary week to week or month to month.

New compressed work schedules require that the supervisor and employee meet at least once during the first three months to determine whether the compressed work schedule is successful and should continue.

Telework

A telework arrangement allows employees to work from a location other than the college’s campus.

The telework location should be within the state of Minnesota and close enough the employee may report to campus as necessary to meet organizational and departmental needs.

For temporary work outside of the State of Minnesota, teleworkers must notify their supervisor. In addition, teleworker must notify Human Resources each pay period of the days and locations spent working in another state for tax purposes. State of Minnesota employees are not allowed to work outside the United States at any time. Working permanently from another state is considered “Remote Work” and is not covered by this policy.

Requests for telework will be reviewed and determined on an individual basis. Guidelines, including criteria and analysis, for approving and administrating telework will be outlined in a separate document and available on the Supervisor Resources page of the Employee Exchange.

Types of Telework

Regular Telework – Employee has an established, predictable schedule with work locations identified. New telework arrangements require that the supervisor and employee meet at least once during the first three months to determine whether the telework arrangement is successful and should continue.
Occasional Telework – Sporadic requests to work from another location within the State of Minnesota on an as-needed or short-term basis.
Emergency Telework – Emergency situation where college leadership determines the need and scope of telework. For instance, in the case of a weather emergency, college leadership may direct employees to work from home.

Telework Guidelines and Expectations

Telework arrangements are generally applicable for up to two (2) days per week, depending on the departmental and organizational needs. Additional days may be available on a case-by-case basis and subject to department or organization need. Note that some departments may need to increase in-person services during certain times of the year to meet student needs and supervisors will provide adequate notice as stipulated in collective bargaining agreements.

Regularly scheduled telework for more than 50% of the employee’s work week (or pay period) may result in alternative office or work station assignments while on campus.

Teleworkers are responsible for attending all required meetings in their intended modality and to be available and accessible during scheduled hours for students, customers, coworkers, and supervisors, unless their supervisor provides prior approval otherwise.

Telework hours are regular work hours, during which the standard expectations apply:

Telework is not intended to be used in place of sick, vacation, or other types of leave when an employee is unable to perform work. Telework hours may not be used to perform personal activities. Vacation and sick leave shall be used to engage in non-work activities consistent with college policies, procedures, and bargaining unit agreements. Flextime may be an option in certain circumstances.
Telework is not a substitute for child or other dependent care. Teleworkers are required to maintain childcare, adult care, or similar personal arrangement to permit concentration on work assignments during agreed upon work hours.
Teleworkers must still meet performance expectations and standards as if they were working from the college location.
Teleworkers must maintain and safeguard college data and equipment in accordance with all laws, rules, regulations, and policies regarding data practices, data privacy and retention, and equipment use. College-issued laptops are set to use the virtual private network, drive encryption, and antivirus scanning.
Teleworkers must comply with all college policies, guidelines, rules, regulations, and state and federal laws the same as if they were working from the college location.
Decreases in productivity or behaviors that detract value from the college may result in the loss of teleworking status and disciplinary action.

Teleworkers must ensure their telework location will accommodate state equipment necessary for them to conduct work. They are responsible for ensuring the telework location is free from hazards and dangers that could affect the equipment or their own safety. Teleworkers must immediately report to their supervisor any accidents or injuries that occur in the course of work from the telework location.

State-owned equipment used during telework, including software, data, and supplies, are for the sole purpose of conducting state work and are not to be used for personal activities. Employees must return all state-owned equipment and supplies immediately upon termination of the telework arrangement or separation of employment.

If employee provides their own equipment to be used during telework, the employee is solely responsible for servicing and maintaining it. The college may agree to service or maintain the equipment at its discretion. Employees are not allowed to use personal equipment to access or process confidential student or employee information without IT-recommended encryption and network settings.

All products, documents, reports, and data created as a result of work-related activities are owned by the college and must be returned to the college upon request, termination of the telework arrangement, or separation of employment.

Telework arrangements may be terminated by the supervisor or employee at any time.