Four-day work week policy adopted after successful trial run
As announced in an e-mail from Robin Baker on Friday, the university has adopted a four-day work week policy. The full policy follows and can soon be found in the Employee Handbook as Section 2.4.3.
The university provides the option of a four-day work week to employees. This schedule provides flexibility to employees to better meet personal and family needs, and it provides good stewardship of God’s creation by reducing gas consumption. The following guidelines apply to the four-day work week policy:
- The four-day work week must be approved by the employee’s supervisor, taking into consideration the nature of the person’s duties, potential service disruption, the employee’s performance and any other relevant considerations. If a supervisor determines that a four-day work week arrangement or telecommuting is not working out satisfactorily, he or she may require an employee to resume working a standard work week.
- All offices must be covered from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.
- Employees may take off either Monday or Friday, coordinating schedules with others in the department who are also working four days.
- Meetings should be scheduled on Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday.
- Overtime is only paid for hours worked over 40 in a week, not over eight in a day.
- Weeks that contain paid holidays will be standard work weeks for all employees.
- Employees may be required to work a standard work week to provide adequate coverage when coworker(s) are on vacation or ill, or to cover special events that will necessitate more complete coverage for particular areas within the university.
- Each director or vice president will determine whether the four-day work week is appropriate for a particular office or site, taking into consideration possible service disruption to customers and other factors.
- Summer student employees are required to work the standard work week.
Telecommuting as an alternative to a four-day work week
Some employees may choose to work four days on site and telecommute the fifth day via computer and telephone with their supervisors’ approval. The same guidelines that apply to the four-day work week will apply to telecommuting.