Payroll Policies
- Absenteeism and Tardiness
Each employee is responsible for being present during work hours except when an absence is prearranged or unavoidable. When an absence can be anticipated (as for a doctor's appointment), or when an employee desires to use vacation or other time off, he/she is expected to request leave time in advance so that arrangements can be made to cover the work area. When an emergency causes an absence, the employee is responsible for promptly notifying his/her supervisor and keeping him/her informed as to the expected time of return.
It is the employee's responsibility to notify his/her supervisor (when at all possible) when he/she will be late for work. If an emergency exists and it is not possible to notify a supervisor prior to the late time, the employee must inform his/her supervisor of the reasons for tardiness upon reporting for work. The supervisor may permit late time to be made up during the pay period; however, no time deficits may be carried over from one pay period to the next. Absenteeism or tardiness (whether excused or not) that the supervisor feels is excessive, chronic, or unjustified will subject the employee to discipline, up to and including termination.
Normally, Chico State Enterprises (CSE) defines excessive absenteeism as five or more instances of absence or tardiness in a three-month period. Each instance of absenteeism or tardiness shall be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. If an employee fails to report for work for a continuous period of three days without notification to his/her supervisor, CSE will determine that the employee has voluntarily resigned.
- Meals
- Overtime
- Rest Periods
An eight-hour shift includes two paid rest periods not to exceed fifteen minutes each. Rest periods will be awarded on the basis of the total number of hours worked daily, at the rate of one fifteen-minute break period for every four hours (or a major fraction thereof) worked. Rest periods need not be provided for employees whose total daily work time is less than three and one-half hours.
Supervisors are responsible for scheduling appropriate times for rest periods to ensure the efficient operation of the unit. Rest periods are not to be taken during the first or last hour of the shift or during the hours preceding or following the lunch period, but should be taken as nearly as practical to the midpoint of each work period. Rest periods are required.
- Retroactive Pay Adjustments
1. Prohibitive Retroactive Pay Adjustments
Retroactive pay adjustments impose significant costs on the Foundation in terms of money, employee relations, and administrative time and therefore should be used only on a limited basis. Accordingly, the following types of transactions will no longer be permitted:
A. Retroactive adjustments dated over 60 days prior to the current pay period.
B. Retroactive adjustments in a prior tax year.
2. Allowable Retroactive Pay Adjustments
There are occasionally compelling business reasons for permitting retroactive pay adjustments. These exceptions will be handled on an individual basis, and will require the approval of one of the officers listed below:
A. Retroactive pay adjustment dated up to 45 days prior to the current pay period requires the approval of the Department Dean for your grant or sponsored program. All other units will require approval by an Executive Director or AVP level.
B. Retroactive pay adjustments dated from 46 to 60 days prior to the current pay period require the approval noted above AND the University Provost or their designee.
3. Processing
It is critical that no commitments regarding the effective date for pay adjustments be made to employees until written authorization is received from the Human Resources and Payroll Departments. Approved pay adjustments will be made as a lump sum supplemental payment to employees. Retroactive pay will be charged against project(s) corresponding to the retroactive dates with the exception of paid time off, i.e.: vacation, sick, etc. The retroactive pay associated with paid time off will also be charged to the project(s) and not against fringe pool.
4. Fringe Assessment
The fringe rate will be assessed to the entire retroactive pay amount and charged to the corresponding project(s). This includes any “Paid Time Off” (i.e.: vacation, sick, holiday, etc.) hours that occurred during a retro period calculation.
5. Justification
This policy will substantially reduce costs, yet still provide departments the ability to address required pay and classification issues.
- Work Week Defined
The standard Chico State Enterprises (CSE) workday is 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, with one hour for lunch to be taken approximately in the middle of the workday. There may be variations in this schedule depending on campus, organizational or project needs as determined by the supervisor or CSE management.
For the purposes of determining overtime, CSE's workweek normally begins at 12:01 a.m. Sunday and ends at midnight the following Saturday. A workday begins at midnight and ends 24 hours later. Other work weeks or workdays may be established as required to meet the work needs of the job or to accommodate an employee's need for a flexible work schedule. For more information on overtime compensation see "Overtime Eligibility."
Individual work schedules are set by the Project Director or supervisor. Project Directors or supervisors have the flexibility to change the work schedules of employees in order to better meet the service requirements of the unit. Where possible, employees will be informed of the alternative schedule, preferably in writing, at least two weeks in advance of the change.
State and Federal labor laws require that meal and rest periods be given to employees during each workday. Non-exempt employees are expected to observe their assigned working hours and the time allowed for meal and rest periods. Exempt employees, as well, are encouraged to take the breaks described below. Breaks tend to regenerate a person's energy, especially after working on a difficult task. Employees should be encouraged to leave their work area for breaks so they can relax and return to work refreshed.