Special Pay for University Closing
Official Closing of the University
Eligible employees shall be provided paid Administrative leave for the official closing of University facilities. Administrative Leave is not accrued.
Employees Designated to Work
"Employees Designated to Work" are those employees specified by the University as having responsibilities that are necessary to continue during times when the University has been closed due to a natural disaster or other emergency closures. While this designation may apply to Administrative, Support and OPS staff, the following is recommended based on an analysis of how other State universities handle such situations and also based on the UNF culture. Such work is considered an extension of the regular assigned duties.
Administrative (and other Exempt employees): When a budgeted, exempt Administrative employee is designated as an "employee designated to work" and is required to work during a time that the University has been closed and other employees are on Administrative Leave and not required to work, the designated Administrative employee shall be permitted to take a paid day off for every day worked during the closing. The hours worked shall be tracked by the department and specified as "Administrative Leave" and the time shall be taken within six (6) months of the time worked. At no time shall the "Administrative Leave" be converted to cash payment.
Exempt Administrative employees who do not work during the closure do not need to list the closure hours on their timesheets.
Support (and Administrative Non-Exempt employees): When a budgeted, non-exempt Support or Administrative employee is specified as an "employee designated to work" and is required to work during a time that the University has been closed and other employees are on Administrative Leave and not required to work, the designated Support employee shall be paid time and one-half for all hours worked during this time and the time shall be entered on the timesheet as "EDW" (Employee Designated to Work Pay) hours. These hours are paid in addition to the UC1 (University closure) hours. Employee Designated to Work Pay (EDW) hours are included as time worked for purposes of overtime calculation.
When a budgeted Non-exempt Support/Administrative employee is NOT required to work during a time that the University has been closed, the Support employee shall be paid their regular rate of pay for the number of hours that the University is closed during their regularly scheduled shift and the time shall be entered on the timesheet as "UC1" (University Closing) hours. These hours (UC1) are not included as time worked for purposes of overtime calculation. If any other paid leave had been previously requested and approved, this leave will be used rather than UC1 hours.
OPS: When an OPS employee is specified as an "employee designated to work" and is required to work during a time that the University has been closed, the employee shall be paid their regular rate of pay for all hours worked up to 40 hours per week. The time worked shall be entered on the timesheet as "UC2" (University Closure OPS) hours. Hours worked in excess of 40 per week shall be subject to overtime at time and one-half in accordance with the provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).
OPS employees who do not work during a closure do not receive administrative leave for the closure period.
Examples of Support timesheets using the above pay codes.
UNF Employees – Red Cross Volunteers
When UNF employees are assigned by the University to assist as Red Cross Shelter Volunteers, such employees shall be paid by the University as "essential employees" and are to be considered as state employees for the purposes of worker's compensation. Under this category, those employees who volunteer on a non-scheduled workday (typically weekends) shall be permitted to take paid time off for equivalent time they have volunteered, regardless if the University is open or closed.
Some UNF employees who, independent of the university, have been specially trained as certified disaster service volunteers may be assigned by the Red Cross to other disaster assistance programs. Employees who fall into this special category of volunteers will be granted a leave of absence with pay for up to 15 working days in any 12-month period to participate in specialized disaster relief services of the American Red Cross. An employee granted leave under this status shall not be deemed to be an employee of the state for purposes of worker's compensation.
As an "essential employee," an individual cannot participate in the Red Cross Volunteer program if her or his services are needed by the University.