Expectations for Supervisors of Temporary Employees
- support the university’s commitment to diversity when hiring temporary/variable hour employees.
- ensure that temporary/variable hour employees hired on the university payroll do not exceed an average of 29 hours per week in a one-year period.
- inform the employee about completing the necessary payroll forms.
- ensure the employee’s time is reported accurately.
- meet the payroll processing deadline.
- ensure the employee completes all applicable orientation and online training.
- monitor all variable hour employees’ average work hours per week over a measurement period.
- work with departments across colleges/campuses to coordinate work schedules for variable hour employees if they hold two or more positions with NAU.
- ensure that variable hour employees are compensated for every hour they work (part time faculty are paid based on the number of credit hours taught).
- understand the ‘hour equivalency‘ concept for part-time faculty.
- understand the ‘break in service‘ rules for part-time faculty.
Best Practices to avoid exceeding the two University’s work rules:
- Ensure that you or a designated person are/is on the report distribution lists. If you are the direct supervisor, please update the Reports To or email your request to Amy.Ulibarri@nau.edu to be on the email list.
- Review the bi-weekly 29-hour and ASRS 20/20 work rule reports thoroughly.
- Submit a terminating ePAR for employees who have not received a paycheck for at least three pay periods to avoid credited hours; hence, inflating the employees’ weekly average hours.
- Contact HR as soon as you learn that your employee is trending towards or exceeding the threshold/week count to get assistance on how to reduce the employee’s weekly hours.
- Communicate and collaborate with other departments if both are employing the same employee to ensure that the employee does not exceed the threshold/week count.
- Plan ahead for class schedules for part-time faculty using the 2.67 hour equivalency calculator.
- To comply with ASRS 20/20 rule, part-time faculty must teach up to seven credit hours during a regular semester.
- To comply with 29-hour work rule, part-time faculty must teach up to eleven credit hours during a regular semester. Planning is the key.
- Use the ASRS 20/20 rule in conjunction with the 29-hour work rule to ensure compliance.
- During the fiscal year, your variable hour employee can work up to 29 hours/week for 19 weeks and thereafter reduce the employee’s hours to 19 hours or less for the remainder of the fiscal year.
- For part-time faculty, they can teach up to eleven credit hours for one regular semesters and then reduce to teaching seven credits hours for semesters to following within the academic year.
- Understanding the implications of hiring a former NAU FT benefit eligible employee into a variable hour employee position is pertinent before entertaining an employment offer in writing or verbally. Asking preliminary questions is relevant just as long as they do not influence the interview or selection process:
- Have you worked for NAU in the past? If so, when did you separate from your employment with NAU?
- What was your employment status in your previously held position with NAU?
- Do you currently work for another NAU department? If so, what are your commitments to that position?
- Were you ever placed by a temporary agency to do work for NAU?
- Outsourcing to a temp agency is acceptable but with Human Resources review because hours earned with temp agency may impact the employee’s weekly average hours with NAU.
- Unfortunately, hiring through a temp agency is not an option to avoid exceeding the 29-hour and ASRS 20/20 work rules.
- The temporary employee placed by temp agency must still adhere to the university work rules.
- Seek additional resources that HR can provide such as a break-down analysis of an employee’s weekly average hours, which may include the break in service logic with the 501 hour limitation.
- You can visit the Temporary/Variable Hour Employee webpage as well for more information.
- For individualized support, email HR.Contact@nau.edu or call 928-523-2223.