Flexible Work Options Policy

Policy Number: #600

Responsible Executive(s):

  • Senior Vice President and CFO

Responsible Office(s):

  • Human Resources

Date Adopted: 01-04-2022

Date Revised: 03-22-2023

A. Purpose

To establish a policy regarding flexible work options.

B. Scope

This policy describes the assessment process, required forms and the formal procedures to request a flexible work option for eligible employees. As this is a new policy, it will be reviewed for any needed updates or revisions 60 days after implementation.

C. Policy

    1. Regis University is a highly collaborative workplace and primarily a residential campus for our students. To best serve our students and the Regis community, employees are typically required to perform work at the University worksite. However, Regis University recognizes the importance of providing flexible work options, which pose advantages for both the University and its employees.

Flexible work options can include alternatives to the traditional workday, the standard workweek, or the traditional workplace. These alternate options can help employees balance work and personal responsibilities while meeting the University mission and objectives.

Additionally, flexible work options may help supervisors promote productivity among their teams, improve employee job satisfaction and retention, and develop management and leadership skills. By reducing historic barriers including geographically remote and rural locations, flexible work options can also expand the size and breadth of candidate pools for jobs.

A formal flexible work option is an approved work arrangement that allows an employee to perform work through one or more of the following options: flexible hours, flexible location, fully off-site or through a compressed workweek (see below for definitions of each). 

Departments and/or individuals may request flexible work options for eligible individual employees (as outlined below) and/or positions in order to meet the university, department, or personal needs while preserving the hours defined by the position's FTE for maintaining quality service. 

This policy includes sections with the 1) definitions of flexible work options, 2) considerations of a flexible work schedule, and 3) procedures and required forms.

The scope of this policy does not include short-term work that occurs within one to two pay periods and is arranged between an employee and supervisor. Periodically there may be circumstances of offsite work for staff with short-term disabilities or mobility impairments, relief of congestion on campus, budgetary constraints, or if the employer, due to business need, is transitioning an incumbent position to “fully offsite.” This policy may be modified in the event of circumstances due to unforeseen events such as:  a pandemic, act of God, natural disaster, cyberattack or other extreme conditions.

      1. Flexible Work Schedule Options
        1. Flexible Hours - Employees work specified hours each week but are given flexibility when they begin and end their workday.
        2. Flexible Location – Flexible location is a work option in which employees fulfill their job responsibilities at a site other than their onsite work location for all or part of their regularly scheduled work hours, for a fixed period of time each week.
        3. Fully Offsite – Employees work 100% from an offsite location. On occasion, they may be required to attend onsite meetings or events.
        4. Compressed Workweek - Employees work the equivalent of a full week in four or fewer days. These can take several different forms, the most common of which are 4-day/10-hour; 3-day/12 hour; or 9-day/80-hour variations.

Additional or combinations of the above options will also be considered. In any of the flexible work options, an employee is required to work the minimum number of hours as required by the position.

        1. Non-Exempt positions - Time records of hours worked are required by law to be maintained by all employers for all non-exempt employees.
          1. Exempt positions - Regis University, consistent with the provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), requires exempt staff to readily meet workloads that often demand working hours in excess of forty hours per week without being additionally compen
          2. Benefits - Because there are no changes in total hours worked, the flexible work schedule will not affect pay or benefits.
        2. Considerations
          1. Criteria - Not all employees or positions are suitable for flexible work. Before considering a request for a flexible work option, the employee, supervisor and department management, with the assistance of human resources, will evaluate the suitability of such an arrangement, reviewing both the employee and position suitability through the review and completion of the required assessment process.
          2. Employee Eligibility - The employee and supervisor will assess the departmental and/or employee needs and the effectiveness of the employee’s ability to work offsite. The following points outline minimum eligibility criteria for an individual flexible work agreement:
        • Employee has a clear understanding of the position and expectations
        • Employee can demonstrate satisfactory or better performance, punctuality, and dependability (applicable to current employees only)
        • Employee can demonstrate consistent ability to complete tasks and assignments timely and accurately (applicable to current employees only)
        • Employee desires a flexible work schedule option
        • Employee is able to come into the office as often as required by the supervisor for meetings, training, events, and other activities (if applicable)
        • Employee demonstrates self-sufficiency with technology and systems required and/or applicable to their position
        • Employee has a designated workspace at the offsite location (if applicable). Minimum requirements for workspace suitability vary by position or function.
          1. Position Eligibility - The following points outline minimum criteria for a position to be eligible for flexible work:
        • The work and responsibilities to be performed are conducive to a flexible work location or schedule without causing disruption to performance or service
          • The core responsibilities to ensure optimal work do not require extensive in-person contact with students, supervisors, co-workers, or other Regis community members (flexible location and fully offsite employees only)
        • The supervisor is able to effectively monitor the work of the employee with measurable metrics
        • An excellent level of service can be maintained without hardship on students, supervisors, and co-workers or other Regis community members
        • There are sufficient resources available for the work unit to support the request for flexible work options and cover the on-site business needs
          1. Tax and other legal implications - The employee must determine any tax or legal implications under IRS, state, and local government laws, and/or restrictions of working out of an offsite location. Responsibility for fulfilling all obligations in this area rests solely with the employee.
          2. Use of Leave - Flexible work is not intended to be used in place of available leave (e.g., sick leave, Family and Medical Leave, Colorado Paid Sick Leave, workers’ compensation leave, vacation). This policy is intended to provide employees with opportunities to balance personal and professional responsibilities; however, this policy is not intended to provide employees with additional or extended time for recreation or non-work-related activities during scheduled work hours. For this reason, employees are expected to be reasonably available and reachable during agreed-upon work hours. In instances where employees will be unavailable for extended periods, available leave should be used. Additionally, offsite work is not a substitute for full-time, ongoing caretaking (e.g., child, adult). Please refer to available leave policies to assist in this regard. Should employees be found to be operating outside of the appropriate use guidelines of this policy or not meeting performance standards, an employee’s flexible work option agreement may be reassessed or terminated.
          3. Workspace and Work Environment - The employee will establish an appropriate work environment designated for work purposes. Regis will not be responsible for costs associated with equipment and the setup of the employee’s offsite workspace, such as remodeling, furniture, or lighting, nor for repairs or modifications to the workspace.
            1. Employees who work offsite should ensure a safe and suitable workspace that is appropriately confidential and free of distractions and interruptions that may interfere with work.
            2. Injuries sustained by the employee in an offsite work location in conjunction with their regular work duties may be considered by the University’s workers’ compensation policy. Employees are responsible for reporting work related injuries to the University’s benefits office as soon as practicable, who will then report it to the University’s workers’ compensation carrier. The University workers’ compensation carrier makes decisions about validity of or responsibility for claims. The employee is liable for any injuries sustained by visitors to their offsite worksite and for non-work-related injuries.
            3. Offsite workers will be expected to ensure the protection of proprietary University and customer information accessible from the offsite work location. Steps may include the use of locked file cabinets and desks, regular password maintenance, and any other measures appropriate for the job and the work environment.
            4. The University reserves the right to inspect the offsite work location designated in the flexible work option agreement.
          4. Conditions of Employment - Flexible work options do not change the conditions of employment or required compliance with all University policies.
          5. Termination of the Flexible Work Option - All flexible work options are subject to ongoing review and may be terminated at any time. The University may terminate the flexible work option at its discretion. Where possible, supervisors should give employees 30 days’ advance notice if a decision is made to terminate the arrangement; however, under the guidance of human resources, advance notice may not be required.

 

D. Related Policies Procedures, Forms and Other Resources

The process for requesting a flexible work option is done through the Human Resources Capital Management System, Workday. Employees and supervisors should follow this as described in Exhibit A.   

A flexible work option should be requested by the employee for consideration of the supervisor.  The supervisor should assess the employee for consideration based on individual eligibility and position suitability as outlined in Section 2 of this policy. Approval for a flexible work option is at the discretion of the supervisor based on eligibility criteria and consideration of submitted assessments. If approved by the supervisor, the proposed flexible work option is then reviewed and approved by the department head and AVP or Dean of the unit with final submission to Human Resources. The flexible work option is not finalized until approved by Human Resources. All approvals will go through Workday.

 

 

Exhibit A

Procedure for Requesting Flexible Work Schedule

1) Employee acknowledges and agrees to this policy and completes Flexible Work Options Questionnaire Agreement through Workday for supervisor review and approval The Workday guidelines can be found here.

2) If the flexible work option is approved, it will be reflected as approved in Workday under the “Job” tab.

3) Supervisors must schedule a review date with individual employees to evaluate effectiveness of the flexible work option 30 days after agreement and every 30 days following.

Required Documents – submitted through Workday:

      • Acknowledgement of the Flexible Work Options Policy
      • Flexible Work Options Questionnaire
      • Flexible Work Options Agreement

The following additional Flexible Work Options resources can be found  here:

    • FAQs
    • ITS Offsite Work Requirements
    • Flexible Work Norms and Expectations
    • Employee Guidelines
    • Manager Guidelines
    • MineralHR Course List – Suggested Trainings