In response to the tragic events and the emergency situation of February 14, President Peters authorized closure of the university effective as of 4:30 p.m. on February 14 extending until midnight February 18. The university resumed operations as of 12:00 a.m. February 19. A wide range of university personnel responded to the situation and continued providing essential service functions throughout the closure period. President Peters has expressed great appreciation and pride for the shared response and solidarity of the entire campus community following the events that occurred February 14. As university operations resume, supervisors should be cognizant of employee readjustments and facilitate their return to duty. Release time should be authorized as necessary for employees to seek Employee Assistance services or to participate in recovery briefings taking account of operational requirements. Employee assistance information is available through the Employee Assistance Office (753-9191). Any questions pertaining to employee assistance can also be forwarded to Deborah Haliczer at 753-6039. Magellan EAP services are available by calling (866) 659-3848.

All employees will be paid for the closure days pursuant to the payroll procedures outlined below. Generally, Hourly Civil Service employees who reported to work during the closure should record the hours worked on their time sheet (including overtime, if any) and, following completion of the necessary departmental time sheet confirmations, will also be eligible for compensatory time. Additionally, HRS has revised Operations and Payroll deadlines, which are detailed below.

Time Reporting Protocols

1. Hourly paid Operating Staff employees scheduled to work, who did not report due to the closure or who elected to report for work on a voluntary basis, will be paid for the number of hours scheduled at their normal rate of pay.
2. Hourly paid Operating Staff employees who worked during the emergency closure providing essential services will receive compensatory time credit at the rate of 1.5 times the hours worked plus the applicable normal rates of pay (including overtime, if any). Supervisors may also confirm essential service designations for staff members who were not pre-designated, but who were asked to report or reported and performed essential functions during the closure period.
3. All hourly paid Operating Staff employees who worked during the emergency closure, should record their normally scheduled work hours on the Hourly Time Sheet. Essential service designated employees who reported for duty should also record compensatory time credit at the rate of 1.5 times the hours actually worked. Payroll will issue specific procedures for departments not completing time sheets.
4. Salaried employees, including those fulfilling essential service functions will receive their regular rates of pay. Compensatory time does not apply to salaried positions. No separate entries for the closure day will be required for the Salaried Employee Benefit Usage Report.
5. Employees utilizing sick leave, vacation, or other approved leave with pay at the time of the closure day will receive their regular pay with time charged to the appropriate benefit.
6. Student and Extra Help employees who worked during the closure should record the time worked as regular hours on the time sheet and in the comments section for departmental confirmation.
7. Negotiated employees will be compensated in accordance with the respective collective bargaining agreement.

Revised HR Operations and Payroll Processing Time Line