Article 23: Hours of Work

Mary Orton & Stacey Hawkins | December 12, 2012,12:00 pm to 2:00 pm
AGENDA

Overview of Article 23

Tackle Common Department Issues (Scenarios)

Discussion – Questions/Issues
OVERVIEW OF ARTICLE 23
• 7 hours/day, 35 hours/week
Hours of • 1 hour unpaid lunch period
Work
• applicable in excess of 7 hours/day or 35 hours/week
• time off in lieu or payment of 1 ½ times EEs hourly rate or 2
Overtime times on Sunday or Paid Holiday
Shift
Premium
• hours worked outside 8:00 am to 8:00 pm
• premium 2.5% of hourly rate
OVERVIEW OF ARTICLE 23
• temporary change in hours = 1 month notice
Schedule of • permanent change in hours = 3 months notice
Hours
• incorporate travel into normal work schedule
Travel
OVERVIEW OF ARTICLE 23
Flexibility in Hours of
Work
•
•
•
•
•
Initiated by EEs
EEs may work flexible hours
Alter start and stop times
Request must be operationally feasible
Compressed work week from May 1 to
August 31st – cannot alter lunch period
SCENARIOS: AREAS TO CONSIDER
• Is the solution operationally feasible?
• Do I need to provide notice?
• Is the solution in compliance with the collective
agreement?
• Is the solution fair?
SCENARIO #1
Suzie is a long time employee at Laurier whose
performance has declined over the last few years but
customer service skills are excellent. Suzie is an Event Coordinator which requires her to work a majority of
Saturday’s to attend events and ensures the event runs
smoothly. By Suzie working Saturdays you are accruing
large amounts of overtime.
How would you go about solving this situation?
How much notice would you be provide?
SCENARIO #1 - ANSWER
• Need to adjust work week to Tuesday to Saturday
(Sunday & Monday days off) to avoid incurring overtime
• Suzie’s days off would be Sunday and Monday
• Since Suzie is a long time employee and if this is a
permanent change to her schedule, you will need to
provide her with 3 months notice
SCENARIO #2
Roger, recently hired as a Program Co-ordinator, would
need to travel to Toronto for a meeting once a month. The
meeting is from 8:30 am to 10:30 am. The requirement for
Roger to travel to Toronto was explicitly noted on the job
posting, confirmed during the interview and noted in the
offer letter. There is no money in your budget for overtime.
How would you set Roger’s schedule?
How much notice would be required to provide?
SCENARIO #2 – ANSWER
• Need to adjust schedule so Roger does not work over 7
hours/day including travel time (i.e. 6:30 am to 2:30 pm,
would incur shift premium from 6:30 am to 8:00 am)
• No notice required since Roger is a new employee and
this schedule would have been set from the start
• Other suggestions: Negotiate new start time for
meetings in the future or set-up a conference call
SCENARIO #3
• Fred and Deborah both hold front line positions in an
academic department where the office hours posted are
from 8:30 am to 4:30 pm. Three years ago Fred
negotiated a shift of 8:00 am to 4:00 pm. With the
flexibility in hours of work language, Deborah would like
to work 8:00 am to 4:00 pm. Fred is the more senior
employee.
• How would you decide who would get the more
desirable shift?
SCENARIO #3 - ANSWER
• “Any request for flexible hours…may be denied by the
University if service or operational requirements are
adversely affected”
• Mediate between employees to problem solve
• Can approve both employees on a temporary basis –
ensure there are other staff members to respond to
questions (i.e put a bell out)
• Is there another arrangement Deborah would agree to?
SCENARIO #4
• On April 1st Joe requested to a work a compressed work
week from May 1st – August 31st. Joe would work extra
hours during the day to have every other Friday off. Joe
has accrued 235 hours in vacation. You have also
received another request for a compressed work week
from Jill for the same schedule.
• How would you respond to Joe & Jill’s request?
SCENARIO #4 - ANSWER
• Ask Joe what his plan was to use up the vacation
• Suggest instead of a compressed work week use
vacation
• If Joe is not in agreement, as per Article 25.18.7 (iii)
schedule carryover of vacation
• If operationally feasible, approve Jill’s request
SCENARIO #5
• Dorothy is Administrative Assistant for an academic
department. She has been employed at the University
since 2003. She has been requested to assist with an
one-time event that is from 6pm-8pm that is 5 weeks
from today. She is responsible for the decorations,
registration table and clean-up. The costs of the event
have gone over budget.
• How best would you incorporate her daily work hours?
• How much notice would be required to provide?
SCENARIO #5 - ANSWER
• Adjust Dorothy’s schedule the day of the event to work
1pm to 9pm
• Shift premium to paid after 8pm
• Meet with Dorothy at least 1 month prior to the date of
event to notify her of the shift change
SUMMARY
• Review employee’s current schedule, is it working for
the department?
• Ensure the solution is fair, operationally feasible and is in
compliance with the collective agreement
• Always ask yourself how much notice am I required to
provide to make this change?
Questions?
CONTACT INFORMATION:
MARY ORTON
[email protected]
Ext. 2805
STACEY HAWKINS
[email protected]
Ext. 4372
KATE KONOPKA
[email protected]
Ext. 4370
JOANNE ROBERTS
[email protected]
Ext. 4371
LISA CARSON
[email protected]
Ext. 5612