I am not a person who looks forward to cold weather, what with recent weather forecasts that we may experience a La Nina winter that may be colder and snowier than last year.
But I am looking forward to a Merry Christmas with a light blanket of snow, and I hope you are, too. Christmas is a special time to celebrate with family and friends, and again this year the university will provide extended time for everyone to share the joy of the holidays.
Our regular paid holidays (Christmas Eve, Christmas, New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day) will fall on weekends and will be observed on weekdays (Dec. 23, 26 and 30 and Jan. 2). We will provide additional paid holidays on Dec. 27, 28 and 29. The bottom line: we will be off 11 days in a row, from Dec. 23 through Jan. 2, before returning to work on Tuesday, Jan. 3, when January Term classes begin.
Some employees, including certain public safety officers, facilities workers, IRT server administrators, food service workers and athletic coaches, may need to work over the holidays due to the nature of their duties. If you are uncertain whether your services are required during this period, please contact your supervisor.
Regular full-time, part-time and temporary employees who would have been scheduled to work between Dec. 23 and Jan. 2, if these were not university holidays, will be paid for that time period in accordance with our holiday pay policy. Employees who are required to work during the Christmas holidays will be compensated as follows:
- Employees who are represented by a union will be paid according to the terms of their collective bargaining agreement.
- Non-exempt (hourly) employees who are not represented by a union will receive pay for hours actually worked on the holiday in addition to their regular pay for all scheduled work hours that day.
- Exempt (salaried) employees will receive a floating holiday for each holiday worked as arranged with their manager. The floating holidays must be used by June 30, 2017, the end of our fiscal year.
Department heads must notify Human Resources by Dec. 5 if they have employees who must work during the Christmas holidays. Questions about the holiday pay policy should be addressed to Human Resources.
Let us cherish the blessings of faith, family and friends during this holiday season! And, if we are fortunate, Old Man Winter will be kinder to us as well.
