Ohio Administrative Code › Title 3352 - Wright State University › Chapter 3352-5 - Personnel Policies › Section 3352-5-13 - Furlough leave

Current through all regulations passed and filed through July 1, 2024
(A)
								Introduction
Section 371.70.20 of amended
				substitute House Bill No. 1 effective on July 17, 2009, provides that "the
				board of trustees of any state institution of higher education, notwithstanding
				any rule of the institution to the contrary, may adopt a rule providing for
				mandatory furloughs of employees, including faculty, to achieve spending
				reductions necessitated by institutional budget deficits."
The university recognizes that
				conditions may arise which necessitate the use of voluntary or mandatory
				furloughs. This rule will be applicable to nonbargaining unit faculty and all
				non-bargaining unit staff. This rule sets forth the general guidelines that
				will guide the implementation of mandatory or voluntary furlough leave
				days.
Faculty and/or staff covered by
				collective bargaining agreements will follow the provisions detailed in their
				respective agreements.
(B)
								Definitions
Furlough leave -is when the university
				has determined that non-bargaining unit faculty and non-bargaining unit staff
				can be placed into a temporary, noduty, non-pay status. Furlough leaves are
				different from layoffs in that impacted employees continue working on a
				reasonable regular basis, except for a temporary period without pay. Furlough
				leaves can be mandatory university-wide or individuals can request to take
				furlough leave on a voluntary basis.
Mandatory scheduled furlough leave
				days - are leave days that have been identified by the president, or her/his
				designee, as official furlough leave days, required to be taken by all
				colleges, schools and divisions within an applicable fiscal year.
Voluntary scheduled furlough leave
				days - are leave days, which are optional unpaid days and are therefore not
				mandated by the university. These leave days require advanced approval and
				should be scheduled during a time that is most operationally feasible for the
				college, school or division, within an applicable fiscal year.
Annualized salary - is the
				compensation an employee would be expected to earn throughout the course of a
				year if the employee worked  forty hours a week for an entire year. The simplest
				calculation for determining an annualized salary is to multiply an employee's
				hourly rate by two thousand eighty hours (fifty-two weeks by forty
				hours).
(C)
								Procedures
(1)
									Before a furlough leave is implemented, the president
			 or designee will perform an analysis to ensure the cost-savings
			 effectiveness.
(2)
									If it is determined that a significant cost-savings can
			 be realized by the activation of a furlough leave, the president or designee
			 will provide campus-wide notification no later than thirty days prior to
			 implementation of the furlough leave, except in the event of any major
			 university crisis, such as a catastrophe, natural disaster or in the event of
			 financial exigency.
(3)
									The university reserves the option to exempt any
			 employee earning below a designated annualized minimum salary, as determined by
			 the president or designee, from being required to take mandatory furlough
			 leave. The president or designee will communicate the minimum salary threshold
			 prior to the enactment of mandatory furlough leave days.
(4)
									Faculty and
			 staff positions that are supported by a combination of funds from external
			 sponsors and the university's base budget will have mandatory furlough leave
			 days offset in accordance with the outside funding source.
(5)
									Faculty and staff
			 positions fully supported by an outside funding source may not be required to
			 experience mandatory furlough leave days.
(6)
									The number of days of mandatory
			 furlough leave shall be set at a maximum of ten days per fiscal year. Furlough
			 leave days for hourly employees will not exceed more than five days within a
			 given pay period. Exceptions may be authorized by the board of
			 trustees.
(7)
									Impacted faculty and staff are not permitted to perform
			 work for Wright state university in the furloughed position while on a furlough
			 leave. This requirement will be strictly monitored.
(8)
									No vacation, sick
			 leave or compensatory time will be approved in lieu of a period of mandatory
			 furlough leave. Additionally, paid holidays or other paid time off cannot be
			 substituted for furlough leave days.
(9)
									Part-time employees with the
			 identified full-time annualized salary threshold, as determined by the
			 president or designee, shall be required to take furlough leave on a prorated
			 basis.
(10)
									New employees who have six months or less service with
			 the university at the time of an enactment of mandatory furlough leave will be
			 exempted from furlough leave within that fiscal year. However, new employees
			 with more than six months of service with the university, at the time of an
			 enactment of mandatory furlough leave, who meet the annualized salary
			 threshold, will be required to take mandatory furlough leave
			 days.
(11)
									Except for mandatory furlough leave days, scheduled by
			 the president or designee, voluntary furlough leave must be requested and
			 scheduled by the respective college, school or division at a time most
			 operationally feasible for the area.
(12)
									Supervisors may
			 not permit hourly employees to work overtime in a week in which there is
			 mandatory and/or voluntary furlough leave. Overtime should not be used to
			 subvert furlough leave requirements.
(13)
									Furlough leave days may be taken in
			 eight hour to four hour increments only, except for those part-time employees
			 whose prorated leave requirement is not evenly divisible by
			 four.
(14)
									Non-bargaining unit faculty members may not schedule
			 furlough leave for times in which they are scheduled to teach except in the
			 event of any major university crisis.
(15)
									Reduction of
			 retirement benefits will be experienced as a result of mandatory and/or
			 voluntary furlough leaves.
(16)
									Employees remain
			 responsible for all applicable payroll deductions during a furlough
			 leave.
(17)
									All furlough leave days shall be documented on monthly
			 leave reports and bi-weekly timesheets as "furlough leave" for payroll and
			 leave records. Leave accruals will continue with the use of a specific furlough
			 leave code on bi-weekly time sheets and monthly leave reports.
(18)
									The Wright state
			 board of trustees through direction given to the president or designee has the
			 ability to modify this policy in instances of a major university
			 crisis.