Secondary Assignments Policy

AUDIENCE

All University employees.

PURPOSE STATEMENT

The purpose of this Policy is to establish guidelines regarding the acceptance of a Secondary Assignment within the University.

DEFINITIONS

Secondary Assignments: are additional assignments within the University where the duties are clearly outside of the regular responsibilities of the employee’s primary job with the University.

THE POLICY

It is the policy of Thomas More University to permit employees to accept a Secondary Assignment within the University under certain approved circumstances and in accordance with the guidelines set forth in the Procedures section of this Policy.   Secondary Assignments are generally temporary and are not benefit-eligible, except where required by law. 

Note: This Policy does not govern secondary employment outside of Thomas More University.

RELATED POLICIES AND APPLICABLE LEGAL OR ACCREDITATION STANDARDS

Fair Labor Standards Act of 1966

Shared Responsibility for Employers Regarding Health Coverage, 79 FR 8544 at 8551-8552

Hours of Operations Policy
Pay Period Policy
Time Reporting Policy

PROCEDURES

I. General Requirements for Secondary Assignments

1. The responsibilities associated with Secondary Assignment are clearly outside of the employee’s primary job responsibilities.
2. The intended Secondary Assignment does not diminish the employee’s effectiveness in the employee’s primary job with the University.
3. The University’s best interest is served by allowing the Secondary Assignment.
4. The employee is qualified to perform the responsibilities of the Secondary Assignment.

II. Procedures Applicable to All Secondary Assignments

1. Employees who seek a Secondary Assignment within Thomas More University must obtain prior written approval from the employee’s current direct supervisor and area vice president, as applicable. If the secondary assignment is a teaching assignment, the employee must also obtain prior written approval from the Vice President & Chief Academic Officer.  In determining Secondary Assignment eligibility, the supervisor and area vice president must consult Human Resources and consider whether the assignment meets the general requirements described in this Policy.
2. All Secondary Assignment pay is based on the applicable pay structure for the work to be performed and must be reported and paid in accordance with current payroll and FLSA guidelines:
   1. A non-exempt employee must be compensated on an hourly basis for any Secondary Assignment and is entitled to overtime pay where applicable.
   2. A non-exempt employee’s total hours among assignments will be accumulated to determine weekly overtime.
   3. A non-exempt employee performing an adjunct teaching assignment will do so on a “task” basis whereby employees are paid according to job or task rate without regard to the number of hours required to complete the task (2.25 work hours for each credit hour taught times the number of weeks in a given semester, per IRS guidance. At Thomas More, which operates on a standard 16-week semester, this equates to 36 work hours per credit hour.).
3. Supervisors are responsible for monitoring and ensuring compliance with this Policy.
4. It is the responsibility of both the primary and secondary supervisors to coordinate with one another regarding applicable leave administration and compensation, including eligibility for overtime pay for non-exempt employees, where due.

III. Procedures Relating to Staff Accepting Adjunct Teaching Assignments

The following procedures apply to staff employees seeking to accept an instructional assignment that are not part of their normal job responsibilities.

A. Staff Accepting Adjunct Teaching Assignments

Any staff member interested in adjunct teaching must possess the proper credentials and meet all institutional, accreditation, and regulatory requirements applied to course instructors.

B. Balancing Primary and Secondary Adjunct Teaching Assignments

An eligible staff employee may seek a Secondary Assignment to teach a course as an adjunct instructor under one of the following conditions:

1. The staff member teaches the course during non-work hours (i.e., evenings or weekends);
2. The staff member, supervisor and area vice president agree on a flexible work schedule by which the staff member performs part of his or her primary job responsibilities outside normal work hours; or
3. The staff member teaches without charge to the University if the teaching is done during regular working hours and the employee’s supervisor and area vice president approves the teaching assignment.

Exempt staff who teach as adjunct faculty in accordance with paragraph (1) or (2) above shall be compensated according to the regular compensation schedule for adjuncts.

Non-exempt staff who teach as adjunct faculty in accordance with paragraph (1) or (2) above shall be compensated at either the regular compensation schedule for adjuncts or by using the weighted average of the hourly rate for their primary assignment and secondary adjunct assignment, whichever is higher. Such rate shall be on a task basis as described above. Per credit hour, Thirty-six (36) work hours per credit hour will be assigned and distributed among the weeks the course is taught. The anticipated adjunct compensation shall be placed in the staff member’s adjunct contract, but will only be an estimated approximation. The adjunct compensation for non-exempt staff member will be calculated on a weekly basis in conjunction with the hours worked in the non-exempt staff member’s primary assignment to present an accurate accounting for compensation.

Unless otherwise agreed to, non-exempt staff members are expected to complete the full number of hours required for their primary assignment in addition to their adjunct teaching, and it is the responsibility of the non-exempt staff member to clock out of their primary assignment when engaging in their adjunct teaching assignment. A non-exempt staff member’s primary assignment supervisor shall work to verify that the hours reported through the time keeping system are accurately reflected for work only on the primary assignment.

Adjunct compensation is not provided for staff whose normal job responsibilities include teaching as part of their primary assignment and on which their salary is based. Such teaching responsibilities as part of their primary assignment shall be included in the staff member’s job description.

C. Course Limitations

A full-time staff member is not permitted to accept a Secondary Assignment to teach more than six credit hours per semester.

D. Continuation or Termination of Secondary Assignment 

1. Continuation of the Secondary Assignment will be reviewed annually as part of the employee evaluation process. If either the employee’s current direct supervisor and area vice president determines that the employee’s Secondary Assignment within the University interferes with the performance or ability of the employee to meet his or her primary job requirements, the Secondary Assignment will be terminated.
2. The employee’s current direct supervisor and area vice president reserve the sole right to terminate or not renew the Secondary Assignment at any time for any reason.
3. In the event that the employee resigns from their primary assignment or is terminated, the University reserves the right in its sole discretion to terminate the Secondary Assignment.
4. In the event the University elects to continue the secondary adjunct teaching assignment of a non-exempt employee, the employee’s compensation shall be modified to align with the regular compensation schedule for adjuncts, effective as of the date of the employee’s resignation or termination of the primary assignment.

REFERENCING THE POLICY

HISTORY

APPENDIX

There are no appendices to this Policy.

APPROVALS

Laura Custer, Director of Human Resources

Dr. Joseph L. Chillo, President