 Human Resources :: Overtime Compensation
The district compensates overtime for nonexempt employees
in accordance with federal wage and hour laws. All employees are classified
as exempt or nonexempt for purposes of overtime compensation. Professional
and administrative employees are ineligible for overtime compensation. Only
nonexempt employees (hourly employees and paraprofessional employees) are
entitled to overtime compensation. Nonexempt employees are not authorized
to work beyond their normal work schedule without advance approval from
their supervisor. A normal work week for full time employees is designated
as 40 hours and employees are compensated accordingly.
Time Worked vs. Time at Work
When an employee wants to arrive at work early in order to relax
before work or visit with others, the supervisor should make it
clear that such time is not to be spent working. In rare cases,
if an employee has been instructed not to work extra hours but
continues to do so, the supervisor may write a directive to that
employee. Supervisors must also remember that employees may not
volunteer their time for duties similar to their regular duties
without being compensated.
Recording Time Worked/Time Missed
from Work
Paraprofessionals
To ensure uniform record keeping, Paraprofessionals
and other non-exempt employees must use the official Time Sheet.
When an employee works more or fewer hours than
the number of hours scheduled for a work week, the employee
must explain the reason on the time sheet. In addition, when
the employee is absent from work, the employee must indicate
on the time sheet whether compensatory hours or leave balance
hours were used. If an Absent-from-Duty form was used, it must
be attached to the time sheet.
Supervisors will sign each paraprofessional’s
time sheet, each month. The supervisor’s signature confirms
that the time sheet is true and accurate. The original time
sheet shall be sent to the payroll office each
month.
Manual Trades
Manual Trades employees record their time on
a time clock. The time cards are kept in that department.
Storing Time Sheets
Original Time Sheets for paraprofessionals are
to be retained by the Payroll Department for a period of 4 years
(Record Retention).
When paraprofessionals end employment, supervisors
should send copies of the last two time sheets to the Payroll
Department, along with the Exit Form. Any accrued time will
be paid in the last paycheck.
Controlling Accumulation of Compensatory Time
As non-exempt employees, paraprofessionals accrue
1.5 hour for each hour they work when the hours worked exceed
40 in one week. For this reason, they may not work overtime in
order to amass accrued hours for an anticipated future need. State
and local leave is provided for this purpose.
Limiting accumulation of compensatory time is important
for three reasons. First, if an employee resigns, that employee
must be paid off. Second, if an employee transfers to another
department, accrued hours will not transfer with him/her. The
hours will be paid by the department that authorized the compensatory
hours. Third, when an employee is paid off, the pay-off will be
at the current rate of pay, not the rate of pay at the time compensatory
hours were earned.
Supervisors must also keep track of the time an
employee is accruing. Whenever a paraprofessional’s compensatory
time exceeds 60 hours, the campus/department supervisor should
work with the employee to design a plan to reduce the number of
accrued hours.
Nonexempt employees shall be compensated on an hourly
basis for all hours worked each week and shall be compensated
for overtime in accordance with federal regulations and the District’s
compensation plan. Nonexempt employees shall
not work overtime without prior approval of their supervisor.
If a plan cannot be designed because the campus/department
cannot afford to be without the services of the employee, the
supervisor should contact the Personnel Department. The two departments
will then plan how to control any future overtime. If certain
paraprofessionals frequently accrue hours, data should be collected
to account for the accumulation. The supervisor and the Personnel
Department will review the data and determine whether the accrued
are: 1) cyclical or seasonal, 2) related to specific activities,
3) likely to be of long or short duration, 4) accumulated for
a variety of reasons, or 5) accumulated for performed tasks which
a temporary or part-time employee could perform. This data will
be important to assess the personnel needs of the department/campus
and will be used as part of the budgeting process.
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