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Policies

Overtime And Compensatory Time For Employees In Nonexempt Positions

Human Resources Policy: 40.031

All positions at Brown University are governed by the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and are evaluated to determine whether they are covered by the Act's overtime pay or compensatory time requirements.

General FLSA Guidelines for Exempt and Non-exempt Positions

The FLSA is a federal law that determines when overtime pay is required and mandates that employees who work in positions not exempt from the FLSA be paid time and one-half for time worked in excess of 40 hours in one work week. Compensatory time off within the same pay period may be given in lieu of overtime pay (see the Brown University Overtime Eligibility and Pay Rates for Employees Working in Non-exempt Positions section of this policy). FLSA has set $455 as the minimum weekly rate for exempt employees. Consequently, all employees earning less than $455 per week are automatically non-exempt.

FLSA exempts from coverage positions whose primary responsibilities involve: managing a department or unit including employment related decisions for at least 2 FTE's; work requiring advanced knowledge acquired by a prolonged course of specialized instruction and study (minimum: Bachelor's degree); producing work that is original and creative that depends on the employee's invention or imagination or talent; work that relates to management policies and business operations that involves the exercise of discretion and independent judgment regarding significant matters; and the design, development, documentation, and analysis of computer systems or programs. Employees in exempt positions are paid on a salaried basis, are expected to work the hours needed to meet their job requirements, and may not have their pay reduced for variations in the quantity or quality of work performed except as provided by FLSA. See Policy Exempt Employee Pay (40.030) for details.

Individual Time Tracking Sheet for Employees Occupying Non-exempt Positions

Nonexempt employees are required to record all hours worked on the Individual Time Tracking Sheet in order to ensure they are compensated accurately for all hours worked. Supervisors are responsible for ensuring accurate records are kept for all hours worked. Supervisors must authorize in advance all time worked in excess of the number of hours in an employee's normal work week, and should determine whether overtime pay or compensatory time off will be used to compensate the employee. Supervisors who are aware, or have reason to suspect, that non-exempt employees are working in excess of their normally scheduled hours without prior approval, must take action to stop employees from doing so. If employees continue to work unauthorized overtime, they must be informed in writing that they cannot do so and, if it continues, these employee may be subject to disciplinary action.

Non-exempt employees, who believe they are not being compensated for all hours worked, should contact Compensation and Organizational Services.

Brown University Overtime Eligibility and Pay Rates for Employees Working in Non-exempt Positions

Brown policy requires that employees working in non-exempt positions with normal work weeks of 37.5 hours are paid time and one-half for time worked in excess of 37.5 hours. Employees working in non-exempt positions with normal work weeks of 40 hours are paid time and one-half for each hour worked in excess of 40 hours. In calculating overtime pay, paid holidays, sick days, vacation days, and inclement weather days are treated as time worked. A Sunday through Saturday work week should be utilized when calculating overtime.

During the summer most departments change to Summer Hours, 8:00a.m. to 4:00p.m. with an hour for lunch, which is 35 hours per week, however staff continue to be paid for 37.5 hours. Staff in these departments who are asked to work more than 35 hours should receive additional compensation - straight time up to 37.5 hours and overtime when hours exceed 37.5.
Part-time employees are paid at their regular rates of pay for hours worked up to the normal number of hours established by their position's work week (e.g., 37.5 or 40 hours). They are paid time and one-half for hours worked in excess of the position's established normal work week.

Brown University Compensatory Time Eligibility and Calculation Method for Employees Working in Non-exempt Positions

A supervisor may require or allow employees to take compensatory time off in lieu of providing them time and one-half pay. Employees may request time off instead of overtime pay, subject to approval by their supervisors.
Compensatory Time:

• Same Work Week (even during weeks that are split between two pay periods): Compensatory time off is calculated at a rate of one hour for each extra hour worked.
• Next Work Week: Compensatory time off is calculated at a rate of one and one-half hours for each extra hour worked.

Note: If compensatory time is not taken within the same pay period, employees must be paid for hours worked at time and one-half the regular rate, except during the week that is split between two pay periods; In that case, compensatory time may still be taken during that week. FLSA does not allow compensatory time to be banked.

Departments may rearrange schedules and vary hours worked per day (within a given week) so that the combined total hours worked will equal the number of hours in the department's normal work week (provided that the applicable state and federal guidelines are followed).

Sunday Pay for Employees Working in Non-exempt Positions

In most cases, employees working in positions which provide essential services or in departments which must operate continuously (e.g., Health Services, Animal Care Facility) are paid their regular hourly rates when Sunday work is part of their normal work week.

All other employees who work on Sundays are paid double their regular hourly rates for each hour worked, unless otherwise stipulated. Compensatory time off for work on Sunday is calculated at a rate of two hours for each hour worked regardless of when the time is taken.

Holiday Pay for Employees Working in Non-exempt Positions

Employees who work on a designated University holiday receive their regular rates of pay plus time and one-half for each hour worked, or 2.5 times their normal hourly rate for the first 7.5 hours. Since the pay for holidays is already included in the employee's paycheck, compensatory time off is calculated at a rate of one and one-half hours for each extra hour worked regardless of when the time is taken. The 2.5 rate only corresponds to the first 7.5 hours the employee worked. All hours worked over 7.5 on a holiday are paid time and one-half.

Non-exempt Employees Working Additional Hours in another Department

When full time employees accept an assignment in another department, the additional hours worked must be paid at a rate that is at least equal to their overtime rate.

Pay for Seminars and Training Sessions for Employees Working in Non-exempt Positions

Overtime must be paid when attendance at a required training session or seminar extends the employee's work week beyond 37.5 or 40 hours. Only scheduled seminar hours are compensable; meals, breaks and study time are not. When employees in non-exempt positions must travel in connection with their jobs, their supervisors should contact Compensation and Organizational Services to ensure compliance with the FLSA requirements. Note: New employees who attend Brown orientation prior to their start date must be paid for attending.

On-Call Pay for Employees Working in Non-exempt Positions

When employees are on-call and are required to remain on Brown premises, they are considered to be working and are compensated. Employees who are not required to remain on Brown premises, but who carry a beeper or are required to leave information as to where they may be reached, are not considered to be working. If an employee is called in they are paid for a minimum of three hours or the actual hours worked which ever is greater. In instances when their presence is not required and a phone call suffices, employees are paid for the length of the call.

Call-In Pay for Employees Working in Non-exempt Positions

When employees are required to report to work as the result of a call-in, they must be paid for a minimum of three hours of work. Call-in-hours are paid as straight time unless the employee's hours exceed the positions standard work week, in which case they are paid according to policy.

Pay during Administrative Closings and Delays for Employees Working in Non-exempt Positions

Designated employees providing non-deferrable University services may be required to stay at work or report to work regardless of circumstances. For pay implications in such situations, please see the Administrative Closings Due to Inclement Weather policy (20.052).

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