Greetings campus colleagues,
This email is to remind you that all employees, including our dedicated student workers, are eligible for paid administrative leave if they are unable to work for COVID-19 related reasons, as encompassed in President Napolitano’s March 16, 2020 executive order. See also guidance from Berkeley HR for Staff Managers and Supervisors, and Academic Supervisors. Work-study students are subject to different guidelines on using leave and recording time during this period.
All UC staff-- including students-- are expected to work to the fullest extent that they can, whether working remotely or on-site in essential operations. However, we understand that working during this time--even remotely--may not be possible due to the varied personal circumstances of our diverse student staff and the unique nature of on-campus jobs. Supervisors should support their employees, including student staff, to use their paid administrative leave if/when they are unable to work during this time.
Guidance for work-study student staff:
In accordance with guidance from the Department of Education, if remote work is unavailable, work-study students may continue to be paid their regularly scheduled hours until the end of the work-study aid year (May 15, 2020) or until they have exhausted their work study award allocation, whichever comes first. Therefore, work-study students do not have a limit on the number of hours of leave they may record on their timesheet, rather the limit is their individual work-study award limit. This flexibility applies only to students who began their Federal work-study job prior March 1, 2020.
-
Timekeeping is critical - paid leave hours for work-study students must be tracked for federal reporting purposes using the CV-19 Admin Leave with Pay code in CalTime. Please keep in mind that the last day to earn work-study subsidies is May 15, 2020. Please continue to monitor the students hours and work-study award limits.
-
All work-study hours recorded for time not worked must be tracked using the CV-19 Admin Leave with Pay Code for federal reporting requirements. If this was not done, it is critical to work with your HR partner to get the student CalTime records corrected as soon as possible.
-
-
Earnings will continue to split - Provided departments continue to pay their share of a student’s earnings, the Work-Study Program will cover its share of the student's earnings for time the student was scheduled to work up to the work-study award limit.
-
Check your own funding rules - It is a department’s responsibility to ensure the granting agency or fund terms of the department funding source allow for administrative leave. If admin leave is prohibited by the department funding source, work with your divisional financial leadership to see what accommodations are possible.
-
When the award runs out - Once a work-study student has exhausted their award, the department becomes responsible for funding 100% of their wages and the student will convert to a non-work-study student staff. At this point, it is up to the department to determine whether to end or continue the appointment, at which point standard leave eligibility rules would apply.
Please direct students in need of financial assistance as a result of COVID-19 to the UC Berkeley COVID-19 Relief Funds website.
Sincerely,
Cruz & Eugene
Cruz Grimaldo, Assistant Vice Chancellor and Director, Financial Aid and Scholarships Office,
Eugene Whitlock, Chief People & Culture Officer/Assistant Vice Chancellor-Human Resources