Definitions of Employment Status

The following terms are used to describe the classification of employees and their status:

Exempt

Employees whose positions are designated as executive, administrative, professional or outside sales, or other exemptions, as prescribed by federal and state wage and hour laws. These employees are exempt from overtime pay.

Non exempt

Employees whose positions are not designated as executive, administrative, professional, outside sales, or any exemption, as prescribed by federal and state wage and hour laws. These employees are paid time and one half of their regular rate of pay for actual hours worked in excess of forty (40) per week.

Full-time Regular

At-will employees regularly scheduled to work thirty (30) hours or more per week on a continuous basis through the entire calendar year. Full-time employees may be eligible for College benefits, provided they meet specific plan eligibility requirements. Please refer to the Benefits section of this Handbook or contact Human Resources for information regarding eligibility.

Part-time Regular

At-will employees regularly scheduled to work less than thirty (30) hours per week on a continuous basis through the entire calendar year. Part-time employees may not be eligible for all College benefit programs offered. You will be informed at Orientation as to which, if any, programs are available to part-time staff. Please contact Human Resources with any questions regarding your status and program eligibility.

Full-time Academic Year

At-will employees regularly scheduled to work more than thirty (30) hours per week on a continuous basis throughout a ten month academic year. Full-time academic year employees are eligible to participate in all employee benefits including prorated accrued leave time.

Temporary/Seasonal

At-will employees are temporarily hired for a pre-established and limited period of time no greater than six months, usually during peak workloads or for vacation relief. Such workers may be on the College payroll or they may be from temporary staffing agencies. These workers are notified of the temporary nature of their work assignments, although they may work a full-time or part-time schedule. Temporary workers receive all legally mandated benefits but are not eligible for employee benefits. They are expected to comply with all College policies and rules governing employee conduct.

Casual

Employees who have established an employment relationship with the College but who are assigned to work on an intermittent and/or unpredictable basis. Casual employees receive all legally mandated benefits, but are ineligible for employee benefits.

On-call

Employees who work intermittently, as needed, and who may or may not have a routine on-call work schedule. This status may be applied on an as needed basis.

Supervisor

Employees who are responsible for making decisions, regarding hiring, promotion, disciplinary action and terminations, or as defined by law.

Essential Personnel

Essential personnel perform duties that preserve safety, health, and maintenance functions for the College. If College offices are closed for inclement weather, only those personnel defined as "essential" should report for work; no other personnel should report.

Note: Positions are identified as Essential Personnel in the position descriptions.

The College reserves the right to change an employee's status in response to business needs. Employees may request a change in status to accommodate personal circumstances by discussing their situation with their supervisor or the Director of Human Resources. In all cases, the decision to change the status of any position will be based on a variety of factors, including, but not limited to, the department's workload, available resources and an employee's performance record. Any modifications provided to an employee must be submitted to and approved by the Human Resources Department. Depending on the nature of the modification, some adjustments to the salary may be necessary as a result of a change in classification or status.

Commencement of Employment

Your employment commencement date is the first day on which you report for work and are entered on our payroll records.

Each completed year following your employment commencement date will be your anniversary date. If you begin at the College on a part-time or temporary basis and accept full-time employment, your anniversary date and year will be the date upon which you first commenced regular full-time employment.

New Employee Orientation

The New Employee Orientation Program covers personnel policies, benefits and general administrative procedures. During orientation, employees will receive pertinent paperwork related to employment, including General Withholding Authorization and Uniform Enrollment forms, both of which can be found in the Appendix of this handbook.

Additionally, employees spend appropriate time with their supervisor and others learning the specific functions of their position. This training period can vary in length.

We welcome any suggestions you have to make this orientation more meaningful and effective in the future.

Job Postings

Available positions may be posted internally when appropriate. The posting will be placed on MICA's Human Resource Web site. If you would like to refer someone whom you think is qualified, you should contact Human Resources.

MICA will consider internal candidates for promotion or transfer to a new position whenever possible. An internal candidate must follow the same application process as all other candidates and must notify his/her supervisor of an interest in applying for a position. If the hiring supervisor wants to consider the candidate, they are encouraged to contact the direct Supervisor for a recommendation. MICA will only consider an employee with one (1) year continuous service and excellent performance ratings for promotion or transfer to another department. The candidate with the best qualifications will be selected and external candidates may also be considered.

Introductory Period

Your first ninety (90) days of employment are considered an Introductory Period. During this time, we will evaluate your compatibility with your position and the organization. You can, in turn, evaluate us as well.

If you are a regular, full-time employee, upon completion of the ninety (90) day Introductory Period, you are eligible for the leave accrual programs, as they apply to you. For specific enrollment information, please reference the benefits section of this handbook or contact Human Resources.

At the end of the Introductory Period, your Supervisor will discuss your job performance with you and may extend the Introductory Period, which may affect your eligibility for MICA leave program.

Completion of the Introductory Period does not guarantee employment for any specific period of time. As an "at-will" employee, either you or the College may elect to terminate your employment during or after the Introductory Period, for any reason or no reason at all.

Performance Appraisals

MICA generally conducts performance reviews upon completion of ninety (90) days and in May/June of every year or on a more frequent basis, if needed, which may affect the employee's eligibility for MICA's leave program.

During a performance appraisal, the supervisor may discuss job performance and set or evaluate progress towards goals. Additionally, the supervisor may document performance issues and recommend possible changes in job duties or positions.

A wage adjustment does not automatically follow a performance review.

Personnel Records and Information

Important events in each employee's history with the College will be recorded and kept in the employee's personnel file. These files are only made available to authorized persons or licensed governmental agencies as required by law.

You may review your personnel file upon prior written request submitted to Human Resources. Human Resources will attempt to provide your personnel file within a reasonable timeframe after receiving the written request. This review may take place only with a Human Resources representative present. Personnel files may not be removed from the records area. An employee may request a copy of any of the information contained in his/her personnel file.

You are responsible for notifying Human Resources of changes in address, telephone number, and/or family status (births, marriage, death, divorce, legal separation, immigration status, etc.), as income tax status and group insurance may be affected by these changes.

Information Requests and Employment References

Requests for employee information received from outside the College, including requests for references on current or former employees, must be directed to Human Resources. Supervisors and other employees are prohibited from providing personal or employment references on current or former employees.

• Telephone Information Requests: No information will be provided over the phone.
• Written Information Requests: Dates of employment, positions held, and salary history will be released if the College receives a written request with a release signed by the current or former employee.

Employees who violate this policy may be subject to disciplinary action, up to and including termination.

Hours of Work

The College's corporate office hours are from 8:30 A.M. to 4:30 P.M., Monday through Friday. Hours of work at various departments may vary.

Employee schedules are based on business needs and vary. You will be informed of your work schedule by your supervisor and you are expected to be flexible, as your work schedule may be subject to change based on business needs. Exact times for meal breaks may vary based on work schedules, shifts and by department. Overtime and weekend work may be required, and will only be assigned and authorized by Supervisory personnel.

For non-exempt employees, requests to deviate from the general working schedule must be submitted to your supervisor in advance and authorized in writing. If you have any questions regarding your schedule, please see your supervisor. Employees are expected to be ready to begin work at the start of their workday.

The College may require employees to travel between work locations based on business needs. Travel time between locations is considered hours worked. Your beginning and ending commute is not considered hours worked.

Time Records

All employees are expected to report hours worked or time off in an accurate manner using the correct College designated process. Non-exempt employees are required to submit a timesheet to their supervisor who will review, approve and submit to payroll. You must accurately record all work hours and authorized time off vacation, sick, personal leave, leave without pay (LWOP), other leave (administrative, jury duty, FMLA, disability, etc.), and holidays.

Inaccurate timesheets reflecting fraudulent hours for work or time off, or any failure to follow the Time Records Policy may result in disciplinary action, up to and including termination. If you have any questions regarding your timesheets or paycheck, please see your Supervisor or Payroll. Please refer to the Overtime Policy outlined in this handbook for information on documenting overtime.

Termination of Employment

All employees of the College are employed "at-will." Both the employee and the College have the right to sever the employment relationship at any time, with or without notice, for any reason or no reason at all. All benefits terminate on the last day of employment unless otherwise specified. If the terminating employee is eligible, continuation insurance coverage information will be provided during the termination process or mailed to the employee in accordance with state and federal law.

Resignation and Separation

If you decide to leave the College, we would appreciate two weeks of notice. Please advise your Supervisor of your decision in writing so that an orderly transition can be made.

It is our goal that when you leave the College you have an exit meeting with Human Resources to solicit feedback regarding your employment with us. At that time you will also be advised of the status of your benefits and final pay arrangements. Please note that if you have any outstanding loans or pay advances for which you have signed a General Withholding Authorization Form (please see Appendix A), the balance due will be deducted from your final pay.

The termination process includes turning in all College property, such as computers, file cabinets, calculators, files, documents, software, building passes, parking passes, parking IDs, key cards, keys and equipment, as applicable.