Remote & Hybrid Work Guidelines

Effective: May 15, 2023
Supersedes: Remote & Hybrid Work Guidelines in place Aug.16, 2021
Approved by: Glen Krutz, Dean
Guidance contact: Bernadette Stewart, College of Arts and Sciences
Applies to: Classified and University Staff, College of Arts and Sciences

Introduction

We work for a university, committed to promoting and enriching the community and university experience. The College views in-person collaboration as paramount to creating this culture. Some of the best insights, decisions and opportunities come from impromptu conversations, in-person meetings.  

Given the changing demographics of the workforce and the increased competition for qualified employees, it is also important to the College to find alternative ways to compete in today’s labor market. Providing employees flexibility and balance is critical to equity and retention for the future of work.

To better align with the workforce demands and campus standards (see here), the College is implementing revised work modality expectations.

A&S Guiding Principles

  • Align with campus expectations.
  • Enhance the student experience, improve engagement and retention, maintain responsible stewardship of resources, and support flexibility.
  • Recognize that a one-size-fits-all approach will not work for such a complex college, thus embed flexibility into our expectations.
  • Ensure all employees can successfully achieve shared goals and objectives associated with their positions.

Work Modality Expectations

  • Provide two day in-person minimum, plus mandatory meeting as necessary.
    • During busy surge times in-person presence may increase up to full-time in person.
    • Staff members may be required to come into the office for an unforeseen business circumstance, within reason and with advanced notice.
  • The majority of College staff will be eligible to work remotely up to 24 hours, or three days, per week (prorated for part-time appointments).
  • Work with your supervisors to develop and/or update appropriate work modality plans.
  • Scheduling must take into account that open staffed office(s) need to be designated, identified- clearly communicated Monday through Friday during regular business hours with an adequate number of professionals on site.
  • Employees in student-facing positions will be expected to conduct in-person business with students. 
  • An employee’s hybrid work arrangement cannot adversely affect the ability of other staff to perform their jobs.
  • We recognize that some staff may have special requests with respect to working arrangements and we will do our best to accommodate those requests. To ensure equity, all health-related requests must go through ADA/FMLA.If any employee needs further information about submitting an ADA/FMLA request, please connect with the CAS HR team.

Guidance for Supervisors and Unit Leadership

  • In-person coverage during all business hours must be maintained.
  • Supervisors should plan to have all their staff on site together at least one day per week for collaboration, teamwork, and engagement.
  • Consider establishing common “core” working hours, for example 10 a.m.-3 p.m., excluding lunch.
  • Staff are expected to be working, whether in person or remote, during these times to provide consistency for colleagues and the people they serve.
  • Staff may flex other hours to accommodate their personal schedules. Ensuring an 8-hour workday. At minimum, a 30-minute lunch hour needs to be included.
  • Provide published information about how to get a hold of staff if in the moment in-person assistance is not available (publish core hours and Zoom room contact information for immediate connection).
  • Neighborhood model can be implemented for co-located units (departments, programs, centers) with three or fewer employees during key holiday weeks (fall break, week before and after winter break, spring break).
    • In these instances, in lieu of each staff member providing a minimum of two days of on-campus service, Monday-Friday, on-campus coverage with a minimum of two staff members on campus per day can be achieved collectively through a team-coverage strategy. 
  • Some staff may have special requests with respect to working arrangements, and we will do our best to accommodate those requests. To ensure equity, all health-related requests must go through ADA/FMLA. If any employee needs further information about submitting an ADA/FMLA request, please contact Shelly.Hammonds@colorado.edu on the CAS HR team.
  • In the event of inclement weather or parking closures during any semester, please work with your employee/s directly and/or follow campus communication.

Fully Remote Work and/or Out of State/Country Work

CAS does not support fully remote work.

Space 

Space is a valuable resource that needs to be devoted to the success of our students, faculty and staff. As we consider more flexible work modalities, space assignments must be considered as well. Staff who work more than 2 days remotely may be subject to sharing or hoteling, based on college space needs and availability. Employees who have been approved for a hybrid work modality that is mostly remote will be allocated a hoteling space, or a shared workstation in a shared office, when working on-site. Further guidance around space allocation and its connection to remote work may be given by the Campus Space Office, at which point the college will update our policy to abide by campus standards.

Related Policies, Procedures, Forms, Guidelines, and other Resources

񱦵 Remote Working Toolkit

Employee Relations Office, Campus HR Remote Working and Alternate Work Schedule Manager Guidance | Human Resources | 񱦵

Americans with Disability Compliance /institutionalequity/ada

Family Medical Leave: /hr/sites/default/files/attached-files/employee_toolkit.pdf &/hr/employees/leave

Definitions

Alternate Work Schedule: An alternate work schedule refers to any one of a variety of work arrangements different from traditional schedules. For example, different from Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. - 5 p.m., on-site work.

Hybrid: For the purpose of these guidelines is any employee who maintains a campus workspace and works from a hybrid of home and campus offices.

Local: For the purpose of these guidelines is defined as within driving distance.

Remote: For the purpose of these guidelines is defined as an employee working full-time from a location other than 񱦵.

Standard Work Hours: 񱦵 standard hours are 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. during the academic year (August-May), and 7:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. during the summer (June-July). Standard work hours will be expected unless otherwise discussed with your manager. Calendars need to be kept up to date with any changes to the work schedule.

Student-Facing Tasks: There are various types of student-facing roles within the college. Student-facing roles include any position which has direct student contact as a primary component of the employee’s role and service.

Questions?

First refer to FAQ Frequently Asked Questions, Remote & Hybrid Work | College of Arts and Sciences Faculty and Staff Site | 񱦵

For additional questions contact guidance contact, Bernadette.Stewart@colorado.edu.