Policy: Student Employment Policy Guide and Handbook
UW-Platteville Student Employment Policy Guide and Handbook
Contents
UW-Platteville and UW System Policies
Eligibility for Student Employment
Termination of a Student’s Employment
UW-Platteville and UW System Policies
Student Employees are subject to all UW-Platteville and UW System policies, including, but not limited to:
Alcohol and Other Drug Policies
Discrimination, Harassment, and Retaliation
Equal Employment Opportunities
Workplace Conduct Expectations
Introduction
Student employment is intended to provide university students with financial support in pursuit of their academic goals, provide opportunities for academic or administrative job experience, and to help meet the needs of the university. Student employment is an integral part of the student’s education, as experienced student employees will soon become highly marketable alumni. This program is a high impact practice and carries lasting beneficial economic results for the student, university, and community.
The Office of Human Resources has general administrative authority over student employment, determines student eligibility to work, and initiates the forms to place students on payroll. This office also verifies state and federal compliance towards affirmative action and equal opportunity guidelines, monitors for equitable wage rates, ensures appropriate earning conditions and restrictions are maintained, and reviews university records to ensure students maintain work eligibility.
The policies and procedures set forth in the University of Wisconsin-Platteville Student Employment Policy Guide and Handbook may be subject to change without notice. Failure to abide by policies may result in loss of employment and loss of work-study allotment for the student involved.
Federal Work-Study
On-campus student employment can help maximize financial assistance to students. Federal Work-Study is a federally funded, need-based program, which gives students an opportunity for part-time employment, on or off campus. To qualify for this program, the student must complete a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) to determine need. Students may complete a financial aid application at any time during the year for a determination of eligibility for the Federal Work-Study Program. Award amounts depend on the financial need of the student. Work-Study Awards are not applied to tuition or related costs.
Students who have been awarded Work-Study must apply to and be hired for a qualified job. Money earned from a Work-Study position will be paid to students bi-weekly via direct deposit. When the student’s work-study allotment has been fully earned, the university payroll system will automatically transition the student’s full wages to a department funding source.
Any changes made to the student’s work-study allotment will be communicated to the student by Financial Aid. It is the responsibility of the student to inform his/her Supervisor of any changes in his/her work-study allotment.
Eligibility for Student Employment
Academic Year
Any student enrolled in six (6) credits or more per semester may work as a student employee during the academic year. Internships listed as enrolled courses for credit and Co-Ops required for graduation will credited as the six (6) credits needed to be eligible for student employment. If a student drops below six credits, the student must terminate all student employment positions.
A student who attends the fall semester but is not returning the following spring semester must terminate employment the last day of the fall semester. It is the student’s responsibility to communicate their credit load or enrollment status to their hiring department.
Summer
Students must meet one (1) of the following criteria to be eligible to work on campus from the end of the spring semester to fall semester:
- Enrolled in six (6) credits for the following fall semester.
- Enrolled in three (3) credits during summer session, employment ends the last week of summer session.
Employment of High School Students
Student positions can be filled by high school students 16 years or older if the hiring department can demonstrate a lack of university students to fill the position. This allowance should be used primarily during the summer months, with exceptions made during the academic year based on hiring needs.
Hiring Process
The student must apply for a position on campus through Handshake and/or PageUp. Students who wish to hold more than one position on campus will need to complete a corresponding application for each position.
Once a student has been offered employment by a department, the student is required to complete new hire paperwork. The paperwork required is subject to change and will be directly communicated to each student offered an on-campus job. This communication will be sent via email to their campus issued email address. Paperwork cannot be completed more than 30 days in advance of a new employee’s start date. The student may not begin work until all the required paperwork is on file with Student Employment. If a student cannot or will not provide Student Employment with the necessary documents needed to complete the required paperwork, the student forfeits any employment opportunities, and their application will be moved into a withdrawn status.
Students who are currently working or have worked on campus before and are selected to work in a new position, will not be required to complete the new hire paperwork. These students are advised to log into the Employee Portal and ensure direct deposit and tax information is up to date.
Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification
The Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 requires that employers may only hire individuals unauthorized to work in the United States. It is the responsibility of the Office of Human Resources to monitor this law as it pertains to student employees.
All employees, including student employees, must complete an Employment Eligibility Verification (Form I-9). This form requires the student to provide valid, acceptable identification documents. The list of acceptable documents used to complete this form are posted on the Human Resources SharePoint page. An I-9 form must be fully completed, and the required identification and work authorization documents must be reviewed, preferably before start but within 3 days of an employee’s start date, or they may not continue working.
Criminal Background Check
All new student employees must complete a criminal background check. Background checks are administered by a third-party criminal background check vendor, HireRight. HireRight will directly contact the student employee with directions on how to complete this process. A student’s offer of employment is contingent on passing the background check.
Required Trainings
Student employees are subject to UW Systems training requirements. The required training will be communicated via university email to the student employee. Trainings must be completed; incomplete trainings will result in the student no longer having access to their timeclock. A short description of the required trainings can be found on the Student Employment SharePoint page. Department or job-specific trainings will be communicated to the employee by their supervisor.
Wage Guidelines
The minimum wage for student employment positions is $8.00 an hour with some job classifications starting between $10-$13/hour depending upon level of responsibility and experience. Supervisors must follow the Student Employment Wage Guidelines for setting wages for their department. The Fair Labor Standards Act, as amended, prohibits the University from accepting voluntary services for regular work duties. Therefore, any student who is employed must be paid for all hours worked.
Student employee benefits include coverage under the Worker’s Compensation laws. This allows for payment of medical expenses and/or lost wage resulting from an illness or injury by reason of his/her work. All accidents must be reported on the Injury and Illness Report within 24 hours of the injury.
Wage Increases
Student Employees are eligible for wage increases based on one or more of the following criteria:
- Length of Service - After being employed for two consecutive semesters of work in the same role.
- Performance - Wage increases are allowed within the wage level for the student's current position description.
- Promotion - The department should increase the student’s wage to at least the entry wage of the new level or by 12%-15% whichever is greater.
The Student Employment Coordinator will monitor and review all wage change forms submitted to ensure wage guidelines are maintained.
Performance Reviews
Student Employment Performance reviews should be viewed as a learning opportunity for students to gain experience while being reviewed on their work ethic, communication, teamwork, and leadership. The completion of a performance review conversation and documentation becomes a high impact practice on the future development of our students’ continuing career.
The Student Employment Office has created a performance review template. When the supervising department has an internal Performance Review form, that completed form should be provided to the Student Employment Office.
If the Student Employee is rated as Needs Improvement or Not Meeting Expectations, the supervising department should complete the Recommendations to Enhance Employee Performance section of the performance review. This section includes a deadline for completion of the performance improvement recommendations. When the completion date has been reached, a new review should be completed to indicate the improvement the Student Employee has shown.
It is recommended supervisors of students give performance reviews in the following circumstances:
- Student Employee does not meet performance expectations
- Student Employee meets performance expectations
- Once per academic year
Student Employment Office will request a completed Performance review for the following:
- A student is promoted to a supervisory role
- Wage increase
International Students
International students will need to obtain a Social Security number from the Social Security Administration Office. Please see the international student Web Page for more detailed directions on the documents and steps required. When the student receives their Social Security Card, they should sign it and take it to the Student Employment in the Office of Human Resources.
The international student will receive communication from Glacier. The student is advised to complete the steps sent out by Glacier to ensure proper payroll processing. For additional information regarding international student employment, please contact International Student and Scholar Services.
International students with an acceptable Visa may have one or more employment opportunities on campus. However, international students are limited to working 20 hours for all jobs during any week when class is in session. International students may work 40 hours during any breaks, such as the break between the academic year or spring break. Students cannot maintain a 40-hour work week for more than 84 consecutive days, or 12 weeks. Maintaining this level of employment beyond 84 days will increase their overall average hours beyond UW System policy limits.
Hours of Work Allowed
During the academic year, students cannot work more than 25 hours per week. If the student has multiple on-campus jobs, they cannot exceed 25 hours total across all on campus jobs. Federal regulations limit international students to 20 hours per week while school is in session. It is the student’s responsibility to inform Supervisors of multiple on campus jobs to ensure the student does not exceed allowable hours.
Students will receive communication via email regarding the violation of this rule. If the student does not demonstrate an understanding of this rule and continues to exceeds 25 hours, disciplinary action may be taken up to, and including, termination. Students and Supervisors are asked to carefully monitor their hours worked.
Students may be offered up to 40 hours of work when classes are not in session. Students cannot maintain a 40-hour work week for more than 12 weeks. Maintaining this level of employment beyond 12 weeks will increase their overall average hours beyond UW System policy limits.
Under extreme circumstances, if an overtime situation does occur the University will pay in accordance with the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Students must be advised not to work more than 40 hours when employed by two or more departments during breaks or summer.
Employees who are 16 and 17 years of age are subject to Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development Meal Period regulations and may not work more than six (6) consecutive hours without having a 30-minute, duty free meal period. Student Employees over the age of 17 transition to the FLSA employee regulations.
Time Entry
The University of Wisconsin-Platteville campus uses a web-based time system for hourly student employees. The employing department is responsible for training and informing student employees on the procedures for time entry. Student employees are required to log hours honestly and accurately using the online timekeeping system. The employing department and student employee should both review hours recorded. The Supervisor will approve the time worked at the end of each pay period. Supervisors are required to follow the rules set forth by the Fair Labor Standards Act for payment of hours worked.
If a student employee has multiple jobs, they cannot have overlapping punches on their timecard. In an instance where this occurs, it is UW System procedure to delete the two overlapping shifts.
If a student employee cannot, for any reason, work when scheduled, it is the student’s responsibility to notify their supervisor in a timely manner.
Lump Sum Payments
Most student employees are paid on an hourly basis and hours of work are tracked accordingly. Lump Sum Payments to students must be pre-approved by Student Employment. Information regarding the lump sum payment is submitted in writing to Student Employment. Hours worked will need to be tracked to ensure adherence to ACA regulations.
Paycheck
Student employees are paid on a bi-weekly basis and follow the UW System bi-weekly payroll calendar. Information on specific pay dates is available on the Human Resources SharePoint page.
A student’s paycheck will be direct deposited into the student’s bank account. If the student does not indicate a bank account, or there is an issue with the student’s supplied bank information, the University will issue a pay card to the student. These cards are administered by US Bank and are reloadable debit cards. Upon first issuance, the pay card will be mailed to the student’s home address on file in our payroll system, and paychecks will be loaded onto the card until direct deposit information is updated.
Termination of a Student’s Employment
When a student employee is consistently tardy, absent, or not meeting performance expectations, the employing department has a right to terminate a student’s employment. The employing department will demonstrate a good faith effort to communicate a failure to meet work expectations and provide opportunity and instructions for improvements before termination of a student employee. The employing department must keep accurate records of conversations with the student employee regarding work expectations. Human Resources can offer departments guidance on student dismissals or performance concerns.
Should the employee not demonstrate clear signs of performance improvement, the employing department has the authority to end the employment of the student. It is the employing department’s responsibility to clearly notify the student of dismissal.
Some instances of behavior may cause the University to seek immediate dismissal, without opportunities for the employee to demonstrate improvement. These instances can include but are not limited to criminal acts, such as theft, and timeclock fraud. The University and Office of Human Resources has the discretion to make immediate termination decisions.
Students who fall below the six (6) credit requirement will be notified of their non-compliance and given the chance to increase their credit enrollment. If credit enrollment is not increased to the requirement, all student employment positions will be terminated.
Once a student has been dismissed, graduated, or for any reason is not returning to the University of Wisconsin-Platteville for the following academic period, the student is no longer considered a University of Wisconsin-Platteville student and is not eligible for student employment. It is the Supervisor’s responsibility to monitor this for student employees in their department.