07-06.10 – Hours of Work and Attendance

  1. Purpose:

    Towson University (the "University") has established this policy and the University's general rules regarding hours of work, attendance, and other related terms/conditions for regular staff employees at the University. Faculty should consult the Faculty Handbook. 

  2. Definitions:

    1. Alternate Work Schedules Program: This program allows Departments     and employees the ability to use non-standard work schedules to provide flexibility, improve work-life balance and job satisfaction, recognize family responsibilities, reduce lateness and sick leave usage, curtail overtime, and improve productivity/service. This program may not be suitable for all positions and individual departments have discretion to make that determination.

    2. University Workday: The regular workday for full-time employees is an eight (8)-hour day of actual work time. The workday for part-time employees is determined by the full-time equivalency (“FTE”) of the part-time position.

    3. University Work Week: The regular work week for full-time employees is typically, five (5) consecutive eight (8)-hour workdays within a seven (7) day period, totaling forty (40) hours per week/eighty (80) hours per biweekly pay period. The regular work week for part-time employees is determined by the FTE of the part-time position.

    4. Work Time: All time in which an employee is required to be on duty at the University or an approved alternate workplace. Also includes all times during which an employee is allowed to work and is actually working, whether or not the employee is required to do so. Leave with pay (annual, personal, sick, holiday, or unscheduled closings) is considered work time for the purpose of computing overtime pay and compensatory leave, unless otherwise stipulated by applicable policy

  3. Responsible Executive and Office:

    Responsible Executive:
    Chief Human Resources Officer and Vice President of Operations

    Responsible Office:
    Office of Human Resources

  4. Entities Affected by this Policy:  

    All divisions, colleges, departments and operating units; Regular Exempt and Nonexempt Staff Employees.

  5. Policy

    1. General:

      1. The University workweek begins at 12:00 a.m. on Wednesday and ends at 11:59 p.m. the following Tuesday.

      2. The University workday begins at 12:00 a.m. and ends at 11:59 p.m. 

      3. Generally, the standard workday for full-time employees is 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. Employees may elect a thirty (30) or sixty (60) minute break for lunch. A break for lunch is not considered work time. The standard workday for part-time employees is determined by the FTE and Departmnet scheduling. All offices are to be open minimally from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Employees working in certain areas (e.g., 24/7 operations) may work nonstandard shifts or workweeks. 

      4. Individual Departments and Offices are authorized to establish specific procedures and/or work rules related to hours and attendance to support operations, provided they are in compliance with this policy and all other policies which may be applicable. 

    2. Breaks: 

      1. If approved by the employee’s supervisor, non-exempt employees may take up to two (2) fifteen (15) minute breaks per day - one (1) in each half of the employee’s workday. These breaks, if allowed, are considered work time and are not to be combined, used in conjunction with the lunch break, or to shorten the workday. 

      2. Any employee who works more than five (5) hours in a day, shall take a thirty (30) or sixty (60) minute break for lunch. A break for lunch is not considered work time and is not to be used to shorten the workday.

    3. Class Attendance: 

      1. Employees who attend classes not directly related to their job or who teach classes during their scheduled work hours must use accrued leave or make up the time they are away from their required duties. Prior approval must be received by the employee’s Department Head. Class attendance or instruction can be denied by the Department Head in the best interests of the department. The maximum number of classes allowed in this manner is one (1) per semester. 

      2. Employees who attend classes directly related to their job may be considered on work time. For class attendance to be considered work time, prior approval must be received from the employee’s Department Head with notification to the appropriate Office of Human Resources ("OHR") representative. Class attendance can be denied by the Department Head in the best interests of the department. The maximum number of classes an employee may take in this manner is two (2) per semester. 

    4. Clothes Changing and Wash Up Time:

      Clothes changing and wash up time are to be excluded from time worked unless it is an integral part of the employee’s activities or is required by law, University policy, rules and/or procedures. If clothes changing is merely a convenience to the employee and is not related to the employee’s principal activities, it cannot be considered as work time. 

    5. Shift Change:

      Time spent preparing for one’s shift, or time spent briefing the next shift, if applicable, is counted as work time if the time involved exceeds five (5) minutes. 

    6. University Recognized Events:

      An employee attending a University recognized event (e.g., approved job-related training, President’s fall address) on or off campus is considered to be on work time. Employees must seek supervisory approval in advance to attend a sanctioned University event. Requests for event attendance may be denied as required by the operational needs of the department.

    7. Travel Time: 

      1. The time required for normal commuting from the employee’s home to their assigned work area for University business is not work time. 

      2. Travel between home and a work area other than the employee’s assigned work area for approved University business is considered work time, less the time of the employee's normal commute. 

  6. Alternate Work Schedules:

    1. Types of Alternate Work Schedules 

      1. Flex Time 

        1. Flex time provides core hours during which employees must work, and a flexible range of hours around the core hours for employees to complete their scheduled work hours. 

        2. An example of flex time would be core hours of 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., in which all participating employees must be working. Outside of the core hours are a range of hours which employees may be granted the flexibility to begin and end their scheduled hours for the day. For instance, a department may choose to approve a period of time surrounding core hours within which employees may begin and end work in order to complete their required daily hours ( e.g., begin work between 7:30 a.m. to 9:00 a.m.; end work between 4:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.)

        3. Under the flex time arrangement, the daily start and stop times could change for employees during the range of hours to complete their scheduled hours for the day; however, employees are required to be present during the core period. 

      2. Flexible Hours

        Flexible hours allow employees to have varied work hours each day or substitute one (1) workday for another. For example, an employee could work ten (10) hours one day and six (6) hours the next day; or work on a regularly scheduled day off, such as Saturday, and substitute that scheduled day off for a scheduled workday in the same workweek, such as Monday. 

      3. Split Schedule

        A split schedule allows employees to split their workday. For example, an employee could work 8:00 a.m. to noon and then 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. in the same workday. 

      4. Compressed Work Week

        The compressed workweek allows employees to reduce the total number of days worked in a pay week or pay period while still working their total scheduled hours for the workweek or pay period. An example would be a set schedule in which an employee would normally work their scheduled hours over four (4) ten (10) hour workdays.

    2. Other Provisions and Requirements 

      1. Participation in the Alternate Work Schedules Program requires supervisory approval based on the job's conduciveness to an alternate schedule as well as the operational needs of the department.

      2. Non-exempt employees participating in an Alternate Work Schedule Program must work their scheduled weekly hours within each forty (40) hour pay week. Exempt employees must work their scheduled hours within each eighty (80) hour pay period.
      3. All paid leave while working an alternate schedule accrues at the standard biweekly rate and is otherwise managed in accordance with applicable University System of Maryland and University policies. However, when leave is used for an entire day, employees must use leave for their actually scheduled work hours. For example, if an employee is scheduled to work ten (10) hours, then ten (10) hours of leave must be used if taking a full day.

      4. Holiday leave is earned at the rate of eight (8) hours per holiday for full time employees. When taken on a University observed holiday, it will be automatically charged at the rate of eight (8) holiday leave hours. If an employee is scheduled to work more than eight (8) hours, the remaining workday hours must be charged to accumulated paid leave. 

      5. University observed holidays will be taken on the day designated by the University unless they occur on the employee’s scheduled day off. In that event, they will be added to the employee’s holiday leave balance. 

      6. Non-exempt employees who work over forty (40) hours in a pay week, must be paid overtime or elect to receive compensatory time in accordance with the overtime provisions of Federal and State wage and hour laws, USM, and University policies.  

      7. If an employee requests a return to a normal workweek, approval will only be given at the discretion of management. 

      8. The alternate work schedule may be terminated at any time at the discretion of the Department or the University. The University shall provide a one week notice to the employee prior to the effective date of return to the standard workweek for that department.

      9. It is the responsibility of Department Heads to ensure that their area is properly staffed and that employees adhere to these guidelines. Any employee that management determines is abusing the privileges of an alternate work schedule, will be returned to the standard workweek for that department. 

  7. Time and Attendance Record Keeping: 

    1. General 

      1. Regular time sheets are to be completed and electronically acknowledged by the employee and supervisor or designee by 10:00 a.m., Tuesday, the last day of the regular pay period. 

      2. Contingent time sheets are to be completed and electronically acknowledged by the employee and supervisor or designee by 12:00 p.m., Friday, the last day of the contingent pay period. 

      3. Periodically, time sheets need to be completed and acknowledged earlier than usual due to holidays or other intervening events. When this occurs, employees are notified of the adjusted completion date. 

    2. Responsibility 

      1. Regular Non-exempt and Contingent hourly paid employees are required by the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) to accurately record daily hours worked, lunch/other breaks (outside the short work breaks outlined in section V. above), and leave used, when applicable. 

      2. Regular Exempt employees are required to record regular daily hours when required duties are performed and leave used, when applicable. Eight (8) regular work hours are recorded as the default for a day where no leave is used. Supervisors may require certain hours worked, lunch/other breaks, or other relevant notations to be recorded as comments on the timesheet.

Related Policies:

USM Policy VII-4.10, Tuition Remission and Tuition Reimbursement for Regular and Retired Faculty and Staff of the USM

USM Policy VII-6.10, Policy on Work Schedules for Regular Nonexempt and Exempt Staff Employees

USM Policy VII-7.00, Policy on Annual Leave for Regular Nonexempt and Exempt Staff Employees

USM Policy VII-7.10, Policy on Personal Leave for Regular Nonexempt and Exempt Staff Employees

USM Policy VII-7.30, Policy on Holiday Leave for Regular Nonexempt and Exempt Staff Employees

USM Policy VII-7.45, Policy on Sick and Safe Leave for Regular Nonexempt and Exempt Staff Employees

TU Policy 07-04.10, Tuition Remission and Reimbursement

TU Policy 07-06.12, Policy on Compensatory Leave

TU Policy 07-07.30, Policy on Holiday Leave

Approval Date: 06/23/05

Amended Date: 08/16/23

Effective Date: 6/23/05

Signed By: President’s Cabinet

How to Request the Policy PDF

This online version of the policy may include updated links and names of departments. To request a PDF of the original, signed version of this policy, email the Office of the General Counsel, .