WORK WEEK CHANGE Why? The FLSA (Fair Labor Standards Act) requires that an employer have a defined workweek for all employees. The new UW payroll system (Workday) requires that one defined work week is established for all UW employees. The majority of employees are currently on the Monday – Sunday workweek. When? If your department is are not already on a Monday (12:00 a.m.) – Sunday (11:59 p.m.) work week, the Compensation/Payroll Office has identified August 1, 2016 as a optimal date for departments to transition to the standard work week workweek; pay period begins that Monday. Changing now will prepare your department for Workday.

The Workweek The employer is responsible for establishing a workweek – a regularly recurring period of 168 hours (7 consecutive 24- hours periods) The workweek does not have to be the same as a calendar week or begin at the start of a day. Must remain fixed once it is established. Does not need to coincide with the end of a pay period. Each workweek stands alone.

Why is the Workweek so Important? In general, the work week is the longest period for which an overtime determination can be made. Generally, periods of longer than a workweek cannot be averaged to determine the hours worked in a workweek. The Wage and Hour Division rejected an employer’s proposed schedule that would have had employees working four 9-hour days and one 8-hour day in the first week of a two week period and four 9-hours days the second week. The Division said the plan violated the FLSA because the Act does not allow averaging an employee’s hours over 2 workweeks.

When Workweeks are changed. FLSA encourages employers to establish permanent workweeks. Change may be necessary to meet changing business needs. When a change is made, the employer must be careful when determining hours worked where the new and old workweeks overlap.

WORK WEEK CHANGE Scheduling issues more than a pay issue: Transition Activities As we get closer to the change in workweek, as an employer we must determine hours worked where the new and old workweek overlap. Steps will need to be taken to ensure an employee receives the correct overtime pay to which he or she is entitled. Add the overlapping days to the old workweek. Calculate the overtime hours and pay for the old and new workweeks on this basis. Add the overlapping days to the new week. Calculate the overtime hours and pay due for the old and new workweeks on this basis. Pay the employee the greater amount of step 2 and 4. The workweek change will require The University of Washington to review the impacts on an employee’s old and new schedule for the transition week Stephanie put together samples of workweek calculations for the Medical Centers that will help demonstrate how the impact will impact an employee’s overtime for the transition week. The change should have minimal impact to employees on campus since most of the campus work schedules are Monday-Friday with a few exceptions.

Sample of workweek calculations 6 Sample of Workweek OT calculations NEW WORK WEEK OCT NOV Employee ASUMTWTHFSASUMTWTHFSASUMTWTHFSASUMTWTHFSASU Non-Exempt 100%10 Total Hours Worked - Old Week 40 Total Hours Worked - New Week 40 Total REG Hours Paid 40 NEW WORK WEEK OCT NOV Employee ASUMTWTHFSASUMTWTHFSASUMTWTHFSASUMTWTHFSASU Non-Exempt 100%10 2 Total Hours Worked - Old Week 42 Total Hours Worked - New Week Total REG Hours Paid 40 2 OT

WORK WEEK CHANGE Update employees OWLs records to reflect a Monday (12:00 am) to Sunday (11:59 pm) work week. The change is only required for employees/departments not currently using the Monday (12:00 am) to Sunday (11:59 pm) work week. Some departments may want to pursue schedule changes to meet operational needs. Be sure changes are made in accordance with current policies. For example, collective bargaining contracts.