Schedules

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This page was last updated on January 16, 2025 at 3:06 PM.

Working Hours and Work Schedules

The standard workweek for full-time employees is generally 35, 37.5 or 40 hours, Monday through Friday, with one unpaid hour for lunch, depending upon the employee’s civil service title and/or assignment. Alternative work schedules may be available upon request to supervisors. Work schedules are determined by the management of the department, balancing the operational needs of the division with the Agency’s desire to offer employees work schedules that can accommodate personal needs. 

All schedules are assigned at the discretion of management. 

Work Schedule Types

The three basic types of schedules are:

  1. Standard Schedule: The “traditional” or “standard” administrative employee schedule is 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., five days per week.
  2. Staggered Hours Schedule: This schedule is much like the standard schedule. Employees work the same number of hours each day five days a week and report to work every day at the same time. The only difference is that the supervisor and employee choose a starting time other than 9:00 a.m., such as 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., or 8:30 a. m. to 4:30 p.m. and so on.
  3. Flex-band Schedule: Under this schedule, rather than arriving every day at the same time, employees may arrive at a different starting time from day to day, within their flex-band limits. Employees work a full day (seven or eight hours, depending on their title) every day (five days a week) and are not required to tell their supervisors exactly what time they will come in, as long as the starting time is within the pre-approved flex-band. For example, if the employee’s pre-approved flex-band is 8:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m., they must arrive at work during this time period. On the day the employee arrives at work at 9:15, they would not be marked late because they have arrived within their flex-band. The employee may leave at 5:15 p.m. Supervisors should keep in mind, however, that appropriate supervisory coverage should be in place for all employees on early or late flex-band schedules. 

Note: Flex-band schedules are assigned at the discretion of the management/supervisors and may be changed/removed. 

Employees with flex-band schedules must be present for a core period during which employees are expected to be at work. The core is set according to the needs of the agency. The purpose of the flex-band schedule is to allow for the occasional emergency that would otherwise cause the employee to be late. Employees assigned flexible work schedules are not entitled to the five-minute grace period. For example, an employee who has a flex-band of 9:00 a.m. – 9:30 a.m. is deemed to be late at 9:31 a.m. The feasibility of flex-band schedules will be determined by the responsibilities of the unit. 

Shortened Summer Workday Schedules

At the Chancellor's discretion, a shortened summer workday schedule beginning July 1 and terminating on Labor Day may be granted to Department of Education employees who are working primarily in non-air-conditioned facilities. Employees must complete one (1) year of service to become eligible for this schedule. 

Alternate Work Schedules

A division or office head, with the approval of the director, executive director, or superintendent may, for satisfactory reasons, vary the daily working hours of one or more employees, provided that the total number of working hours is not reduced. To meet seasonal or emergency conditions, an office head may require longer service from one or more employees. All employees are required, under the provisions mandated by State Labor Law, to take at least thirty (30) minutes for a meal period if they have worked a shift of five (5) hours or more. An employee who works a shift of fewer than five (5) hours may take thirty (30) minutes off for a meal period if their shift falls within a meal period.

Lunch Break/Meal Periods

Employees are generally entitled to a lunch break or meal period, one (1) hour in length, between the hours of 11:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. (for staff working day shifts). However, there are staff who may work shifts in titles that only entitle them to a half-hour lunch break. Meal periods can also vary for staff working alternate shifts. Supervisors may assign meal periods to suit the work requirements of the unit and to ensure adequate staff coverage. The lunch period may not be assigned at the beginning or end of the work day. 

Employees covered by collective bargaining agreements working in Central Department of Education and District Offices are permitted to extend their meal periods an extra twenty (20) minutes on paydays to transact banking business. This extra time is not to be taken on any other day, at any other time, or used in any other manner, except by special permission of the office head. If an employee is absent on the day the paychecks are distributed, they are not entitled to receive the extra time upon return to service.

Rest Breaks

Employees covered by these regulations are not entitled to rest breaks during their regularly scheduled shift other than their unpaid lunch hour, unless specifically indicated in a collective bargaining agreement. 

Managerial Schedule and Timekeeping

Management employees shall work whatever hours and days required to carry out their responsibilities, subject to the approval by the appropriate manager. Managers should report to work during regular business hours and are expected to work any additional hours necessary for their assignment. A manager’s weekly total number of hours worked must equal a minimum of 35 hours, not including an unpaid lunch hour. Managers are expected to work additional hours and days as required for the proper performance of the duties and responsibilities of the position they hold. In establishing hours for a particular day on which the employee is working unusually long hours worked within the current week may be considered to allow for an adjusted workday. In addition, unusually long hours worked in a previous period may also be considered when adjusting schedules. This period may not extend more than two weeks in the past.

While managers do not operate on a fixed schedule, their weekly total number of hours worked must equal 35 hours, not including unpaid lunch hours. The customary work schedule for managers is Monday through Friday, working an eight-hour day (minimum), which includes an unpaid lunch hour. Any significant deviations from the customary work schedule should be approved by the manager’s immediate supervisor to ensure the proposed schedule does not impact the operations of the department/division and that adequate supervisory coverage is maintained.

Under exceptional circumstances, a manager who has consistently accumulated extraordinarily long hours may have a reduced work week (4 days instead of 5 days); however, under no circumstances may the work week be fewer than 35 hours. A request for an adjusted work week must have prior written approval. Such written approval must be maintained in the employee’s personnel file.

The work schedule of a manager shall be subject to the approval indicated below:

  • The Chancellor or designee of the Chancellor for offices of the Chancellor or any staff member who reports directly to the Chancellor;
  • A Deputy Chancellor or designee for Chiefs/Directors or for any staff member who reports directly to the Deputy Chancellor;
  • A Chief or a designee for Executive Directors/Directors or for any staff member who reports directly to the Chief;
  • An Executive Director or a designee for staff in offices under the supervision of the Executive Director; and
  • The Director of a major office, bureau, or unit, or the head of an equivalent organizational unit not under the jurisdiction of an Executive Director, for staff of such office, bureau, or unit.

Managerial Timekeeping

Managers are not entitled to overtime pay, compensatory time, or meal allowance payments. This restriction regarding meal allowance does not apply to reimbursements for the cost of meals incurred as a portion of authorized travel expenses.

Managers are required to record their work hours in CyberShift each work day. Approval must be entered by the supervisor after the close of each pay period.

Maintenance of Historical Timesheets and Supporting Documentation - Managers

Prior to the implementation of CyberShift, managers were required to keep monthly timesheets as issued and updated by the Division of Human Resources (DHR). These timesheets indicated the days and specific hours of service performed and were to be submitted with the appropriate forms (e.g., OP-221, PD-19) no later than ten (10) business days after the close of the month to the authorized approver for written confirmation that the timesheet had been submitted as required. The written approval of the Chancellor or their designee should have been affixed to timesheets submitted by Executive Directors or staff in the Chancellor’s Office. Signature stamps were not permitted. All historical time records are to be retained in the responsibility center indefinitely. However, if this is not feasible, these records must be kept for a minimum of ten (10) years after payment of the lump sum (final entitlement).

Employees should maintain a copy of each signed/approved monthly timesheet (only necessary for time records not maintained in CyberShift), as well as any relevant supporting documentation. This includes doctors’ note, carry over letters for excess annual leave not stored in CyberShift and documentation for local and out-of-town travel to conferences and other business events (agendas for travel to local meetings and TRAC forms for out-of-town travel).

It is important to note that accurate and complete time records are required to process the managerial lump-sum payment (final entitlement) upon separation from the Department of Education. Historical timekeeping records not maintained in CyberShift (i.e., Managerial Attendance Reports), and all supporting documentation, shall be retained in the responsibility center for a minimum of 10 years after the employee’s separation from service.