Working From Home Policy
HRQ
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Does anyone have a policy they'd like to share?
We are finding that some exempt ee's are making it a habit to work from home all day in lieu of coming in to the office because they are "sick," or even because they have too much to do and for them it's simply easier to concentrate at home.
We can easily address it as the issue arises, however we'd like to put something in writing to include in the new hire packet for administrative ee's, to prevent the problem in the first place.
I appreciate any samples, or opinions, if you have them.
We are finding that some exempt ee's are making it a habit to work from home all day in lieu of coming in to the office because they are "sick," or even because they have too much to do and for them it's simply easier to concentrate at home.
We can easily address it as the issue arises, however we'd like to put something in writing to include in the new hire packet for administrative ee's, to prevent the problem in the first place.
I appreciate any samples, or opinions, if you have them.
Comments
Working at Home/Telecommuting
Telecommuting is the practice of working at home or at a site near home on an agreed-upon, scheduled basis instead of physically traveling to a central workplace. It is a work alternative that ABC may offer to some employees when it would benefit both the organization and the employee. Telecommuting is an alternative method of meeting the needs of the organization and is not a universal employee benefit. Additionally, teleworkers, as all ABC employees, are employed “at will” and subject to the same employment policies.
Telecommuting or working at home is sometimes allowable and doable within certain job functions. Therefore, working from home should never be taken lightly or be a spur of the moment decision. The decision to work from home must be made with (and approved by) an immediate supervisor. ABC has the right to refuse to make telecommuting available to an employee and may terminate a telecommuting arrangement at any time for any reason.
Either an employee or a supervisor can suggest telecommuting as a possible work arrangement. Employees who believe telecommuting can enhance their ability to get the job done should complete self-nomination and eligibility forms and make their case to their direct supervisor. Forms can be obtained from the Director of Administration.
The decision to approve a telecommuting arrangement will be based on factors such as the following:
• Nature of position and job duties
• Performance history
• Related work skills
• Impact of proposed telework arrangement on the organization
• Appropriateness of telework site
Both the employee’s supervisor and the HR manager will make the decision, and the arrangement will be reviewed periodically.
The employee will establish an appropriate work environment within his or her home for work purposes. ABC will not be responsible for costs associated with initial setup of the employee's home office such as remodeling, furniture or lighting, nor for repairs or modifications to the home office space. Employees will be offered appropriate assistance in setting up a workstation suitable for safe, data-secure, and comfortable work.
The employee’s compensation, benefits, work status, work responsibilities, and the amount of time the employee is expected to work per day or per pay period will not change due to participating in the telecommuting program (unless otherwise agreed to in writing).
An employee’s at-home work hours will conform to a schedule agreed upon by the employee and his or her supervisor. Changes to this schedule must be reviewed and approved in advance by the employee’s supervisor. Occasional work-at-home arrangements are considered informal arrangements and are approved at the discretion of the supervisor and are not within the scope of the telecommuting policy.
Exempt employees will be compensated on a salaried basis for all time worked while telecommuting. Non-exempt employees are required to record all hours worked while telecommuting. Overtime (work in excess of 40 hours per week) is not to be worked unless the employee receives prior written authorization to work overtime from his or her supervisor. Employees who fail to obtain written proper authorization before working overtime will be subject to corrective action, up to and including termination.
There are policies and procedures on a lot of subjects, including telecommuting. The sample policy on telecommuting is at [url]www.hrhero.com/lc/policies/314.html[/url].
To see the whole list of sample policies and procedures, go to the subscribers' area page ([url]www.hrhero.com/lc[/url]), scroll down to HR Tools and click on Sample Policies and Procedures.
Hope that helps.
Wendi
Over the past few years, we have increased our use of personal computers. This has enabled us to improve efficiency and customer service within many areas of the company.
There are designated employees that have the ability to access the network from their home computer. Recently, our field adjusting staff were provided the ability to have remote access to the network, using their tablet PC’s.
Remote access to the network is provided as a convenience and time saving measure. The company does not expect anyone to work from home when unable to work due to self-sickness, family illness or use of vacation.
It is an employee’s independent, voluntary decision to perform work at home, whether that is using a PC or performing other job related activity. Performing work at home will not replace the use of approved sick pay and/or vacation.
dixied, yours addresses our problem very well.
[b]For exempt ee's, can we require them to use PTO for the full day away from work, even if they end up working for, say, 2 hours from home?[/b]