SOP112: BIAC Attendance and Work Policy

1. Summary

   Procedure for work attendance and absences.

2. Scope

   These policies apply to all staff, postdocs, and students who are paid by BIAC, or by grants held or supervised by BIAC faculty. Exceptions are noted below.

   • Policies and Procedures marked with five diamonds (♦♦♦♦♦) are BIAC-specific.

3. Definitions

   • Approved State means a state where Duke is a registered employer. The list of Approved States is maintained and updated on the Remote Work website.

   • Bi-Weekly (or ‘Non-Exempt’) Employee - An employee who is paid every two weeks and is not exempt from the provisions of the FLSA. Typically, bi-weekly employees cannot work more than 40 hours in a one-week time period without receiving overtime pay. This includes both full-time and part-time (e.g., undergraduate students) individuals. The specific job classification and the number of hours worked per pay period will influence whether or not an individual is eligible for vacation and holiday pay.

   • Employee - The faculty, staff, postdoc, or student who is being funded by a grant awarded to a BIAC faculty PI, a training grant supervised by a BIAC faculty PI, or who is paid from the BIAC operating budget.

   • Hybrid Work – work by a Duke Employee that regularly works (i.e., on a weekly or monthly basis at both a Remote Work Location and a Primary Duke Worksite.

   • Monthly (or ‘Exempt’) Employee - An employee who is paid once per month and is not covered by (or is exempt from) some provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Monthly employees have more flexibility in their work schedule, but do not receive overtime pay.

   • Primary Duke Worksite – a physical location that Duke owns or controls and utilizes as a place where Duke Employees regularly work. This includes the Duke University campus, Duke hospitals and Duke regional healthcare facilities.

   • Primary Work Location – the Primary Duke Worksite or Remote Work Location where a Duke Employee regularly spends the majority of their time.

   • Remote Work – work by a Duke Employee that is carried out on a regular basis at a Remote Work Location.

   • Remote Work Employee – a Duke Employee who is in a position that has either 1) been approved for Remote Work or 2) approved for Hybrid Work with the majority of the Remote Work at a Remote Work Location.

   • Remote Work Location – the non-Primary Duke Worksite where a Remote Work Employee, or a Hybrid Work Employee, performs work.

   • Supervisor - The individual responsible for supervising the employee.

   • Unapproved State – all U.S. states, other than Approved States. Remote Work is not allowed in these states.

4. Policies and Procedures

   The sections below establish BIAC policies regarding attendance at work, remote/hybrid schedules, and absences from work. BIAC's policies incorporate all official employment policies established by Duke University Medical Center. Employees are strongly encouraged to familiarize themselves with the official Duke policies, as not all Duke’s policies are reiterated herein. Additional policies developed by BIAC in consultation with Duke Human Resources are also provided below.

   1. Attendance at work

      Employees are expected to report to their primary work site on time and ready to begin work. Work schedules are determined by the Supervisor’s program needs and are set to meet specific guidelines based on the position.

      • BIAC Administrative and Technical Staff (Admin and IT) are expected to work in office at least three (3) days per week. With this hybrid work schedule, two days may be worked remotely. Changes to an employee’s regular schedule should be notated on the shared staff calendar. Exceptions to this schedule require approval from the BIAC Director or his designee. ♦♦♦♦♦

      • BIAC MRI Operations Staff are expected to work on site during operational hours of the BIAC scanners for the scheduled shifts (either 8 or 10 hours per day, depending on the position). Exceptions may be made in advance with supervisor written approval and noted on the BIAC Scanner Calendar to avoid scheduling conflicts. ♦♦♦♦♦

      • Research Assistants, students, and other staff not listed above are expected to set their work hours with their direct supervisor. ♦♦♦♦♦

   2. Overtime

      Overtime is strongly discouraged on federal research projects and BIAC operational funds. Full-time bi-weekly BIAC employees are encouraged to monitor hours throughout the week to ensure they do not exceed 40. If an employee works on Saturday, a day earlier in the week should be shortened to avoid overtime for the week. If overtime is earned, it MUST be paid to the employee. If the employee did not go into overtime at the request of the supervisor, it becomes a performance issue that should be documented.

   3. Flexible Time / Short-term Remote Work

      In some circumstances, employees may be able to do some of their work at home, from another remote location, or maintain a flexible working arrangement with their supervisor (e.g., working on Saturday to run subjects). Arrangements such as these must receive written approval from the employee's supervisor in advance and the arrangement can be changed or suspended by the supervisor depending upon the needs of the research project and/or BIAC. Bi-Weekly Employees working from home with approval must keep track of their hours.

      • This is separate from a regular remote/hybrid work schedule (See this SOP's Section 8.)

   4. Absences from Work

      Duke provides time away from work to eligible staff members for a variety of reasons — personal, family, community, and other outside needs and obligations. At the same time, it is necessary to place reasonable limits on time away from work to ensure that each staff member's job responsibilities are properly carried out, and that all staff members are treated fairly and consistently in dealing with time away from Duke.

      1. Designated and Discretionary Holidays

         • ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Duke provides paid holidays as part of its comprehensive benefits package to support staff in their effort to balance work and family responsibilities. University and Medical Center staff who are eligible for holidays will receive 14 paid holidays per year, including designated holidays and discretionary holidays, to staff scheduled to work 20 or more hours per week. BIAC is considered part of the School of Medicine and follows their Holiday schedule.

         • ​​​​​​​A list of designated holidays is posted each year. To be eligible for designated holiday pay, you need to be a regular employee and to have worked the last scheduled day before the holiday and the first scheduled day afterward, unless you are on an excused absence. The designated holidays observed are:

           • ​​​​​​​New Year's Day

           • Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

           • Memorial Day

           • Juneteenth

           • Independence Day

           • Labor Day

           • Thanksgiving

           • Christmas Day

         • University staff in academic medical and research units who are eligible for holiday benefits and on the active payroll on the first day of the calendar months listed below will earn a discretionary holiday in each of these months:

           • ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​February

           • March

           • April

           • June

           • August

           • October

         • Source: https://hr.duke.edu/policy/holiday-policy-university-staff/ ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​ ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

      2. ​​​​​​​Vacation 

         • ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Maximum and Minimum Accruals: The total amount of accrued but unused vacation may not exceed two times the staff member’s rate of annual accrual. The amount is determined at the end of each pay period. Staff who work an abbreviated schedule (less than 40 hours and greater than 20 hours per week) shall accumulate unused vacation to a pro-rated maximum of two times their annual accrual rate.

         • Increments: With the approval of a supervisor, hourly-paid staff may use vacation time in increments of one-tenth of an hour. Monthly-salaried staff should use vacation in increments of half days or whole days.

         • Calculation of Pay for Accrued and Unused Vacation: Upon termination of employment, retirement, or death, unused accrued vacation is paid to the staff member or the estate based on the staff member’s final rate of pay.

         • Vacation Accrual: Accrual is based on years of service. No vacation is earned on overtime hours. See Vacation Accrual for Hourly-Paid Staff and Vacation Accrual for Monthly-Salaried Staff for more information. Postdoctoral Associates should refer to the Duke University Postdoctoral Policy, as their leave accrual varies from the regular staff policy.

         • Request for Vacation: All vacation time must be requested and scheduled in advance at a time agreed upon by both the staff member and supervisor.

         • Source: https://hr.duke.edu/policies/vacation-university/ 

      3. ​​​​​​​Absences Due To Sickness​​​​​​​

         • Eligibility: Duke provides eligible university staff with accrual of up to 12 sick days per year with pay for personal illness or to care for immediate family members who are sick. Employees can use sick pay after they have completed the 90-day orientation and evaluation period, although it is accrued during that time.

         • Increments: With the approval of a supervisor, hourly-paid staff may use sick time in increments of one-tenth of an hour. Monthly-salaried staff should use sick time in increments of half days or whole days.

         • Sick Time Accrual: Hourly-paid staff earn 3.692 hours of sick pay for each biweekly pay period in which they are compensated for 80 hours. Monthly-paid staff earn one day of sick pay per month. There is no cap on sick time accrual during employment at Duke.

         • Notification Process: To ensure proper coverage of operations, staff are required to notify their direct supervisor or the front office as soon as possible when they anticipate being absent due to illness. Notification should occur before the start of the scheduled workday whenever feasible. In addition, staff should record their absence on the BIAC Core Staff Calendar to alert all core BIAC staff of the period they will be unavailable. ♦♦♦♦♦

           • Guidelines: 

             • Contact should be made by phone call, text, or email (depending on supervisor preference).

             • If unable to reach the supervisor directly, staff should leave a message and notify the front office. ♦♦♦♦♦

             • Extended absences (two or more consecutive days) should include an estimated return date, if known.

             • Staff should update their supervisor if the return date changes.

         • ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Payment: To receive sick pay, staff must have a sick leave balance available. Staff can request that their supervisor approve the use of Vacation or Discretionary Holiday time for sickness when sick time is unavailable. However, the supervisor may choose not to approve the staff member’s request because vacation days and holidays are intended to be scheduled and approved in advance.

         • Leaves of Absence: Duke recognizes that during a regular staff member's career, circumstances may arise that require a prolonged leave of absence from work. A leave of absence requires the approval of the requesting employee's department.

         • Paid Parental Leave: Duke provides up to six consecutive weeks of 100 percent paid parental leave to the eligible parent serving as the primary caregiver following the birth or adoption of a child.

         • Source: https://hr.duke.edu/policy/sick-leave-policy-university-staff/

         • Source: https://hr.duke.edu/benefits/time-away/leaves-absence/

         • Source: https://hr.duke.edu/benefits/time-away/paid-parental-leave/

      4. ​​​​​​​Bereavement Leave

         • Duke provides between three to five days off with pay to staff in biweekly-paid positions to handle matters related to a death in the family. The amount of time provided is based on relationship to the family member.

         • Staff in monthly-salaried positions may use accrued sick leave for bereavement leave.

         • Biweekly-paid staff may take up to five (5) days of bereavement leave related to the death of an immediate family member and up to three (3) days of bereavement leave related to the death of other family members as defined below.

         • Relationship: Immediate Family Member (spouse, registered same-sex partner, child/stepchild, parent/stepparent, brother/stepbrother, or sister/stepsister)

         • Relationship: Other Family Member (grandparent, great-grandparent, grandchild, parent-in-law, brother-in-law, sister-in-law, son-in-law, daughter-in-law or uncle/aunt)

         • Verification for each absence must be presented to your supervisor. To verify the relationship of the deceased to the staff member, a funeral program or obituary should be provided to the supervisor.

         • Source: https://hr.duke.edu/policy/bereavementfuneral-leave-policy-university/

      5. ​​​​​​​Jury Duty or Subpoenaed Appearance

         • Duke provides paid leave to benefits-eligible staff for jury duty service. Additionally, staff subpoenaed to serve as witnesses in cases related to employment at Duke will be provided paid leave. Upon return to work, the staff member must present proof of jury duty or subpoenaed-appearance service, including dates of service.

      6. Voting

         • Duke provides staff who are registered voters up to two paid hours off to vote in local, municipal, state, or national elections. This time off will be scheduled by a supervisor at either the beginning or the end of the work period or at other times more advantageous to the maintenance of the work schedule.

   5. ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Scheduling Absences

      • Any employee wishing to use vacation days or a discretionary holiday, must submit a request in writing to their direct supervisor preferably by email. Requests for vacation or discretionary days must be submitted to your supervisor a minimum of two weeks before the date of the first absence. Every effort will be made to honor the dates requested; however, in some instances, vacation requests may be denied if they conflict with the needs and mission of the BIAC. For example, requests from more than one employee for the same vacation period may be denied if the concurrent absences would leave the BIAC critically short-staffed and unable to provide service to our users. As another example, vacation requests for some critical employees may be denied for the period preceding the submission date of a large grant. Factors that may be considered in scheduling vacation include the employee's length of service and accrued unused vacation. Vacation requests will receive approval or denial from their supervisor or the BIAC Associate Director of Administration within two (2) days of the written request. ♦♦♦♦♦

      • In the event of absences due to illness, funerals, or jury duty, the employee's supervisor or designee should be informed of the absence as soon as possible, but no later than the date of the first absence. If the employee’s direct supervisor is not available, the employee should reach out to the BIAC front office to notify BIAC of his/her absence.  ♦♦♦♦♦

      • If an absence is necessary when the employee does not have sufficient leave to cover it, the employee should consult with the supervisor to arrange a time during the same week as the absence to make up the time missed. Only under extraordinary circumstances will an employee be allowed to take unpaid leave.

   6. Recording Absences

      • All BIAC administrative and technical employees are required to document any pre-planned time off on the shared staff calendar and the BIAC scanner calendar (if applicable). This practice ensures that appropriate scheduling coverage can be arranged when necessary and provides clarity regarding staff availability. Accurate and timely entry of planned absences supports effective team coordination and helps maintain continuity of operations. At the end of each pay period, benefit-eligible employees should report any time off used on their electronic time sheet. ♦♦♦♦♦

      • Optional: Research Assistants and Students may also use the BIAC shared staff calendar to track their time in and out of the office if they choose to do so, it is not a requirement unless their direct supervisor requests it. ♦♦♦♦♦

   7. Bi-Weekly (Non-Exempt) Employees

      • Bi-weekly employees must fill out an electronic timecard through Corporate Payroll Services. In accordance with the guidelines established by the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), additional policies apply to full time bi-weekly employees. Bi-weekly employees receive one 15-minute, paid break for each four hours worked. These may be taken at the employee's discretion, with the following exceptions:  breaks may not be combined into one 30-minute period, added to your lunch break, saved up from day to day, or used to offset arriving at work late or leaving early.

      • If you work a full day, you are entitled to an unpaid meal period of at least 30 minutes, but no more than 1 hour. During this time your supervisor cannot require you to continue to perform your job duties unless you are paid for your work time. Because of overtime guidelines, you also need permission from your supervisor to continue to work during the meal period.

      • These specific break and lunch policies do not apply to monthly employees, who are considered FLSA exempt.

      • Full-time bi-weekly employees are expected to submit a timecard reflecting 40 hours of paid time per week. This can include hours worked and approved leave time. If an employee has extenuating personal or medical situations that require an extended period of time off, personal leave or family medical leave may be options. If an employee would like to take leave for other reasons but does not have enough leave to cover the scheduled time off, it may be possible to take unpaid leave, but only under extraordinary circumstances with advanced approval from the supervisor.

      • Overtime is not typically approved at the BIAC. If overtime is necessary, the supervisor must approve it in advance. Overtime is calculated for any hours worked reported over 40 in one week. Employees should manage their schedules to ensure that overtime is not a factor.

   8. ​​​​​​​Remote/Hybrid Work Policies

      • Duke University’s Policy Statement on Remote Work:

        • ​​​​​​​Duke Units may approve Remote Work for exempt employees within North Carolina and in Approved States when a Duke Unit approves the position for Remote Work.

        • Duke does not permit Remote Work for non-exempt employees outside of North Carolina due to the challenges and cost of administering complex employment and overtime regulations. In addition, Duke does not permit Remote Work for any employees outside the United States.

        • An Employee in a Remote Work position is subject to the same Duke policies, terms, and conditions of employment as all other employees, except when there is an applicable law or regulation in a Remote Work Location.

        • Duke Units may supplement this Remote Work Policy with local procedures and/or guidance. In the event of a conflict between local procedure/guidance and this Policy, this Policy governs.

      • BIAC’s Policies and Procedures on Remote Work:​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

        • COMING SOON! ♦♦♦♦♦

   9. ​​​​​​​Exceptions

      • Neither Duke nor BIAC employment policies apply to staff who have offices at the BIAC but are paid 100% by other entities (i.e., VA, UNC, etc.). ♦♦♦♦♦

      • Individuals who receive partial salary funding from BIAC and additional funding from another department at Duke may require multiple approvals depending on work schedule changes or leave requests that are submitted. ♦♦♦♦♦

♦♦♦♦♦ Policies and Procedures marked with five diamonds (♦♦♦♦♦) are BIAC-specific.​​​​​​​