Student Employment

Supervisors of student staff members are responsible for ensuring that student staff members receive adequate training, supervision, feedback, and timely compensation for the work they perform.  Supervisors are also expected to adhere to the student employment procedures set forth in this manual and Drury’s Staff Policy Handbook.  Student staff supervisors must:

1. Comply with all federal/state laws and Drury policies surrounding hiring, employment, work study, international students, and worker’s compensation.

   As a supervisor, it is your responsibility to educate yourself on legal employment practices and always abide by the many relevant state and federal laws.  The Human Resources department is here to help you do that.  Never hesitate to contact us for guidance. Supervisors should carefully review the Staff Handbook regarding employment policies to include the Title IX-Sexual Misconduct Policy.

2. Provide an environment where students learn transferable life and job skills.

   Supervisors should strive to help students develop important life skills such as time management, reliability, initiative, teamwork, problem solving, working independently, and ethical decision making.

   Supervisors should also look for opportunities to help student staff members develop important job skills such as customer service, telephone skills, computer applications and more!  Your office/department is an extension of the classroom! Be creative. Get to know your student’s career/post graduation goals and find ways to incorporate tasks that enhance skills that they can use.

3. Provide accurate job descriptions and clear job expectations for student staff members.

   Job descriptions should be current and accurate.  The job description is a valuable tool to communicate how you will measure the student’s performance.  It is also an extremely valuable tool to help address performance issues while maintaining a good working relationship.

   Written job expectations should be communicated clearly and right away.  You are setting the student up for success when you let them know how you will be evaluating their performance.  These expectations should include policies regarding confidentiality, harassment, attendance, punctuality, and safety requirements.

4. Follow the hiring process outlined in this manual. (See section on Recruitment and Selection)
5. Provide orientation, training, and evaluation for all employees. (See sections on Getting Started: Your Student Employee’s First Day and Assessment/Evaluations)
6. Ensure that the department has available funds to pay student staff members prior to making a job offer.  (See section on Budget Considerations)
7. Submit signed, completed, and accurate timesheets to payroll by the last business day of the month. (See section on Timekeeping)
8. Notify Human Resources when a student ceases work by completing a Payroll Action Form. (See section on Progressive Counseling and Termination of Employment)
9. Recognize and energize student staff members.
   
   Supervisors are encouraged to offer feedback to students routinely, including rewarding student employees for excellent work. Consider nominating a student employee for Drury’s student employee of the year and participating in National Student Employment Week. (See section on Student Staff Recognition)

Posting a Vacancy

1. Vacancies for student staff positions are posted with the Human Resources office. To notify HR of a vacancy, the department must utilize the Student Staff Online Requisition form, available on the Student Employment web page.

   Upon receipt of the Student Staff Online Requisition, HR will post the position on the HR Student Jobs web page.

   Departments may specify that a position is available to only work study recipients, if necessary.

2. New and existing positions must have an updated job description on file with Human Resources (HR). If one does not exist, the supervisor will need to coordinate with HR to create one prior to the position being posted. (See Sample Job Description.)

3. Students must apply for student staff positions online, using the Student Employment Online Application. (Special accommodations will be made if necessary and requested.) All student staff members must have an application on file in the HR Office.

   Only full-time (enrolled in a minimum of 12 credit hours), day school students who have complete a current FAFSA are eligible to apply for student staff positions.

4. The hiring supervisor in each department will review the student application, which the HR office will forward via email.

5. Any necessary clerical tests (i.e. Word, Excel) required for positions are coordinated with the HR office.

6. The supervisor will call the student(s) to arrange interview appointments. Supervisors of student staff must employ lawful interview practices. (See Guidelines for Legal Interviewing.) Once interviews are complete, the supervisor may complete an “Interview Evaluation Form,” for each student interviewed.

7. Once a final candidate is identified, the references of this candidate must be checked by the supervisor.

8. As soon as a final hiring decision has been made, the supervisor must notify HR immediately. The online Payroll Action Form, must be used by supervisors to notify HR of a hiring decision.

9. As laid out in the Staff Policy Handbook, hiring of relatives is prohibited. A student that is related to any member of a department may not be hired to work in that department.

Student Employment Eligibility:

• Must be an undergraduate enrolled in Drury day-school full time (12 credit hours).
• Must file a FAFSA each year.
• Students with Work Study should apply by April 1st

Before your student employee reports to work:

DO NOT ALLOW A STUDENT TO WORK PRIOR TO RECEIVING HR AUTHORIZATION. THIS CAN CAUSE DRURY TO BE OUT OF COMPLIANCE WITH THE LAW!

By closely following these procedures, hiring supervisors can be confident that they have not exposed Drury to potential fines by allowing a student to work who has not produced documentation of his/her identity and eligibility to work. (Each instance could result in up to $1,100 in fines).

Definitions for Payroll Action Form :

New Hire Appointment – A student who hasn’t worked for you before, even if they have elsewhere on campus.  This is the first step in the hiring process after an offer is accepted and should be done prior to the student working.  New-hire students may not begin working until the supervisor has been notified he/she has completed employment paperwork by Human Resources.

Renewal of an expired appointment- A student who has worked for you recently (within the past two semesters).

For new-hire appointments, HR will reply (usually within one business day) to confirm whether or not the student may begin working.

• If the student qualifies for student employment, has worked somewhere else on campus before and has up-to-date employment paperwork on file, we will authorize the student to work. You will usually receive confirmation of this within one business day.
   
• If the student has not yet worked on campus before, you should have directed him/her to the Human Resources office to begin pre-employment paperwork at the time the job offer is accepted. You will receive an email from HR (usually within one business day) to let you know that the student does not have paperwork on file and may not begin working until further notice.

For renewals of expired appointments, (students who have worked for you before), you should select “Renewal of an expired appointment” on the new dropdown menu on the payroll action form. You may enter the appropriate start date on the payroll action form. Confirmation of a renewal appointment will be sent via the appointment letter email.

All appointments expire at end of the fiscal year. A new payroll action form is required each academic year as well as a separate, additional payroll action form for work during summer months (June 1st-first day of classes).

Once the student has been hired and is authorized to begin work, the supervisor should then take the time to familiarize the new student staff member with his/her work environment.

Tour of the Building

The supervisor should give the student a tour of the building. At this time, student staff should be shown where the bathroom, kitchen, snacks, break rooms, etc. are located. The supervisor may use the Department Orientation Checklist-Student Staff form as a guide to ensure that all information has been covered.

Communicate Expectations

• The supervisor should explain to student staff what is considered acceptable behavior in the work environment. For example, the supervisor should discuss dress codes, punctuality, attendance, proper phone and interpersonal communications and etiquette, etc.  For a more thorough explanation, see Student Staff Guidelines. Supervisors are encouraged to revise this form to reflect what is expected for the particular department.

•  Supervisors should explain to each student staff member that he/she will be evaluated on his/her job performance, and that he/she will have an opportunity to evaluate his/her student employment experience.  The Student Staff Evaluation Form provides valuable feedback on the effectiveness of the job in providing a beneficial learning experience.

•  The supervisor should review the job description with the new student staff member. At this time, student staff should be provided an opportunity to address questions or concerns. The supervisor should ensure that the new student staff member is very clear about the performance expectations imposed before he/she begins the new job.

Policies and Procedures

• The supervisor should have the student employee review the staff policy handbook and FERPA training if applicable.  The Instructions for Online Training outline how to access the staff employee handbook and online training modules. 

• The supervisor should review any confidentiality policies that are applicable to their department with the student. Drury University adheres to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (FERPA).Because of this, Drury University employees (including student staff) are not permitted to give any information to any person, including a student’s parents and/or guardians, about the student’s:1)academic progress, including grades, 2) payment status or financial aid, 3) personal development or disciplinary matters, or 4) employment records, as well as other university confidential and sensitive information. This should be emphasized to all student staff members since they are under a strong set of temptations to release such information (i.e. peer influence).

• Supervisors should also conduct department-specific training for policies and procedures.  Many departments find it useful to have a procedure manual for student employees.

• It may also be useful to review the Work Study Agreement with your work study students.
   
• The Student Class/Work Schedule should be completed during orientation and maintained by the department each semester for each work study student. The schedule is a useful tool for all student staff but is only required for work study students.

Training

• Student staff development opportunities are available periodically throughout the year. Student Staff Basic Training is offered in the fall and provides an overview of expectations, policies, and vital job skills such as customer service, phone etiquette, and information on how to use a student employment experience to fulfill long term professional goals.
   
• During National Student Employment Week, the second full week in April, there are also several professional development opportunities for student staff members. Supervisors are encouraged to allow students to attend Student Staff Basic Training and the professional development opportunities in April “on the clock” when departmental needs and resources allow. These opportunities are a great way to show your appreciation and investment in your student staff members and to help them see how their on-campus employment is an important extension of learning outside the classroom.
   
• Many times a student’s first job experience is here at Drury when employed for a campus job. Supervisors should consider some of the areas below when training a new student staff member in their department.
  • Customer Service: In many situations, a student staff member will come face-to-face with customers. It will be beneficial to both the student and the department if the supervisor teaches student staff members how to engage properly with customers. This will improve both the Drury image and he image and reputation of the department across campus.
  • Phone Etiquette: Student staff may be required to use a telephone during the course of employment. As with face-to-face customer service, student staff should be coached on the proper manner in dealing with people over the phone (i.e. polite, courteous, clear, etc.) One thing worth noting is that when people call for assistance, the caller may be reluctant to release information to or to trust the judgment of student staff. Student staff members are quite comparable to regular staff in most cases and adhere to the same rules and regulations concerning disclosure of information. Therefore, to ease the minds of customers and to serve them better, student staff should not be required to answer the phone in a different manner than a regular staff member.
  • Time Management: Time management may be difficult for incoming college students. This is because they are usually overwhelmed with new and relatively unsupervised surroundings that afford more freedom. This can be a problem for upper-classmen as well. It is recommended that supervisors help student staff manage time as much as possible. For instance, letting student staff know that the time spent on the job is for working, not doing homework. Also, emphasize that punctuality and regular attendance are vital to successful employment. Providing guidance will help ensure that the department runs smoothly and efficiently as possible.
  • Organizational Skills: Time management may be difficult for incoming college students. This is because they are usually overwhelmed with new and relatively unsupervised surroundings that afford more freedom. This can be a problem for upper-classmen as well. It is recommended that supervisors help student staff manage time as much as possible. For instance, letting student staff know that the time spent on the job is for working, not doing homework. Also, emphasize that punctuality and regular attendance are vital to successful employment. Providing guidance will help ensure that the department runs smoothly and efficiently as possible.
  • Other: Some job skills are specific to certain departments. Supervisors should take this into consideration and determine what additional skills (if any) are vital for the success of both the student and the department. The student staff members should be coached until he/she has sufficiently learned these unique job skills. 
     
• In addition to departmental training, the university requires student staff to complete the training programs listed below (Items 1 and 2) and complete a review of the Staff Policy Handbook and sign the Staff Policy Handbook Acknowledgement (Item 3) and return to HR. (See instructions for completing online training.)
   

Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act Training (FERPA). Student staff should complete this training if they work in a department that deals with and maintains confidential student records.
 
 Staff Policy Handbook Acknowledgement. Student staff should review the Staff Policy Handbook on the HR website. Once they have reviewed the policy handbook, the student should print and sign the Staff Member Acknowledgement Form included in Section 104 of the Staff Policy Handbook.

In order to recognize the valuable contributions of our student staff members, Drury participates in National Student Employment Week.  National Student Employment Week is the second full week of April each year.

Human Resources partners with the Career Planning & Development department to provide professional development programming activities for student staff members.  The sessions are open to all students, but supervisors are encouraged to send student staff members “on the clock” as a token of appreciation for their contributions.

During National Student Employment Week, supervisors are encouraged to recognize student staff.  Some ideas for recognition include having a food day, writing thank you notes to student staff members, posting a big banner saying “Thanks to our student workers!” during the week, etc.

As part of National Student Employment Week, supervisors have the opportunity to nominate one of their student staff members as Student Employee of the Year.  The winner of Drury’s student employee of the year award will have their nomination submitted to a state competition.  The winner of that award is entered in to the Midwest Association of Student Employment Administrators (MASEA) regional competition. The regional winner is entered in to the National Student Employment Association’s national competition.  All Drury nominees receive a certificate of recognition and a copy of the nominating letter.  Nominations are due in mid February.

Evaluations are required as part of the federal work study program and are an important part of the student employment experience.  They provide the student staff member with tangible feedback concerning their performance and should be taken seriously.

Evaluations:

1. Performance evaluations for student staff are conducted in March and are due back to Human Resources office by the last business day in April (November 30th for December graduates). (The form that will be sent with the notification is the Student Staff Evaluation.)
    
2. Are important for development of the student staff member’s work skills because they can provide constructive feedback relative to the performance.
    
3. Student staff members are also asked to complete an evaluation form to provide feedback concerning departmental performance from the student staff member’s viewpoint.  The notification to complete these evaluations are sent in April. Results are compiled and returned to the supervisor. (The form that will be sent with the notification is the Student Employment Program Evaluation.)
    
4. Student staff performance evaluations are a requirement for federal work study recipients.

Voluntary Terminations

Resignations should be reported to Human Resources immediately via the online “Payroll Action Form.”  If the student provides a letter of resignation, that should also be forwarded to Human Resources.

Involuntary Terminations

No student should be terminated prior to consultation with Human Resources.  The only two instances in which Human Resources would not need to be consulted prior to termination are terminations that occur due to the student’s exhausted work study award and job abandonment (see below).  However, Human Resources should be notified after the termination in any cases via the online payroll action form.

Job Abandonment

When a student does not call or show up for a scheduled shift, they should be contacted and immediately placed on a verbal warning.  If they don’t show up or call for three shifts in a row, despite contact from the supervisor, we will assume that the student has terminated his/her own employment. The best practice in this situation is to call the student and send an email after the first missed shift and indicate that the email serves as a verbal warning.  On the second day, the email should indicate that it serves as a written warning and should clearly state that failure to show up for the next shift will be considered job abandonment and the student will be terminated from employment.  The payroll action form should be completed and all documentation (emails) should be sent to Human Resources for the employee’s personnel file.

If the student had an unforeseen emergency and was unable to make contact with the supervisor, they may be reinstated at the discretion of the supervisor.  The supervisor would need to advise Human Resources of this reinstatement and of the effective date of the reinstatement.

Excessive Absenteeism

Please note that excessive absenteeism is a different matter.  The regular progressive counseling procedure can be effective in this situation.  Please contact human resources for guidance prior to terminating a student staff member who calls in excessively.

Performance or attendance issues that may arise at times must be dealt with immediately in an efficient and effective manner.  Always remember that Drury is an educational institution and in many cases this could be the student staff member’s first job.  Therefore, it is important to coach our student staff to be effective leaders and managers.  They learn from our example!

For a detailed explanation of the progressive counseling and termination procedures for Drury student staff, please see Progressive Counseling Procedures and the sample Written Warning Discipline Notice..

Timesheets

All student staff members are required to complete a monthly online timecard.  No payments via stipend will be permitted.  In order to receive payment, a student staff member must record hours worked on his or her time sheet correctly. To ensure accurate reporting, this should be done daily at the beginning and end of each shift worked.  (See Timekeeping Requirements Non-Exempt Student Staff)

The supervisor must review the information to ensure the timecard is filled out properly and completely.  Time should be recorded to the nearest quarter hour.  (See Timecard Approval Instructions).

Each month, timecard deadlines for student staff are on the last business day of the month.  This allows payroll enough time to process and prepare the paychecks.  Timecards received after the last business day of the month may not be processed until the next pay period.

Paychecks

Supervisors must inform student staff that after student timescards are submitted on the last business day of each month, students will receive payment on the 15th of the following month. Paychecks will normally be automatically deposited into the Direct Deposit or ReadyFUND$ account that the student has set up. If the necessary Direct Deposit or ReadyFUND$ account has not been set up in time, a paper check will be mailed to the address on file unless other arrangements have been made with the Payroll Manager.

Students may also view their paystub via their MyDrury account using the Employee tab and selecting the link shown as Pay Stub in the menu. Note: This is also the location where they will be able to view their W-2 online after the end of the year.

Compensation for non-work study and summer employment must be requested and approved through the normal budgeting process each year.  Departments may request access to work study funds for the upcoming academic year in March.  It is your responsibility to work with the budget administrator to ensure that you have adequate funds in the proper account in order to pay student wages.

• Work study funds may be earned starting the first day of the fall semester through May 31st.  Work study funds may only be accessed by approved departments to pay wages to students possessing work study as part of their financial aid package.
   
• Awarded work study funds are allocated as a certain amount per semester. If work study funds awarded for the fall semester are not fully used by December 31st, those funds cannot be carried over to the spring semester.
   
• If a department has not been approved to access work study funds or exhausts approved funds, wages will be charged to the department’s non –work study account. (209)  Students who work during the academic year who do not have a work study award are always paid out of a department’s non-work study student wages account during the academic year.
   
• All students who work in the summer are paid out of a department’s summer student wages account (210).

Summer Employment

Summer employment refers to student staff members who remain or become employed after May 31st up to the first day of classes in fall semester.  If you plan to have a student start working prior to the first day of classes, keep in mind that the wages will be charged to the 210 suffix of the budget as work study funds do not become available until the first day of classes.

1. Supervisors should notify the HR department by the 15th of May, about which student staff will be employed to work over the summer months via the online payroll action form. 
    
2. Supervisors should inform HR of any jobs that will become vacant during the summer months so the job(s) can be posted.  The “Online Requisition” should be used to communicate this information to HR.
    
3. Supervisors should notify HR of any positions that are expected to be vacant in the coming fall semester (the beginning of the next academic year).  Freshmen often begin applying for fall jobs August 1st, so supervisors should be responsive to applicants to keep them abreast of their recruiting timeline (when you will be screening applications, interviewing, etc).
    
4. Supervisors will need to complete a Payroll Action Form for staff members that will be returning to their jobs. You can do this as early as late spring when you get confirmation from the student that they are returning.  Keep in mind that the appointment letter may not be issued until mid-summer when the work study status of returning students becomes available. 
    
5. Graduating students may work until the first day of classes after their graduation date, EXCEPT International student staff members, who may not work after their graduation date.  The above procedures also apply to student staff members who have graduated, but will remain employed by the University as a student staff member for a portion or for the duration of the following summer.

Immigration law dictates that eligible international students may only work a maximum of 20 hours per week on campus during the academic year.  When school is in recess for the entire week, international students may work up to 40 hours per week.  If school is in session for part of a week, then the 20 hour limit applies.

If school is in session during any part of the recess, the student is only allowed to work 20 hours in that week.  The work week starts at 12:00 am (midnight) Monday morning and ends Sunday at 11:59pm.

International student staff must also complete the required pre-employment paperwork with Human Resources to include applying for a Social Security number (if he/she does not already have one) in order to be authorized to work.

Workers’ Compensation Insurance and Benefit Procedures

Workers’ Compensation insurance is provided for each employee in accordance with the Worker’s Compensation laws of the State of Missouri for accidental injury and occupational disease arising out of and/or in the course of employment.

Occupational accidents, diseases and injuries that occur at work and are directly linked to the performance of normal, job-related duties are covered under Workers’ Compensation Law, which guarantees prompt, automatic benefits to workers.

The benefits included in the program are: payment of hospital and doctor fees for services provided, payment for medicine prescribed for the related injury or disease, and payment of a portion of the employee’s wages while disabled. Work-related injuries include medical care and rehabilitation as ordered by Drury’s treating physician. There are no deductibles and co-payments; Drury University pays the entire cost for treatment. For emergency treatment, the employee should go to the nearest medical facility.

If an employee is required, as part of the job, to perform duties outside the Springfield area, the injured employee may obtain treatment from the nearest appropriate medical facility. However, Human Resources must be notified immediately following a visit.

Drury is not required to pay for non-emergency treatment that employees seek or select on their own. Employees must have approval from the Human Resources Department before seeking treatment that they expect to be paid for under Missouri’s Workers’ Compensation Law.

Temporary disability payments are made as long as Drury’s attending physician states that you are unable to work. These weekly benefits replace a portion of your lost wages. Additional cash payments will be made in the case of a permanent disability such as the loss of a finger or the loss of sight. If employees are permanently unable to return to work, a lump sum payment will be made. Death benefits are made to surviving dependent.

The full cost of these benefits is paid by Drury University.

Most situations are handled in a routine and efficient way. However, if questions arise concerning medical benefits or any aspect of the workers’ compensation process, contact Human Resources.

Procedures

All accidents, including those that do not require treatment by a doctor and/or hospital, must be reported to the department director, chair, or supervisor.

* * * Important Note * * *     The department director, chair or supervisor is required to complete a Drury University Employee’s Report of Injury setting forth the time, place and nature of the accident/injury, and the name and address of the person injured. This report must be provided to Human Resources within 24 hours.

The Human Resources Department will prepare and process the information with the Missouri Division of Workers’ Compensation. Timely reporting is critical, because claims can be denied if accidents and injuries are not reported to the Missouri Division of Workers’ Compensation within the required time frame of 30 days.

Drury University’s insurance carrier, as required by the Workers’ Compensation law, provides compensation.

If an employee requires transportation to the medical provider, an ambulance is required. Arrangements must be coordinated with Drury University’s Security and Safety office for accidents and injuries on the Springfield Campus. Approved provider information is maintained and distributed by the Human Resources Department.

What is “Work Study”?

Work Study is a federally funded work program that is awarded by the Financial Aid office to students whose families meet certain income requirements. The amount of the award must be earned over the course of the academic year for which it was awarded. Award amounts vary, so you should verify this amount with your work study student employee.

Is every student staff member on Work Study?

No. Only a certain number of students who have applied for and received a work study award from Financial Aid are considered to be Work Study.

What is the benefit of hiring Work Study student?

If your department has applied for and received authorization to work study funds, your department budget are not charged for the student’s wages unless he/she exceeds the departmental authorization or the amount of his/her work study award.

Can any student get a Work Study award?

No. Only those students whose family income level allows them to qualify are eligible.  Students must also file a FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid).

Do I have to employ a person with Work Study, or can I select the most qualified person for the job?

Work study recipients always have first priority. Every effort should be made to ensure that all students with a work study award are employed before considering students without an award. This is regardless of whether the department has been authorized access to work study funds.

How do I employ an international student?

Call H.R. to confirm that the student has been authorized by HR to begin work. The student must have completed the required paperwork, i.e. W-4’s, I-9, etc. As with any other student staff member, an international student may not begin work until they have been authorized to do so by Human Resources. Supervisors ensure that they have received confirmation from human resources prior to allowing any student to begin working.

How are wage rates set?

Wage rates are established by Human Resources by comparing the duties, responsibilities, skills, and abilities listed on the job description. Almost all jobs on campus have wage rates set at the minimum wage determined by the state of Missouri. 

Why are job descriptions required for each position?

 Job descriptions are very important for several reasons. Not only do they provide applicants with information about the various job duties and requirements of each position, but they also provide Human Resources with the necessary information to set wage rates, post job openings, and communicate effectively with other campus departments concerning job openings and closings. They also provide the criteria for supervisors to use when evaluating a student staff member’s job performance.