110 On-Call, Professional & Managerial Staff

Revised: October 2000

In specific circumstances and in support of operations, departments may determine a need to have available professional staff to respond to unexpected events and/or technical/operational issues outside of normal work hours. The purpose of an on-call arrangement is to support and respond to the unexpected. On-call cannot be used to reimburse for overtime hours nor is to be used as a means of payment to complete 'regularly assigned' work done after hours or a means to compensate for special projects and/or work assignments.

When it is determined by the Dean/Director/Chair or designate that an on-call arrangement is required to support the University's operations outside normal work hours, the following guidelines will be utilized in establishing minimum on-call arrangements with those professional/managerial staff participants in the on-call arrangement.

1. The need for an on-call arrangement will be determined by the Dean/Director/Chair or designate in consultation with the staff required to perform on-call.

2. (a) On-call responsibility must be shared amongst a group of suitably qualified and experienced employees in order to minimize the impact on any one employee.

(b)  New hires to an area with an established on-call will be made aware, at the time of hiring, that participation in the on-call arrangements is a requirement of the position.

(c)  Except for the exception as noted in (b) above, other employees will retain the right to be excused from participation in an on-call arrangement for reasons mutually agreeable between the employee and his/her Dean/Director/Chair or designate.

3. Normally, employees should not be scheduled to on-call arrangement for more than seven (7) consecutive days. In circumstances where a longer period of consecutive on-call is required, such arrangements are subject to mutual agreement between the department head and the employee(s) involved.

4. The Department Head, in consultation with the employees involved, will determine the method of communication during on-call periods (ie. pager, cell phone). Agreed upon communication equipment will be supplied by the department.

5. Departments will establish a minimum response time required for answering calls.

6. On-call hours will be determined by the specific needs of the department, but will generally be between 1700 and 0800 (or some portion thereof), Monday to Friday and 24 (or some portion thereof) hours on weekends and statutory holidays.

7. A number of options may be utilized for compensating employees scheduled to on-call. It will be the employee's option to choose monetary or lieu time payment options. Compensation is funded by the department and must be structured to include, at a minimum, the following:

(a) On-call stipend: a minimum of three (3) hours pay or (equivalent lieu time) for each week (7 days) of scheduled on-call.

(b) A minimum of 1.5 hours pay (or equivalent lieu time) for having to respond from off campus to a call (whether it requires travelling to campus or responding from off-campus). In circumstances where the on-call employee has had to travel to campus in response to an initial call and then receives a subsequent call while still on-campus, further minimum payments (1.5 hours) will not apply.

(c) Pay at standard rate (hour for hour) or equivalent lieu time (hour for hour) for any time spent on the problem beyond the first 1.5 hours.

(d) Lieu time accumulated due to on-call may be carried over to the next calendar year. However, carryover lieu time must be taken by May 31.