Northern Arizona University

Human Resources
Reduced Workweek

Comment:	We rely heavily on our facilities here in northern Arizona and it seems to me that we should use the stimulus money to improve our existing buildings by changing several of them to solar powered energy. Currently, there are several finance incentives that could be very beneficial tax credits. This would enable NAU to become more sustainable, relying less on outside energy sources. This fits with President Obama's plan and will allow us to rely less on state funding. This project could be used as a continuing research project as well. I consider this to be one of those projects that has an investment that must be made up front but pays for itself in the long run. I also favor becoming a paperless campus and an software package that can move us in that direction sounds great to me. We as departments would require less space and individuals would feel less bogged down. We already use KwikTag for scanning documents in the Advancement Office and one entire file room has been converted to accommodate 3 employees. I have spoken with Cathy Snow in Human Resources about changing their process to reduce printing forms, using electronic signatures and scanning their documents. Their biggest problem at this time is that with the budget cuts, they cannot afford it. 4/14/2009
Question:	Would it be possible to allow those full-time employees who would want to do so to move down to 30 hours or 20 hours a week (and maintain benefits) to contribute to cost cutting efforts?
Answer:	That depends on the business needs of your department. Employees should work with their supervisor to determine whether a voluntary reduction in hours is a feasible budget-saving measure for the department. For benefit-eligible employees to maintain their benefit eligibility status, they cannot be reduced below 20 hours per week. It is important to understand that the reduction in hours and corresponding reduction in salary is a permanent change and that future increases in hours worked cannot be guaranteed. 4/20/2009
Question:	Has anyone addressed how much impact a schedule of four ten-hour days would have on the budget?
Answer:	A four-day work week is not currently being considered because little savings would result while services could be impacted negatively. 2/17/2009
Comment:	Instead of days without pay lets think about moving people to 4/10 shifts. Anyone making $70,000 or more would have to take a pay cut by 5 hours a check. Anyone making $69,999 and below would stay at current pay but adjusted for 75 hour work weeks. Shifts could adjust for Staff, if the university did not want to close down on Fridays, to allow coverage for 5 days. First week shift, Monday to Thursday - Second shift, Tuesday to Friday. Ideal would be to shut down on Friday. 2/7/2009
Comment:	As mentioned in the Arizona Daily Sun, with regards to our current budget crisis and CCC, I would like to make the following suggestion: We should follow the same proposed summer scheduling as a four day work week. This would not only save in salaries, but in utilities. 2/7/2009
Comment:	There seems to be quite a number of comments suggestions about working a 4 day work week. I think this should be further investigated. I think decisions are as much about the timing of a decision as the decision itself. My thought is to give everyone an across the board cut 1-3% (but instead of with a "ceiling" rather with a "floor" to not apply to folks with annualized salaries of less than $30,000 as an example). Since salary is clearly the largest component of the budget, a small percent cut will yield an instant and significant budget savings. Hopefully this will yield not only savings, but the opportunity to "buy time" to make the more difficult and more impactful program cuts and/or position cuts. It seems like the target is only moving and growing, so this approach may be more equitable and more thoughtful. Whatever the outcome, some resources may need to be maintained or enhanced such as EAW and Counseling and Testing to help people cope their loss and/or manage their anxiety. I would be interested in seeing the costs for health benefits that allow NAU employees to maintain their current level of coverage rather than cutting coverage and increasing cost. 2/7/2009
Comment:	I really think that if NAU offered employees the opportunity to go part-time, many would jump on it as long as we keep our benefits. I personally wouldn't mind working 30-35 hours per week so that I could dedicate more time to my family and pursuing my degree. I would take pride in knowing that my reduced hours might help a fellow NAU employee who needs a full-time job! 2/7/2009
Question/ Rumor:	Employee hours may be cut by 8hrs each week, effectively moving NAU to a 32 hour work week applied to everyone across the board? I can't imagine actually closing the university one day a week. Maybe the intent is to stagger our hours to ensure our offices continue to stay open 40 hours a week?
Answer:	A 32-hour work week is not being considered. 2/3/2009
Comment:	I was wondering if anyone had suggested allowing more non-essential administrative staff to work from home on a part-time basis? This could reduce university costs because the employees working from home would be using their own computer, their own electricity, their own heat, etc. The university might be able to reduce some expenditures because these employees would not be using university resources such as electricity and heat on a daily basis. Also, custodial costs might be reduced if these employees are not using university facilities on a daily basis. The university might also be able to save some money by not paying for a telephone or internet service for employees who work from home. I think that many employees would willingly pay the cost of their own internet, phone, electricity, etc. and not attempt to "bill" the university for these items in return for the increased work/life balance that they'd receive by working from home. These employees could still work on campus on an as-need basis to meet with supervisors, co-workers, etc. In addition to reducing costs associated with energy, custodial services, telecommunications, etc. an effort like this may also support the university's goal of sustainability. Also, in Utah many state agencies have implemented a 4-day workweek. Employees work 10 hour shifts on Monday through Thursday and are off Friday through Sunday. A 10 hour work-day means that state offices are open until 6 or 7 PM Monday through Thursday, which allows customers to get service in the late afternoon and early evening. These customers don't have to take time off from their own job to get service from a state agency that would normally only be open until 5 PM. It is estimated that by closing some state offices one extra day per week that Utah is saving approximately $3 million dollars per year in energy costs. While this program is not in place for public universities in Utah, has NAU looked at any potential non-essential administrative offices that could work on a 4-day workweek schedule that would cut costs, increase service to customers by being open until 6 or 7 PM and not severely impact services that would normally be delivered to students? 1/14/2009
Comment:	Thank you for the opportunity to comment. Many great ideas have been posted, and I concur with the ones that suggest flexibility in work week, in having a summer semester, in scheduling faculty sabbaticals and retirements, etc. I would like to see more flexibility in cross-listing courses. We might be able to boost enrollment in some courses amd make better use of faculty time by having students from several degree programs taking similar classes together. This would also boost our inter-disciplinarity, and help facilitate communication among faculty and students from different departments (personally, I think that's a good thing). This might help students get the classes they need for their degrees at a time when classes with small enrollments must be canceled. Faculty and advanced students would need to brainstorm about what might be usefully consolidated and still meet the standards set in our degree programs. To make this work, we would have to stop being such bean-counters about which department gets credit for "head count." 1/12/2009