On-Campus Student Employment Policy

PROCESS FOR ESTABLISHING AN ON-CAMPUS POSITION:

• All open or available student employment positions are posted on Handshake, unless otherwise approved by the designated Financial Aid Office (FAO) representative (see Handshake Process Flow Diagram).
• The FAO will determine a student’s eligibility for on-campus employment and will notify the supervisor in the event a student is not eligible to be employed on-campus (see Eligibility Criteria for On-Campus Employment).
• Proposals for new student employment positions must be approved by the respective VP assigned to the department and must fall within the parameters of the assigned budget for the respective fiscal year.  If a new position is approved, a copy of the job description must be shared with the Business Office and the FAO. 
• Positions do not need to be posted on Handshake for returning student workers that have already worked in the same position previously.  
  • At the beginning of each semester, each supervisor provides the FAO with names of students returning, as well as student workers that will not be returning to their respective positions.

PROCESS FOR FILLING AN ON-CAMPUS POSITION:

• During the candidate selection process and before interviews are conducted, the primary supervisor must contact the FAO with the pool of candidates to determine each student’s eligibility for on-campus employment. 
• Once the student’s eligibility has been confirmed, the supervisor can proceed with interviews and extend a job offer to the successful candidate.   After the position has been offered and accepted, the supervisor will inform the FAO, who will guide the supervisor of steps to be completed before the student begins work.
  • If the student HAD previously been employed and is authorized to work on-campus, the FAO will work with the Business Office to create an employee profile, which provides the specific details of the position and enables students and their supervisors to record their time in Self-Service.
  • If the student has NOT been previously authorized to work on-campus, they are required to complete and return the employment authorization forms (see below) before they can start working.  The FAO will send an email to the student’s NWU email account (with the student’s primary supervisor cc’d on the email), which includes the following employee authorization forms:
    • I-9 (Department of Homeland Security) and Proof of Identification
    • Federal W-4 form
    • State (NE) W-4N form
    • Direct Deposition Authorization form (internal)
    • Employee Acknowledgement & Confidentiality Agreement (internal)
• Once the student employee is authorized to work on-campus, the FAO will email the student and their primary supervisor advising them of their status.  The FAO will notify the Business Office to create an employee profile to enable the student/supervisor to record and approve timecards.  

ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA FOR ON-CAMPUS EMPLOYMENT:

• In compliance with federal and state laws, student employees are required to complete and return all necessary on-campus employment forms before they are allowed to perform the functions of the job.  The FAO manages the employment authorization process and will communicate with all parties upon approval.  Failure to comply can result in severe fines, and may impact NWU’s ability to employ students in the future. 
• Students who are recipients of Tuition Remission, Tuition Exchange, the PTK Full-tuition Scholarship, or the Full-ride Huge Scholarship (tuition, fees, room & board) are NOT eligible for on-campus employment. 
  • Positions with Sodexo, the Phone-a-thon, Campus Bookstore or summer camps are exempt from this policy as NWU is not funding the program.
• Undergraduate and graduate students must meet the following criteria to be eligible for on-campus employment:
  • Undergraduate students must be enrolled at least half-time Status (at least 6 credit hours during the semester), maintain at least a 2.0 cumulative grade point average, and cannot be the recipient of tuition remission, tuition exchange, the Phi Theta Kappa full-ride scholarship or the full-ride Huge Scholarship.
  • Graduate students must be enrolled at least half-time status (at least 3 credit hours during the semester), maintain at least a 2.0 cumulative grade point average, and cannot be the recipients of tuition remission, or tuition exchange.

NWU reserves the right to make short-term (a semester or less) exceptions on a case-by-case basis.  Any changes must be approved by the VP representative assigned to the department prior to the implementation of the change.

POLICY FOR ON-CAMPUS EMPLOYMENT:

• Students are paid an hourly rate that is in compliance with federal and state laws.
• Per the passage of Initiative 433 in November of 2022, resulted in an incremental increase to the minimum wage in Nebraska from $9.00 per hour, to $15.00 per hour by 01/01/2026.  NWU will comply with the state law and increase the hourly rate accordingly each year.
  • 01/01/2023 – from $10.00 to $10.50 per hour
  • 01/01/2024 – from $10.50 to $12.00 per hour
  • 01/01/2025 – from $12.00 to $13.50 per hour
  • 01/01/2026 – from $13.50 to $15.00 per hour

Exceptions:

•  
  • Due to the Department of Education 7% Federal Work Study (FWS) allocation spend requirement for community service positions, as of 07/16/2023, students working in community service positions are paid $14.00 per hour to account for travel time, transportation and assist with satisfying the mandated spend stipulation.
  • Summer camps that are independently funded through fees, grants or external sources are permitted to pay their employees an hourly rate that that exceeds the set minimum wage, but must pay their workers at least the set state minimum wage.
  • Phonathon, managed by the Advancement Office, is privately funded, therefore they are able to pay their student workers an hourly rate that exceeds the set minimum wage.
  • For the spring 2022 semester going forward, the Ad Council has approved students to work up to 15 hours per week due to staffing shortages across campus.  The Ad Council along with the FAO, will continue to monitor staffing trends and reserves the right to adjust this policy as needed.
  • Any additional exceptions to this policy should be extremely rare. However, NWU reserves the right to make short-term (a semester or less) exceptions on a case-by-case basis.  Such exceptions must be approved by the student’s immediate supervisor, the VP assigned to the department, along with the FAO and wages must be within the allocated NWU student employment budget.
• Paid On-Campus Internships are approved to work up to 15 hours per week (see Paid On-Campus Internships).
• Students are eligible to work multiple positions on-campus; however, they are NOT permitted to exceed more than 15 hours per week collectively, unless an exception is approved (outlined above). 
• All student employees must be authorized to work on-campus before they perform the functions of the job.  Work performed prior to the authorization of the employee will be regarded as volunteer hours.
• Each supervisor is responsible to know if students are working multiple positions and how many hours they work in other departments.
• Students are NOT permitted to work during their regularly scheduled class times.  The supervisor is responsible to ensure students do NOT work during these times.  It is recommended that supervisors request a copy of their student employees class schedule each semester.
• When class is not in session, such as the summer and winter terms, spring or fall break, students may work up to 40 hours per week, assuming the university is open, the student is supervised and not working during regularly scheduled class times, or when the University is closed. Overtime, or time worked over 40 hours per week is not permitted.
• Work hours are designated exclusively for work functions.  If a student employee is being paid to work, the expectation is that they are working.
• Supervisors have the responsibility to ensure their employees are working in a safe environment and make sure all safety protocols are strictly followed.
• Any situation of injury, discrimination or harassment that occurs on the job must be immediately reported to the student’s employee’s primary supervisor, the VP assigned to the department or to the Assistant VP of Human Resources at NWU.
•  All student employees are expected to be at work on-time.  In the event a student worker is sick, late or unable to work, they must notify their supervisor via phone call, text or email before their shift begins.
  • Excessive cases of tardiness, or absences, may result in disciplinary action or termination of employment after consultation with Human Resources.
•  All student employees are expected to be professional, courteous, respectful and to exercise good judgment at all times as well as follow University employee policies.  
  • Inappropriate attire, the use of profanity, drugs or alcohol on the job is strictly prohibited and may result in disciplinary action, including termination and/or legal action.
• It is the responsibility of the student employee to accurately record their hours in Self-Service at the end of each shift.  Time entries submitted late may result in the student being paid at a later date.
• It is the responsibility of the supervisor to ensure that time entries are accurately recorded and approved each month.
• Foreign or international students may NOT work more than 15 hours per week during the fall or spring terms, and cannot work more than 40 hours per week in the winter or summer terms.
  • Any international student in breach of their student visa status must be reported and may result in the student being exported to their country of origin.
• The student employee pay-cycle runs from the 16th of the month, until the 15th of the following month and student employees are paid on the last business day of each month. 
• It is the responsibility of the student employee to accurately record their hours in Self-Service at the end of each shift.  Students should submit all timesheets to supervisors no later than 10:00am on the 17th of each month or the following business day if the 17th is a weekend of holiday.  Exceptions to these times/dates will be sent out via email. Time entries submitted late may result in the student being paid at a later date.
• It is the responsibility of the supervisor to ensure that time entries are accurately recorded and approved each month. Exceptions to these times/dates will be sent out via email.  Supervisors should approve all timesheets no later than 3:59pm on the 17th of each month or the following business day if the 17th is a weekend of holiday.
• The FAO is responsible for awarding Federal Work-Study funds, along with following all statues set forth by the Department of Education.