Policy 4610A

DEFINITIONS AND TERMS

These definitions and terms shall apply to the Western Wyoming Community College Human Resource Policies and Procedures.

Academic Year
The period covering the fall and spring sessions.

Appointing Authority
The person or group authorized to appoint or hire employees; the President (or designee) for paraprofessional and part-time professional employees; the Board for full-time professional employees.

Applicant
A person who has filed an application with the Human Resources office for employment at Western Wyoming Community College.

Board of Trustees
A board comprised of persons duly elected by residents within the boundaries of the Western Wyoming Community College District which governs the activities of the College.

Class
A position or group of positions which are sufficiently similar with respect to duties and responsibilities that they may properly be designated by the same title and equitably compensated from the same pay range.

Classification Plan
A schematic list of classes supported by class specifications.

Class Specification
A written description of a particular class of positions, including the title, examples of duties and responsibilities and the requirements that are necessary or desirable for the satisfactory performance of the duties of that class.

Class Title
The title assigned to any particular class and used for reference to that class.

College Officers
Officers of the College are the President, Vice Presidents and other administrative and supervisory employees who may be designated as officers from time to time by the President.

Demotion
The movement of an employee from a position in one class to a position in another class with a lower minimum pay rate.

Discharge or Dismissal
The termination of employment for cause.

Disciplinary Action
An oral warning, written reprimand, suspension, or dismissal issued for cause by the appointing authority, or the appropriate supervisor.

Eligible Dependents
As used in Policy 4320H, an eligible dependent is one who meets the Internal Revenue Service criteria for an eligible dependent for the purpose of determining eligibility for dependent status for income tax purposes.

Employee
A person occupying a position in the College, or a person who is on an authorized leave of absence and whose position is being held pending return to duty.

Employment Date
The date at which an employee commences performance of duties and is placed on the payroll.

Evaluation Date
The date at which an employee’s work performance is evaluated to determine fitness for appointment as a regular employee or worthiness for continued retention as a College employee.

Exempt Personnel
Any employees who are exempt from the minimum wage and overtime provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act as amended. These generally, but not always, include personnel appointed to faculty, administrative and professional positions.

Faculty
A faculty member is an individual under contract or salary agreement for the primary purpose of rendering instructional services to the College.

Full-time Employee
A full-time employee is an individual who is compensated on a salaried basis from a full-time salary schedule, serves in a full-time capacity and is required to from time to time to perform non-position specific duties such as advising students, serving on College committees, task forces and so forth.

Insubordinate
Not subordinate or obedient, not submitting to authority.

Layoff
The separation of an employee due to lack of work, funds, or other reasons not related to cause.

Leave
An authorized absence from regularly scheduled work hours which has been approved by the proper authority.

Non-exempt Personnel
Any employees who are not exempt from the minimum wage and overtime provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act as amended.

One-half Time Employee
Part-time employees compensated on an hourly basis serving in a one-half capacity include those employees who work 1,040 or more hours per calendar year. Part-time employees compensated on a credit hour basis serving in a one-half time capacity include those employees who teach eighteen (18) or more credit hours per academic year.

Paraprofessional
Includes employees who serve in positions identified by the EEOC Occupational Activity Areas Clerical/Secretarial, Technical/Paraprofessional, Skilled Craft and Service/Maintenance.

Part-time Employee
A part-time employee is an individual who is compensated on an hourly or credit hour basis from a part-time salary schedule, serves in a part-time capacity and is generally required to perform only position-specific duties.

Part-time employees compensated on an hourly basis may not work in excess of 1,800 hours per calendar year. Part-time faculty may not teach more than 24 credit load hours per academic year.

With the approval of the College President and the consent of the employee, Archaeological Services part-time employees may work in excess of 1,800 hour limit if contract obligations or other departmental obligations necessitate such work.

Pay Range
The minimum and maximum rates of pay established for each class of the classification and pay plans.

Position
A group of current duties and responsibilities assigned or delegated by the appointing authority to one person.

President
President of Western Wyoming Community College.

Probation
A period of twelve (12) months for new paraprofessionals and nine months for internally-promoted paraprofessionals during which a paraprofessional employee’s work performance is evaluated to determine fitness for appointment to regular status. A paraprofessional on probation serves at-will as defined in Procedure 4210C.

Probational Employee
A paraprofessional employee in a regular position who has not yet completed the probationary period.

Professional
Includes employees who serve in positions identified by the EEOC Occupational Activity Areas (1) Executive, Administrative or Managerial, (2) Faculty, or (3) Professional, Non-Faculty.

Promotion
The movement of an employee from a position of one class to a position of another class with a higher minimum pay rate.

Regular Status
A status which a paraprofessional employee earns after successful completion of the required probationary period.

Release Time
As used in Policy 4430B, the time an employee is excused from performing regular duties in order to participate in the grievance and appeal procedure. Said time away from regular duties must not result in a loss of pay or other benefits to the employee.

Suspension
An involuntary absence without pay imposed on an employee for disciplinary action, investigation of alleged wrong-doing, or pending final outcome of appeal.

Temporary Employee
An employee who has received an appointment for a specifically limited period not to exceed six (6) months on a full-time or part-time basis, and whose appointment may be terminated at any time without notice. Reappointment for an additional continuous six (6) month period may occur at the discretion of the Vice President but in no case will temporary employment extend beyond one year.

Transfer
A personnel action that changes an employee’s work assignment from one employing unit to another at the same time, or in some cases, a lower basic job classification and range level. A transfer is accompanied by an equal or lower rate of pay.

Vacancy
A duly created position which is not occupied and for which funds have been provided.

Workweek
For recordkeeping purposes, the workweek starts at 12:01 a.m., Monday, and ends at midnight on Sunday.

Adopted: November 19, 1981
Revised: March 23, 1989
Revised: February 25, 1993
Revised: January 8, 2004
Reformatted: April 2012

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