Telework Policy

1. Context

1.1. Policy Statement

In the context of the College’s mission and its values, most notably as they concern services to our students, this policy was developed to address work-life balance for college employees.

The arrangements outlined herein provide a framework whereby employees in certain functions would be permitted to work from an alternate location, usually from their home, in order to better balance their work and personal lives while still contributing at the same level to the College's mission.

In addition to providing more flexibility to our employees, this telework policy allows for:

• maximizing employee effectiveness,
• optimizing existing workspaces,
• reducing our environmental footprint by reducing greenhouse gas emissions resulting from traffic congestion,
• supporting continuity plans, and
• facilitating the hiring and retention of highly qualified staff by providing for better work-life balance.

1.2. Scope of Application

Telework is not appropriate for all positions at the College, but for those positions that do lend themselves to this form of delivery; this document outlines the objective as well as the obligations and responsibilities of the institution and our employee-participants.

This policy applies to Managers, Professionals and Support Personnel.

The information provided for herein applies to official agreements whereby an employee would be working from home for one or more days per week on a regular basis.

For temporary or occasional work arrangements resulting from dependent care; inclement weather; recovery from illness; care of a family member, or any other incident requiring a short-term solution, please refer to the section entitled “Discretionary Arrangements”.

1.3. Eligibility

In order to participate in a telework arrangement, a signed agreement between the employee and the College is required.

Upon receiving a request to participate in a telework agreement, the employee’s manager will assess the nature of the employee's position, the employee's performance, the status of the employee's disciplinary record and the supervisory measures in place to determine whether telework is appropriate in the context of the College’s mission.

1.4. Job eligibility criteria

The position occupied by the employee must be of a nature where:

• Services to the community can be provided at the same level of quality whether they are provided in person or on-line;
• A significant portion of the workload can be completed away from the office without diminishing quality or productivity;
• The telework does not create inefficiencies or problems for customers (internal or external), projects or other employees;
• The needs of internal and external customers can be met at the same level as when the employee works from their workstation on the College premises.
• There should be no significant impact on the workload of other employees in a service or department because of the granting of a telework request.
• The evaluation of these criteria is the responsibility of the employee’s manager.

1.5. Eligibility criteria for the employee

• The employee must be able to maintain an adequate level of communication with the College, their supervisor and colleagues;
• The employee must undertake to comply with all policies and procedures applicable to their employment with the College, including those relating to security and confidentiality;
• The employee must be able to provide for an appropriate working environment at home, including an environment that excludes noise during calls and meetings.

The evaluation of these criteria is the responsibility of the employee’s manager. The manager may revoke a telework agreement at any time if the employee no longer meets any of the eligibility criteria.

1.6. Eligibility during an orientation or a probationary period

In order to ensure a smooth integration to the workplace, new employees to the College or existing employees assuming new functions will most likely be required to be physically present on campus to facilitate training and orientation to their new responsibilities. Telework consequently would not be encouraged during this period.

Once the manager has deemed the new employee to be sufficiently acclimated to their new environment and responsibilities, the new employee would be eligible for a limited form of telework during their probationary period if all the eligibility criteria listed above are satisfied.

The recommended limit on telework during a probationary period is as follows:

• Less than 3 months, maximum 20% or 1 day per week;
• 3 to 6 months, maximum 30% or 3 days over two weeks;
• As of 6 months, application of the policy.

2. Roles and Responsibilities

2.1. Employee Responsibilities

• To perform at a level that meets the requirements of the College;
• To complete the same quantity and quality of work via telework as they would at their regular work location;
• To provide and maintain a teleworkplace that meets the occupational health and safety standards described in the section "Occupational Health and Safety: Prevention”;
• To make themselves available according to the terms of the telework agreement established with their manager;
• To collaborate with co-workers as required to achieve all results expected by the College;
• When requested by the manager, to be available to attend meetings or gatherings at the College;

• To be available to be reached according to organisational needs during designated work hours;
• Ensure that they have the technological tools and functionality to carry out the agreed upon tasks remotely, including an adequate internet connection and access to a telephone;
• To provide their manager with a telephone number at which they can be easily reached during working hours;
• To notify their manager immediately of any breakdown, failure or other situation that prevents them from carrying out their telework;
• To report without delay any work-related incident that may lead to an employment injury;
• To ensure that College-owned computer supplies, equipment and networks are used exclusively for work-related activities, unless explicitly authorized by the College;
• To ensure the security of work-related documents and information.
• To comply at all times and in all respects with the rules of confidentiality and protection of confidential information;
• To comply in the performance of their responsibilities with all College policies and directives;

Telework is a privilege not a right.

An employee who does not respect established expectations will have this privilege revoked. In this eventuality, the manager will notify the employee five (5) working days prior to the revocation of the telework.

An employee's access to the program may be modified or revoked based on new or modified duties or workload requirements. In this eventuality, the manager will provide the employee with as much notice as possible.

In the event that an employee changes positions or departments, the telework arrangement will end automatically. Should the employee wish to continue to participate in a telework agreement, a new request will have to be made and evaluated based on the established criteria and the needs of the new position. There is no guarantee of participation.

2.2. Responsibilities of the Manager

• To consider telework requests according to the criteria set out herein;
• To review and update telework agreements as circumstances evolve;
• To adopt effective management practices to ensure that teleworking employees receive the support they need to perform their duties;
• To define expectations and objectives and follow up on them with the teleworker;
• To ensure appropriate communication with the employee;
• To respect the employee's established work schedule;
• Any other responsibility arising from the application of this program.

2.3. Responsibilities of Human Resource Services

• To ensure an equitable and effective application of this program;
• To update the program as required.

3. Framework Schedule

Telework is performed during assigned working hours and during periods that have been predetermined between the employee and the manager.

The number of telework hours authorized may vary from one employee to the next and from one position to the next but may not exceed 50% of the employee’s regular schedule.

The employee telework schedule will be determined such that they are able to access resources, attend events and meet with their manager, co-workers, other employees and/or students in person as appropriate.

Teleworking does not change the number of hours an employee must work. Any changes in working hours must be approved in advance by the manager, including requests for overtime, leave or sick leave.

The allowable percentage of telework per week varies depending on the individual job, equipment requirements, departmental needs, individual telework agreement, etc. This percentage will be set by the manager and may be subject to modification depending on department needs.

If the employee is required to attend meetings on telework days, travel time is not included in working time.

3.1. Sick days or personal days

If the employee scheduled for telework is unable to work due to illness or other reasons, they must use either sick days or personal leave as appropriate. The absence must be reported to the manager as soon as possible and recorded in the College’s usual absence reporting system.

3.2. Interruptions or Emergencies

If the employee on telework is, for any reason, unable to work from home, they must report to the College to work. If a technical problem occurs less than two hours before the end of the day, the employee must immediately contact their manager to confirm whether to go to the College or stay home. If the problem occurs more than two hours before the end of the working day, the employee must go to the College to finish the workday.

The employee must notify their manager in the event of an emergency or accident.

In the event that an unforeseen situation at the College results in its closing and employees being excused for the workday, employees on telework will be expected to complete their workday.

3.3. Conditions of Employment

Telework in no way modifies the salary, benefits, compensation, leaves, holidays and other terms and conditions of employment for employees as established by their contract, collective agreement or the College's policies.

Similarly, the duties, obligations and responsibilities of the employees and the College remain unchanged by Telework.

Office space is primarily reserved for full-time employees based at the College. In order to maximise space, the teleworking employee accepts the possibility that an office may no longer be specifically designated to them and the sharing of space prioritized instead.

3.4. Communication and presence at work

In the context of telework, the preferred modes of communication are:

• Microsoft Teams
• Email
• Telephone
• Video conferencing (Zoom or Microsoft Teams)

During regular working hours, the employee must be reachable by their manager, co-workers, persons to whom they are required to render services or persons with whom they need to communicate in order to perform their duties.

The employee is responsible for providing a telephone number at which they can be reached during working hours.

All means of communication must be consistent with the College's IT security protocols and allow for the preservation of confidentiality of documents and communications, both written and oral.

3.5. Other non-job related responsibilities

Telework is not intended to replace regular child or dependent care. An employee who is required to make childcare arrangements during workdays while at the College must make the same arrangements for telework days, so that the employee is not responsible for the care of children, adult dependents or other dependents, or other personal responsibilities during working hours. If this is not possible, the employee must contact their manager to determine the work delivery arrangements.

3.6. Performance Requirements (Expectations and Monitoring)

The manager will determine a work plan when the employee is teleworking. The manager will promote results-based management and will periodically review the progress of the employee's work in a manner similar to what would be done if the employee were not teleworking.

The employee undertakes to respond to the manager within the prescribed time limit.

If an employee's behaviour and/or performance is unsatisfactory, the manager may terminate the telework agreement and impose disciplinary measures, as appropriate.

Performance and comportment expectations are the same for all employees including those who are teleworking. Nothing in this policy alters or invalidates existing College standards of performance or behaviour.

3.7. Security, Ethics and Confidentiality of Data

The employee is responsible for the protection of all College data, equipment, confidential information and trade secrets. It is the employee's responsibility to ensure that College information is not accessible to others.

In particular, and without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the employee is responsible for:

• adhering to all College passwords, email encryption, firewalls and access to biometric identifiers;
• keeping hard copies of College Confidential Information in locked locations when not in use;
• executing and agreeing to be bound at all times by the confidentiality of information and the intellectual property protocols.

In the event that the employee is required to bring confidential material home for teleworking, prior written approval by the manager is required.

3.8. Occupational Health and Safety: Prevention

The employee must designate a workspace in their place of residence that will allow them to be safely located without disturbing ambient noise. The employee shall maintain this workspace in a safe condition, free of hazards to the employee and equipment.

If the employee suffers an incident, work-related injury or illness/disease of any kind related to their work, the College must be informed of the cause of the incident. If the employee is the victim of any incident, work-related accident or illness/disease related to their work, they are responsible for notifying their manager as soon as possible so that the situation can be assessed and appropriate action taken.

3.9. Supplies, equipment and tools

Equipment (e.g. laptop with software, mouse and headset) is provided by the College for the purpose of teleworking and remains at all times the property of the College.

The employee must use this equipment in the course of their duties and not for personal use.

The College may at any time require the employee to return such equipment to the College premises.

The employee is responsible for taking the necessary precautions to protect the equipment from theft, damage or misuse.

The support provided to teleworkers from IT Services is limited to only equipment that was supplied by the College and does not extend to devices owned by the teleworker.

3.10. Reimbursement of telework related expenses

Participation in this program is voluntary and is made at the request of the employee. Unless otherwise specified by the College, no employee is required to work from home.

Consequently, costs incurred by the employee in order to exercise the privilege of working from home are not reimbursable by the College unless specifically agreed to in advance by the Director responsible for the service or department. Individual managers may not approve such expenses.

The College will not reimburse the cost of internet services. It is the responsibility of the employee to ensure that their home office allows for regular adequate communication with their manager, colleagues and the people to whom they are providing services.

The College will not reimburse the use of personal printers and ink cartridges. In the event that documents need to be printed, this should be done at the College. The employee is responsible for informing their insurance provider that they are working from home. The College will not assume any increases to coverage that may result from a telework arrangement.

If the employee is required to make long distance or international calls, these calls must be approved in advance in order for the expenses to be reimbursed upon presentation of supporting documentation.

3.11. Discretionary Arrangements

For temporary or occasional work arrangements resulting from dependent care; recovery from illness; care of a family member, or any other incident requiring a short-term solution whereby an employee may benefit from the opportunity to work from home for a brief period of time, all managers are permitted to grant permission for an employee to work from home. When this type of situation occurs, the manager will exercise their discretionary authority and grant the permission after having validated the reason for the request and ensuring that there is no inequitable impact on the work of the employee’s peers. These types of arrangements must be for a specific purpose, determined in time and not be repetitive in nature.

The College may, after discussion at the Management Executive Committee, direct employees to work from home in the event of anticipated inclement weather or in the event of an emergency that prevents employees and students from temporarily accessing the campus.

In the case of inclement weather, specifically snowstorms, employees would be instructed the day before an anticipated storm to be prepared to work from home the next day but the final decision on whether or not the college will be open and offering classes on campus would only be confirmed on the day of the storm. If the College is open, employees would be expected to report to work on campus.

4. Effective Date and Revision of This Policy

This policy is effective immediately following its approval by the Board of Directors.

This policy is to be reviewed after the first year of its official implementation and then every three years thereafter to ensure its relevance and effectiveness.