Flexible Work Guidelines

Staff member initiated requests (1 or 2 days per week)

Principles

  1. Flexible work arrangements will align with department/unit plans approved by the President / Vice Presidents.  Individual staff member plans can then be approved by the EC member, or delegate. 
  2. Staff may initiate a flexible work arrangement (FWA) where they are permitted to adjust their work location or hours.  Flexible work arrangements will be determined on a case-by-case basis taking into consideration the operational requirements of the University and keeping in line with the University approved principles and guidelines. FWA will be entered in Workday and will be subject to the standard annual review process. 
  3. A staff member and manager enter into a FWA recognizing that it is in the best interest of the university/group/department and the staff member with respect to satisfying the requirements of the job.
  4. The primary place of work is the University of Waterloo and a work space will remain available for the staff member. A dedicated work space is not guaranteed.  Work spaces could be shared, hot desking etc.
  5. Any FWA is at the sole discretion of the Executive Council Unit Head, or delegate.
  6. All employees are expected to be able to attend at campus for required meetings, events and activities as determined by their manager - 100% work from home is not permitted under the flexible work guidelines.

Considerations

  1. The motivation for the FWA  is not the provision of dependent care by the staff member at home while working.
  2. Does the nature of the work and requirements of the job allow the staff member to work successfully from home on an ongoing basis? If so, for how many days per week?
  3. Is it practical and an efficient use of resources for the work to be completed by the staff member working from home?
  4. What additional resources are required (e.g., print resources, computer equipment, or internet access)? If additional resources are required, does the staff member understand that provision of these resources is normally their responsibility?
  5. Can output be monitored and/or measured?
  6. Will there be an impact on the work of others (e.g., department meetings, service desk schedules, availability to other members of the university during usual business hours, supervision of or collaboration with other members of the department)? If so, can the impact be accommodated by the staff member or the department?
  7. Is there agreement on how flexible the staff member can or will be regarding shifting the arrangement to accommodate for departmental needs for a particular time period (e.g., a specific week or term)?

The agreement

  1. Where a flexible work proposal is approved, the terms and conditions of the agreement are recorded in Workday.
  2. Flexible work arrangements will be initiated, tracked, and approved in Workday.

Amended by the Central Planning Group, 20 January 2022.