Department of Natural Resources Policy - Compensatory Time For Non-Exempt (Cash Overtime) Employee

Department of Natural Resources Policy -
Compensatory Time for Non-Exempt (Cash Overtime) Employee
Policy Number:     94:13
Effective Date:     August 17, 1994 (Reviewed: May 2003)
See signed policy - Adobe Acrobat file
I. Purpose
To establish procedures for the compensation of work performed by non-exempt (cash overtime) employees beyond the established workweek of forty hours in accordance with the Fair Labor Standards Act, 29 U.S.C. and COMAR 17.04.02.08D, and Chapter 11, .02. additionally this policy reverses the Department’s decision of June 27, 1989 regarding compensatory time for the option of offering non-exempt (cash overtime) employees compensatory time in lieu of cash overtime under certain conditions. This policy will be effective August 17, 1994.
II. Scope (DEPARTMENT WIDE UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED)

III. Policy
Managers are responsible for planning and organizing the workload to complete work projects within the prescribed workweek. It is recognized that weather conditions, unanticipated absences, emergency project assignments, etc., do impact on work schedules and may require work hours in excess of an employee’s normal workweek. In these exceptional cases, employees are to be compensated for the time worked beyond their normal workweek.

IV. Procedure
A. Non-Exempt (Cash Overtime) Employees:

The policy only affects persons in job classes eligible for cash over time compensation.

Persons eligible for cash overtime compensation may elect to receive it in the form of compensatory time earned, rather than cash.
Non-exempt (cash overtime) employees may accrue up to 240 hours of compensatory time. Hours worked in excess of this limit shall be compensated by cash payments.
If compensatory time is chosen in lieu of cash, the compensatory time granted shall be on an hour-for-hour, straight-time basis for time worked up to 40 hours per week and on a time and one-half basis for hours worked beyond 40 hours per week.

Agencies must provide eligible employees the opportunity to specify the mode of overtime payment (cash or compensatory time) and the designation will be indicated on the timesheet per pay period.

Authorization to work overtime per pay period continues to be required in advance and recorded and authorized by the supervisor on the timesheet.

As with annual leave, each appointing authority shall arrange the work of the agency so that non-exempt (cash overtime) employees shall be permitted to use the discretionary compensatory time under the following conditions:
    a. The employee should give the appointing authority reasonable notice of their intention to use the leave; and
    b. The employee’s absence during the use of the leave should not unduly disrupt the operations of the appointing authority.

The accrued compensatory time of a non-exempt (cash overtime) employee shall not be lost by the employee. If the employee is transferred or separated from State service the employee shall be paid for accrued time based on the higher of the following rates:
    a. The average regular rate of pay received by the employee during the last three years of employment; or
    b. The final regular rate of pay received by employee.

The appointing authority may at any time provide the employee with a cash payment for the accrued compensatory time. The payment shall be calculated at the regular rate of pay earned by the employee at the time the employee received the payment.

The compensatory time earned in lieu of cash overtime may be carried beyond one year of the date it was earned.

Compensatory time received by nonexempt employees for floating holidays shall continue to be treated as all other compensatory leave and must be used by the employee within one year of the day it is earned.

Posted February 12, 2004