Student Employment
Handbook

The Financial Aid Office is the designated central clearinghouse for all student employment. All departments should notify the Financial Aid Office of vacancies as they occur. The office will refer qualified students by sending the student to personnel in the department for their consideration and possible interviews. This does not preclude department heads referring students to the Financial Aid Office for clearance. The department head is responsible for hiring. The employee referral form must be returned to the Financial Aid Office whether or not the student is hired.

Policies Applicable to All Student Employees

Non Discrimination

Students are afforded equal opportunity without regard to race, religion, creed, color, national origin, sex, age or handicaps. Student employees are afforded the same privileges of appeal regarding terms and conditions of employment, according to due process procedures, as are full-time employees. The Financial Aid Committee shall serve as the final board of adjudication.

Qualification for Student Employment

Semester Hours Required

In order to qualify for employment under any Work-Study Program at Western New Mexico University, a student must be enrolled as follows:

1. Fall and Spring Semesters
   
   • Undergraduate students must be registered for at least 12 hours each semester.
     
   • Graduate students must be registered for at least 9 hours each semester.
   
   
2. Summer Session
   
   • A student may work during the summer if he or she is enrolled for 5 hours.

Work Schedule

The student employee and the supervisor will work out a mutually agreeable work schedule, unless otherwise stated in the job announcement. If a student employee is unable to meet the agreed upon schedule, it is the student’s responsibility to notify the supervisor immediately.

Hours

All students’ work hours are limited to 15 per week. No part time (less than 15 hr/wk) jobs are assigned.

Make up Time

If a student employee had a pre-arranged personal leave of absence, make-up time is left to the discretion of the supervisor. The supervisor is to secure approval from the Financial Aid Office prior to authorizing make-up hours.

Pay Scale

Student employees are paid on an hourly basis. Minimum wage is the standard hourly allotment.

Pay Periods

The pay periods vary from year to year according to the scheduled holiday recesses and semester breaks. The average pay period includes 10-13 working days. Usually there are eight pay periods to a semester and four during the summer sessions. The Financial Aid Office publishes the Student Employee Payroll Schedule each year.

Payroll Reporting

Each department must keep a detailed time sheet on each student employee. Time will be reported to the Financial Aid Office by the employing department on the standard Payroll Time Report furnished by the Financial Aid Office. These reports are due on dates specified in the Student Employee Payroll Schedule published each year by the Financial Aid Office. Supervisors are responsible for getting time sheets in on time. If the time sheet is late, the student will not be paid until the next pay period. A time sheet will not be processed for payment if it is not turned in for two consecutive pay periods.

Taxes

All wages paid to student employees are subject to Federal Income Tax. It is the student’s responsibility to secure and complete the Employee’s Withholding Allowance Certificate (W-4) and the Employment Eligibility Verification Form (I-9) before being placed on the payroll. These forms are available in the Financial Aid Office. No student will receive a paycheck until he or she has completed and submitted the forms to the Financial Aid Office.

All employees are covered by Workmen’s Compensation.

Probationary Period

All new student employees are placed on probationary status for the first two weeks.During this period the student determines if the position is acceptable and the supervisor determines if the student is able to perform satisfactorily in the position

Terminations

Employers may terminate students. There are five broad categories under which the student employee’s termination will fall: voluntary termination by the student; termination by the Financial Aid Office; termination during probation period; transfer; and involuntary termination.

1. Voluntary Termination
   
   The student employee normally presents his/her resignation to the employing department in written form. However, a student is considered to have resigned when he/she:
   
   • Walks off the job
     
   • Is absent for three consecutive work days without permission, or
     
   • Fails to return to work within three workdays following a personal leave of absence.
   
   
2. Termination by Financial Aid Office
   
   The student is terminated from the work study program usually because he/she has (1) earned the amount of the determined financial need for the academic year; (2) is no longer enrolled for the required number of hours at WNMU; or (3) fails to maintain a 2.0 or “C” average. When the student is terminated for one of the above three reasons, both the student and the employing department are notified.
   
   
3. Termination during Probationary Period
   
   All student employees are on a probationary status for the first two weeks, while the supervisor determines if the employee is able to perform satisfactorily in the position and the employee determines if the position is satisfactory. When terminating an employee during the probationary period, a supervisor should explain to the terminated employee why his/her performance is not satisfactory. An employee terminated during the probationary period is eligible to appeal the termination with the Financial Aid Office. An explanation of the termination should be given.
   
   
4. Transfer
   
   A student may transfer after the probationary period if the student, supervisor and department head mutually agree on it. The student must complete and have the supervisor sign the Permit to Transfer Form. The student may transfer once per semester.
   
   
5. Involuntary Termination
   
   The student employee is involuntarily terminated when: (1) the student does not perform in a satisfactory manner; (2) has committed a major offense such as theft, gross misconduct, gross insubordination, etc.
   
   The following steps should be followed when terminating the student employee:
   
   1. A verbal warning is given to the student employee.
      
   2. A written warning is given to the student employee, with a copy of the warning sent to the Financial Aid Office for the student’s file.
      
   3. A written statement of termination is given to the student employee, with a copy sent to the Financial Aid Office.
      
   The written warning is designed to give the student employee an opportunity to be aware of and correct his/her deficiencies. A reasonable time period of not less than one week is considered appropriate between the written warning and final termination. However, a written warning is not required for major offenses.

Due Process Procedures

While the University endeavors to maintain pleasant working conditions which lead to cooperative, effective working relationships with all employees it also recognizes that misunderstanding and disagreements may arise regarding terms and conditions of employment. Normally, such disagreements are resolved through informal discussions between the student employee and the supervisor. However, for questions and complaints not resolved to the student employee’s satisfaction through informal discussions with successive levels of supervision, the following formal Due Process Procedure is available upon request of the student. The Financial Aid Office will provide the mechanics of the procedures.

Procedures for Appeal

1. The concerned department head shall hold an informal meeting with the employee and render a written decision. This shall occur within ten working days of the filing of a written complaint with the department head.
   
2. The employee may file an appeal to the Financial Aid Committee within ten working days of notification of the decision reached in step one. The Financial Aid Committee shall hold a formal hearing within ten days of the filing of the appeal. The employee shall be notified in writing of the decision of the committee.
3. The employee must be present at the scheduled hearing. The appeal will be denied if the employee does not appear.

Policies Applicable to Federal Work-Study Employees Only

All students seeking employment through the Federal Work-Study Program must file a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) in the Financial Aid Office. To confirm a student’s continued employment though consecutive academic years, the student must submit a new application by April of each year.

Financial Need

Eligibility for federal work-study is determined through the demonstration of financial need by the federally approved need analysis. Need must be determined each year. When a student has earned an amount equal to the established need for the academic year, he/she is no longer eligible to work in any capacity as a student employee at Western New Mexico University for the remainder of the academic year.

Period of Employment

All student employment and financial need is calculated on a maximum of one year (fall through the summer session). Students must reapply for continued aid and/or employment past this period. The maximum length of employment is one year.

Excess Hours

Students are permitted to work a maximum of 15 hours per week during the academic year. If a student should, without prior authorization, exceed the 15 hours per week limitation, the excess hours will not be paid to the student.