Information for Supervisors
Setting Up An Account.
On-campus employers should follow these steps to set up student workers in the Workday system. Off-campus employers should contact the Office of Financial Aid for assistance with this step.
Interviewing Process.
Individual employers determine the manner in which they make their employment decisions; most employers conduct several interviews and select from a pool of applicants. Students should know how much, if any, Federal Work-Study they have been awarded and bring this information to the interview. Federal Work Study eligibility is not required for any on campus positions.
Hiring and Payroll Forms.
Since financial aid packages are revised annually, employers should remember that a student may not have the same award from year to year. Also, some students may be confused regarding work-study and may claim to be eligible when, in fact, they are not. To determine a student's eligibility and earning limit, please contact the Office of Financial Aid.
First-time hires (students who have never been paid through the WU Payroll system before) are required to fill out standard hiring forms: a Federal W-4 form, and an I-9 (Employment Eligibility Form). Students should visit HR's webpage for information about processing I-9s and W-4s If a work-study student continues working before these forms are received, and time is submitted to Payroll, his or her paycheck can be held by the Student Payroll Office.
Intent to Hire Form.
All off campus student workers must have a job description on file in the Financial Aid office. After you have hired a student please fill out the form <link to on-campus form> and email or campus mail it to the Financial Aid office before the student begins work. On campus employers are expected to enter a full job description in Workday that covers at minimum the following items:
- name of the position;
- classification of the position (e.g., reading tutor 1, reading tutor 2, laboratory assistant, library technician 1 or 2, etc.);
- name and address of the student’s employer (the school, public agency, nonprofit organization, etc.);
- department or office in which the student will be employed; ◆ location where the student will perform his/her duties;
- name of the student’s supervisor;
- purpose/role of the position within the organization;
- duties and responsibilities associated with the position and how they relate to the purpose/role;
- rates of pay for the position (cross-referenced to the student wage schedule);
- general qualifications for the position and the specific qualifications for the various levels/rates of pay associated with the position;
- the length of the student’s employment (beginning and ending dates);
- procedures for determining a student’s rate of pay when a position has multiple rates; and
- evaluation procedures and schedules.
Scheduling
Once a student is hired, the employer and employee should determine a mutually convenient work schedule. Work-study students may generally work from the Monday of New Student Orientation Week through the last day of final examinations in May, including breaks.
In setting a schedule, employers and students should take careful consideration of not only the student's academic schedule, but also his or her earnings limit. Employers should obtain a copy of the student workers' class schedules; students are not permitted to earn work study funds during their scheduled class times. Ideally, the student should work the number of hours necessary to reach, but not exceed, the earnings limit by the end of the year. As an example, if a student is awarded $2,500 for the academic year and is paid $10.25 an hour, the student may work approximately 8 hours a week and not exceed his/her earnings limit for the academic year. See the Scheduling Guide for more information.
Once a student reaches his/her earnings limit, the student may no longer be employed through the Federal Work Study Program for the remainder of the academic year. Any continued employment would be contingent upon the availability of department funding. Employers are asked to set a weekly limit of 10-15 hours of work per week for each student to ensure that students reach their earnings limit by May. Students scheduled during class breaks may work full time. Please remember that money earned during vacation periods counts towards a student's earnings limit. The Federal Work Study Program is intended to help students offset the cost of their educational program, not to replace employees in a workplace.
Summer Employment
Please see Summer Work-Study in the Student section of this website for information about hiring students for the summer.
Taxes
Work-Study income is taxable, and students are required to fill out Federal W-4 forms when hired. At the beginning of each calendar year, student employees will receive a W-2 form from the University, listing their work-study earnings from the previous year. Students should contact the Student Payroll Office at 503-370-6188 if they haven’t received W-2s after February 1.
Benefits
Work-study students do not receive benefits such as vacation leave. Employers must give student employees a minimum thirty-minute lunch/dinner break if scheduled for six or more hours. Sick time is available to student workers. Learn more about the university's sick leave policy.
Promotions and Reclassifications
A student's job title within a department may be changed at any point during the year if the student's duties or responsibilities change. Employers should make changes such as account and/or wage rate information on the student's work-study job definition on JASON. Off-campus employers must complete a new Intent to Hire form to initiate a wage increase.
Termination
Although terminations are infrequent, it is vitally important that all parties follow the University’s policies when a termination occurs.
Student-initiated
Students are expected, although not required, to work a minimum of one semester before changing jobs. A student must give the employer two weeks notice when terminating; however, it is acceptable for an employer and employee to agree upon a shorter period of notice.
Employer-initiated
If an employer is not satisfied with a student's performance, the following steps should be taken:
- Discuss the problem with the student
- if the problem continues, write the student a letter describing the problem, the previously held verbal discussion(s), and a statement of consequences if the behavior is not corrected. (You may wish to give the student a particular time frame in which to correct the problem.) A copy of this letter must be forwarded to the Office of Financial Aid immediately; and
- if there is no correction of the behavior, the student's employment should be terminated. The employer should notify in writing both the student and the Office of Financial Aid. Be sure to state the reasons that the employee was terminated.
Problems such as dishonesty or theft call for immediate dismissal from the program. Employers should contact the Office of Financial Aid as soon as possible in such instances.
When a notice of termination is received by the Office of Financial Aid, the Work-Study Coordinator will contact the student and provide counseling regarding the situation. If an employer initiates a termination for a non-negative reason, such as budgetary constraints or the completion of a project, the termination should be handled similar to a student-initiated termination with the employer giving the student at least two weeks notice.
Job titles and corresponding wage ranges can be found on the Salary Schedule.
How Do I List a Job?
Employment opportunities should be posted on Willamette's CareerConnect website. Find more information on the Career Services Employers page.
How Do Students Contact Me If They are Interested?
Students seeking employment look through the list of openings on the CareerConnect for positions that attract their interest. Be sure when you are setting up an interview that the student you are interested in hiring is Work-Study eligible. To find out how much Federal Work Study a student has been awarded, please contact the Financial Aid Office, 503-370-6273, or email finaid@willamette.edu.
How Can I Attract Students to a Job?
If an employer experiences difficulty filling a position, classified ads in our weekly student newspaper Collegian (503-370-6053) are usually a successful method for attracting applicants. Employers may also consider posting ads around campus or on the bulletin board outside the Office of Financial Aid. The Career Services Office can also promote positions. Please note that certain areas of the campus, such as the Residence Halls, may require prior approval for posting ads on their bulletin boards.
Reporting Hours: On Campus
Students employed on campus should fill out their hours on JASON.
Reporting Hours: Off Campus
Students employed off campus report their hours via Time Sheet. On each time sheet please include the position description, work site, and the student's Willamette ID number.
Employees should write in the actual times they arrive and leave each day; they should not wait until the end of the pay period to complete the form. Hours cannot be reported for time "on call," travel time or costs, meals, or other miscellaneous purposes. The total number of hours worked each pay period should be converted to tenths of an hour for payroll purposes. To convert minutes worked to a decimal amount, divide minutes worked by 60. (Example: 20 minutes divided by 60 = .33)
Employers should determine how precise they wish the recording of hours to be (e.g., exact time, rounded to nearest five minutes, or rounded to nearest fifteen minute period). Pay periods are four weeks long with one time sheet filled out per pay period, regardless of the number of days worked. If a student did not work for an entire week of a pay period, that week should be left blank on the time sheet.
Please be sure to write the correct date in the "pay period" section at the top of each time sheet. Do not collect several time sheets for one student and process them at once.
Paychecks
Students are paid monthly on the last working day of the month. There is a two week delay between the end of a pay period and the receipt of the check for that pay period. If a student does not receive the check when expected, verify that the time sheet was forwarded on time to the Student Payroll Office.
Taxes
Work-study earnings are taxable by both the state and federal governments. The Student Payroll Department mails W-2 forms to students in January. The student should contact Student Payroll directly if no W-2 is received before February 1st.
Change of Address
There are two main offices where an address change should be made: The Registrar's Office and Mail Services. Changing the address with the Registrar automatically changes it with Financial Aid and the Student Payroll Office. Students should be reminded that writing an address on their time sheets will not affect any Payroll records.
Correcting Mistakes
If the correction involves a retroactive payment, employers should send a corrective memo to the Student Payroll Office. Please contact Debbie Cuccia, Student Payroll Clerk, 503-370-6188 with any other questions.
Advances
Willamette University does not issue pay advances. No hours should be reported for a student before the work is performed.
Per federal regulation, all work-study students must be supervised by a permanent staff member of the department or organization. This supervisor must sign all forms, including timesheets. The supervisor must also be present on a regular basis to review the performance of the students.
Employee Records
Students' work-study files are confidential and should not be viewed by anyone other than the individual student or the Office of Financial Aid.
Per University policy, work-study supervisors approached by outside agencies or employers for reference checks may give only the title, wage rate and dates of employment of former work-study employees. Additional information may be given out only if the inquiring agency provides the student's signature to release this information.