Inclement Weather Guidelines

Madison Campus

The Chancellor is responsible for determining if, for the safety and welfare of students and staff, classes will be postponed or some services suspended due to inclement weather. Some University services and functions must remain in operation regardless of weather conditions, e.g. University Hospital and Clinics, University Housing, Police and Security, power plant operations, etc.

University Communications staff will work with the Chancellor in providing appropriate announcements to the media. Deans and directors should receive authorization from the Office of the Chancellor before directing employes not to report for work or sending employes home. Unless directed otherwise, employes are expected to report to work as scheduled. Each employe is expected to use discretion in determining if travel is safe. An employe who reasonably determines that travel would not be safe will not be subject to discipline for not reporting to work. Supervisors are expected to honor the reasonable requests of employes to arrive late or to leave early because of inclement weather. Employes are expected to make a reasonable effort to notify their supervisors if they cannot report to work or will report late.

Employes who are absent from work because of the inclement weather normally must use available annual leave (vacation), available holidays, leave without pay, or when appropriate, accrued compensatory time to cover the absence or must arrange with the supervisor to make up the time. Non-professional employes must account for each hour of scheduled duty. Professional employes may account for their time in a manner consistent with their professional responsibilities, as approved by their supervisor. If classes are postponed, faculty should make every effort to reschedule at a later date.

If represented employes are directed not to report or are sent home they will be treated in accordance with the terms of their respective collective bargaining agreements. (Note: At this time some collective bargaining agreements provide that the employe will be compensated as if the time were worked when the employer directs employes to leave work or not to report to work.) All employes not covered by collective bargaining agreements who are directed not to report or are sent home will normally be treated as follows:

Non-Professional Classified — may use available annual leave (vacation), accrued compensatory time, available holidays, or leave without pay to cover each hour absent. Non-exempt employes must account for each hour of employment. If an employ’s supervisor determines that the work unit can benefit from services provided by the employe at other than regularly scheduled times, the employe will be allowed to make up, during the remainder of the work week, as much of the time as is beneficial to the work unit.

Professional, Classified & Unclassified — may use available annual leave (vacation), available holidays, leave without pay or when appropriate, compensatory time to cover the absence. An employe and the employe’s supervisor may agree that the employe can account for the time of the absence in another manner consistent with the professional nature of the employe’s work assignment.