At Centerspace we serve others. Our commitment to our residents’ wellbeing and satisfaction in their homes requires that we are available when emergencies happen in their homes and at our communities. We know that our team members are sacrificing time with their families and other commitments when participating in the on-call rotation and it is important we compensate them well for the time they spend serving our communities in off-hours.
Purpose
On-Call Pay is compensation for a team member who must remain available to be called back to work on short notice if the need arises. It is also compensation for a team member who has left the work site and is requested to respond by telephone or computer on short notice to an emergency work situation. Routine work (such as balancing pool chemicals, processing trash, checking boilers, etc.) performed during on-call rotation is not considered on-call time and will be paid at the team member’s regular rate of pay.
Eligibility
All full-time or part-time regular non-exempt team members who are qualified to respond to on-call emergencies are eligible for on-call pay and the weekly stipend. Exempt team members who are on call and responding to emergencies are eligible for the weekly stipend but not the on-call pay.
Rate of Pay
Reporting to Property: If a team member is called back to work while on call, they will be paid 1.5 times their regular rate of pay, including travel time. Team members are expected to clock in upon departure when reporting to the property for an on-call situation. A minimum of 2 hours will be paid for reporting to a property to address an emergency. For guidance on what constitutes an emergency and time to report, please see the SOP-Maintenance Emergencies and On-Call.
Mileage Reimbursement for On-Call Team Members: Team Members receiving on-call compensation are not eligible to collect mileage traveling to or from the property to respond to the call. However, if a team member is required to travel to a different location to resolve the on-call issue (such as a hardware store to pick up parts), mileage for that travel is eligible for reimbursement.
Responding to Emergency Call: If an on-call team member is not required to report to the property but answers the emergency phone while on call, they will be paid a minimum of 1 hour or for the entire time spent on the phone, whichever is greater, paid at 1.5 times of regular rate of pay. Multiple calls alerting the on-call team member to a singular situation (such as a power outage) will be recorded as one incident, unless the event extends to multiple hours.
On-call hours are subject to approval by the manager and are paid in accordance with the regular payroll schedule.
Weekly Stipend
In addition to hourly pay at 1.5 times for on-call worked hours, eligible on-call team members will receive a weekly stipend at a flat rate. Team members who are included on the weekly on-call rotation schedule are considered eligible for the weekly stipend. The on-call weekly stipend can vary from $100 to $150 per week based on the complexity, size, and location of the properties. If a team member covers multiple on-call groups, they are eligible to receive more than one stipend, subject to approval from a Regional Director.
Split weeks: In the event that team members need to change who is on call midweek, the weekly stipend will be paid to the team member who worked more than half of the week.
Holiday weeks: An additional $50 will be added to the weekly stipend amount during the weeks that include a company-recognized holiday(s).
Weekly stipends are subject to approval by the manager and are paid in accordance with the regular payroll schedule.
Guidelines
- Managers should enter time worked using the appropriate “On-Call” pay codes in UKG Time Management as well as the reasons for the on-call hours. Managers can refer to UKG Instructions for On Call (attached below) for additional information and instruction.
- Because on-call time is already paid at a premium rate, on-call hours are not included towards hours worked for overtime.
- Example: The team member worked 2 hours on-call on Monday and 2 hours on-call on Tuesday, so the team member is paid 4 hours at 1.5 times their regular rate of pay at this point in the week. Overtime doesn’t start until team member has reached 44 hours for the week because those 4 on-call hours have already been paid at a premium.
- Overtime must be approved in advance. Some situations are unavoidable, so we are trusting you to do the right thing. We should balance the needs of the community with the cost of potential overtime. Sometimes overtime can be managed by reducing the remainder of hours scheduled for the week. If reducing the hours of work already scheduled will put the site in jeopardy of a missed make-ready apartment or completing critical work orders it might not make sense to reduce the hours of work.
- Team members reporting to on-call situations are expected to abide by Centerspace Personal Appearance & Dress Code Policy, including wearing a Centerspace-branded shirt (when possible) and their Centerspace-issued name tag or photo-ID badge (required).
- Team members reporting to on-call situations are expected to abide by Centerspace Drug & Alcohol Use Policy, including refraining from drug or alcohol use during an on-call rotation.
Team Member Responsibility
Team members and managers are expected to adhere to the expectations provided in this policy as well as in the SOP-Maintenance Emergencies and On-Call. Failure to meet and maintain these expectations may result in progressive discipline, up to and including termination of employment.
Termination or Modification of the Policy
Centerspace reserves the right to amend or terminate this policy at any time and may revoke approval if a team member is found to be misusing the program.