Telecommuting is an arrangement where an employee works from home or another work site instead of
physically working on campus. When appropriate, telecommuting can benefit both the University and
the employee. Telecommuting constitutes a reassignment for either a portion or all of the employee’s
work time. The University has the right to refuse to make telecommuting available to an employee and
to terminate a telecommuting arrangement at any time.
A. PURPOSE
Consistent with the University’s desire to maintain an efficient and effective work environment,
telecommuting may serve to reduce absenteeism, improve employee recruitment and retention,
improve productivity, and provide employees with greater flexibility in meeting their job and family
needs. In addition, the reduced travel could provide direct air quality, transportation, and energy
conservation benefits.
B. SCOPE AND ELIGIBILITY
1. Identifying a Position as Appropriate for Telecommuting
Not all positions are suited for telecommuting. To assess whether telecommuting would fit the position,
the supervisor (as necessary in consultation with HRS), will analyze the nature of a position and how
work is performed and determine whether a position is appropriate for telecommuting. Many factors
should be considered in determining the feasibility of telecommuting, including the congruence of
telecommuting with the university’s mission and goals, the ability to supervise the employee
adequately, and whether any duties require use of certain equipment or tools that cannot be
accommodated at a location other than campus. Other important considerations include:
(1) The extent to which job duties involve face-to-face interaction and coordination of work with
other employees and students;
(2) The need for and frequency of in-person interactions with outside colleagues, clients and
customers;
(3) What access to on-campus resources will be needed to effectively perform the work;
(4) Whether service quality or university operations or workload of others will be impacted;
(5) Whether the position can be performed independently based on the level of support and face-to-
face interaction needed; and
(6) Whether performance can be assessed accurately (e.g., using established evaluation tools for
the employee’s job classification) and working hours appropriately documented.
2. Identifying an Employee as Eligible for Telecommuting
In addition to assessing the position’s appropriateness for telecommuting, the employee must also be
eligible, as determined by their supervisor in consultation with HRS. In considering whether to approve
an employee for telecommuting, the university will consider:
(1) Length of time in position;
(2) Disciplinary actions on file;
(3) Demonstrated ability to work productively (as shown by consistent and satisfactory
performance of essential functions);
(4) Performance evaluations in previous evaluation cycle;
(5) The circumstances or rationale provided for consideration of telecommuting.
C. EXPECTATIONS
Work Hours
Work hours and leave benefits do not change as a result of telecommuting. Requests to use leave must
be approved by the University in the same manner as when working on campus. Unless otherwise
specified in writing by the employee’s supervisor, and except as noted for Faculty telecommuting below,
telecommuting hours are 8 am to 5 pm, mountain time, Monday through Friday, except for University –
observed holidays and hours of approved leave.
A telecommuting employee may be requested to attend meetings, project reviews, or other business
purposes. If necessary, the University/supervisor will seek to designate certain times or events when the
employee is expected to be on campus and give adequate notice if those expectations change.
Nonetheless, the employee’s supervisor may require the employee to report to their University campus
work location during normal business hours with reasonable notice.
Work Standards/Performance
The conditions of employment and the work performance standards for telecommuters remain the
same as for non-telecommuting employees. The employee will meet with their supervisor to receive
assignments and to review completed work as requested, necessary, or appropriate. The employee will
complete assigned work, according to work procedures and expectations established by the supervisor.
Employee Access and Availability
Telecommuting employees must be available by telephone during scheduled work hours.
Telecommuting employees are required to modify their voice mail announcement to indicate that they
may be reached at an alternative number or that the employee will be regularly checking for messages.
Employees are required to frequently check for messages during the day. Telecommuters must notify
the office if they leave their telecommuting location during work hours.
Equipment/Expenses
Office equipment needed to participate in telecommuting may vary by employee and task. The
University will not purchase or reimburse a telecommuting employee for equipment necessary to
function in a telecommuting work environment. Employees may use their own equipment (e.g.,
personal computer, modem, answering machine, fax machine, etc.) provided the University incurs no
cost. Repair and maintenance of employee-owned equipment is the responsibility of the employee.
Employees may use University-owned equipment and/or supplies, with prior supervisory approval,
provided only the authorized employee will use the equipment for work-related purposes and supplies.
Employees who use University equipment at home must agree to protect such equipment from loss or
damage.
Compensation/Benefits
The employee’s compensation, benefits, work status, and work responsibilities will not change due to
telecommuting. Employees who work overtime with advance approval, or at the request of their supervisor, will be
compensated in accordance with applicable laws, collective bargaining agreement, and University policy.
Failure to obtain prior approval for overtime work may result in removal from telecommuting and/or
other appropriate action.
Confidentiality/Security
To ensure hardware and software security prior to installation, the supervisor must approve all software
used for telecommuting. Restricted-access materials cannot be taken out of the office or accessed
through the computer unless approved in advance by the supervisor.
The employee must follow all laws and university and department-level data security and privacy
policies, procedures and guidelines at the alternate work site to protect the department or University
records from unauthorized disclosure or damage, and comply with the privacy requirements set forth in
state law and University policy.
In the event of an actual or suspected breach of security, the employee will promptly notify their
supervisor and Information Technology Services.
D. WORK SPACE and WORK LOCATION
Staff or Temporary employees may telework from home or an alternate work site only within the
state of Montana only (MT Code 2-18-101).
The employee must provide a written description of the intended workspace. The workspace must
provide adequate work area, light, telephone service, power, and temperature control. The employee
must maintain the workspace in a safe condition, free from hazards and other dangers to the employee
and equipment.
The worksite must have adequate broadband internet access to allow remote work. The employee is
responsible, at their own cost, for the purchase, setup and installation, support, and maintenance of
internet service at their off-campus location.
While working remotely, the employee is responsible for making the changes needed to receive phone
calls made to their university extension. Any associated costs are the responsibility of the employee. The
employee or their department is responsible for the purchase, installation, support, and maintenance of
any additional accessories needed to telecommute (monitor, printer, keyboard, mouse, etc.).
E. EXCEPTIONS
(1) Faculty Telecommuting
Except for face-to-face teaching, and faculty whose appointment requires on-location work for specified
hours, it is an accepted practice for faculty, to carry out their work with varied schedules on campus and
elsewhere. Thus, Sections (B & F) of these procedures will not apply to faculty. For the avoidance of
doubt, teaching courses assigned for delivery in an online or remote mode will not necessitate a formal
request to telecommute. If an alternative work location is a negotiated term of faculty employment, this
will be documented in the appointment letter.
(2) University-Required Telecommuting
The University may determine that employees in a particular department need to work off campus for a
short period of time to accommodate unusual circumstances, such as a brief closing for renovations or
relocation. In addition, the university may establish telecommuting as a condition of offered employment
or mandate telecommuting due to public health emergencies or other circumstances as
determined by the President or designee. In such case, Sections (B & F) of these procedures will not
apply.
(3) Telecommuting for Health-Related Reasons
An employee with a documented disability may request telecommuting as a reasonable accommodation
to enable an employee to perform their essential job functions. Those requests will be handled by
Human Resource Services in accordance with their usual procedures for such accommodation requests.
In such cases, Sections (B & F) of these procedures will not apply.
F. APPLICATION PROCESS
Employees wishing to telecommute must discuss the possibility with their supervisor. A Telecommuting
Agreement (below) must be completed and filed with Human Resource Services.
G. TERM
Telecommuting arrangements are limited to one-year arrangements. Agreements automatically expire
on June 30th each year unless another date prior to June 30th has been established. A supervisor may
end a telecommuting agreement at any time upon written notice to the employee. Unless
telecommuting is required by the University of Montana, an employee may end the teleworking
arrangement at any time upon reasonable notice to their supervisor.