Talking Stick - March/April 2018 - 34

SPECIAL FOCUS

The proposed FLSA overtime exemption changes impacted staff across
the college and university setting.
Academic affairs staff who are not in a
classroom setting, admissions officers,
coaches, and student center staff are
just a few examples. As a result, in
many cases, the decisions on how to
classify individuals were often made
by human resources professionals,
general counsel, and compliance staff
who reviewed job descriptions but
may have lacked a more detailed view
of the day-to-day lives of residence life
professionals and, in particular, live-in
professionals. "I asked to be involved,
but I was never involved in the conversations," said one director from a
small school in the mid-Atlantic area.
"And what happened was other people
made decisions on how staff should be
classified by looking at a job description and not knowing a lot about the
job." This was particularly problematic
when it came to descriptions of duty.
Those less familiar with the responsibilities of residence directors don't
realize how different the expectations
are (especially in regards to limitations
on proximity to campus and time to respond) than they may be for a plumber
or electrician, for example.
As is often the case, many coping with FLSA fallout reported that,
regardless of the decision made, it
could have been made more palatable
if communication had been improved
- most importantly, clear communication of how the role and compensation
are connected. While many departments and leaders may not have had
answers, or the scenarios were ever
changing, the feeling that there was
a lack of honest communication had
a definite impact. To equate frustration in communication to a desire for
more money is to confuse the issue.
Some illustrated this issue with stories
of being disappointed that they were
notified of these dramatic changes in

TALKING STICK

an impersonal manner. "Receiving
a letter with notification your salary
is increasing $10,000 and it being cancelled days before it went into effect

THE PROPOSED FLSA
OVERTIME EXEMPTION
CHANGES IMPACTED
STAFF ACROSS
THE COLLEGE AND
UNIVERSITY SETTING.
ACADEMIC AFFAIRS
STAFF WHO ARE NOT
IN A CLASSROOM
SETTING, ADMISSIONS
OFFICERS, COACHES,
AND STUDENT
CENTER STAFF
ARE JUST A FEW
EXAMPLES.
was tragic," said one entry-level live-in
professional who learned via email
that the pay increase was rescinded.
"I did not go out and make a major
purchase, but I saw the light at the end
of the $200,000 student loan tunnel. I
felt less valuable after it was cancelled,
especially how my institution notified
us."
Others shared positive examples
where entry-level staff were involved in
the process, specifically senior housing
officers asking staff to conduct their
own time studies. As the field becomes
increasingly data-driven, this, as well
as duty and conduct statistics or other

information related to trends in mediation needs, is highly critical to the conversation. A time study can be timeintensive and may not really capture
the pace of the job since weeks can be
vastly different. Those interviewed suggested maintaining individual statistics
related to the number of programs,
roommate mediations, parent phone
calls, staff turnover, conduct cases,
duty calls, or other data that show how
one spends their time. Time studies
can be used to educate supervisors and
departments on work and the evolving
needs of the community.
While many say it's highly unlikely
that FLSA exemption increases will be
considered under the current administration, there is always a chance that
the issue could be revived in the future.
Regardless, it has raised questions that
will impact the professional landscape
for years to come, starting with this
year's hiring season. One important
factor for both institutions and entrylevel job seekers to consider will be if
the position is paid hourly or is salaried. Early reports show that those who
touted the larger exempt salary saw
bigger pools but not necessarily higher
caliber candidates. For those with
entry-level staff preparing to move into
mid-level positions, they saw hesitancy
of those staff in entry-level positions
who believed they would likely face
financial constraints without continuing to benefit from free housing. While
this has been a challenge for staff looking for promotional opportunities, the
gap may now be greater. Also, hourly
staff may have to prepare for salaried
jobs with less flexible hours and the expectation of overtime, especially if they
are assuming some of the responsibilities of entry-level staff who are paid
hourly.
Again, this marks an opportunity
to make transparency and communication paramount. Explaining, in
detail, the compensation package and

Talking Stick - March/April 2018

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