patience saved the department an estimated $14 million dollars. This, along with the other measures of delayed replacement hiring, deferral or cancelation of purchases and delay of some construction advertising helped us make up the $40 million shortfall in transportation revenue we experienced in the early months of the pandemic. Amazing job! I thank you and the citizens of Missouri thank you.
End of Shared
Work Program
MoDOT is ending its participation in the Shared Work Program on September 6, 2020, and employees will return to their regular work hours.
All unemployment
benefits through the Shared Work Program will cease at that time, but checks
may continue one or two weeks afterward due to the delay in payments. Contact
your payroll representative
if you have questions.
- Beginning September 6,
2020, all full-time employees who participated in the Shared Work Program
will transition back to a 40-hour workweek and report their time the way
they did before the Shared Work Program.
- Permanent part-time
employees will return to their normal permanent part-time schedule and
continue to report time in the Time Reporting System as they did before
the Shared Work Program.
- Wage employees will continue to report time in the Time Reporting System by entering hours worked. Crew time reporting will similarly revert based on employee type.
Note: The September 30 paycheck (for September 1 to 15) may not reflect a full salary depending on the days and hours worked the week of August 29 to September 5, because that will be a split payroll week.
Employee leave balances have been reviewed and are accurate through August 15 for full-time employees and July 15 for part-time employees. Further review of leave balances will take place through the duration of the program. Employees should be able to see correct leave balances on their Oct. 15 pay stubs and in the Time Reporting System after Oct. 8.
Remaining
Unemployment Payments
We’ve been working with the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations to confirm whether or not employees participating in the Shared Work program will be eligible to receive the additional Lost Wages Assistance (LWA) payments authorized by the President’s executive order of August 8. We have not received an official response from the Department of Labor. However, based on information in the Department of Labor computer system for our employees, we believe MoDOT employees will be eligible for the $300 LWA payment for the week ending August 1 and it does appear that some of those deposits are showing up for our team.
We do know the funds designated for this purpose are limited. Once the money set aside for this purpose is distributed, the payments will end.
Based on the
information on DOLIR’s website, payments for the week ending August 1 should be
issued by the end of this week. More information on the payment of the
Lost Wages Assistance can be found on DOLIR’s website at:
https://labor.mo.gov/sites/labor/files/LWA_Payment_Processing.pdf
and
Annual Leave
Balances
The current pandemic, and the amount of time many employees have spent responding to it, has impacted annual leave usage. As a result, the State of Missouri has requested the Personnel Advisory Board consider an extension to the date of the annual leave sweep which takes place on October 31 of each year. After Oct. 31, any excess annual leave over an employee’s maximum balance is reduced to the maximum, at which time the employee can begin accumulating above the maximum. A final determination regarding a possible extension of the annual leave sweep date won’t be known until after the Personnel Advisory Board meets on Sept. 8, 2020.
I understand that MoDOT’s participation in the Shared Work Program has also impacted the amount of annual leave used by employees this summer – whether that’s annual leave not used in order to remain eligible for unemployment benefits, or annual leave not used to ensure continuity of operations. Therefore, I am asking all districts and divisions to consider ways in which employees can take some much-needed time off while also allowing us to continue delivering consistent services and results critical to our mission.
In some cases, it may be an option for employees to temporarily continue physically working a 32-hour workweek, while using 8 hours of annual leave to reduce accrued annual leave. This is not a long-term solution, but you have demonstrated that through careful planning and usage of flexible work schedules, it is a viable short-term arrangement as we transition out of our participation in the Shared Work Program. I would also hope that if some accrued hours are swept, you will consider the benefit of the Shared Work program both in time off during the 12 weeks, and additional benefits to be reasonable compensation.
District and division leaders will be receiving reports which identify employees at risk of losing annual leave.
Remote Work and Flexible Schedules
Due to the ongoing pandemic and the challenges this presents for each one us, I am asking all divisions and districts to remain fully committed to remote work and flexible schedules to the extent possible for the safety and health of our employees (and their families) and to ensure our ability to deliver tangible results as an enterprise. I know many of you are experiencing added challenges due to the start of the new school year, child care needs, and in some cases elder care needs due to the impact of the pandemic on nursing home and independent-living facilities. Our work is essential to the safety of the traveling public and the economic vitality of all Missourians – but we can work together to deliver on our mission while helping our dedicated employees balance the work-life challenges facing all Americans today. By modeling our values in all we do – we will find innovative solutions to the challenges that face us today and in the future.
MoDOT has policy in place to guide us in the application of remote work opportunities and flexible work schedules. We will continue to discuss the on-going and perhaps increased usage of these strategies in the weeks ahead, but until then, I am asking all divisions and districts to thoughtfully consider requests for employees who might wish to continue working a reduced schedule for a longer period of time. First and foremost, we must continue to manage our work and deliver on our mission. When and where we can, opportunities for continued remote work and alternative work schedules should be explored for employees who have a need, whether temporary or permanent and who have demonstrated the ability to perform successfully given such flexibility.
Any employee who is interested in being considered for a reduced work schedule for any reason, should consult with a professional to fully assess the impact such a decision could have regarding their take-home pay, retirement benefit calculation, and accrual rates of paid leave.
I want to thank our entire administrative team, financial services, human resources, information services, chief counsel and communications divisions for their outstanding work to support our employees through the complexity of shared work, benefits and leave questions, financial assistance and everything else. But for these efforts, the amazing work performed this summer by our entire enterprise would have not been possible.
I am proud of the work done by the entire MoDOT team and ask for your continued commitment to serving others while doing so safely. You are part of an amazing organization, made so entirely by each of your efforts every day. Thank you.
Patrick.
