Whether exempt or non-exempt, all positions are further categorized by type of employment.
Regular Employees
Employees who hold positions that are regular budgeted positions.
Regular Full-Time Employees (effective 7/1/16)
Employees who are regularly scheduled to work 30 or more hours per week (budgeted 1560 hours or more per year) on an ongoing basis.
Regular Part-Time Employees
Employees who work a regular schedule of less than 30 hours in a week (budgeted < 1,560 hours per year) on an ongoing basis. Assignment of an employee to a part-time position should not be used to alter benefits to an employee whose employment otherwise would meet the standard for regular full-time employment.
Regular Academic Year/Seasonal Employees
Employees who are regularly scheduled to work less than 12 months per year (typically September through June) full-time or part-time status is determined based on budgeted annual hours.
Term Appointments
An employee with a fixed term appointment, typically a minimum of nine months (one academic year) or longer. Term appointments are commonly used for grant or other externally funded positions and other situations when there is a short term need for resources. Term appointments may be benefit eligible, based on the budgeted hours for the position and when meeting the criteria for the benefit as described in the benefit summary. Written notification of reappointment is required to extend appointment. Verbal notification of the end date shall be made as soon as possible.
Temporary Employees
Employees who are hired for a defined period of time (normally six months or less) into temporary positions. Temporary un-budgeted positions are those that are not expected to be needed on an ongoing basis. Departments may employ temporary employees to fill in for absent employees and to help with other scheduling and short-term employment and workload needs. Temporary employees are not entitled to RISD benefits, but are entitled to Social Security, workers’ compensation, and unemployment compensation benefits. Assignment of an employee to a temporary position should not be used to deny benefits to an employee whose employment otherwise would meet the standard for regular employment.
If a temporary employee is subsequently hired as a regular employee through the position approval and posting process, they will become eligible for benefits on the first day of the month following their hire date, subject to applicable requirements. Any previous RISD temporary service (not through an external agency) will be counted, based on time worked, toward the eligibility requirements when determining pension and paid-leave eligibility for a new employee.
On-Call “Casual” Employees
Employees who work on an as-needed basis. These employees are not eligible to participate in RISD employee benefits plans, but are entitled to Social Security and workers’ compensation.
Interns
The “primary beneficiary test” is used to determine whether an intern or student is, in fact, an employee under the FLSA. In short, this test allows for the examination of the “economic reality” of the intern-employer relationship to determine which party is the “primary beneficiary” of the relationship. The following seven factors as part of the test:
- The extent to which the intern and the employer clearly understand that there is no expectation of compensation. Any promise of compensation, express or implied, suggests that the intern is an employee—and vice versa.
- The extent to which the internship provides training that would be similar to that which would be given in an educational environment, including the clinical and other hands-on training provided by educational institutions.
- The extent to which the internship is tied to the intern’s formal education program by integrated coursework or the receipt of academic credit.
- The extent to which the internship accommodates the intern’s academic commitments by corresponding to the academic calendar.
- The extent to which the internship’s duration is limited to the period in which the internship provides the intern with beneficial learning.
- The extent to which the intern’s work complements, rather than displaces, the work of paid employees while providing significant educational benefits to the intern.
- The extent to which the intern and the employer understand that the internship is conducted without entitlement to a paid job at the conclusion of the internship.
If all seven factors are not met, the intern is considered a temporary employee. Temporary employees are not entitled to RISD benefits, but are entitled to Social Security, workers’ compensation, and unemployment compensation benefits