Concordia College strives to promote healthy living in both community and individual life. Concordia College complies with both the Drug-Free Workplace Act of 1988 and the Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act of 1989.

The college recognizes that illegal use and abuse of alcohol and drugs is a serious health problem that affects every aspect of human life.

The college prohibits unlawful possession, use or distribution of alcohol and illegal drugs by employees at all facilities of the College, or as part of the College's activities. Unlawful manufacture, distribution, dispensation, possession, or use of controlled substances in the workplace is also prohibited.

Employees found in violation of the prohibitions stated above will be subject to disciplinary action, up to and including termination.

Employees reporting to work under the influence of drugs or alcohol are not allowed to remain on the College property, and should be escorted home.

The Drug-Free Workplace and Drug-Free Schools Act requires that any employee convicted of any criminal drug statue for a violation occurring in the workplace must notify the director for Human Resources no later than five days after the conviction.

Employees experiencing problems resulting from drug or alcohol abuse are encouraged to seek help through the Employee Assistance Program. Job performance, not the fact that an employee seeks counseling, is to be the basis of all personnel actions.

View Alcohol and Drug Policy

Employees at the College are considered extremely valuable and it is the intent of the College to provide a work environment that promotes career opportunities within the spirit of this handbook. Concordia College employees who do not have a written employment contract authorized by the President may resign their employment with the College at any time, for any reason. The College also retains the right to separate employment, with or without cause or notice, at any time.

Nothing contained in this employee handbook nor any other materials provided to the employee in connection with their employment prohibits the College from terminating an employee at any time for any reason.

Employees are expected to ensure cost effective use of College resources for business and traveling purposes.

Travel and business related expenses incurred will be paid by the College if the expenses are reasonable, necessary, documented and properly authorized for the purpose of official College business in accordance with College policy.

Employees must submit the required forms with adequate documentation of business expenses (original itemized receipts with the date, place, amount, description, participants, and business purpose) to the Business Office within 30 days of the date of the expense or, if an advance was issued, within 30 days of the date of the advance. Reimbursement requests submitted after the 30 day deadline will not be eligible for reimbursement.

The Concordia Purchase Card (P-card) is a cost-effective method of paying for business and travel expenses. Concordia employees with college P-cards should use their card instead of cash or personal funds (except for purchases on campus). P-card purchases require the same documentation as described above in order to qualify as legitimate business expenses.

Whenever possible, avoid paying sales tax by using a college P-card or by having charges billed directly to Concordia College (the sales tax exemption does not apply to prepared meals or lodging).

View Business and Travel Expense Policy

The College has established procedures for advertising, selecting and hiring applicants for regular, temporary and seasonal positions. Available positions are listed on the Human Resource website. Subscribing to the RSS feed located on the on-line recruitment site will provide notices when positions are posted.

Groups of students are quite often sent out from the College to represent us in one way or another. In most cases it is necessary to have some faculty or staff person accompany the students.

Also, all social functions sponsored by Concordia student groups which are held off the campus, or events sponsored by a Concordia student group which are of an all-college nature must be properly chaperoned. Any full-time administrative or faculty member of Concordia College is eligible to serve as a chaperone for a student function. Such functions are to be scheduled through the use of the event reservation form (See Calendar of Events section, Page 9). The signature of the chaperone is to be on that form which is approved by the Dean of Students. It is the responsibility of the organization sponsoring an event to pay for all expenses incurred by the chaperone. For out-of-town overnight trips, the College pays the chaperones an additional fee for their services.

The leaders of an organization or group are primarily responsible for the control of student conduct at their events. Chaperones shall assist the student leaders in the control of conduct. In other words, if one student or several students are out of line, the chaperone together with the student leader or leaders ought to confront the individuals involved. They together would decide whether or not it would be necessary to have campus charges brought against those involved. This incident should then be discussed with the Dean of Students.

Concordia College is committed to maintaining the confidentiality, integrity, and accessibility of the information assets it owns or controls.

All users are expected to protect the information for which they are responsible. This includes:

• Configuring a screen saver password that activates after ten minutes, or less, of inactivity
• Filing or otherwise clearing paper containing information protected by privacy laws and rights from your work area when leaving your work area

Unattended work areas should be clear of College information classified as Private, Confidential, or Registered Confidential whether it is in electronic or paper form.

View Clear Desk, Clear Screen Policy

Computing resources are provided to employees consistent with the needs of the position held by the employee. Computing resources are to be used for official, college-related business, in accordance with the College's mission.

View Computing Resources, Acceptable Use Policy

In the course of performing your duties, you may receive information that is confidential in nature. The college expects confidential information will be discussed only with those employees who have a demonstrated "need to know".

Any information regarding students and employees, with the exception of "directory information", will be regarded as confidential. Access to confidential or sensitive information will be limited to those employees who "need to know." Verification of employment should be handled through the department of Human Resources. In the absence of a written release of information by the employee, information provided for verification of employment will be limited to the employee's job title and dates of employment.

Employees handling confidential information are responsible for its security. Extreme care must be used in the storage and/or destruction of confidential information. Disclosure of confidential information may subject an employee to disciplinary action.

Relationships between a faculty or staff member and a student should be considered that of the professional and client in which sexual relationships are inappropriate. The power differential inherent in such relationships, as well as those between a supervisor and an employee, compromises the ability of the person in the position of less authority to freely decide or act. Such behavior is also unacceptable in terms of the values, standards and expectations of the College. It is important to note that consensual relations between individuals with unequal status in the college community does not constitute a defense against charges of sexual harassment.

Concordia College respects the rights of holders of copyrights, their agents and representatives. Information on copyright law and these rights can be found in a number of places, but general information can be found by visiting the following sites:

• United States Copyright Office
• Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA)

Concordia College's designated agent to receive notification of alleged infringement under the DMCA is:
Chief Information Officer
Concordia College
901 8th Street South
Moorhead, MN 56562
219-299-4737

View Copyright, Digital Millenium Policy

Concordia conducts criminal background checks for each new hire or when an employee transfers positions within Concordia. The position held by the employee dictates the type of criminal background check to be completed.

In addition to the background check, training on preventing and recognizing sexual misconduct is required. Key students and camp counselors will be trained prior to working or leading activities with minors.

View Criminal Background Check Policy

For convenience, payroll information can be accessed through C-port (cport.cord.edu) and is available 24/7 with an internet connection. Instructions are available on C-port for viewing payroll information including pay, deductions and benefits. Employees can deposit payroll funds into multiple accounts.

The College retains information on each employee that is directly related to the employee's position with the College. The information retained will include, but is not limited to, a job application and/or resume, payment authorization forms, personal data changes, performance reviews, letters of commendation and disciplinary records.

These records are kept in the Office of Human Resources. Faculty files are kept in the Office of Academic Affairs. An employee may view their file by submitting a written request to the Human Resources Office. Access will be granted within seven working days of receiving the request during regular office hours. Employee may submit a written statement concerning any disputed information which will become part of their personnel record.

Relationship by family or marriage will be neither an advantage, or disadvantage in considering employment with the College. In some cases it works well for family members to work together, but the College reserves the right to make that determination.

Concordia College is an equal opportunity employer to all employee and applicants for employment. The College will not discriminate against or harass any employee or applicant for employment because of race, color, sex, religion, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, sexual orientation, marital status, public assistance status, membership or activity in a local human rights commission, or any other legally protected status.

Concordia College will take affirmative action to ensure that all employment practices and the work environment are free from discrimination or harassment. Such employment practices include but are not limited to recruitment or recruitment advertising, application, selection for training or apprenticeship, hiring, placement, orientation, on-the-job and formal training, education assistance, transfer opportunity, upgrading, promotion, compensation, discipline, company sponsored social and recreational activities, benefits, lay-off, recall, termination, and all other terms and conditions of employment.

Concordia College will make good faith efforts to afford minority and female business enterprises with the maximum practicable opportunity to participate in the performance of subcontracts for projects that this company engages in as well as to utilize said businesses for the purchase of services and supplies.

Concordia College has appointed the Director for Human Resources, to manage the Equal Opportunity Program. The Human Resources Director’s responsibilities will include monitoring all Equal Employment Opportunity activities and reporting the effectiveness of this Affirmative Action Program, as required by Concordia College’s Affirmative Action Plan and by Federal, State and Local Agencies. If any employee or applicant for employment believes he/she has been discriminated against, please contact Peggy Torrance, Human Resources Director, Room 150 Lorentzsen Hall, (218)299-3339.

View Equal Opportunity Policy

An exit interview will be conducted through the Human Resources Office for employees resigning or retiring. Any college property should be returned to the immediate supervisor. College keys can be returned directly to Facilities within two days of the last day of work.

Forms outlining benefit continuation opportunities will be mailed to the employee's home address form the College's third party administrator, Discovery Benefits.

Flex-time can be utilized, which allows employees to work hours that are not within their standard work schedule. In this case, the schedule is flexed to meet peak work periods during the same work week. FLSA still applies and the non-exempt employee who works over 40 hours in the week will qualify for overtime.

Concordia College will comply with all court orders relative to garnishment of wages form any Concordia employee. The Human Resources Office will notify the employee upon receipt of a court order requiring Concordia to garnish the employee's pay.

It is the responsibility of every Concordia employee to maintain collegial, open and collaborative working relationships, characterized by mutual trust, respect, and care. When normal efforts to resolve programs and disputes fail, the College provides a procedure employees may use to express their grievances and seek resolution.

Support Staff Grievance Policy
Administrative Staff Grievance Policy
Faculty Grievance Policy

Employees who do not have permanent work authorization to work in the USA (such as is granted to citizens and permanent residents) are required to obtain and maintain appropriate visa and work authorization status. A variety of visa types will be considered based on your situation and the position you hold. While Concordia may assist you, ultimately each employee is responsible to assure the proper work authorization and visa requirements are maintained. More information can be obtained from the Provost Office or Director of International Recruiting and Support.

In order to ensure the continuity of services to students and the public, Concordia rarely closes. When the College remains open, the College expects employees to continue operations and classes, unless in their best judgment they would be at risk coming to the campus. Departments have outlined specific notification procedures for employees who will not be at work.

The College recognizes that severe weather conditions or other emergencies may require the College to close or cease parts of its operations. Should this occur, the College makes weather-related updates and announcements about canceled classes or closing on the College emergency site www.ConcordiaEmergency.com. Announcements are also shared with the local media.

The possession of a key/fob to a college facility carries specific responsibilities to ensure safety and security of the campus and employees. It is important employees take steps to ensure unauthorized use does not occur. Any unauthorized duplication of college keys may result in disciplinary action, up to and including termination. Employees may request key access by submitting a Key-Fob Request form.

Some positions may be designated to have on call responsibilities and to be available for a call back to work in the event of emergency, maintenance or security situations. When employees are called back to work, the status and time will be reported on the employee's time record.

When called back for emergency service after completing the regular day's work the employee shall receive compensation at the rate of time-and-one-half. Guaranteed minimum pay for call-back when required to return the worksite will be two hours. Guaranteed minimum pay for call-back when a return to the work site is not required, for example, when services are provided from home by telephone, is fifteen minutes at time-and-one-half.

Human Resources conducts employee orientation on a weekly basis. New employees receive a general introduction to the College and services available on campus, including HR policies, the employee handbook, benefits information, safety issues, security and parking.

Concordia's Senior Leadership team provides two orientation sessions a year for new employees. The program is designed to illuminate Concordia's global identity and distinctions, as well as future direction. The emphasis is on identifying applicable and meaningful ways to incorporate such knowledge into your role with Concordia.

The College realizes that some employees may have a job in addition to their employment with the College. Outside employment must not compromise the College's interests or adversely affect the employee's job performance. Employees will be expected to meet expected job performance standards.

Supervisors are responsible for authorizing and scheduling overtime, therefore, an employee shall not work overtime unless authorized in advance by their supervisor. Overtime will be used only after other alternatives have been explored, such as rescheduling priorities, reassigning work, re-balancing workloads, offsetting excess hours in one day with reduced hours in another day in the same workweek, and revising the work schedule so that weekend work can be performed as a regular part of the affected workweek. When the actual hours worked in a work week (excludes paid leave hours and holidays) exceed 40, the employee will be granted overtime pay at the rate of time and one-half.

View Overtime Policy

To protect confidentiality, integrity and accessibility to college owned nformation, passwords must be created and protected in a manner that minimizes the likelihood of unauthorized persons gaining access to the assets they protect. Account holders are held responsible for any activity done under their account.

It is the responsibility of each account holder:

• To create a password for each application
• To not share passwords with anyone
• To protect passwords from unauthorized use
• To change passwords at intervals specified in application's procedures
• To immediately notify the Chief Information Officer (CIO) if they believe their password has been compromised.

View Password Policy

Paychecks are distributed to departments. Paychecks will only be released to the employee unless the Human Resources Office has received a written request from the employee to turn the check over to another individual. To re-issue a paycheck, a $25 fee will be collected.

Bi-weekly

Support staff, adjunct faculty and students are paid bi-weekly with a Friday pay date. If the payday falls on a holiday observed by the College, payday is advanced to the preceding workday. Each payroll will include all time and leave submitted and approved within defined timelines. Corrections to payroll will be made with the next payroll.

Monthly

Administrative Staff and faculty (except adjuncts) are paid in 12 equal installments on the last business day. If the payday falls on a holiday observed by the College, payday is advanced to the preceding workday. Corrections to payroll will be made with the next payroll.

People are Concordia's most valuable asset. To support employee growth, thus improving organizational effectiveness in the accomplishment of the College's mission, goals and objectives, the College utilizes identified systems to provide feedback, planning and review of employee performance.

Administrative Staff
Support Staff

It is the responsibility of the employee to report to the Human Resources Office changes in marital status, dependents, legal name, residential and mailing addresses, phone number, beneficiaries for benefits and emergency contacts. These need to be reported as soon as available or effective. Failure to do so promptly may result in loss of certain benefits in some employee benefit programs.

The telephone and mail facilities at the college are important communication tools for employees and the college's customers and business associates. For that reason, the college's phone lines should be confined to business calls. Personal calls should be limited to those that are absolutely necessary and should be as brief as possible. In unusual circumstances, long distance calls may be made if arrangements are made with your department head to reimburse the college for the call.

To avoid an increase in volume of mail, employees should not use the college's address for receiving personal mail. Outgoing personal mail, however, may be handled through the college's post office.

College stationery is used for official college business only.

In a spirit of learning and growth, Concordia will assist employees by providing opportunities and encouragement for continuing training and development.

Employees may review their personnel file once every six months while employed with Concordia College.

Within seven working days of receiving a written request from a current employee (fourteen days if personnel record is stored out of state) a file will be made available for your review during normal business hours, with a human resources representative present. The file may be the original file or an accurate copy. After review and upon written request, a copy of the items in the file will be provided at no charge. Employees may submit a written statement concerning any disputed information which will become a part of the personnel record.

Separated employees may receive one copy of their file at any point after separation, utilizing the request process outlined above. Records are maintained in accordance with the College’s record retention practices.

In 1973 the Ole and Lucy Flaat award was established to recognize the work of outstanding staff members who have served Concordia with diligence, vision, and concern in a variety of capacities over a longer period of time.

The Flaat award has four separate categories: Support Staff, Administrative, Teaching and Advising.

Support Staff

The Flaat Distinguished Service Award recognizes a long-term support staff member who has rendered outstanding service and commitment to the mission of the College.

At Concordia College, we recognize that support service takes many forms. It is critically important to the image of the College, the hospitality extended to visitors, the assistance provided for students, the smooth running of the academic endeavor, the business operations, and more. Virtually, every aspect of the college depends on the service of support staff.

Administrative

The Flaat Distinguished Service Award recognizes excellence in long-term service to the College by a member of the administrative staff. We recognize that the recipient of the Flaat Award must be both outstanding in his/her professional role and a person who is committed to the mission and goals of Concordia College.

Teaching Award

The Flaat Distinguished Teaching Award is given to a Concordia College faculty member in order to recognize excellence in teaching. Because fine teaching is found in areas such as libraries, May Seminars, music studios, coaching assignments, and laboratories as well as classrooms, all faculty who serve in these environments are eligible for the Flaat Distinguished Teaching Award.

Advisor Award

The Flaat Distinguished Advisor Award is given annually to a Concordia College faculty member in order to recognize excellence in advising.

Annually, at the Support Staff Appreciation Banquet, Concordia recognizes Support Staff members who have demonstrated a commitment to Concordia through their years of service to the College. Recognition starts at ten years of service and continues every five years thereafter.

Faculty and Administrative Staff are recognized for their 25th year of service with the College.

To allow the department time to plan for transition with minimal disruption of service, an employee should notify their immediate supervisor and the department of Human Resources in writing. Non-exempt employees who decide to leave the College are encouraged to provide at least a two week notice. Exempt employees are encouraged to provide at least a one month written notice. Notice of resignation is expected to be a "working" notice to allow the supervisor an opportunity to spend productive work time with the employee to complete projects or to assist with training of person(s) assuming the responsibilities. The employee may rescind a written notice of resignation if approved by the supervisor and director.

There is no mandatory retirement age at the college. It is requested that an employee planning to retire notify his/her supervisor, department head, and the department of Human Resources in writing at least 90 days in advance of the anticipated retirement date. For recognition purposes, a retiree will be one who has attained age 60 and has a minimum of 10 years of service to the College.

Retirements are recognized at the appreciation banquet and with a gift from the College.

Employees are eligible for paid coffee breaks. Coffee breaks are to be 15 minutes in the morning and 15 minutes in the afternoon and cannot be accumulated or "banked".

There are four categories of employment separation from the College: voluntary, layoff, non-reappointment and involuntary.

Support Staff
Administrative Staff

Read the current policy (pdf)

The Concordia Community is expected to foster positive attitudes and behaviors toward members of each gender. The College seeks to provide an environment that is free from sexual harassment. Such conduct seriously undermines the atmosphere of trust and respect that is essential to a health work and academic environment.

This policy applies to all members of the college community in both on-and off campus Concordia sponsored events and activities. All members of the Concordia community are encouraged to report promptly complaints about sexual harassment to their immediate supervisor or the Human Resources Office. Employees found to be in violation of this policy shall be subject to disciplinary action up to and including termination.

Read full policy

Concordia College is committed to a safe and healthy environment and as such will not tolerate sexual misconduct in any form. Sexual assault is a crime and sexual harassment is a violation of federal and state laws and both are violations of individual rights and dignity. Members of the Concordia community, guests and visitors have the right to be free from sexual misconduct. When an allegation of sexual misconduct is brought forward, and a respondent is found to have violated this policy, serious sanctions will be used to ensure that such actions are not repeated. All members of the community are expected to conduct themselves in a manner that does not infringe upon the rights of others. The Concordia Sexual Misconduct Policy has been developed to reaffirm these principles and to provide recourse for those individuals whose rights have been violated.

The College emphasizes the importance of reporting and has provided a variety of reporting options. It is also important to note that if you were assaulted while under the influence of alcohol or other drugs, reporting this incident to the College will not result in disciplinary charges against you for policy violations related to chemical use. It is our first priority to have your report this incident and assist you through this difficult time.

Confidential Consultation

If you desire that details of the incident be kept confidential, you should speak with on campus counselors, campus pastors, campus health service providers or off‐campus rape crisis resources, who will maintain confidentiality. Campus counselors are available to help you free of charge, and can be seen on an emergency basis.

Campus Reporting

When reporting to other members of our campus community (e.g. Faculty members, RAs, Hall Directors, advisors, etc.), most are not required to tell anyone else your private, personally identifiable information unless there is cause for fear for your safety, or the safety of others. Some of these resources, such as RAs, are instructed to share incident reports with their supervisors, but your personally identifiable information will not be shared further unless you give permission, except in the rare event that the incident reveals a need to protect you or other members of the community. If your personally identifiable information is shared, it will be shared with as few people as possible, and all efforts will be made to protect your confidentiality to the greatest extent.

Read full policy

The College strongly discourages smoking because of the health hazard. No tobacco products may be sold on campus and tobacco use is not permitted within any campus building or college vehicle. Smoking may occur outside of buildings at least 25 feet away from entrances.

A handbook for students, setting out regulations and providing general information is available online, maintained by the Human Resources Office. Employees are responsible for reading this handbook and are held to the policies contained therein.

Bi-weekly Payroll

Non-Exempt Employees: A time record is an important, legal, time-recording document. Concordia utilizes Banner Web-time Entry, KRONOS time clocks, KRONOS tele-time and TMA (Facilities) to capture time worked. Employee must accurately maintain their own time record and forward for approval purposes based on timekeeping system utilized. Employees with supervisory responsibilities must confirm the time worked each pay period and attest the time record is accurate. Time records must be submitted and approved to the Human Resources Office by the deadlines outlined on the Payroll Schedule. The Payroll Schedule will be published annually and posted in C-port on the Worklife Tab. Time records submitted after the posted deadline date will be processed with time records for the following pay period.

An employee may not be allowed or may not be asked to "adjust the books" by recording more or less hours than were actually worked. Such an action is not only a violation of college policy, but is also illegal under the FLSA and may subject the employee and/or supervisor to disciplinary/legal action (up to and including termination).

Exempt Employees: Exempt Support Staff must complete and submit a time record in Banner for each pay period, indicating the source of benefit (vacation, sick leave, etc) for days not worked. If no leave hours are taken, the time record is submitted with zero hours.

Monthly Payroll

Administrative Staff must submit a leave report each month through C-port that indicates the source of benefit (vacation, sick leave, funeral leave, jury duty, etc.) for days not worked or indicating zero if no benefit was utilized. The administrator must submit their leave report to their supervisor by the 7th of each month for the preceding month. The supervisor is to approve the leave report by the 15th of each month.

Leave Accrual Note

In the bi-weekly payroll, the system first deducts leave taken and then accrues leave. In the monthly payroll, the system accrues leave during payroll processing. The system deducts leave after the leave report is approved. It is important to monitor accruals that are close to the maximum accrual level.

All travel to foreign countries that is part of your employment with Concordia College Corporation should be well planned and undertaken only after careful consideration of all the risk and potential for risk that will be encountered. Each Concordia department should take all the necessary steps to insure that employees participating in foreign travel have taken all pre-departure steps necessary. The Concordia Office of Global Education can assist you with a list of all recommended foreign travel precautions and consideration.

The College provides foreign travel insurance as well as foreign medical, liability, and auto coverage. Additional information can be found on the Risk Management website.

The College is committed to maintaining the highest ethical standards in all of its business practices. It accepts responsibility for the stewardship of resources and private support it receives, which enables the College to pursue its mission and strategic objectives. Supervisors, managers, or other College officials shall not compel or attempt to compel faculty, staff, students, applicants for employment, or other college constituents to violate a law, statute, or College policy. At Concordia, accountability is the cornerstone of ethical business practice, and this policy is one of the mechanisms for assuring this institutional value.

The general purpose of this policy is to encourage College, faculty, staff, students, applicants for employment, and other constituents, who engage in good faith, to report an alleged improper activity (or make a protected disclosure) with reassurance they will be protected from retaliation or reprisal. More specifically, this policy

• encourages employee, students, applicants for employment, and other college constituents to disclose breaches of conduct covered by College policies or relevant local, state or federal statute;
• provides information about how an individual can make a protected disclosure and to whom,
• protects employees from retaliation or reprisal by adverse employment action as a result of having disclosed or reported an improper activity to university officials who can take corrective action, and
• provides individuals a fair process to seek relief from retaliation or reprisal when they believe they have been subjected to such prohibited acts.

Although not required, faculty and staff may report any protected activity to their immediate supervisor, department head, dean, or vice president who, in turn, shall follow the guidance of this policy. In the case of undergraduate or graduate students, they may report such activity to the Office of the Dean of Students in the Division of Student Affairs. Nothing in this policy is intended to interfere with legitimate employment decisions.

View Whistleblower Policy

For payroll recordkeeping purposes, the work week at the College begins at 12:01 a.m. on Sunday and ends at 12:00 am Saturday.