Flexwork Tracker Definitions, Tool, Resources, and FAQs (for Staff)

All University staff members will be required to use the application to record any current remote or hybrid flexible work arrangements in My Personal Information (MPI) by December 3, 2021. 

Any future flexible work arrangements must also be entered into MPI and approved by the employee’s supervisor before such future arrangements commence. Before updating MPI, all employees are expected to have a conversation with their supervisor regarding their work arrangements, whether it is a pre-existing or new arrangement. After the conversation occurs with the supervisor, and a documented agreement is reached, an employee then updates their work location within MPI, a workflow will generate an alert to the supervisor requiring supervisory approval prior to submission to University Human Resources (UHR) for processing. 

A step-by-step guide to updating your work location in MPI can be found on UHR’s website.

The flex work tracker will be a permanent record of your current flex work arrangement that should be an accurate reflection of work time spent in each work location. The flex work arrangement will be submitted by the employee with an accurate reflection of the work arrangement to the supervisor. The submitted flex work arrangement will then be sent to the supervisor for approval. Once approved the flex work arrangement will allow UHR to update your tax withholding records. The flex work tracker should be updated and maintained timely to ensure an accurate reflection of time worked in each work location. 

Anytime you have a foreseeable, predictable change in your work location or schedule the flex work tracker should be updated. For example:  

• If you work 2 days in the office and 3 days at home and your schedule changes from 3 days in the office and 2 days at home the flex work tracker should be updated before the new schedule begins. 

• During the academic year I work 5 days a week in the office and during the summer months I work 2 days per week from home. The flex work tracker should be updated at the beginning and end of each summer to reflect the correct schedule before the summer flex schedule begins or ends.  

• I work 100% from home but my department has given me 6 weeks' notice that I must return to campus 5 days a week. The flex work tracker should be updated prior to the start of the schedule change to reflect the correct percentage of time in each work location. 

No, employees working onsite will be defaulted to the primary campus location. 

The percentage of time worked in each location should be based on the number of days worked in each location as defined in the O.R.C Section  718 .01 (B) (2). A workday location is determined by work location an employee spends the majority of the workday performing services for the University. As determined by O.R.C Section 718.01(B)(2) (a-b), travel time between locations should be counted towards consideration of the time spent at the primary work location.  

For example, a person may work 4 hours on the Athens campus and travel to the Dublin campus to work for 4 hours. The time spent travelling from Athens to Dublin would count towards time spent working in Athens at the employee's primary work location, and thus, the majority of the day would have been worked in Athens. Even if this Athens/Dublin split happens once a week for the entire year, it would  not require any changes to your flexplace arrangement or tax records as all workdays would be taxed at your Primary work location.  

O.R.C Section  718 .01 (B) (2) defines a workday location as the principal place of work where an employee spends the majority of any given workday. Therefore, your workday would be at home as the majority of your workday is spent at your homework location.  

This is a hybrid flexible work arrangement that consists of 40 % at home and 60% onsite.

Yes, you should report a flexible work schedule as a 100% at home arrangement. If your situation changes and the majority of any days are regularly spent onsite at a campus location, the flex work tracker should be updated to reflect the schedule change. 

Your flex work tracker would remain the same, but your address should be updated and a new federal (W-4) and state withholding certificate should be submitted with the effective date of your change in work location.

Unforeseeable and unpredictable schedule changes or unreported schedule changes will require manual intervention from the payroll/tax office. You can reach the payroll department at  payroll@ohio.edu  and 740-593-1636. 

It is recommended to discuss the flex work arrangement with your new supervisor and make a mutual decision on if an update is needed. 

A discussion with the supervisor should take place to determine if the current flex work arrangement is still applicable. 

The current flex arrangement would be 100% at home remote work until the onsite return to campus date. Before the return to campus the employee should update flex arrangement with an effective date beginning on the return to campus date. The employee should submit the request for supervisor approval before the effective date. Please refer to Ohio Universities payroll  calendar  for payroll processing dates.

Per  O.R.C Section 718.011 (B) (1), 20 Day Rule: an employer is not required to withhold municipal income tax on qualifying wages paid to an employee for the performance of personal services in a municipal corporation that imposes such a tax if the employee performed such services in the municipal corporation on twenty or fewer days in a calendar year, unless one of the following conditions applies:(a) The employee's principal place of work is located in the municipal corporation.(b) The employee performed services at one or more presumed worksite locations in the municipal corporation.   

Spending less than 20 workdays in a municipality does not require a flex work tracker change nor does it cause a requirement for The University to withhold municipal income tax. 

No, municipal income tax withholding requirements are only for the number of days spent performing service inside the municipality. Employees working more than 20 days in municipality should update the flex work tracker to reflect the percentage of time worked in each location. 

You may contact your  HR  liaison to help facilitate timely departmental approval. 

The Flexwork Tracker can be accessed through My Personal Information but will open through a new tab. In order for the new tab to be allowed to open, please ensure that your pop-up blocker is turned off. If you experience additional difficulties, please contact OIT. 

Only primary assignments are reflected in the Flexwork Tracker. Secondary assignments are handled through external processes. It is also important to note that student assignments and academic semester appointments will not appear in the Flexwork Tracker. 

If you do not see your primary assignment (other than a student or an academic semester appointment), please contact UHR for assistance.