Inclement Weather

It is the policy of the University to remain open and continue operations during periods of severe weather. However, the University recognizes that because of hazardous conditions, employees may find it difficult to report to work. Therefore, the University has established a policy that compensates those employees who are able to report to work during severe weather without penalizing those employees who determine the weather conditions to be unsafe for travel and are unable to report to work.
Definition of Snow Emergency for Putnam County
To clarify questions on the definition of “snow emergency”, the following information was provided in a memo from the Putnam County Emergency Management Agency (EMA): “In the event of a declared snow emergency, we would prefer you stay off the roads as much as possible, however, we also understand that the business/industries need to meet their needs. If you do travel, we would suggest that you go to work and return home. This will allow for maximum efficiency for the highway department and emergency service vehicles to serve the community. We will be providing information to WREB, who in return will be giving updates as to road condition, as well as weather conditions. They are located at 94.3 FM.”
“The general policy of the Putnam County Sheriff’s Department and the Greencastle Police Department is to NOT ticket individuals who are going to and from work, however, please as always use extreme caution during declared emergencies.”
Severe Weather Emergency Declared by the University
A severe weather emergency will be determined by the President of the University or another designated official of the University.
When a severe weather emergency is declared by the University, all employees will be compensated at their regular rate based upon their normal hours per day.
Employees who report to work when a severe weather emergency is declared by the University will be given paid time off at a later date. Paid time off will be equivalent to the actual hours worked on the day of the severe weather emergency not to exceed normal hours per day.
Severe Weather as Determined by the Employee
DePauw University is concerned with the safety of all University employees. Therefore, if a severe weather emergency has not been declared by the University but employees are unable to report to work because of hazardous conditions, they must notify their department in accordance with established departmental procedures for reporting absences and may cover the absence as indicated below:
• use of personal time, or
• use of vacation time, or
• time off without pay