Frequently Asked Questions (IFWA)

Managers must determine their needs, such as core hours, attendance at meetings, client service requirements, priority and progress reporting and manage employee schedules in line with these requirements. We recommend that managers meet with their team and discuss flextime and work from home as a group to find the best solutions for all involved.

Yes, a unit may have peak or critical periods when employees are required to be present. This may mean that earlier or later start times or work from home are not possible during this period. We recommend that managers discuss any blackout period(s) with their employees and include the information in the IFWA Request.

Yes, this is acceptable, understanding that lunch and breaks may be taken during this period.

Yes, this is acceptable if there is an operational reason for these hours. The standard work week for administrative and support staff is 33.75 hours (clerical) or 35 hours (technical), Monday through Friday, and the standard workday is 6.75 hours (clerical) or 7 hours (technical).

Daily scheduled hours are determined by the unit/department. It is the responsibility of the manager to coordinate work schedules while maintaining operational needs, office/department coverage, and establish means and methods for supervision and monitoring workloads and results. As such, it is at the discretion of the manager to implement the general hours of work in a given unit in order to meet operational needs. In some cases, MUNACA for instance, existing hours may be modified after proper notice has been provided.

No, employees are expected to work the standard 6.75 hours (clerical and M positions) or 7 hours (technical) per day on every work day, including Fridays. In addition, lunch breaks are unpaid and therefore cannot be banked for later use.

Yes, as long as it operationally feasible.

Requests can last up to one year, to be reviewed yearly.

The arrangement can be weekly, bi-weekly or monthly, meaning an employee can ask for 2 days per week WFH or can work one week per month from home, etc.

Overtime requests must be approved in advance. The manager should review the request and approve or deny it as per the normal process.

For the special summer schedule, the maximum 40% WFH rule will still need to be respected, an employee can modulate a different arrangement for the summertime (e.g. over two weeks or a month).

The approved flextime schedule should not increase or reduce approved overtime. The flextime schedule outlined in the Request document should include a statement to the effect that on the day of an early or late meeting the employee’s regular hours will apply.

With approval, one of the two 15- minute breaks can be taken immediately before or after the lunch period.

If the employee is asked to come to the office for the day they are normally scheduled to work from home, the manager and employee should discuss if working from home on an alternate day that week is possible. If it is not possible, the manager may cancel the work from home day that week.

As per the IFWA guidelines, employees are responsible for providing the necessary computer equipment, space, telephone, printing, networking and/or internet capabilities when working from home to perform their normal work duties.

Employees are not permitted to bring home any computer equipment from the office (except if the employee has been assigned a laptop or cell phone).

Employees are required to provide a phone number where they can be contacted during their workday at home (landline or cell).

Most positions do not require access to a printer from home. If they do not have a printer at home, employees should print their documents when they are back at the office.

Yes, we recommend that employees forward their work phone to their home or cell phone.

As per the McGill IFWA guidelines website (section Considerations for Flexible Arrangements), there are two (2) links highlighted in the Employee section:

• IT University policies and procedures concerning data protection and records management
• IT Resources for Faculty & Staff Working from Home for set-up instructions

At the moment, the Faculty does not have an IT checklist.

As per the IFWA guidelines, employees need to meet the operational needs of the unit when working from home. As such, if access to a remote desktop connection (via McGill; MUHC) is required for the employee to maintain operational day-to-day activities of the unit, managers can approve the request only after the remote desktop connection is set up.

Please see IT University policies and procedures concerning data protection and records management as well as IT Resources for Faculty & Staff Working from Home for set-up instructions.

If the employee is already using a generic email account when at the workplace, he or she should be doing the same when working from home.

If a manager normally needs the password of a generic email to manage an inbox, he or she will continue to have this access on days employees are working from home.

Yes, it is available.

When the manager and employee discuss the IFWA request, it important to consider impacts on team and operations and possible mitigation strategies. This includes impacts on functional supervisors like Program Directors. As such, we recommend consulting with functional supervisors when evaluating the feasibility of an IFWA request.

If a client presents in person and needs immediate assistance, in-office staff should assess the need and offer help where they can. A team discussion could help build a clear understanding regarding how to handle these situations.

Yes, the program is now available to employees on a probation or trial period.

Yes, as long as they respect the minimum 40% WFH rule, a part-timer or TAWA employee can request a WFH schedule.

When the manager and the employee discuss the IFWA request, it is important that both sides are clear about schedule, expectations, deliverables, modes of communication, terms for modifying agreement, monitoring progress, etc. The planning of objectives, tasks, reporting procedures, etc. is at the discretion of the manager and should be discussed and implemented with the involvement of the employee.

If an IFWA is approved, the manager must meet the employee within 3 months of start date to assess its impact and ongoing viability. It is at the discretion of the manager to determine how often they assess the employee’s work arrangement and its impact on the unit. As per the IFWA guidelines, IFWAs may be terminated at the request of the manager with 30-days written notice.

Both the employee and the manager will meet to evaluate the IFWA within 3 months of the start date of the IFWA to assess its impact and ongoing viability. The manager may ask the employee to modify the IFWA schedule at this time.

Interim Flexible Work Arrangements may be terminated at the request of the manager or the employee with a 30-day written notice. This notice can be shortened with agreement from all parties.

Staff who are not in the office on a given day must remain available to their clients. Please ensure that they communicate to their clients how they can be reached on days when they are working from home.

While employees must provide their home address and contact coordinates, managers are not expected to visit employees at home to determine if work conditions are appropriate. It is the employee’s obligation to ensure their home environment meets requirements. Employees who want to work from home must also complete and sign the Health and Safety form found here: https://www.mcgill.ca/hr/flexibility/fwa under ‘tools and request form’. McGill or the CNESST may visit the employee's home in case of incident or accident.

The program does not require frequent check-ins with staff working from home. The frequency and mode of communication is at the discretion of the manager and should be discussed with the employee when reviewing the request. It will depend on the work performed and level of supervision required.

When the manager and the employee discuss the IFWA request, it is important that they are clear about schedule, expectations, deliverables, modes of communication, terms for modifying agreement, monitoring progress, etc. It should be the same as if the employee was not working from home.

We recommend that managers consult with HR before denying a request. In some situations, the requested arrangement may not be possible but suitable alternatives may be found. If the request is denied, it is important that the manager have a conversation with the employee to ensure they understand the decision.

In some cases, yes. IFWAs are not suitable for all positions or for all employees. Positions that require all or most of the work to be done on campus, such as facilities maintenance, frontline client services, and lab monitoring, etc., would not be suitable for WFH arrangements. In all cases, it is important that the manager explain the reason the request is denied to the employee.

The University has maintained that employees should have the opportunity for a flexible work schedule and/or work from home as long as it is operationally suitable (see guidelines for true exceptions).

To decline a request a manager must have clear reasons. As noted above, managers are encouraged to discuss these cases with HR before informing the employee. If the refusal is valid, the manager has a conversation with the employee and provides the reason. HR will field any other questions by the employee and/or by the Union/Association.

If there is no record of insubordination or difficulty respecting hours of work, this is not sufficient to decline a request. Managers should address performance, behavioural or disciplinary issues with their employees and document it properly. We recommend that you consult your HR Advisor to determine an action plan. If these issues continue, the manager may terminate the IFWA with 30-days written notice.

The employee must maintain a safe, secure and ergonomic work environment. Employees are expected to comply with normal reporting requirements for a work-related accident or injury and report the accident immediately to their supervisor and complete the accident report: (https://www.mcgill.ca/ehs/forms/forms/accident-and-incident-report. Work accidents that occur at home fall under Loi sur les accidents du travail et les maladies professionnnelles.