College of Fine Arts Work Location Policy

Updated: August 12, 2025

Work Location Policy Framework

• The default expectation for work within The University of Texas is five (5) days a week on campus.
• Remote work, when permitted, is an employee “perk,” not a contractual agreement; it can be modified/changed/revoked at any time, according to the business needs of the unit.
• Academic Colleges/Schools/Units (CSUs) across the university have broadly benchmarked staff positions’ eligibility for the minimum days required on campus. This is to promote fairness in the application of policy and minimize variations between CSUs.

College of Fine Arts Standard Hours of Business Operations

The College of Fine Arts standard business operating hours to run from 7 a.m. – 6 p.m., Monday – Friday. Our philosophy is that work should have boundaries to maintain a healthy work/life balance, especially for our classified-level staff. We ask that staff not work (including communications) outside of these hours and days, unless urgent.

Flexible Work Schedules: Excluding Events and Production Staff

We seek to ensure staff continue to employ flexible scheduling (with manager and unit/department level approval) to manage the hours in which they are on-campus. Generally, flexible scheduling is extended to include work between 7am and 6pm such that employees can accommodate commute times or scheduled pick-up/drop-off of dependents on a regular basis. This type of flexible scheduling does not require a Flexible Work Arrangement but must be coordinated with supervisor or unit/department leader.

Flexible Work Schedules: Events and Production Staff

We seek to maintain flexible scheduling for our academic and professional production and events staff whose work is focused on events and shows that run outside of our standard hours of operation.

Student Holiday Weeks, Winter Break and Summer Term 

During student holiday weeks during the semester (such as Thanksgiving or Spring Break), short-week business days leading up to the winter break holiday (when applicable) or summer term (5/16 – 8/15), unit/department leadership in consultation with College of Fine Arts HR, may extend flexibility of work schedules and location to their unit/department/team. This temporary schedule change still ensures full coverage of office/work responsibilities to meet student and client needs. This flexibility may not be substituted for taking paid time off.

Scheduled Renovations and Remote Work

Summer terms are often the busiest for scheduled building renovations. When these occur, staff may not have access to their regular office space. While we may be able to offer alternative spaces, there may be instances where staff will need to temporarily work entirely remotely due to lack of an office or workspace. Unit leadership, in consultation with the dean’s office, may allow staff to work remotely during scheduled renovations.

Lead from Campus 

All supervisors of salaried staff are expected to be on-site for work each workday of the week. Flexible schedules as noted above are granted to best manage work and personal priorities, in agreement with your supervisor. Supervisors of only hourly staff may have some work location flexibility, if applicable to their work function, but they must mirror the schedule of their hourly staff (i.e., if hourly staff is on campus, the supervisor must be on campus at the same time).

New Employees

Employees who are new to the College of Fine Arts, either from an internal transfer within campus or from outside UT, should expect to hold a default, five (5) days per week schedule, regardless of their function, during at least the first 45 days of their appointment. Following the Day 45 evaluation (probationary or new in employment), the manager may decide whether to allow for the position’s default minimum days in office to take effect, or to wait until the next check in period (Day 90 and/or Day 135).

Manager Discretion to Increase Work Location Minimum

Managers should prioritize business if they need an increase of on campus work beyond the designated minimum for an employee’s role. For example, if a transactional role that allows for a 3/2 work schedule does not meet the manager’s need for on-campus presence, it is the manager’s prerogative to increase the on-campus days, as needed.

No “Banking” of Remote Days

Employees may not “defer” or “bank” remote workdays forward to another week. For example, if an employee’s position allows for a minimum of three (3) days on campus and there is a surge week where the employee must work 5 days on campus, the employee may not defer or bank two (2) “unused” remote days to the following week. The employee would resume back to their regular minimum days schedule and not add extra remote days.

Specific Work Unit and Role based Work Locations:

Consistent with university guidelines, the default is in-person, onsite 5 days per week.

• Building Managers and Lab Managers work onsite, 5 days per week.
• Student-serving areas will work a minimum of four (4) days onsite.
• IT roles that serve faculty and staff on-site and who do not manage people (such as help desk and classroom AV support) will work a minimum of four (4) days onsite.
• Communications and visual design roles that do not manage people and which require long periods of uninterrupted project-based time, will work a minimum of three (3) days onsite.
• Business Operations, Development, and administrative transactional and processing roles will work a minimum of three (3) days onsite. This includes administrative student-serving roles that involve minimum student interactions (e.g., registrar).
• Web-Based Roles and IT roles that are non-faculty/staff facing will work a minimum of three (3) days onsite, office space permitting.
• Academic departments are responsible for full staff coverage during the week and are encouraged to pick 1-2 days per week that all employees are onsite together between 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.

This table outlines the onsite work expectations for different job roles in the College of Fine Arts

Office Space Considerations

The College of Fine Arts continues to work through office space limitations. There are known teams that do not have an assigned office space and are therefore exempt from minimum onsite days rules. Staff who have positions that are designated to work on campus but do not have a current solution for a permanent work location will be provided with “hoteling” options and be exempted from the on-campus minimums designated by their position.