Essential and Critical Services are eligible classified staff and university staff positions that perform law enforcement, housing, food services, snow removal and other services directly necessary for the health, safety, and welfare of our students, research and community.   These positions can be required to work and/or remain on campus to perform the essential and/or emergency services of the department without delay and/or without interruption. 

At UCCS, Essential and Critical Services positions:

• provide public safety services to campus including police, emergency management, environmental health & safety, fire safety, and coordinating with other external public safety agencies for services,
• provide adequate housing, food, health, and wellness services for campus residents,
• maintain, protect, repair, and restore critical on-campus infrastructure including university technologies, communications infrastructure, transportation systems, and physical structures on campus,
• provide on-campus activity needed to protect integrity of research.

Essential and Critical Services positions and personnel:

• are designated by the department or division appointing authority and should be documented in the position description and job posting,
• may be requested to come in after hours or for non-scheduled shifts to address campus needs, and
• may require personnel to stay in close proximity to campus for upcoming shifts.

Essential Services:

• Employees in essential positions can be only FLSA nonexempt (overtime eligible). 
• Employees in essential services positions have all paid leave counted as time worked when calculating overtime.  

Critical Services:

• Employees in critical positions are FLSA exempt (not eligible for overtime).
• Employees in critical services positions do not have paid leave counted as time worked when calculating overtime for nonexempt employees. 

Documentation Processes

• The Essential and Critical Services designation for classified staff and university staff positions will be indicated by the hiring unit on the position description when sent for review and approval.
• For Essential and Critical Services staff positions, the hiring unit should select “Yes” to the position description question, “Is this Position Designated Essential Services”.  They should also include any additional details about the work schedule and reporting expectations in the “Describe the Work Schedule” field.  This content will be reviewed by Talent Acquisition for inclusion in the job posting.
• Upon hire, a standard statement indicating the position’s status as Essential and Critical Services will be included in the offer letter.
• Campus HR will update the “Essential Services” designation field in HCM for Essential and Critical positions which will ensure overtime calculations for non-exempt employees are processed correctly.
• HR Liaisons may refer to the Essential Services query in the HCM User WorkCenter to track the designation status of their Essential and Critical Services positions.