Revision Effective 06/08

1. General
2. Location of Workplace
3. Form of Time Reporting
4. Reporting Periods and Increments
5. Certification of Time Reports
6. Periodic Reviews
7. LETS Due Dates
   1. Weekly Reporters
   2. Monthly Reporters
8. Schedule Changes and Clock Changes

A. GENERAL

The goal of the Pay and Time Reporting System is accurate and timely reporting of time worked (by job or project) and time off (by category of leave). This is essential for (1) monitoring actual performance against budgetary goals, (2) ensuring that labor costs are properly reported by DOE Budget and Reporting classification, and (3) guaranteeing that employees are paid correctly and that their leave accumulations are accurate. Each employee is responsible for his or her own personal reporting, and each division or department is responsible for reviewing the employee's compliance.

B. LOCATION OF WORKPLACE

All employees are required to perform their work at the Laboratory, except while on travel status, unless specific approval has been granted for work at another location. See RPM §2.23(D)(3) (Telecommuting).

Agreements to perform work at alternative work sites must be consistent with Laboratory policy regarding standard workday and work week (see RPM §3.01(B)(1) (Workday) and (2) (Work Week)) and overtime (see RPM §3.03 (Overtime)).

C. FORM OF TIME REPORTING

LETS (Laboratory Employee Time-Reporting System) is an electronic time-reporting system that provides on-line access to time-reporting through PC and Mac workstations, and Sun workstations that use Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, or Safari Web browsers. With the use of an assigned password, an employee can input his or her own time and a supervisor can approve the time online. Role assignment, password applications, and training are available through division offices. To access LETS and perform any functions, refer to the LETS manual or "How To" brochures available in each division.

D. REPORTING PERIODS AND INCREMENTS

The following chart details the various time-reporting categories:

For employees in exempt classifications, the time worked on each cost account must be reported in total. It is not necessary to show the days on which the work was performed, but all leave time must be shown by specific days. For employees in nonexempt classifications, both work and leave time must be shown by specific days.

In the event that exempt employees work more than the normal number of hours or days, they are to distribute their effort proportionally to each project they worked on, based on the total time worked.

E. CERTIFICATION OF TIME REPORTS

1. Employees are accountable for certifying the accuracy of their time reported. Each supervisor must certify the accuracy of the time reported by his or her subordinates. Each supervisor must approve all of his or her employees' time, either electronically or on a time sheet produced by LETS. In the absence of the supervisor, only another designated supervisor or manager may approve time. Exceptions to this include non-LBNL supervisors at the Joint Genome Institute who are responsible for funding and Payroll/ISS personnel who provide technical assistance to supervisors. Requests for exceptions must be in writing and approved, in advance, by the Chief Financial Officer or designee. Time certification by the employee or the supervisor may be electronic with the use of a personal password accessing LETS or, when not possible electronically, by actual signature on a time sheet produced from LETS and provided by the division timekeeper.


2. Employees and supervisors must both concur to changes and corrections to their certified time, whether accomplished through LETS or labor resource adjustments. Documented employee certification and supervisory approval is required for all time and effort corrections.


3. Graduate Student Research Assistants (GSRAs) do not report time on individual time cards. The monthly computer listing for each group of GSRAs is generated by the department and requires the signature of the Faculty Advisor or, as alternates, the Division Director, his or her Deputy, or the Division Administrator.

F. PERIODIC REVIEWS

The Office of the CFO conducts periodic reviews of time-reporting documents for compliance with policy as stated in Paragraphs (D)–(E), above.

G. LETS DUE DATES

All employee time records are electronically sent to Payroll for processing based on the following schedule:

1. Weekly Reporters

12 noon            The first business day of each week and the first business day of the new month

2. Monthly Reporters

12 noon             Three business days prior to the month's end

H. SCHEDULE CHANGES AND CLOCK CHANGES

An employee's schedule of days off, workdays, and hours per day within the specified time schedule may be varied by his or her supervisor to meet unusual job requirements without use of a Stock Form 7600-55050 (Personnel Action Form (PAF)). The schedule for employees working indeterminate time, however, must be indicated in detail on the employment form, and changes must be submitted in detail on a PAF.

When clocks are changed to and from daylight savings time each year, actual hours worked should be reported. In the spring, when the time change results in a seven-hour owl shift, nonexempt employees may be scheduled for an extra hour of work or charged an hour of vacation to make an eight-hour shift. In the fall, when the time change results in a nine-hour owl shift, the additional hour (when worked) is reported as overtime.