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Employee Handbook
Table of Contents
1 - Purpose of the Employee Handbook
2 - Facts about Macalester
3 - Staff Employment
4 - Staff Wage and Salary Plan
5 - Staff Training and Development
6 - Faculty Personnel Policies and Procedures
7 - Curricular Policies and Procedures
8 - Academic Department and Program Policies and Procedures
9 - Faculty Professional Activities Programs
10 - Faculty Directory, Officers and Committee Memberships
11 - Employee Benefits
12 - Additional College Policy Statements
13 - Health and Safety
14 - HIPAA Policies and Procedures
Handbook Index
Faculty Constitution and By-Laws |
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MACALESTER COLLEGE FACULTY AND STAFF FLEXIBLE COMPENSATION PROGRAM
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FLEXIBLE COMPENSATION
Flexible compensation allows full-time and eligible part-time employees to :
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choose between taxable pay, and tax-free benefits, and
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choose the kind and amount of benefits which best meet their needs.
Flexible compensation allows Macalester to:
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THE REIMBURSEMENT ACCOUNTS
MEDICAL REIMBURSEMENT ACCOUNTS
Employees may begin participation in this program on the first day of any month following the completion of one calendar year of employment.
An employee working .50 FTE and above may deposit up to $5,000 per plan year (January 1 - December 31) and use the money to pay for medical costs for themselves and/or their dependents. The total amount deposited by the employee will be deducted in equal installments from their scheduled paychecks. Examples of eligible expenses are:
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dental expenses
- vision and hearing exams
- glasses, contacts, hearing aids
- prescription drugs
- deductibles
For a complete listing of eligible expenses, access www.irs.gov/publications/p502/ar02.html#d0e205. Employees can estimate the amount they should deposit based on past experience and anticipated expenses for the upcoming year.
Reimbursements will be made from Benesyst, Macalester's third party administrator.
At the end of the plan year (December 31), you will have until April 10th to submit any reimbursement requests for expenses incurred during the previous plan year. The $50 minimum does not apply to the year-end reimbursement.
Under current IRS rules, you will lose any money not claimed by April 10th for expenses incurred during the plan year ending December 31. It is important that you plan carefully how much you deposit in your account.
DEPENDENT CARE REIMBURSEMENT ACCOUNT
Employees may begin participation in this program the first day of the month following their date of hire.
An employee working .50 FTE and above may deposit up to $5,000 per plan year (January 1 - December 31) up to $2,500 for a married participant filing separately into this account. The total amount deposited by the employee will be deducted in equal installments from their scheduled paychecks over 12 months, unless otherwise designated. These tax-free dollars can be used to pay for certain work-related dependent care expenses for:
Most types of dependent care expenses are covered, including care in your home or in a licensed day care center. A day care center with six or more participants must be licensed.
If you're married, both you and your spouse must be working or going to school in order for you to be reimbursed for dependent care expenses. You cannot be reimbursed for expenses that exceed your taxable earned income, or the taxable earned income of your spouse, whichever is lower.
Reimbursements will be made from Benesyst, Macalester's third party administrator.
As with the medical reimbursement account, you will lose any amount left in your dependent care reimbursement account that is not claimed by April 10th for expenses incurred during the previous plan year.
Under the current tax law, if you pay for dependent care expenses with after-tax dollars, you may be able to claim a portion of the expenses as a credit on your federal income tax return. For some, the tax savings may be greater taking the tax credit than using before-tax dollars to pay for dependent care. For others, the tax savings may be greater using before-tax dollars.
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CHOICES AND ELECTIONS
Once each year in November, you may make new elections and choices for the following plan year (January 1 - December 31). Once made, these choices and elections remain in effect for the entire plan year. However, if you have a change in family status, you may change your choices during the plan year, within thirty days of the change. A change in family status includes marriage, signing or revoking a Declaration of Domestic Partnership, divorce, birth or adoption of child, change in child custody, death of dependent, change from full-time to part-time, significant change in health coverage, leave of absence, and a change in your spouse's employment. Please refer to the Health Insurance enrollment policies or call the Employment Services Department if you have a question about the definition of change in family status.
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EFFECTS OF USING REIMBURSEMENT ACCOUNTS
Social Security
Using tax-free earnings to pay for medical or dependent care expenses can affect the Social Security benefits you will eventually receive. Social Security benefits are based in part on earnings that are taxed for Social Security purposes, so eventual Social Security benefits may be slightly smaller as a result.
Other Benefits
Participation in one or both of the reimbursement accounts will not effect the other benefits provided by the College. For example, basic retirement plan contributions will continue to be based on your appointment salary before it is reduced by any amounts deposited into a reimbursement account. The College will continue to pay the entire premium for both Life and Long Term Disability Insurance based on your appointment salary.
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