Adjunct faculty at Pima Community College may be eligible for benefits including sick leave, tuition waivers, and retirement plans.

For additional questions regarding benefits for adjunct faculty, contact the Employee Service Center by emailing ESC@pima.edu or calling (520)206-4595.

Professional Enrichment Funds

Pima Community college provides adjunct faculty with Professional Enrichment Funds for activities directly related to their professional enrichment goals or professional improvement. All Adjunct Faculty with current contracts are eligible to apply for and receive these funds.  Adjunct faculty members may request up to $1000 per academic year.

Requests for funds should be submitted through the Adjunct Faculty Application for College Enrichment Funds request form will be reviewed by the College Faculty Enrichment Fund Committee. Instructions can be found here.

Regarding the criteria for applying for Professional Enrichment Funds and what activities qualify for funding, please see the Adjunct Faculty Professional Enrichment Fund section of the Employee Handbook.

Retirement

Both the employee and the College contribute to the Arizona State Retirement System (ASRS) or the Optional Retirement Program (ORP), as required by law. Eligible employees may elect participation in either the ASRS Defined Benefit Plan or the Optional Retirement Plan (ORP) Defined Contribution Plan within 30 days of their employment with Pima Community College or within 30 days of their eligibility. This decision is irrevocable and permanent. If an eligible employee does not make an election within the 30 day period, they are defaulted into the Arizona State Retirement System.

Further information is available in the Retirement Programs section of the Employee Handbook. For questions, contact the Employee Service Center by emailing ESC@pima.edu or calling (520)206-4595.

Mandatory Retirement Plan Information

Adjunct Faculty who meet eligibility requirements must participate in the mandatory retirement system, either the Arizona State Retirement System (ASRS) defined benefit plan or the Optional Retirement Plan (ORP) defined contribution plan. The retirement eligibility requirement is met when that employee is engaged to work or works at least 20 hours a week for at least 20 weeks in a fiscal year (July 1 through June 30). This is also referred to as the “20/20 criteria” for membership. (A.R.S. § 38- 711(23)(b)) The same criterion is used for ORP membership.

For adjunct faculty, load hours are converted to hours worked to determine eligibility. Each load hour is equal to 2.25 hours worked per week for a traditional semester. For example, a 3-load course is counted as 114.75 worked hours for the course. The work hours are allocated based on the number of weeks the course encompasses. When an employee meets the 20/20 criteria in a fiscal year, retirement deductions begin and continue for the remainder of the fiscal year, regardless of hours worked. Once an adjunct faculty member has been identified as eligible to participate they will be notified via PCC email. Information on the retirement plans available will be included along with due dates and actions items to complete. If no response is received to the email within the allotted time frame (30 days) the employee will be defaulted into ASRS. The retirement plan selected/defaulted is irrevocable over an employee’s employment at the college.

There are special rules for early retirees, and those who have retired less than one year ago. If you are an early ASRS retiree you must work less than 20 hours for 20 weeks per year (20/20 rule) in order to keep your monthly pension benefits. If you are within 365 days of your retirement you may not work 20/20. After one year (365 days) a retiree can work an unlimited number of hours while maintaining your monthly benefit, however upon meeting eligibility participation in the ORP will be required. If you received a notice that you are eligible for the retirement plans and you are an early retiree or have retired in the last 365 day please contact the Employee Service Center immediately: ESC@pima.edu at (520) 206-4595

Voluntary Retirement Plan Information

All employees have the option to participate in the 403b Tax Sheltered Annuity Plan or 457 plan. Contributions made to these plans are pre tax and your portfolio grows tax free until distributions are taken. PCC does not match contributions to these plans. IRS distribution rules and contribution limits apply to these plans.

Information regarding the college’s mandatory and voluntary retirement plans is available . Further information is available in the Retirement Programs section of the Employee Handbook. For questions, contact the Employee Service Center by emailing ESC@pima.edu or calling (520)206-4595.

Tuition Waiver

Adjunct Faculty and Dual Enrollment Faculty under Contract with the College District to teach classes are eligible to participate in the tuition waiver program. Adjunct faculty must have an approved contract in the employment system in order to participate in the tuition waiver program.

The tuition waiver program permits tuition waivers per semester while the Adjunct Faculty member is under contract with the College to teach class(es) that same semester. Semester is defined as Fall, Spring, and Summer.

For more information visit the Tuition Waiver section of the Employee Handbook.

Tuition Waiver While Waiting for Contract

We do have a process for Adjunct Faculty who are waiting for their contract to be approved and the tuition waiver eligibility to kick in. They may register for classes and if they get the warning that they must pay their tuition or be dropped, they can make a tuition payment of $15. This will keep them enrolled in the class and also happens to be the cost of tuition under the waiver. They can then attend classes and they will show an outstanding balance in their student account. Once the contract is approved, eligibility is granted, and the tuition waiver is processed, the outstanding balance will be wiped out.

Andrew Plucker
Executive Director, Employee Service Center
Pima Community College
P (520)-206-4585
E aplucker@pima.edu

For question regarding tuition waivers, email esc-benefits@pima.edu

The Governing Board recognizes the benefits of higher education and supports a tuition and fee waiver program for faculty, adjuncts, full-time and part-time employees–as well as their spouses and qualifying child(ren)–to enroll in, or audit, College credit courses. The waiver extends to the Board-approved, per credit hour Tuition Rate, the Student Services Fee, and the Technology Fee. Program participants shall be responsible for all other costs incurred with registration. The tuition reduction/waiver form is available online in the MyPima portal. For questions, contact the Employee Service Center by emailing ESC@pima.edu or calling (520)206-4595.

Paid Sick Leave

The College provides sick leave for all employees. Employees who accrue sick leave will start accruing on the first day of employment and will accrue each pay period until the maximum accrual is reached. Accumulation of sick leave will resume once the total number of hours falls below the maximum.

Adjunct Faculty receive 40 hours of sick leave as a lump sum on 30th day of employment and annually each July. For Adjunct Faculty, the maximum accrual of sick leave is 40 hours.

Adjunct faculty shall use sick leave time to cover sick leave-related absences. If this is unavailable, they will use leave without pay.

Sick leave and unpaid leave are debited at the designated hourly rate. Each load hour is equivalent to 2.25 hours worked per week The employee must use web time entry for reporting all absences, and a separate timesheet is required for absences from each class/course taught. Web time entry uses time in 15-minute increments rounded up or down at 7.5 minutes. For example, the employee shall enter absence from a 50-minute class as .75 hours, and absence from a 70-minute class as 1.25 hours.

For more information, or visit the Employee Handbook: Sick Leave (link here).

Emergency Treatment Leave

Leave without loss of pay shall be granted for emergency medical treatment for employees injured during performance of assigned work. Employees who have returned to regular duty will be permitted reasonable time off without loss of pay to attend required physician appointment(s) for treatment of the job related injury. The Employee Service Center must be notified of the incident and the status of the condition in accordance with the College’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and Workers’ Compensation reporting requirements.

Eligibility for College Medical and Pharmacy Plan Benefits

A limited number of adjunct faculty are eligible to participate in the College’s medical and pharmacy plan. Eligibility is based on working an average of 30 hours or more in the College’s look back period. The look back period for on-going employees runs from May to April and for new employees is based on the first 12 months of employment. Employee Service Center (ESC) staff notify eligible employees of their eligibility. For questions, contact the Employee Service Center by emailing ESC@pima.edu or calling (520)206-4595.

Counseling & Employee Assistance Program (EAP)

The EAP provides free short term counseling and referral services to covered employees and their immediate families. Counseling is strictly confidential and covers a wide range of concerns, such as those related to marriage and family, relationships, divorce and separation, financial concerns, personal and interpersonal problems, eldercare issues, alcohol and other drug problems, stress management, work issues, anxiety and depression. Day, evening, and weekend appointments are available. Emergency help is available by phone 24 hours a day.

For questions, contact the Employee Service Center by emailing ESC@pima.edu or calling (520)206-4595.

Health Care Resources

First aid is available on all campuses at our Police Department offices.

For dental care, our Dental Hygiene Clinic provides low-cost therapeutic and preventive services. Care is completed by Pima dental students under the supervision of licensed dentists and dental hygienists. Adults and children are welcome.

Lactation Rooms

Lactation rooms are available on all Pima campuses. Find out more at Pregnant and Parenting Students FAQs | Pima Community College, Tucson, Arizona

Jury Duty

Paid Jury Duty leave applies to employees who are required to report for service in response to a Jury Duty summons. For policy and information see the Personnel Policy Statement for College Employees.

Voter Leave

Voter Leave Employees may be provided necessary time off with pay, not to exceed three hours, for the purpose of voting in any city, county, state or national elections if there are less than three consecutive hours between the opening of the polls and the beginning of the employee’s regular work day or between the end of his/her regular work day and the closing of the polls. Employees must notify their immediate supervisor of their intent to take leave on election day no later than the day prior to the election.

For policy and information see the Personnel Policy Statement for College Employees.