Payroll

The University requires Direct Deposit of employees’ checks to be deposited in the bank(s) or credit union(s) of their choice at the time checks are normally distributed.  Direct deposit information will need to be entered in Workday and may be edited at any time.   

Electronic pay stubs are available for viewing on pay day by employees in Workday. Please contact the Payroll Office with any questions at payroll@wpi.edu.   Payroll schedules are available on the Payroll website. 

Non-exempt employees are paid biweekly on Fridays.   Exempt employees are paid on the last working day of the month.  If the last day of the month falls on a weekend or a holiday, salaries are paid on the preceding workday. 

The University is required by federal and state law to make certain deductions from your paycheck. This includes federal income tax, state income and unemployment tax, and FICA contributions (Social Security and Medicare) as well as any other deduction required under state or federal law. The amount of your tax withholding deductions will depend on your earnings and the information provided on your Form W-4 and state tax withholding form. You may adjust your tax withholding in Workday at any time by updating your withholding elections under the Benefits and Pay app > Pay > Tax Elections section.  If you have questions, please contact payroll@wpi.edu. 

Overtime may be permitted in exceptional circumstances for Non-Exempt (hourly) Staff employees, but only at the request of a supervisor and with the approval of a Department Head.  Exempt (salaried) Staff employees are not eligible for overtime pay.   

Non-Exempt (Hourly) Staff 

Payment of time and one-half will apply after more than forty (40) hours in a week have been worked.  Time worked beyond 37 ½ hours a week, will be compensated at straight-time rates until 40 hours per week have been worked. 

At the discretion of the Supervisor and subject to the approval of the Department Head, employees may request to work additional hours in a work day in order to receive time off for justifiable reasons such as an unavoidable work day appointment, etc.  Both the overtime and time off must take place within the same work week period and be designated as such on the time sheet.     

Compensatory (“comp time”), is illegal for non-exempt employees and the University does not permit an accumulation of hours for future time off privileges. 

Exempt (Salaried) Staff 

Full-time administrative employees with an annual twelve-month salary base are not eligible to earn additional administrative salary from the University unless pre-approved by the employee’s supervisor and the Division of Talent & Inclusion.  Employees who have a full-time academic year appointment (9 or 10 months) may be eligible to earn additional salary in the summer months. 

It is the responsibility of supervisors to familiarize themselves with necessary reporting obligations such as attendance and time reporting to enable them to administer University pay policies consistently for all employees.  Supervisors are responsible for reviewing time entered for accuracy and approving time for employees by the specified approval deadline. The University has a responsibility not only to itself, its students and employees, but also to donors of operating funds and sponsors of research in many cases. 

In order to ensure that employees receive pay on a timely basis, biweekly paid employees must enter time on a biweekly basis by the time-reporting deadline of the following Monday at 3 p.m. unless otherwise specified.  Late entry of time may impact the timing of payment of earnings.   

Monthly paid employees must enter absences into Workday by the reporting deadline (as designated on the monthly Payroll Calendar). 

Time sheets are considered a legal document and falsification is a serious offense.