The below information is copy and pasted from the attached HR document regarding student employees and ACA. Additional information can also be found here.
Work Hour Limits
If a student employee exceeds the work hour limits described below, they may lose their student employment status and become considered a full-time employee for the purposes of ACA compliance and medical insurance eligibility. A change like this in a student’s employment status may adversely affect them in several ways including student loan deferment, tax responsibility, course enrollment, and visa status. Also, this change would require the department to budget differently for this employee.
- Undergraduate Student Employees: Student employees should limit their work hours to less than 30 hours per week total across all of their student job positions including supplemental payments as mentioned above.
- Graduate Student Employees
- The OU Graduate College has directed that GAs may work a maximum of 28 hours per week (.7 FTE).
- If a GA has multiple appointments, the maximum work hours is a combined total across all appointments.
- GA appointments to a single or combination of positions above 0.5 FTE during Fall and Spring semesters must have prior approval of the Graduate Dean, and the limit remains 0.7 FTE.
- The appointments must be compatible with the student's academic major.
- International students on student visas may not exceed 0.5 FTE under any circumstances during Fall and Spring semesters.
- Summer GA appointments do not require Graduate College approval, but may not exceed 0.7 FTE.
- Supplemental Payments: A student employee hired at 0.7 FTE may not receive additional supplemental compensation. GAs below 0.7 FTE may pursue additional supplemental compensation up to the maximum of a 0.7 FTE appointment.