Purpose: The purpose of this program is to define and manage appropriate cellular communication devices used by College personnel. This program covers cellular devices owned by the College and issued to employees as well as the cellular communication stipend.
Criteria: Cellular communication devices may be issued to College employees, or employees may be eligible for the cellular communication stipend per the following criteria:
The employee’s job requires that they work regularly in the field and need to be immediately accessible.
The employee’s job requires that they need to be immediately accessible outside of normal business hours.
The employee is responsible for critical business functions or the supporting infrastructure and needs to be immediately accessible at all times.
The employee travels and needs to be accessible or have access to information technology systems while traveling.
Access via voice and or access to information technology systems via a mobile communications device would, in the judgment of the supervisor, render the employee more productive and/or the service the employee provides more effective, and the cost of mobile communications service is therefore warranted and approved by the appropriate Vice President.
Use: College issued wireless communication devices are to be used for College business only. Personal devices for which the employee receives a stipend may be used for personal use but College business conducted on those devices are subject to the Virginia Freedom of Information Act.
Stipend Program: Employees meeting the criteria above and who currently have a College issued wireless device may elect to turn in their College issued device and begin receiving a stipend. No College issued devices will be given to new positions not currently receiving a College issued device as of January 1, 2018 although existing devices may be transferred to new employees.
Under the stipend program, the employee agrees to the following:
The phone number of the wireless device will be published and/or distributed for Laurel Ridge business purpose.
If the device is lost, no longer active, or no longer needed for job responsibilities, the employee must notify their Vice President and Human Resources within five days.
The device must use a password to protect the data on the phone. Any and all security breaches on the device are the sole responsibility of the employee.
The device is considered personal property of the employee.
The stipend will be paid through College payroll and is taxable.
The choice of device and carrier is up to the employee but the College will only provide support to the Apple iPhone.
All stipends must be approved by the appropriate Vice President to ensure compliance with the guidelines as stated above. The current amount for Cell Phone Stipends is $80 per month.
The allowable reimbursement for a cell phone device is already included in the monthly stipend amount shown above. Different carriers offer cell phone discounts for state employees, please view the Virginia DHRM website to learn more about these opportunities.
In the event of an employee is terminated, laid off, or retires, the College will not pay to terminate the cellular contract entered as part of the stipend. Information about the Freedom of Information Act and how it applies to these devices is attached.
