Syracuse University will provide student employees with two weeks of wages and will continue paying work-study employees until the end of the semester, a university official said Thursday. 

Student employees with an active job who can no longer work due to the coronavirus pandemic will receive two weeks of pay for the period of Monday through April 5, said Camille Donabella, director of student employment operations and strategy, in an email to student workers. 

Those with a 2019-20 federal work-study award will be paid based on normally scheduled hours, totaling their full work-study award, for the remainder of the semester, Donabella said. 

SU said March 16 that it would move classes online for the remainder of the semester due to the coronavirus. The university’s Thursday emails are the first communication student employees have received since the announcement. 

The novel coronavirus causes COVID-19, a respiratory disease that has infected more than 510,000 people and killed over 23,000 globally. New York state has confirmed more than 33,000 cases of the virus, with 81 confirmed cases and one death in Onondaga County.

Wages for student employees and work-study students will be based on spring 2020 work schedules, Donabella said. Supervisors will estimate wages for students whose work schedule fluctuates, she said. 

Student employees can file an appeal with Student Employment Services and Financial Aid to be considered for additional financial support beyond April 5, Donabella said. 

SU has encouraged campus employers to provide remote work for student employees, if possible, Donabella said. 

“We recognize though, that not all positions have remote work capabilities and therefore, some employers will not be continuing their student employment positions for the reminder of the semester,” she said. 

Student employees working remotely and those out of work will continue to be paid through the university’s normal weekly payroll process, Donabella said. Paper paychecks will be sent to students’ permanent address, she said. 

Published on March 26, 2020 at 2:38 pm

Contact Michael: msessa@syr.edu | @MichaelSessa3