Seasonal Employees FAQ

Seasonal Employees FAQ

June 14, 2018
What has changed about the way PERA evaluates seasonal positions?

Before January 1, 2015, if a single employee held more than one seasonal position with an employer, all of the positions that meet PERA’s definition of seasonal were excluded. Similarly, if an employee held both a seasonal position and a part-time permanent position, eligibility for PERA membership was based on the facts of each separate position.

Effective Jan. 1, 2015, the seasonal exclusion will apply only to employees whose sole employment is a seasonal position t that’s duration is being limited by the employer to 185 consecutive calendar days or less in each year of employment. The exclusion applies regardless of whether or not the employing unit anticipates that the same employee will return to the position each season in which it becomes available.
Under the 2015 PERA provisions, if an employee holds two positions with a single employer, one permanent and the other seasonal (less than 186 consecutive calendar days in a year), the compensation from both must be added together to determine whether the employee will exceed the earnings threshold since the employment is not solely in a seasonal position.  A common example of this is when a school district employs a person as both a part-time paraprofessional and a coach.
Our school district employs paraprofessionals who work only 174 student days per school year. Could they be excluded as seasonal employees?

No.  A paraprofessional position is not seasonal in nature, as it is not related to a specific season or seasons of the year. The position may require the employee to report to work for only 174 days in a school year, but the period of employment is for the 9 or 10 month school year. Moreover, PERA’s exclusion for a seasonal position requires the duration of employment to be limited by the employer to 185 consecutive calendar days or less in each year of employment. This is approximately 6 months, give or take a few days.  The duration of the employment starts the first day the employee works and every subsequent calendar day is counted, regardless of whether the employee actually works on that day. 

We have a part-time employee who was enrolled in PERA. This individual also coaches baseball each spring. Can I exclude the coaching wages for this individual?

No, the employee’s coaching pay is subject to PERA deductions as of Jan 1, 2015 because the coaching job is not the sole position with a single employer.

An on-call employee for our City who was excluded from PERA because they were not expected to meet the salary threshold has just accepted a seasonal position as a golf course attendant. What should we do?

Project the total earnings from both positions for the next 12 months to determine whether the employee’s gross pay is anticipated to exceed the $5100 annual threshold. If it is, enroll the employee when the attendant position begins.

We have a seasonal employee who is unexpectedly working longer than 185 days. Do we have to submit contributions back to when he first started?

No. If the original employment dates fit PERA’s definition of a seasonal position, you must review the earnings of the employee once you know that the term of employment will exceed 185 days. If you anticipate that the employee will exceed the annual earnings threshold, you must complete the PERA enrollment immediately.  Do not wait until 185 days has passed; the seasonal exclusion becomes invalid at the time it is known that the position term will be extended beyond 185 days.

A seasonal employee is starting on March 1. However, we do not know how long they will work for us. Can we exclude them as a seasonal employee?
No. In order to qualify for exemption from PERA membership as a seasonal employee, the employment period must be pre-determined to be 185 calendar days or less. In this example, you must enroll the employee into PERA immediately if you project that the annual earnings will exceed the annual threshold.
If you are unable to accurately predict the annual earnings and no other exclusion applies, you have the option to exclude the employee and monitor earnings, or to provisionally enroll him/her into PERA. If you choose to enroll the person in PERA, you must give the Notice of Non-Covered Employment or Provisional Coverage to the employee within two weeks of making the PERA eligibility decision.  
If a seasonal employee is hired for another seasonal position after the first employment ends, do we need to enroll the employee in PERA?

When someone holds consecutive seasonal positions, eligibility is dependent on the length of the break between the two positions.

If there is a 30-day (or more) break between them, the 185-day window ‘resets’ and you look at the duration of each position independently. For example, if the first position had an employment period of 120 calendar days, a break of 45 days occurred and then the employment period for the second seasonal job was 185 days, the employee is excluded from PERA under two separate seasonal employee exclusions.

On the other hand, if the break between the two positions is not less than 30 days, the 185-day window continues. Example: the first position is 120 calendar days. A 15 day break occurs before the person is hired to a second seasonal job that will last 185 calendar days. In this case, you must make an eligibility determination based on anticipated annual earnings because you know that the total employment period (position 1 plus position 2) will extend beyond the 185 calendar days allowed under the seasonal employee exclusion. If the annual earnings are expected to exceed the threshold, enroll the employee at the start of the second position.

What about multiple seasonal positions? We have someone who plows snow for us in the winter and does road-grading in the summer.

If the seasonal work is the employee’s only employment with your agency, it is possible this could be treated as two separate seasonal positions.  You must look at the length of the break between the two positions. If there is at least a 30-day break between the end of snow-plowing and the beginning of road-grading (and then again between when the road-grading ends and snow-plowing begins again), then you can consider each a separate seasonal position.

However, if one or both of the breaks are less than 30 days, you must review the earnings of the employee and enroll him/her immediately if annual earnings are expected to exceed $5100. You should also ensure that the person is an employee rather than an independent contractor. For information on this, refer to the Independent Contractor or Employee Brochure and Worksheet.