East Carolinian

Issue date: 9/4/08 Section: News

Media Credit: MCT

Starting Aug. 1, student and faculty employees no longer had the choice of receiving paper checks. By Aug. 15, approximately 60 students out of the roughly 3,000 ECU student employees had yet to sign up to have their money sent to a bank account via direct deposit, according to Larry Donley, director of the student employment office. By Sept. 3, the number of students and faculty employees not enrolled in the direct deposit program was about the same, said Marjorie Sutton, payroll director.

Student employees include federal work-study, self-help, graduate and undergraduate assistant employees.

Students have known about the switch since April 1, according to Donley.

"We've given students ample warning and notice," said Donley. "We are giving [employees] a grace period until the Oct. 31 pay check, but we obviously want them to get it done as soon as possible."

Sutton says that more students have signed up for direct deposit than at the beginning of the summer, when 227 employees failed to make the switch.

"We've tried to educate departments that this is mandatory and that you need to include this [the direct deposit forms] as a part of your hiring packet," said Sutton. "This is the way that all companies are going these days."

Up until Oct. 31, students who have failed to sign up for direct deposit will only be able to retrieve their checks at certain times and at certain places. When students go to pick up their checks, they will be reminded to fill out a direct deposit form. If checks are not picked up within the designated time and place, they will be mailed to the address on the paycheck.

"Legally, we have to pay every employee that puts in the time," Donley said. "But we are trying to get every student in compliance [with this system]."

Donley says that there might be several reasons why students have not made the switch to direct deposit-employees have not gotten word of the change, which Donley finds "hard to believe," or that changes in different student employment organizations have hindered the process; like a change in leadership or location.

The idea to change from paper checks to direct deposit was not exclusive to the officials at ECU. The entire UNC system, headed by President Erskin Bowles, made the switch for all 16 universities within the system.

"This change will save ECU money, be good for the community and good for the state of North Carolina," Donley said. "The bottom line is that students will get their money much quicker and much easier."

"In the past, checks were delivered to departments," Sutton said. "We had to deal with students not finding their check on payday [but] if they are on direct deposit, the student knows that in the morning [of payday] their money will more than likely be in their account."

The next pay period will more accurately show how many students and faculty employees have made the leap to direct deposit, according to Sutton.

"The next pay period will give a true picture of how well this process is working," she said. "We've worked really hard to put this process in place."

Students can use any financial institution they want as long as that institution accepts direct deposit. Students also have the option of using their Higher One card as means for their direct deposit.

For more information about the mandatory direct deposit program, visit ecu.edu/hireapirate.



This writer can be contacted at editor@theeastcarolinian.com.

Page 1 of 1

Article Tools