It’s Back: Add Dollars to Your DukeCard

With the exception of vinyl records, few things in the world of technology come back around for a second run.

But in May, Duke’s Office of Information Technology reintroduced a popular service that disappeared in 2014 following a DukeCard system upgrade. The Flexible Spending Account, or FLEX, allows faculty and staff to use Duke@Work to add money to their DukeCard through payroll deduction. Once set up, the DukeCard can be used like a debit card at campus, medical center, and hospital dining facilities, stores and gift shops, and vending machines.

Susan Waters, one of 400 employees using the service when it ended, jumped at the chance to sign up when she heard the service was back. Waters, associate director in Undergraduate Admissions, started a monthly $10 payroll deduction to enjoy the flexibility to pick up lunch while out and about on campus.

“It’s my own little Duke savings account,” she said. “I don’t use it every month. Sometimes I’m away from campus on recruitment trips or reading applications. When I’m back on campus, I have more money in my account to use."

Waters uses FLEX mostly to purchase food on campus or to pick up a gift from Duke Stores, but she has also swiped her card to pay for tickets to a Duke Performances show.

“I would be in the Bryan Center and see a promotion for an interesting event, and I would use my card to get tickets,” she said. “I found that I didn’t go to as many things when I didn’t have the FLEX account.”

About 75 employees have already enrolled in the service since it has become available again. Enrollment can be done online through the My Pay section of the Duke@Work self-service website (work.duke.edu). Faculty and staff can elect to deduct any amount from each or any pay period, and deductions can be set up as a one-time transaction or on a recurring basis.

For more information about how to enroll or manage your DukeCard Flex payroll deduction, visit the OIT DukeCard website.