April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month

April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month. At UW-Green Bay, students reported overall positive perceptions of the school climate in dealing with sexual harassment and working toward assault prevention, response and treatment, although University officials acknowledged that there is always room for improvement.

The university maintains a Sexual Misconduct Policy along with a dedicated Title IX and Clery website devoted to resources related to these areas.

For more information on sexual assault prevention and treatment among the student population, please see the Inside UW-Green Bay News Article.

Acceptable Use Policies for Information Technology Resources

The University of Wisconsin System has adopted two policies that will govern the Acceptable Use for Information Technology Resources for our campus.  All students, employees, and guests are bound by these policies:

These policies replace all previous campus acceptable use policies pertaining to the use of information technology resources. Additional communication will be forthcoming regarding required training and acknowledgement of these updated policies.

Self Insurance & Regionalization: What’s coming and where to get more information

As communicated in a prior post, the Group Insurance Board (GIB) approved a motion to move to a self-insured health insurance model for State Group Health effective January 2018.  Under the self-insured model, the Department of Employee Trust Funds (ETF) would hold health insurance funds in a reserve to pay individual health care claims instead of paying health insurance companies a fixed dollar amount for employee health insurance.  In addition to moving to a self-insured model, the GIB also approved changes to the service model to regionalize the health plans, dividing the state into four regions.  This regionalization will move the State Group Health Insurance from 17 options to 6 regional options.  In addition, there will be 1 statewide/nationwide option.  Brown County and the greater Green Bay area will be under the Eastern region, with two regional vendors, Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield and Network Health Administrative Services.

Review this helpful short video to learn more about Self Insurance and Regionalization and what it means for you.

Self Insurance

Please contact out office at (920) 465-2390 or payrollandbenefits@uwgb.edu with any quesitons.

Title and Total Compensation Study selects vendor

The UW System Title and Total Compensation Advisory council has finalized their review and issued a Letter of Intent to Mercer consulting as the selected vendor for the UW System Title and Total Compensation Study.

Mercer is a global leader in consulting on high quality workforce solutions that strengthen the organization’s ability to attract, develop, retain and engage the best and brightest talent. Their vast experience with higher educational institutions and systems combined with their expertise in  titling and compensation strategies in academic and research environments is critical as we move forward. For more information on Mercer, go to their homepage.

Mercer resources will work in tandem with UW System and UW-Madison to develop a communication strategy and project plan.

For background and additional historical information regarding this study, please see the UW System Title and Total Compensation Website.

 

 

FLSA conversions on hold following judge’s injunction

As previously communicated, a U.S. District Court judge from Texas issued a preliminary injunction postponing the effective date of the U.S. Department of Labor’s overtime threshold increase.  Based upon this injunction, planned and previously communicated employee conversions from exempt to nonexempt status and other position adjustments have been put on hold.  More information, including some helpful FAQ’s can be found below:

What happened?

After hearing arguements from the DOL and 21 states/50 or more business groups that had challenged the DOL’s change, judge Amos L. Mazzant issued a preliminary injunction against the changes.

Is this a final decision that permanently puts an end to the rule?

No. The overtime rule could still be implemented later down the road.

A preliminary injunction isn’t permanent, as it simply preserves the existing overtime rule—which was last updated in 2004—until the court has a chance to review the merits of the case objecting to the revisions to the regulation.

However, the revised regulation may face an uphill battle: The judge wouldn’t have granted the preliminary injunction unless, among other things, he thought the challenge had a substantial likelihood of succeeding.

[Read more: Federal Judge Halts Overtime Rule]

What’s next?

Employees and supervisors have been notified today and further information will be communicated as it becomes available.  Supervisor and Employee question and answer sessions have been scheduled and communicated to affected parties.

For further questions, please contact Christine Olson at olsonch@uwgb.edu or (920) 465-2846.

FLSA Injunction Granted

preliminary injunction has been issued to postpone the effective date of the U.S. Department of Labor’s overtime threshold increase. More information on the impacts of this injunction will be forthcoming.  As soon as we have more information on the impact this will have on our employee population and determine appropriate next steps we will be in touch.

For further information, please see this article from the Society of Human Resources Management.

Updated I-9 Form Released

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) published the revised version of the Form I-9 Employment Eligibility Verification. The updated form includes a separate Instructions Page for Form I-9.

By January 22, 2017 employers must use only the new version, dated 11/14/2016 N.

Among the changes in the new version, Section 1 asks for “other last names used” rather than “other names used,” and streamlines certification for certain foreign nationals.

Other changes include:

  • The addition of prompts to ensure information is entered correctly.
  • The ability to enter multiple preparers and translators.
  • A dedicated area for including additional information rather than having to add it in the margins.
  • A supplemental page for the preparer/translator.

The instructions have been separated from the form, in line with other USCIS forms, and include specific instructions for completing each field.

The revised Form I-9 is also easier to complete on a computer. Enhancements include drop-down lists and calendars for filling in dates, on-screen instructions for each field, easy access to the full instructions, and an option to clear the form and start over. When the employer prints the completed form, a quick response (QR) code is automatically generated, which can be read by most QR readers.

For questions on the revised Form I-9, please contact HR at (920) 465-2390 or hr@uwgb.edu.

FLSA Updated Threshold Implementation- December 1, 2016

Various sessions were held earlier this month to communicate the implications of the U.S. Department of Labor revised provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) salary threshold. For reference, both sessions can be accessed below. Below is a recap of several action items to consider as the December 1 implementation date approaches:

Supervisors (Recorded Supervisor Session):

  • Provide employees with expectations for time reporting and work hours.
  • Be aware of the bi-weekly payroll schedule and the dates that both timesheets are due and hours need to be approved.
  • Define pre-approval process for overtime/comp time. Understand what your departmental stance is for OT/Comp.
  • Review guidelines for comp time (UW-Green Bay Compensatory Time Policy).
  • Ensure compensatory time doesn’t inhibit vacation/personal holiday use.
  • Evaluate work responsibilities if necessary and determine any adjustments that need to be made.
  • Discuss and define for your department:
    • Standard work hours and expectations
    • Work at home- what is acceptable and/or expected
    • Break and meal periods
    • Training, travel time, work while traveling
    • Volunteering

Employees (Recorded Employee Session):

  • Direct Deposit– if you currently have multiple accounts, you may need to adjust the amount/percentage of payroll being deposited now on a biweekly basis.
  • W-4 withholdings– if you currently have certain amounts setup for withholding, you may want to consider revising for the updated biweekly payroll period.
  • TSA 403(b) Plans– elections that were setup to take monthly will still be taken biweekly unless a new Salary Reduction Agreement is completed.
  • Wisconsin Deferred Compensation- elections that were setup to take monthly will still be taken biweekly unless a change request is completed or by contacting WDC directly at 1-877-457-9327.
  • Any employee garnishments will be reviewed and re-distributed by the UW Service Center.

Our office will be sending out detailed instructions on the timesheet entry and approval process as we get closer to December 1st.

If you have questions, please contact Human Resources at (920) 465-2390 or hr@uwgb.edu. If you are interested in a meeting regarding specific situations related to your department, please contact Melissa Nash at (920) 465-2103 or nashm@uwgb.edu.

Policy on Paid Leave Bank and Vacation Cash Payouts

As communicated recently, UW Green Bay has developed a policy on Paid Leave Bank and Vacation Cash Payouts.  This policy has been developed based upon recently implemented changed by UW System to the accounting process for ALRA & Sabbatical leave payouts.  In an effort to reduce the fiscal and operational impact to departments while establishing a consistent administration of accumulated paid leave bank and vacation payouts.

Please review the full policy and notable highlights below:

Upon Hire
Employees hired to UW-Green Bay from other agencies shall have all accrued leave paid out by the prior employer.

Movement
Internal: UW-Green Bay employees moving from a leave eligible position to another leave eligible position will retain all accrued leave and transfer this to the new appointment.

External: UW-Green Bay employees moving to another agency of the state or UW System employer shall transfer all leave accrued to the new leave-eligible appointment at the approval of the new employer.  If not accepted by the new employer, any accrued/banked leave shall be paid out as a lump sum on the final payroll with UW-Green Bay.

Resignation/Retirement
Effective November 1, 2016, employees who resign or retire from UW-Green Bay will end their employment on the last day physically worked.  Any remaining accrued/banked leave will be paid out as a lump sum on the final payroll.

Current employees who submit a resignation notice no later than December 31, 2016 will be eligible for limited continuation of the current practice regarding payroll extension through the use of banked leave (ALRA/sabbatical), vacation and vacation carryover so long as the requesting employee’s last day on payroll is not later than June 30, 2017.

Please contact Human Resources with any questions on this updated policy.

 

Title and Total Compensation Study Update

An update was provided to the advisory council August 24, 2016 regarding stakeholder feedback on the Request for Proposal (RFP), project coordinator position, and next steps in the Title and Total Compensation Study process.  Information on the feedback received and next steps in this process can be reviewed in this UW System Power Point presentation.

For more information about this process, please see the UW System Title and Total Compensation Study website.