Category: Payroll & Benefits

Benefit Insurance Premiums: Deduction Schedule Change

Starting in 2024, the payroll deduction schedule for most benefits will be changing. Please review the information below to learn about the change and how it may affect your paycheck.

Currently, benefit insurance premiums for most benefits are deducted one month prior to the coverage month (for example, deductions in November are for December coverage). Starting in 2024, benefit insurance premiums will be deducted in the same month as the coverage month (for example, deductions in January will be for January coverage).

If you are currently enrolled in any of the benefit plans listed in the left column of the chart below, you will not have these benefit insurance premiums deducted from your December 14 and December 28 paychecks. You may have more take-home pay on these paychecks.

Benefit Plans Affected
Premiums Not Deducted in December 2023		 Benefit Plans Not Affected
Contributions/Premiums to Continue in December 2023
State Group Health Insurance Income Continuation Insurance
Dental Insurance Flexible Spending Accounts
Vision Insurance Health Savings Account
Life Insurance University Insurance Association Life Insurance
Accidental Death & Dismemberment Insurance Health Opt-Out Incentive
Accident Insurance Wisconsin Retirement System (WRS)
UW 403(b) Supplemental Retirement Program *
Wisconsin Deferred Compensation 457 Program*

*Contributions will be deducted from 24 pay periods. If you participate in these programs, you have received an email providing additional information.

Your benefits coverage will remain active in December 2023 because your December premiums will be deducted in November. Deductions for benefit insurance premiums will resume on your January 11, 2024, paycheck.

You do not need to take any action in response to this announcement. Your benefit deductions will automatically be stopped on your December 2023 paychecks and will automatically resume in January 2024. Benefit deductions can be reviewed on your earning statement for each payroll. See Access Your Earning Statement for more information.

Payroll Schedules

If you have questions about the payroll deduction schedule changes, please email serviceoperations@support.wisconsin.edu.

Source: Universities of Wisconsin Office of Human Resources

Review/Update Your Address and Personal Information

Please review and update your personal information, including address and payroll information, periodically to make sure all information is accurate. A current address is important so that the Universities of Wisconsin may contact you if needed. Your address is also used to mail important tax documents in 2024 unless you have consented to electronic distribution of your tax documents.

You can update this information in the My UW portal.

The Personal Information Help Video and Tipsheets tab provides resources for making updates to the following:

  • Address
  • Contact Details (phone number and email)
  • Emergency Contacts
  • Release Home Address Information
  • Preferred Name
  • Marital Status
  • Other Health Insurance
  • Medicare Information
  • Ethnicity Information*
  • Veteran Status*
  • Disability Status*

Payroll Help provides tipsheets for making updates to the following:

  • Form W-4
    • The IRS Tax Withholding estimator tool can help determine appropriate deductions.
  • Direct Deposit

For questions contact serviceoperations@support.wisconsin.edu.

* Demographic Information Request

Annually, the Universities of Wisconsin are required to report employee demographic information to comply with federal Affirmative Action regulations.

As part of this process, you have the opportunity to self-identify as an individual with a disability and/or as a protected veteran. Submission of this information is voluntary and confidential. If you decide not to self-identify at this time, you may do so at any time in the future.

If you have questions or need a reasonable accommodation to perform your job duties, please contact Human Resources at hr@uwgb.edu or 920-465-2203.

Source: UW-Shared Services

University Staff: Reminder to Use Paid Leave Before Year-End

University Staff employees are encouraged to plan ahead and schedule paid leave now to avoid losing hours that are not eligible for carry over into 2024.

Personal, Legal and Floating Legal Holidays – Use by December 31, 2023
Personal, Legal, and Floating Legal Holidays granted for 2023 must be used by December 31, 2023, or they will be lost.

Floating Legal Holidays will be granted for December 24 and December 31, 2023, and must be used by December 31, 2023.

Vacation
All vacation hours carried over from 2022 must be used or banked (if eligible) by December 31, 2023, or they will be lost.

Vacation not used within the calendar year earned may be carried over until December 31 of the following year.

Leave Swap
Employees may swap unused vacation, personal and floating legal holiday hours for sick leave taken during the year. For University Staff employees requests to change or swap leave previously reported must be received Universities of Wisconsin Benefits (serviceoperations@support.wisconsin.edu) by the end of the calendar year in which the absence occurred.

Use the View Absence Balances tipsheet to review your Vacation Carryover, Personal Holiday, and Legal Holiday leave balances. Your Legal Holiday balance includes any Floating Legal Holiday hours.

Note: For Faculty, Academic Staff, and Limited Appointees, paid leave is granted on a fiscal year basis (July 1 – June 30).

UW System Policies:

Source: Universities of Wisconsin Office of Human Resources

Reminder on Deadlines for Submitting Your Flexible Spending Account (FSA) Claims

If you have a Flexible Spending Account (FSA), make sure you meet the deadlines to incur and submit eligible expenses. To be reimbursed from your 2023 Health Care FSA, you must incur eligible expenses by December 31, 2023. Then, submit and substantiate your expenses by March 31, 2024.

An FSA allows you to be reimbursed for certain out-of-pocket expenses with tax-free dollars. Since these are spending accounts, the money should be spent. Eligible expenses include:

  • Medical (post-deductible only if you are also in the HDHP and HSA)
  • Dental
  • Vision
  • Dependent Day Care

How to Pay for Eligible Expenses

For the Healthcare FSA, you can use your payment card from the FSA administrator (Optum) at the point of sale or service. You can also pay for your eligible expenses with a personal credit card, a debit card, cash, or check and submit your eligible expenses for reimbursement through Optum’s mobile app or website.

How to Submit Eligible Expenses for Reimbursement

The most efficient way to submit your eligible expenses for reimbursement is electronically by using the Optum mobile app or Optum website.

Remember to include the required IRS supporting documentation with your submission. Optum will contact you directly for additional information, if necessary. Failure to provide documentation when requested may require repayment through payroll on an after-tax basis. Substantiate your claims by December 31, 2023, to avoid the repayment process*.

*The repayment process applies to the Healthcare FSAs only; it does not apply to the Dependent Day Care Account.

Carryover Reminders

Up to $610 of unused funds in a Health Care FSA are eligible for carry over from 2023 to 2024. The carry over process happens after April 15, 2024.

  • Unused funds greater than $610 will be forfeited.
  • Unused funds less than $50 will also be forfeited if you did not re-enroll for the 2024 plan year during Annual Benefits Enrollment, which ended on October 20, 2023.

The IRS does not allow carryover for the Dependent Day Care FSA.

For questions about your claims, eligible expenses, or your payment card, contact Optum at (833) 881-8158.

For general information, review the FSA Enrollment Handbook.

Source: Universities of Wisconsin Office of Human Resources

Retirement Plan Contribution Limits Increase in 2024

Universities of Wisconsin employees will be able to contribute more to their retirement plans in 2024. The IRS recently announced an increase in the 2024 retirement plan contribution limits. The limits apply to the UW 403(b) Supplemental Retirement Program (SRP) and the Wisconsin Deferred Compensation (WDC) 457 Program.

Contribution Limit Increase
In 2024, employees may contribute a basic maximum of $23,000 to the UW 403(b) SRP (an increase from $22,500 in 2023). Employees age fifty and over can contribute an additional $7,500 (same limit as 2023) for a total of $30,500. These same limits apply to WDC and you may contribute the full amount to both the UW 403(b) SRP and WDC.

If you have 15 years or more of service with the Universities of Wisconsin and have contributed less than an average of $5,000 per year over your Universities of Wisconsin employment, you may have an additional “catch-up” opportunity with the UW 403(b) SRP.

Both pre-tax and Roth (after-tax) contributions count towards the annual limits. Note: Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs) are a type of retirement account separate from the UW 403(b) SRP and WDC Program and have separate limits.

Making Changes and Enrolling in the UW 403(b) SRP
To change (increase or decrease) your UW 403(b) SRP deduction:

  • Login to the My UW portal
  • Launch the Benefits Information tile
  • On the bottom of the screen, click on “Update 403(b) Deductions” and follow the additional instructions to make your change(s)

To enroll for the first time:

For questions on the UW 403(b) SRP, review the SRP web page.

Making Changes and Enrolling in the WDC (457) Program
To change your WDC contribution log into your account using the WDC website or call Empower, the third-party WDC plan administrator, at (877) 457-9327. The WDC website also has information about enrolling in the program. WDC changes must be made with Empower.

Reminder Supplemental Retirement Payroll Schedule Change
Effective January 2024 the payroll schedule for the UW 403(b) Supplemental Retirement Program (SRP) and Wisconsin Deferred Compensation (WDC) 457 Program is changing.

Currently, contributions to the UW 403(b) SRP and the WDC 457 Program are processed on every paycheck (typically 26 paychecks a calendar year). Starting in 2024, UW 403(b) SRP and the WDC contributions will be processed on the first two paychecks of each month (24 paychecks during the calendar year).

This change is being made to align the UW 403(b) and WDC contribution deduction schedule with other benefit plan deductions.

Additional information along with action that may be required was emailed to employees enrolled in these plans.

Questions
If you have questions after reviewing the available information, please email Universities of Wisconsin Benefits at serviceoperations@support.wisconsin.edu.

Source: Universities of Wisconsin Office of Human Resources

2023 Benefits and Wellness Fair

Thank you to everyone who visited the Benefits and Wellness Fair on Thursday, September 28th!  Twenty-two vendors attended and a lot of employees and retirees stopped by to learn more about their wellness, enjoy a cookie, talk about retirement or finances, or get answers to their insurance benefit questions.

 

 

Annual Benefits Enrollment Presentations

The 2024 Annual Benefits Enrollment (ABE) period is September 25 – October 20, 2023. This is your annual opportunity to enroll in or make changes to most of your benefits. Changes made during ABE are effective January 1, 2024.

Plan now so you are ready for the enrollment period.

UW System Human Resources is hosting virtual presentations to review the upcoming benefit changes and actions you may need to take. Presentations are scheduled for:

Registration is not required. To attend a session, click on the link above. To save the link to your Outlook calendar create a ‘New Appointment’ and copy and paste the link for the session you want to attend to the appointment.

The presentations will be approximately 45 minutes. You will have an opportunity to submit questions during the presentation (excluding personal health information). A recording of the presentation will be available on the ABE web page (following the first presentation).

UW System Human Resources

Deadlines to Use Floating Legal Holidays

This year, Sunday, December 24, 2023 (Christmas Eve) and Sunday, December 31, 2023 (New Year’s Eve) are floating legal holidays which eligible employees must use by the deadline.

A floating legal holiday occurs when a legal holiday falls on a Sunday, and the following Monday is also a legal holiday. The Sunday legal holiday will be available for eligible employees to use as floating legal holiday. Eligible employees are granted eight hours of floating legal holiday (prorated, if part-time).

  • University Staff employees must use these floating legal holidays by December 31, 2023, the end of the calendar year in which they were granted. If floating legal holidays are not used, they are lost and cannot be carried over into the new calendar year.
  • Academic Staff and Limited appointees must use these floating legal holidays by June 30, 2024, the end of the fiscal year in which they were granted. If floating legal holidays are not used, they are lost and cannot be carried over into the new fiscal year.

The UW System will be closed on Monday, December 25, 2023, and Monday, January 1, 2024, to observe these legal holidays.

Resources:

Source: UW System Human Resources

Annual Benefits Enrollment: 2024 State Group Health Insurance Premiums

The State Group Health Insurance premiums will be increasing in 2024.  The annual medical deductible for the High Deductible Health Plan (HDHP) and Access HDHP have increased to comply with federal requirements:

    • Individual: increased to $1,600
    • Family: increased to $3,200

Premium changes will be effective January 1, 2024. More information pertaining to the State Group Health Insurance program can be found on the UW System Annual Benefits Enrollment website.