Announcements from the Senior Vice President

Effective January 4, 2021, the final approval for exception for the release of all personnel transactions will be the responsibility of the respective cabinet officer.  Approved Exception Request Forms (ERFs) should be attached to personnel transactions in accordance with the Hiring Freeze Guidelines and submitted directly to the appropriate UHR unit for processing (i.e. transactions should no longer be submitted to OneSource).  Each chancellor unit has put in place internal procedures to allow for the monitoring, review, and approval of personnel transactions in accordance with the Hiring Freeze Guidelines.

Dear Colleagues:

Pursuant to university policy and negotiated agreements, the University Holiday and Closings Schedules for calendar year 2021 and 2022 have been posted in the Quick Links section on the UHR homepage and can be found here. The posted schedules are reflective of holidays and closures for all Rutgers entities. Please review the list and plan accordingly.

Sincerely,

Vivian Fernández
Senior Vice President Human Resources

In order to continue to support social distancing, the telecommuting rule relaxation policy set to expire on December 31, 2020 has been extended through March 31, 2021.  Telecommuting is automatically updated and does not require a new or revised request unless there has been a change to your work schedule.

As a reminder, telecommuting is a work arrangement in which some or all work is performed from home or other off-site location.  In general, regular office hours are worked, however a department head may approve a work schedule outside of regular business hours.

We continue to encourage department heads to be flexible in allowing telecommuting arrangements where feasible.

Dear Rutgers Colleagues,

The New Jersey Division of Pensions and Benefits (NJDPB) has designated October 1, 2020 – October 31, 2020 as Open Enrollment. Open Enrollment is your yearly opportunity to review benefits and make changes for the next calendar year. While more information regarding Open Enrollment will be available later this month, we wanted to provide an important update regarding a change to the Open Enrollment process.

Dear Rutgers Colleagues:

We are pleased to announce that Rutgers University and Teamsters Local 97 have reached agreements that will help to address our current fiscal crisis while protecting jobs and securing salary increases and benefits. Teamsters Local 97 represents nearly 1,700 university employees in the clerical, paraprofessional, technical, service, and maintenance fields.

The past few months have been extraordinarily challenging, but through those challenges you have once again demonstrated that our employees are our greatest asset. During this time of crisis, you have come together as leaders and professionals, demonstrating a caliber of expertise, dedication, flexibility, and innovation that has allowed Rutgers to serve as a model in supporting our students and caring for our patients, while managing the financial, operational, and human impacts of this pandemic.

Dear Rutgers Colleagues:

We are pleased to announce that Rutgers University and the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Local 888 and Local 1761 have reached a tentative agreement for a shared work/furlough program. The tentative agreement will protect approximately 450 jobs within the Division of Institutional Planning and Operations and the Douglass Developmental Disabilities Center. The tentative agreement must still be ratified by the union membership, and the shared work program is subject to approval by the State of New Jersey.

Dear Colleagues,

This is to provide clarification related to the recent announcement of leave benefits under Emergency Paid Sick Leave Act (“EPSLA”) and Emergency Family and Medical Leave Expansion Act (“E-FLMA”). Employees wishing to apply for EPSLA and/or E-FMLA should submit their requests through the OneSource Portal. In addition, please note the following important information:

Dear Rutgers Colleagues:

As we approach the end of the current fiscal year, I am writing to remind you that, pursuant to university policy and negotiated agreement, staff employees who are eligible to accrue paid time off may only carry forward into the next fiscal year the equivalent of one year of accrued vacation days. In order to avoid forfeiting credited vacation time in excess of the carryover cap, staff members are encouraged to work with their supervisors now to review workload and staffing requirements for their department, and to develop a plan to use excess vacation time prior to June 30, 2020.

It is time for our first non-aligned employee End of Year Review process under our new online process. The End of Year Review is an opportunity to celebrate accomplishments and discuss goals for the coming year. It is also an opportunity for employees and manager to discuss strengths and identify areas of further development in relation to position-specific responsibilities, overall performance, and career aspirations. The End of Year Review process will run from May 5, 2020 through June 30, 2020.

Dear Colleagues,

As a follow-up to my communication last week, the following is the guidance promised explaining how COVID-19 leaves will be managed as we transition from Rutgers COVID-19 Paid Leave (CPL), which will end on May 8th, to the Emergency Family and Medical Leave Expansion Act (“E-FMLA”) and Emergency Paid Sick Leave Act (“EPSLA”) provisions of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (“FFCRA”). These new processes and guidelines will be effective May 9, 2020 through December 31, 2020. We continue to urge all supervisors to use their discretion in working with employees to allow for flexible telecommuting workplans, flexible work schedules, and split shift agreements to the extent possible.

Dear Rutgers Colleagues:

Governor Murphy recently signed Executive Order 155 which among other things, relaxes rules related to the hiring practices for COVID-19 related work, (a) eligible retirees would be able to return to work sooner than previously allowed and (b) there would be a temporary waiver of the 2-month waiting period for health insurance enrollment for new hires.

REHIRING RETIREES – COVID-19 RELATED HIRE

Eligible retirees who are working on COVID-19 related work would be eligible for temporary re-employment after a 30-day severance. This is a relaxation of the 180-day severance previously required by the State.

Dear Colleagues,

This is to provide an update on the status of the telecommuting and leave rule relaxation policies Rutgers enacted in March and are set to expire on April 30, 2020. In order to continue to support social distancing, the university will:

Rutgers University supervisors must complete annual performance evaluations for aligned Rutgers staff and notify employees of their appraisal results. This process allows managers and employees to engage in a thoughtful dialogue about the year’s performance and accomplishments, and to define goals and objectives for the upcoming performance cycle.

Dear Colleagues,

The government closures effected in order to slow the spread of COVID-19 have resulted in significant delays in the processing of pre-employment background checks. As we continue to assess our current policies and procedures in order to support the continued operations of the university, we are implementing a COVID-19 temporary relaxation of the Background Checks for Staff and Faculty Positions Policy (60.1.30). The COVID-19 policy relaxation will allow candidates to commence employment pending the completion of the full background check process if the candidate clears the Sex Offender Registry portion of the background check. At this time, the policy relaxation will apply to all Rutgers entities.

COVID-19 Temporary Relaxation of Background Check Policy

Dear Rutgers Colleagues:

As part of University Human Resources’ continued efforts to provide employees information and guidance during this time of uncertainty, we would like to share with you the new COVID-19 Telecommuting and Wellness website. This site provides guidelines and resources to help employees effectively manage working remotely and the stress that may come along with it. These resources focus on supporting the physical and mental wellbeing of our employees as they continue to adjust to workplace and life changes as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

AT THIS TIME, THE COVID-19 TEMPORARY RELAXATION OF BACKGROUND CHECK POLICY DOES NOT APPLY TO RBHS

Dear Colleagues,

Dear Rutgers Colleagues:

The University recognizes the very serious concerns of all within our community regarding the current public health emergency.

To that end, the University is committed to helping slow the spread of COVID-19. Understanding and considering the need to balance employee concerns related to their own health and the health of loved ones while maintaining required operations, the following temporary measures are being implemented, effective immediately:

Over the past two months, members of the university community have received communications regarding suggested health precautions and strategies to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 virus. This memorandum is intended to provide additional guidance to supervisors in managing COVID-19 virus-related employment issues.

This communication relates to the performance evaluation processes for aligned and non-aligned Rutgers staff.  Each year, Rutgers University supervisors are expected to conduct performance evaluations for their employees in accordance with university policy and collective negotiations agreements.