UPbeat

News for and about University of Portland faculty and staff.

Human Resources

COVID Updates, Reminders

As a reminder, Multnomah County continues to be in Phase I of State of Oregon COVID-19 requirements, according to Sandy Chung, human resources. More information can be found using this link. All UP employees should continue to work remotely to the maximum extent possible consistent with their job duties. We ask employees to continue to be mindful about following this University direction which is based on the University’s commitment to our community’s wellness and Oregon legal requirements.

Please remember that masks should cover your nose and mouth. If an individual is age 5 years or older, masks, face coverings, or face shields are currently required statewide for:

  • All private and public workplaces — for example banks, classrooms, construction sites, offices and meeting rooms — unless someone is alone in an office or in a private workspace.
  • Indoor public spaces — for example grocery stores, pharmacies, public transit, personal services providers, restaurants, bars and retail stores.
  • Public and private colleges and universities, and private career schools.
  • Indoor and outdoor markets and street fairs.
  • Outdoor public spaces when physical distancing of at least six feet is not possible.
  • Individuals with a disability or medical condition may request accommodation from a business or public space if they cannot wear a mask.
  • State website link with mask requirement information.

Please make sure to follow UP’s mask policy which is consistent with Oregon’s statewide mask requirement.

Support available to UP employees includes:

This primary source of information about COVID-19 as it pertains to the UP community is www.up.edu/coronavirus. It is strongly recommended that employees review the information on the site regularly.

As the University’s vice president for human resources and designated social distancing officer, I welcome your questions and requests for assistance. Please contact me at chung@up.edu or by calling (503) 943-8484. Also, anonymous reports or concerns can be shared via this link: www.lighthouse-services.com/up.

 

Open Enrollment Time: Nov. 5 Through Nov. 20

The University’s 2020 Open Enrollment period runs from Wednesday, November 5 through Friday, November 20, 2020. This is the time to either confirm or change medical and dental coverage, enroll in supplemental life insurance, and elect flexible spending accounts (FSA) for the coming 2021 calendar year.

The Open Enrollment Tool and the FSA Enrollment Form will be available on the HR website starting the first day of Open Enrollment. Information and instructions will be mailed to employees this week along with an an e-mail communication beginning Thursday, November 5.

Questions? Please contact Laura Barnard or Theresa Knott at benefits@up.edu.

Invitation To Join Work Of The Title IX Team

As you may have seen recently in The Beacon, all members of the UP community are invited to attend Title IX Advisory Committee meetings. The work of preventing and responding to sexual and gender-based harassment, misconduct, and violence and the barriers to education they create, requires our entire community and cannot be the lone work of a committee or office.

There will be one more Title IX Advisory Committee meeting (via Zoom) in October; we hope you can join us.

On October 22, 9 to 10 a.m., we will have a remote meeting on Zoom. At this meeting we will be discussing the relevance of “The Bystander Moment” in our UP community and other agenda items relevant to the work of the Title IX Office and our community.

Remote meetings can be accessed by using this link.

Please communicate your interest in attending meetings and topics you’d like the committee to address at future meetings at this link. Knowing ahead of time who is planning to attend meetings allows for efficient sharing of information in our remote format.

We look forward to hearing from you and discussing these important topics with our community.

If you have any questions or need any accommodations to fully participate, please contact Sarah Meiser, deputy Title IX coordinator for compliance, at meisers@up.edu.

 

2020 Professional Development Week, October 12-16

The human resources office has set up Zoom workshops for UP employees this week, according to Sandy Chung, HR. Because these workshops are voluntary, they can be done during your work time as approved by a supervisor or outside your work time if you wish to participate voluntarily for your own enrichment. Employees with any type of furlough are welcome to participate.

Please email hr@up.edu if you have any questions.

Also, we encourage you to participate in the diversity, inclusion, and equity workshops presented by the Office of International Education, Diversity and Inclusion, International Programs, and Studies Abroad. The next workshop is, “Understanding One’s Own Identity & Implicit Bias,” October 23, 4:15-6:45 p.m. Last day to sign up is October 21, by 3 p.m. RSVP via Engage at this link.

New UP Policy: Workplace Fairness Act

The State of Oregon passed a law called the Workplace Fairness Act, and the President’s Leadership Cabinet has implemented a new University policy consistent with this law, according to Sandy Chung, human resources. This new policy is called the Addendum to Harassment and Discrimination Policies. All University employees are encouraged to review this policy. This policy has links to other relevant policies and resources embedded in it, and it will be uploaded to up.edu/hr/workplace-concerns.

The Human Resources team is preparing several voluntary online workshops for UP employees during fall break week (October 12-16). Several of these workshops are on topics related to self-care. As well, there will be a Zoom workshop during fall break week about harassment and discrimination policies and processes at UP. Human resources will provide more information about these workshops next week.

If you have questions or need assistance, please reach out to hr@up.edu.

Notice About Change to Retirement Plan

University president Fr. Mark Poorman, C.S.C.. and interim VP for financial affairs Eric Barger have notified the UP community that, in the face of unprecedented financial shortfalls due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the University would be pausing employer contributions to retirement plans. Consistent with these prior messages, the Office of Human Resources will have a notice about this change mailed to all employees. You can also access a pdf of this notice at this link: Notice About Change of University of Portland’s Employer Contribution Rate for Retirement Plan.

As well, it has been a difficult week with the wild fires in Oregon. If you need any type of support, please let us know in Human Resources so we can support you.

Support available to all employees

Campus Ministry – ministry@up.edu, (503) 943-7131

Employee Assistance Program (free and confidential) – www.up.edu/hr/benefits/eap, (800) 433-2320

Human Resources – hr@up.edu, (503) 943-8484

Sandy – chung@up.edu, (503) 943-8484 (office), (310) 779-2406 (cell phone)

TIAA Counseling Sessions: Schedule Now

Rebecca Rohleder, our TIAA financial consultant, is currently scheduling online appointments through the link below, according to Laura Barnard, human resources.

Go to TIAA – Schedule Now or call TIAA at 877.842.2028, press 5 to schedule an appointment today.

Visit TIAA website and follow the simple instructions to sign up for access to your retirement accounts online. If you have any questions, please contact our benefits team at  benefits@up.edu.

Mid-Year Open Enrollment Period Offering, July 15-21

Due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, a mid-year open enrollment period will be offered to benefited employees starting on Wednesday, July 15, and will run through Tuesday, July 21, 2020. During this mid-year open enrollment, benefited employees can elect prospective changes to existing flexible spending accounts, enroll in a flexible spending account and/or make changes to their healthcare elections which includes add/drop coverage or change plan selections. Any change requests made during this special open enrollment will go into effect August 1, 2020.

Many people have been unable to spend their childcare or medical FSA funds due to inability to access care due to COVID shutdowns, so this would allow employees to stop contributing to FSA accounts when they are unable to have expenditures. For the healthcare, some people may want to change to the costlier plan if they are in need of monetary savings due to the economy, or some may need coverage when it wasn’t needed before.

Change request forms will be posted on the Open Enrollment page of Pilots UP at 7 a.m. on Wednesday, July 15, 2020. No action will be needed from employees who choose not to make changes during this mid-year open enrollment period. The standard annual enrollment will occur in the Fall of 2020 for coverage effective January 1, 2021.

For more information contact Laura Barnard, human resources, at x8752 or barnardl@up.edu.