UPbeat

News for and about University of Portland faculty and staff.

Human Resources

Title IX Advisory Meeting, April 26, 11 a.m.

All members of the UP community are invited to join the Title IX Advisory Committee and attend our meetings on Mondays at 11 a.m. this spring. Title IX Advisory Committee Meetings for Spring will take place at the following times on Zoom (https://uportland.zoom.us/j/97562343235). Our remaining meeting takes place on Monday, April 26, at 11 a.m.

If you aren’t able to make the Monday morning meetings you can stay in the loop about meeting discussion topics by checking out the meeting minutes available on the Title IX website, https://www.up.edu/titleix/titleixupdates.html.

Regardless of your ability to attend the Monday morning meetings, you’re invited to join a subcommittee to work toward positive change. Subcommittees focus on a particular need identified for our community and work towards their goals and meet outside of the main Title IX Advisory Committee meeting.

  • Cultural Change and Education Committee
  • Student Advocacy Program Committee
  • Non-UP Confidential Resource Program Committee

Please email titleix@up.edu if you are interested in joining a subcommittee. Contact Sarah Meiser, human resources, at 8484 or meiser@up.edu for more information.

Flexible Spending Account Changes

University of Portland is happy to announce some unique opportunities for Flexible Spending Accounts benefits this year per the Consolidated Appropriations Act which allows temporary changes to Section 125 cafeteria plans due to the COVID-19 pandemic:

  • All Medical and Dependent Care FSA unused 2020 account balances will automatically rollover into 2021 accounts and will be amounts that are in addition to 2021 elections.
  • Employees can elect up to $10,500 per household for Dependent Care Flexible Spending Accounts for the 2021 calendar year.
  • We are allowing employees to submit new enrollments or change requests to 2021 FSA elections during the month of April to go into effect May 1, 2021.  If you wish to enroll in an FSA plan please complete and submit the 2021 Flexible Spending Account (FSA) Enrollment.
  • All out-of-pocket amounts paid by an individual taxpayer for COVID-19 PPE for use by the taxpayer, the taxpayer’s spouse, or the taxpayer’s dependents after January 1, 2020 are eligible to be reimbursed under health FSAs and HSAs.

If you have any questions please reach out to the HR benefits team at benefits@up.edu.

Title IX Advisory Meeting, March 29

All members of the UP community are invited to join the Title IX Advisory Committee and attend our meetings on Mondays at 11 a.m. this Spring.

Title IX Advisory Committee Meetings for Spring will take place at the following times on Zoom (https://uportland.zoom.us/j/97562343235). Our remaining meetings are on:

  • Monday, March 29 at 11 a.m.
  • Monday, April 26 at 11 a.m.

If you aren’t able to make the Monday morning meetings you can stay up in the loop about meeting discussion topics by checking out the meeting minutes available on the Title IX website.

Regardless of your ability to attend the Monday morning meetings, you’re invited to join a subcommittee to work toward positive change. Subcommittees focus on a particular need identified for our community and work towards their goals and meet outside of the main Title IX Advisory Committee meeting.

  • Cultural Change and Education Committee
  • Student Advocacy Program Committee
  • Non-UP Confidential Resource Program Committee

Please email titleix@up.edu if you are interested in joining a subcommittee.

Human Resources: Information on Unemployment Fraud

Oregon and Washington State have reported an increase in fraudulent unemployment claims. Impostors are filing claims for unemployment benefits by using the names and personal information of people who have not filed claims. For more information about this issue, please visit the Oregon.gov and Oregon Department of Justice websites.

When unemployment claims are received by the Human Resources Department for active University employees, Human Resources may reach out to the employee to confirm that they did in fact file for unemployment.  If an employee reports that they did not file a claim, Human Resources will file the claim as fraudulent with the Unemployment Office and provide the employee with the resources listed below.

If you think a fraudulent unemployment claim has been submitted under your name, please contact Human Resources (hr@up.edu).

The Unemployment Office recommends the following steps and resources to protect your personal and financial information:

Complete the UI Fraud Referral Form:  Visit the site at this link and click “Report Identity Theft” on the left hand menu. (Also linked here)

Protect Your Finances: Visit www.IdentityTheft.gov to report the fraud to the FTC and get help with the next important recovery steps. These include placing a free, one-year fraud alert on your credit, getting your free credit reports, and closing any fraudulent accounts opened in your name. IdentityTheft.gov will also help you add a free extended fraud alert or credit freeze to your credit report. These make it more difficult for an identity thief to open new accounts in your name. 

Review your credit reports often. For the next year, you can check your reports for errors every week for free through www.AnnualCreditReport.com

 Contact the three major credit bureaus: Report to the credit bureaus that the fraudulent claim was made using your identity and provide them with the case number from your police report (if you have one). You can have a fraud alert put on your identity or freeze your credit. Doing either is free by law. To place a fraud alert, contact one of the three credit bureaus listed below.

  • Experian 1-888-397-3742
  • TransUnion 1-800-680-7289
  • Equifax 1-800-525-6285

File a nonemergency police report with the agency whose jurisdiction you live in.  For information from the City of Portland visit their website linked here.

Additional Resources

The Employee Assistance Program (EAP) provides ID theft assistance to University employees.  They have resources available on their site linked here.

Virtual UP Staff Luncheon: Dec. 21

Because of restrictions on public gatherings due to COVID-19, UP’s Staff Christmas Luncheon will be replaced by a special video program this year. Staff will receive an email around 11:45 a.m. on Monday, December 21, with a link to the prerecorded video. The program will include a Christmas greeting from University president Fr. Mark Poorman, C.S.C.; presentation of the staff awards; and recognition of new employees and employees celebrating milestones in their years of service at UP.

If you have questions, please contact hr@up.edu.

COVID Updates: Please Review Important Information

Here are some recent COVID updates for the UP community:

Required COVID-19 Training: OSHA is requiring that all employees complete a COVID-19 training. If you did not attend one of the Zoom trainings offered last week, please do the training on Moodle at: COVID-19 Training on Moodle.

Required COVID-19 Assessment: OSHA is requiring that employers gather work-related risk assessments related to COVID-19. All faculty and staff, whether you work on campus or are teleworking, are requested to fill out the assessment at: Covid-19 Risk Assessment. After a faculty or staff member fills out this form, it will be forwarded to their supervisor to review and approve. If you have questions, please email ehs@up.edu.

Non-Essential Travel & Quarantine Requirements: This is the guidance from the State of Oregon about non-essential travel and quarantine: “To fight the rapid spread of COVID-19, the governors of Oregon, Washington, and California issued travel advisories urging visitors entering their states or returning home from travel outside these states to self-quarantine. The advisories urge against non-essential out-of-state travel, ask people to self-quarantine for 14 days after arriving from another state or country, and encourage residents to stay local.” Oregon’s travel advisory does not apply to people who cross state borders for “essential travel,” including work, study, critical infrastructure support, supply chains, economic services, health, immediate medical care and safety and security. See more at this link.

All members of the UP community are strongly encouraged to follow COVID-19 related guidance from the State of Oregon.

Please note, if an employee is quarantining after engaging in non-essential travel and the employee is unable to telework during the quarantine period, the employee can use any accrued and available regular sick time and vacation time for related absences from work. COVID sick time is only applicable for COVID-19 related absences approved by HR such as when an employee is sick with COVID-19, tested positive for COVID-19, or needs to quarantine due to potential exposure to COVID-19.

Additional travel-related guidance from UP is here: travel related guidance.

Clarifications to Frequently Asked Questions

FAQ 1: Someone I had in-person contact with – such as a family member – has a COVID-19 symptom, but I don’t know if this person has COVID-19. What should I do?

Answer: Please stay home and contact Human Resources – text or call (971) 276-6854 or email hr@up.edu. Please do not come to campus until Human Resources approves.

FAQ 2: I telework 100% and tested positive for or was potentially exposed to COVID-19. What should I do?

Answer: Please contact Human Resources – text or call (971) 276-6854 or email hr@up.edu. It is helpful for Human Resources to be contacted for several reasons. First, some teleworking employees have had in-person contact with someone who works on campus, and the communication with Human Resources has helped the employee remember and share this information. Also, if a teleworking employee gets sick, Human Resources can provide support by applying COVID sick time and connecting the employee to other resources such as the Employee Assistance Program.

FAQ 3: A student employee may have COVID-19 or may have been exposed to it. What should I do?

Answer: Please contact Human Resources – text or call (971) 276-6854 or email hr@up.edu. The student employee’s supervisor should contact Human Resources directly in case the student employee forgets to do so. Also, please ask the student employee to not come to campus until Human Resources approves.

FAQ 4: I have a COVID-19 related question or situation, but I’m not sure what to do. What should I do?

Answer: Please contact Human Resources – text or call (971) 276-6854 or email hr@up.edu. If we cannot answer your question, we will connect you with the appropriate resource on campus.

Thank you for your efforts to keep our UP community safe. If you have any questions, please email hr@up.edu or ehs@up.edu.

Mandatory COVID-19 Training Sessions: Dec. 7, 8 Via Zoom

According to Sandy Chung, vice president of human resources, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has a new requirement that employees take a COVID-19 training. Sarah Schmits, environmental health and safety officer, will provide two training sessions this week via Zoom. Both sessions are the same; please select the time that works best for you.

Monday, December 7 at 11 a.m.
Zoom Link HERE
Passcode: Pilots1!

  • iPhone one-tap: +12532158782,,91090670427#,,,,,,0#,,80270674#  or +13462487799,,91090670427#,,,,,,0#,,80270674#
  • Telephone: US: +1 253 215 8782  or +1 346 248 7799  or +1 669 900 6833  or +1 301 715 8592  or +1 312 626 6799  or +1 929 205 6099

Webinar ID: 910 9067 0427
Passcode: 80270674

Tuesday, December 8, at 1 p.m.
Zoom link HERE
Passcode: Pilots1!

  • iPhone one-tap: +12532158782,,93154564629#,,,,,,0#,,86484155#  or +13462487799,,93154564629#,,,,,,0#,,86484155#
  • Telephone: US: +1 253 215 8782  or +1 346 248 7799  or +1 669 900 6833  or +1 301 715 8592  or +1 312 626 6799  or +1 929 205 6099

Webinar ID: 931 5456 4629
Passcode: 86484155

For those who are unable to attend one of the Zoom sessions next week, HR will send a link to the training via Moodle; the Moodle version of the training can be scheduled at your convenience.

If you have any questions, please email Schmits at schmits@up.edu.

Title IX Advisory Committee Meeting: Dec. 3

All members of the UP community are invited to join the Title IX Advisory Committee meeting to learn more about Title IX related policies, processes, and supports at UP and provide feedback and insight to help the Title IX office best serve our community.

The next Title IX Advisory Committee Meeting will be on Thursday, December 3, 9-10 a.m., on Zoom (https://uportland.zoom.us/j/97991828616). We hope you can join us.

The Title IX Advisory Committee has created three subcommittees to address needs in our community related to Title IX:

  • Cultural Change and Education Committee: designed for those interested in advocacy, getting information/resources out to campus, and being part of change change.
  • Student Advocacy Program Committee: designed to help build a student-driven advocacy program at UP.
  • Non-UP Confidential Resource Program Committee: designed to address student desire for an off-campus resource not affiliated with UP but likely located on campus.

Please let us know (titleix@up.edu) if you are interested in serving on a subcommittee or know someone who is. For more information contact Sarah Meiser, HR, at x8484 or meiser@up.edu.

Open Enrollment Open Now: Frequently Asked Questions Answered

Open Enrollment is happening now to renew or change medical, dental, flexible dpending accounts, supplemental life insurance, or Share the Savings plans. All benefitted employees must confirm or take this opportunity to change their healthcare and dental benefits each year.  You can do this today by logging into Online Open Enrollment and taking action at the bottom of the page. A change or confirmation must be done by 11:59 p.m. on Friday, November 20, 2020.

FAQ’S ABOUT OPEN ENROLLMENT

When is open enrollment? November 5, 2020, through 11:59 pm on Friday, November 20, 2020.

What is open enrollment? This is the period of time when you can sign up for new benefits or make changes to benefits. If you do not change benefits, you still need to confirm via Online Open Enrollment.

What happens if I miss the open enrollment deadline of 11:59 p.m. on November 20, 2020? If you miss the deadline, you will not be able to sign up for or make changes to benefits until open enrollment occurs next fall 2021, unless you have a situation that is considered a life event for benefits purposes.

Is there a grace period or can exceptions be made to the open enrollment deadline of 11:59 p.m. on November 20, 2020? Because of compliance requirements, there is no grace period and we cannot provide exceptions to the deadline.

What benefits are part of open enrollment? Medical and dental insurance (including Share the Savings benefits), flexible spending account benefits, and life insurance. You can find links to these forms on our HR Open Enrollment website.

Do I need to do anything if I have no changes? You still need to log into Online Open Enrollment and click on the confirm button.

Where can I find Health Plan Summaries? Health Plan documents are posted in the Human Resources pages in Pilots. Not all 2021 documents have been received by vendors so we will be posting them as they become available. Plans will remain the same as 2020. Rates can be found on the attached flyer.

If I need help or have questions, what should I do? You can email benefits@up.edu or leave a message at  503-943-8752.