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Posts Tagged: Human Resources
Employees of UC ANR, we heard you
Through your comments on the three ANR@Work surveys, at the 2023 Statewide Conference, in our Town Halls, in the development of our Strategic Plan, in outreach sessions and other engagements, you shared your ideas, needs and experiences about working at UC ANR. Your feedback was and continues to be informative and powerful. It fuels our commitment to better UC ANR's work environment while we grow, adapt and deepen our impact on California's challenges and opportunities.
On Tuesday, Sept. 26, the fourth ANR@Work survey will be emailed to you. Please, take the time to respond to its questions. As the summary below shows, your voice is valued and critical to the ongoing success of our mission.
What follows is a snapshot, with links if you wish to learn more, of what has been done since the pandemic in three core internal areas: employee and organizational wellness, learning and development, and staffing and retention strategies.
Employee and Organizational Wellness
Employee comments emphasized the need for more knowledge about navigating within the UC ANR community. An urgency to address diversity and equity in the organization's programs and environment was also clear.
o Our first Director of Workplace Inclusion and Belonging was hired. Elizabeth Moon is responsible for developing and implementing diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, and programs for our community.
o An agreement with the UC Davis Ombuds Serviceswas established to strengthen employee resources for conflict management and problem solving.
o A partnership with the UC Davis Harassment and Discrimination Assistance and Prevention Programwas established to ensure objectivity.
o Delayed by pandemic restrictions, the first ANR Statewide Conference in five years was held with over 800 attendees, the highest attendance ever.
o Two new employee resource groups (ERGs) were established. The Latinx & Friends Affinity Group, UC ANR Black and Allied Employees, People of Color ERG, and the LGBTQ+ ERG all foster communication, support and opportunities for employees with shared interests or affiliations. Contact Bethanie Brown if you are interested in starting a new ERG.
o The UC ANR Staff Assembly, of which all staff employees are members, strengthened its education and wellness reimbursements, established an Employee Experience and Engagement Challenge, and expanded its communications through a new e-newsletter, The Current.
o To enhance customer service, all administrative service units took part in related trainings, surveyed customers to learn their needs, and are now creating action plans in response.
Learning and Development
UC ANR is a complex organization, and employees expressed the need to better understand it from the get-go. More seasoned employees look for professional development opportunities to improve specific skills and shape themselves for career advancement.
o We continue to invest in learning and development, which increased 35% in FY22-23 and will double in FY23-24. Additional trainings and professional development presentations were archived to serve as a resource available at any time.
o For new employees, more regular administrative and programmatic orientations were established, supported by less formal monthly virtual informational meetings and a New ANR Employee Guide.
o A nine-month mentorship program was established to enable staff mentees to better understand UC ANR, establish contacts and design their career paths, and for academic mentees to help with program planning, research collaboration, outreach and the merit and promotion process.
o Daniel Obrist was hired as academic vice provost of academic personnel and development to oversee the recruitment, development, mentoring and evaluation of UC ANR academics.
o As part of all UC ANR operations, less-formal opportunities are available to employees, such as serving on committees, employee groups and recruitment panels, and, in coordination with their supervisor, evaluating and improving current responsibilities.
Staff Planning and Retention
Salary competitiveness and equity continues to be very high priority for employees. The constriction and post-pandemic workforce instability impacted the staffing of units across the organization.
o Successful recruitment for vacant staff and academic positions increased 25% over last fiscal year, although much work remains to fill vacancies.
o A centrally funded process for recruitment advertising was created to accelerate recruitments.
o Internal promotions of current employees increased 20% over last year, and reclassifications of current employees were up 35% over last year.
o To recruit and retain quality employees in areas where current pay levels are below competitive levels and to provide a more transparent pay philosophy, a multi-year equity program was implemented for non-represented employees. An academic equity adjustment program is currently under review.
o All non-represented staff and academics received a general pay increase.
o All UC ANR collective bargaining agreements for represented staff are in place, with covered employees receiving guaranteed pay increases for the duration of their agreement.
o Guidance for managing visas and work eligibility of international employees was created.
o Several statewide programs and administrative units have undergone an organizational review and developed customized staffing plans, including career-ladder opportunities for current employees.
o UC ANR increased funding for the annual Staff Appreciation and Recognition awards.
Bethanie Brown
Interim Executive Director of Human Resources
Employee comment: Affiliations with certain health care organizations
The University of California Office of the President invites comments on the draft Presidential Policy on Affiliations with Certain Health Care Organizations, which supports the implementation of Regents Policy 4405. The policy makes revisions to the existing interim Presidential Policy, which was first circulated for systemwide review in March 2022. The policy has been revised to:
- Focus on UC values by enhancing the policy summary statement and addressing the importance of affiliations with government agencies;
- Clarify expectations of UC providers and define “emergency services” and “emergency medical conditions” under the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA) and the California Department of Managed Health Care;
- Specify implementation of the voluntary requirement for UC health trainees to support continuity of University training programs; and
- Reduce administrative burden for “limited affiliations,” while maintaining consistency with Regents Policy 4405.
The proposed revisions to the policy may be viewed at https://ucanr.edu/sites/PCPA/Revisions/.
If you have any questions or if you wish to comment on this policy revision, please contact Robin Sanchez at rgsanchez@ucanr.edu, no later than Oct. 11, 2023. Please indicate “Affiliations Policy” in the subject line.
Employee support resources available
Understanding our options for self-care and support may make a significant improvement in our health and well-being. We invite you to explore the generous benefit options that UC has to offer to help ease these stressful times.
- The Academic and Staff Assistance Program (ASAP) - Offers confidential, cost-free assessment, intervention, consultation and referral services to all UC ANR employees and their immediate families.
- Ombuds Office Services - The UC Davis Ombuds Office provides UC ANR staff and faculty with off-the-record conflict management services. The Ombuds Office focuses on helping employees to develop strategies for navigating challenging situations, planning for difficult conversations, and/or addressing conflict. The Ombuds Office operates confidentially, informally, impartially and independently. Staff and faculty can also learn strategies for improving conflict management and communication skills by attending Ombuds sponsored workshops. For details, please visit https://ombuds.ucdavis.edu/services/training.
- Reasonable Accommodations - Reasonable accommodation is a reasonable change or modification that will enable an employee to perform the essential functions of the job. If an employee has a medical condition that affects their ability to work within the conditions of their assignment, it is critical to engage in the interactive process and coordinate with Human Resources to ensure we are accommodating appropriately based on feedback from a medical provider.
- Family and Medical Leave (FML) - UC is committed to supporting faculty and staff who need time off to care for themselves, a family member or to bond with a new child. FML provides job protection when employees need time off for a number of reasons, consistent with federal and state law.
- Center for Advocacy, Resources and Education (CARE) - Provides free, confidential advocacy, support and healing services to survivors of sexual harassment and all forms of sexual violence, including sexual assault, intimate partner violence, and stalking.
- Child and Family Resources – A comprehensive listing of resources available to UC ANR employees including access to legal services, family care services and more.
- Catastrophic Leave Program – This program permits temporary salary and benefit continuation for eligible employees who have exhausted all paid leave credits as a result of a catastrophic illness or injury of an employee or family member, death of a family member, casualty loss suffered due to terrorist attack, fire or natural disaster.
- If you are interested in donating hours, please complete the donation form and send your e-mail directly to humanresources@ucanr.edu. Employees at or above their vacation accrual maximums are encouraged to donate.
If you have any questions or would like to discuss options further, please feel free to contact Jodi Rosenbaum at jrosenbaum@ucanr.edu for more information.
HR: Flexible Work Agreement forms now online
As many of you are already aware, UC ANR strives to be an employer of choice with a positive and engaged workforce. As part of our strategic goals to support our work environment and workforce, we have simplified the process to review proposed Flexible Work Agreements. The new online process will allow for clear workflow processing, faster approval times and better reporting for personnel, safety, risk and space related needs. The forms ensure all parties are aware of their rights and responsibilities in a flexible work environment.
Flexible Work Agreement forms
- All staff and academic employees requesting work schedules other than the traditional office-based, 8 a.m.-5 p.m., Monday-Friday workweek must submit an updated online Flexible Work Agreement Form for review and approval by the unit supervisor and director by July 31, 2023.
- Once the employee completes the online form, it will automatically route. Please see the Flexible Work Arrangements Approval Process for more information.
- Employees requesting fewer than two days on-site or 100% remote work arrangements must also have their respective Associate Vice President's approval for the exception.
- Business travel, fieldwork and community engagement activities (such as camp or county fair) will be considered “on-site” days for the purposes of this policy.
- Each department will have unique needs and expectations around flexible work opportunities therefore employees, supervisors and directors are encouraged to communicate clearly around those unique scheduling requests.
- While flexibility is encouraged, flexible work options are possibilities, not guarantees.
- Agreements will be reviewed annually during the performance review process.
- If you do not already have access to the Workflow Automation tool (WFA) and/or cannot access the online form, please contact IT at support@ucanr.edu.
Please find the updated Flexible Work Agreement Guidelines, FAQs and Approval Process on the Human Resources website. Individuals with questions may reach out to Human Resources for additional information and support.
Bethanie Brown
Human Resources Interim Executive Director
HR: Market Equity Adjustment Plan year two approved
Dear Colleagues:
Attracting and retaining highly qualified employees continues to be a top priority for UC ANR. It has been a critical part of our strategic plan and a key to our ability to deliver the mission. Over the last several years, the labor market has continued to change due to factors like the COVID-19 pandemic, inflation and shifts in the labor markets. Those factors have increased pressures on household budgets for many of our employees leading to a variety of efforts by UC ANR to address the needs of our employees.
I'm pleased to let you know that, as part of UC ANR's overall market-equity compensation strategy, I have approved year two of the accelerated two-year Market Equity Adjustment Plan for policy-covered (non-represented) staff. This program will ensure salaries of new and existing staff are aligned with the competitive labor market. This program is designed to be effective as of April 2023; changes in the paychecks of eligible employees will first be seen in May 2023.
Using UC Career Tracks, UC ANR Human Resources will be able to identify, review and address the salaries of policy-covered staff members whose pay is not well-aligned in their competitive zone targets. All career policy-covered staff, whose work performance meets expectation are eligible to participate in this plan, regardless of their position's funding source. Please note: these equity adjustments are separate and distinct from the UC systemwide salary program that may be approved and announced by President Drake. Additional information on program eligibility and payroll dates will soon be forthcoming.
If you are represented by an union, we are excited to share the positive news that all UC ANR collective bargaining agreements are signed and in place; meaning covered employees have guaranteed pay increases for the duration of their agreement.
Market compensation equity for UC ANR advisors is also under review. UC ANR is conducting a market survey with the assistance of the consulting firm Cotter & Sullivan. We expect that the result of this survey will inform potential equity action that should be taken for UC ANR to remain competitive.
UC ANR leadership is committed to the health and well-being of our employees. This Market Equity Adjustment program is designed to address compensation issues that may impact recruitment and retention efforts, program support, enhancements to business operations, communications and more. Questions and follow-up can be addressed to humanresources@ucanr.edu.
As always, many thanks for the great work you do to serve our mission and the people of California.
Glenda Humiston
Vice President
