Posts Tagged: coronavirus

Academics and staff may reduce work time

UC ANR recognizes the importance of helping employees manage a work/life balance. During the COVID 19 pandemic, it is understandable that some employees may wish to temporarily reduce their appointment time to address priority family and self-care needs. UC ANR is providing opportunities for flexible work schedules and reduced time appointments through programs such as the Employee-initiated Reduction In Time program (ERIT).

For academics, approvals for one year or less will be considered and are subject to renewal consideration. All requests to reduce the appointment time must be supported by supervisors. Final approval rests with AVP Wendy Powers. The academic or supervisor may end such approved arrangements with a 30-day advanced notice. 

Salary, monthly sick and vacation leave, and UCRP service credit accruals will be calculated on the reduced appointment percentage. You are also encouraged to contact the UC Davis Benefits Office to discuss the implication of healthcare coverage for any such reduced appointment.  

Academics who are interested in seeking a voluntary reduction in time, please complete the documents listed below and submit to Tina Jordan (tljordan@ucanr.edu). 

• Voluntary Reduced Appointment Request Form
• Work Plan Template 
• Work Plan Process Guidelines

Staff employees may, with the approval of their department, reduce their working hours and corresponding pay between 5% and 50%. For more information about the Employee Initiated Reduction in Time (ERIT) Program, please visit the website or contact John Fox or Bethanie Brown.

Visitors must complete clearance survey beginning Aug. 3

UC ANR has been using a web-based daily “clearance to work survey” to ensure that employees who are working onsite or engaged in in-person field work, research, or extension activities are free of COVID-19 symptoms. An offline or paper version of the survey is also available for volunteers or employees who cannot access the online survey. Symptom screening is a statewide recommendation for all employers and is required by UC guidance for campuses and ANR locations that have personnel working onsite. The UC Symptom Screening Task Force guidance also states that arrangements must be made to require the same or equivalent screening not only of students, academics, and staff but also guests, contractors, vendors, and members of the public who are permitted access to UC facilities.

To comply with this UC systemwide guidance and to increase the protection of our employees, beginning August 3, all visitors to UC ANR facilities must also complete a Visitor Clearance Survey prior to entry. Only visitors who receive a “Cleared to Enter” result will be allowed access. Visitors who are denied entry should be provided information about other ways to interact with UC ANR remotely, such as information available on websites, scheduling a phone consultation, video meetings, etc.

When visitors from a UC campus or vendors whose employer has a symptom screening process can demonstrate that they have already passed their institution's screening, those results will be acceptable to enter the UC ANR facility. Additionally, for UCCE offices, a County's symptom screening process will be acceptable to enter the UC ANR spaces.

To maintain privacy, UC ANR personnel will not record or retain the responses of any person's Visitor Clearance Work Survey, but will only keep a record of the final survey result, i.e.: “Cleared to Enter,” or “Stay Home,” using a daily visitor log or sign-in sheet to record survey clearance status.

The UC ANR Visitor Clearance Survey and additional instructions and details about the survey are posted on the UC ANR COVID-19 webpage: http://ucanr.edu/covid19 under “Standards for Resuming In-Person Activities.”

COVID-19 community resources available in English and Spanish

The Nutrition Policy Institute and the Berkeley Food Institute have developed resources in English and Spanish for UC Cooperative Extension advisors and county directors to provide to community members. A modifiable county template on COVID-19 Community Resources, a flyer on How to Stay Food Secure and Eat Well Despite COVID-19, and Guidance on the Safe Usage of Open Spaces During COVID-19 can be accessed at http://npi.ucanr.edu/Resources/COVID-19.

Erin DiCaprio, UCCE food virology specialist, wrote “Here's how to stay safe while buying groceries amid the coronavirus pandemic” for The Conversation: https://theconversation.com/heres-how-to-stay-safe-while-buying-groceries-amid-the-coronavirus-pandemic-138683.

UC ANR also has COVID-19 resources at https://ucanr.edu/Coronavirus_and_COVID-19. 

Safety standards set for resuming in-person activities

Some county health authorities have begun to modify local shelter-at-home orders for COVID-19 and relax restrictions on low-risk activities. To ensure that we continue to protect the health and safety of our people and our communities, UC ANR has developed UC ANR Safety Standards for Resuming In-Person Activity, Stage 2 to outline protocols for our programs and work locations.

The safety standards are informed by state, county and UC best practices, and are intended to help UC Cooperative Extension directors, Research and Extension Center directors and statewide program leaders plan for the eventual resumption of some in-person activities.

For those counties that have authorized return to in-person activity under Stage 2, UC ANR directors are now required to document their plans for in-person work activity with the ANR Emergency Response team based on the safety standards. Local plans may vary from county to county, and may change over time to be more or less restrictive as the impact of reopening unfolds.

It is important to remember that the state is allowing for the resumption of limited onsite operations. UC ANR employees and volunteers who can still work or engage remotely should continue to do so until Governor Newsom completely lifts California's stay-at-home order and UC ANR advises it is appropriate to return to in-person operations.

ANR directors contributed to the development of ANR's safety standards, and we've asked them to help address questions and concerns and to reinforce the steps being taken to provide a safe working environment.

“Throughout this process, the safety and health of ANR's employees, volunteers and clientele are the top priority as we resume in-person activities,” said Brian Oatman, director of Risk & Safety Services.

In general, ANR will be taking a slow and deliberate approach to expanding in-person activities, and most of us will continue to work remotely for the immediate future.

Several questions about resuming in-person activities were answered during the ANR town hall meeting on May 28. A recording of that town hall will be posted at https://ucanr.edu/sites/anrstaff/All_Hands. 

FAQs have been developed to address questions asked during the May 28 Town Hall meeting concerning safety measures related to COVID-19, budgetary impacts and more. Please visit http://ucanr.edu/sites/safety/files/327731.pdf to read the questions and answers. 

For resources related to COVID-19, visit https://ucanr.edu/covid19.

Finances hurt by COVID-19? UC Regents allow access to retirement savings

The UC Board of Regents voted on May 21, 2020, to implement provisions of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (CARES Act)  to make it easier for participants to access funds from their retirement savings plans. These optional provisions required approval from the Regents, who are responsible for overseeing the UC Retirement Savings Program (which includes the Defined Contribution Plan, Tax-Deferred 403(b) Plan, and 457(b) Deferred Compensation Plan). 

If you or a dependent are diagnosed with the virus SARS-Co-V-2 or with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), or you experience adverse financial consequences as a result of the virus or disease, the CARES Act is designed to help by extending access to loans and withdrawals from employer-sponsored retirement savings plans like UC's.

Withdrawals from the UC 403(b), 457(b) and DC Plan

• The CARES Act allows you to withdraw 100% of your own vested balances up to $100,000 (whichever is less) from your UC 403(b), 457(b) plan, or DC Plan account.
• You won't owe the customary early withdrawal penalty when you withdraw under the CARES Act provision.
• You are still subject to federal income tax on your withdrawal, but it can be spread out evenly over three years. Check with your state tax board for more information about how this applies to your state income taxes.
• You may also repay all or part of your CARES Act withdrawal within three years and, if you do, your repayment won't be subject to federal income tax or to the annual IRS contribution limit. That means it won't affect the amount you would normally contribute to your UC plan.
• CARES Act withdrawals are available until Dec. 30, 2020.
• The CARES Act increases the maximum amount you can borrow from your UC 403(b) Plan. This increase is available until Sept. 23, 2020 (180 days since the CARES Act was enacted). Currently, you can borrow up to 50% of your total UC Retirement Savings Program account balance up to $50,000. Under the CARES Act, you can borrow up to 100% of your vested 403(b) plan balance up to $100,000, whichever is less. Note: If you've taken a loan in the past 12 months, the amount you can borrow will be reduced by the highest outstanding loan balance. 
• If you are currently repaying a UC 403(b) Plan loan or request a CARES Act loan, you can delay your repayments until Dec. 31, 2020.

403(b) Plan Loans

What qualifies as a financial consequence?

To qualify for a CARES Act withdrawal, loan, or to delay a loan repayment, you must self-certify that you face at least one of the following financial consequences:

• You, your spouse, or your dependents have been diagnosed with SARS-Co-V-2 or COVID-19 by an approved test from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
• You have experienced a financial hardship as a result of quarantine, furlough, layoff, or reduced work hours.
• You are unable to work due to issues accessing childcare.
• A business that you own or operate has been closed or its hours have been reduced.
• You meet other criteria determined by the U.S. Treasury Secretary.

Important considerations

Weigh the consequences on your future financial security before you tap into your UC retirement savings accounts, especially in volatile markets. If you have access to other means of funding, such as home equity, a family member, or other viable sources of short-term cash, consider these options as well.

Call Fidelity at 1-866-682-7787 to request a withdrawal or loan, or to delay your current loan repayments.

For more information

• To understand UC 403(b) Plan loans, read How 403(b) Plan Loans Work.
• To learn more about the CARES Act or find updates on its provisions, visit irs.gov.
• If you have questions about the CARES Act or need guidance on accessing your retirement funds through these provisions, call a UC-dedicated Fidelity Retirement Planner at (800) 558-9182.

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