HRS’ holiday closing plan includes adjusted deadlines

In preparation for reduced staffing December 24 through January 1, Human Resource Services has established the following plan to ensure the needs of departments and employees are met. Normal deadlines will resume when Human Resource Services opens with its regular staffing on January 2, 2008.

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December 24 added to 2007 holidays; December Personal Leave days are December 26 through 31

This year, the university will observe Monday, December 24, 2007, as a holiday in addition to the regular December and New Year holidays. The December 24 holiday also will be observed by the university’s various outpatient health clinics. This decision was based on the proximity of that date to the holiday closing period that runs from December 25, 2007, through January 1, 2008.

In addition, on December 1, all TEAMS employees and 12-month Academic Personnel were credited with four personal leave days to be used, when possible, during the period of December 26 through December 31 when the university is closed for the holidays.

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Important deadlines for 2007 holiday season time and leave entry

Central Leave Administration encourages early time and leave entry through the holiday season. Please note the important leave entry dates and deadlines below.

December 14
Personal leave days for December 26 and 27 will be automatically applied to records and visible for exempt employees in the Weekly Elapsed System. Non-exempt employees must enter them into the system. The personal leave days for December 28 and 31 will be loaded and visible closer to the beginning of the 12/28/07 – 01/10/08 pay period.

January 10
The annual conversion of accrued vacation over the maximum balance to sick leave will take place. All vacation to be used on or before January 10, 2008, must be entered into the system by January 10 to avoid inappropriate conversion to sick leave.

January 11
Last day for USPS employees to enter advanced vacation leave used during the holiday closing period of December 26-31.

Questions or concerns? Please contact Central Leave at 392-2477 (622-2477).

Vacation conversion to take place January 10

This year, vacation leave conversion will take place at the end of the 12/28/07 - 1/10/08, pay period. If a TEAMS or vacation-accruing Academic Personnel employee’s vacation leave balance exceeds 480 hours, or a USPS employee’s vacation balance exceeds 240 hours at the end of that pay period, the excess vacation leave hours will be converted to sick leave. Please note that the vacation leave accrual for the 12/28/07 - 1/10/08 pay period will also be included in the conversion.

The myUFL navigation to view your most recent vacation leave balances is as follows: My Self Service > Payroll and Compensation > View Leave History. Any vacation leave taken on or before January 10, 2008, must be reported in the Weekly Elapsed screen before the January 10 conversion. Vacation leave taken after January 10 should be reported after the conversion occurs.

Questions? Contact Central Leave Administration at 392-2477 or central-leave@ufl.edu.

Vacation leave may be advanced to eligible USPS employees during holiday closing period

USPS employees may request vacation leave advancement for the holiday closing period of December 26 to December 31 in the event they do not have sufficient vacation or compensatory leave to cover normal working hours if their departments shut down completely or choose to operate with minimum staffing and the employees affected are deemed to be non-essential. Departments are obligated to grant the vacation advancement when requested under these circumstances. USPS employees also may use leave without pay, in keeping with University of Florida policy, during this time.

As in the past, if you are a USPS employee who wishes to be advanced vacation leave during the holidays, please report all vacation leave usage through Weekly Elapsed Time in the myUFL systems in a timely manner, allowing your vacation leave balance to become negative. A negative vacation leave balance will be allowed December 26 through 31, 2007. The system will automatically disallow vacation leave usage after January 10, 2008, until your vacation leave balance is positive again.

Review your Open Enrollment changes and check your payroll deductions

Before the New Year begins, you should review any changes you made during the fall benefits Open Enrollment period. To access your benefits information, visit the People First web site and log-in with the user ID and password you used during Open Enrollment. If you have questions about your online enrollment or forgot your password, please contact the People First Service Center at 1-866-663-4735.

Deduction changes for Open Enrollment elections will start with the December 7 paycheck to pre-pay for coverage effective January 1, 2008. Supplemental state coverages carrying over—such as state dental, hospital insurance, etc.—may include slight increases based on options you elected and company rate increases for the new plan year. If you enrolled in a state supplemental plan that requires underwriting (medical approval), your coverage is pending until People First receives notification from the company that the underwriting has been approved or disapproved. If the underwriting is approved, your enrollment will be processed and premium deductions will begin. You should receive notification from the company regarding your approval or disapproval.

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Deplete Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA) by December 31

If you are participating in a medical and/or dependent daycare reimbursement account plan for the 2007 year, please remember that you have until December 31 to spend the money in the account or it will be forfeited. The deadline to file for reimbursement is April 15 of the new calendar year (2008). FSA reimbursement claim forms can be found on the People First web site or the forms section on the HRS web site. Please contact University Benefits and Retirement at 392-2477 (SC 622-2477) or benefits@ufl.edu with questions.

One-time window made available to switch from ORP to FRS

Eligible participants in the State University System's Optional Retirement Plan (SUSORP) will have an opportunity to opt out of the ORP and into the Florida Pension Plan or the Florida Investment Plan. JHMHSC-mandated faculty are not eligible for this opt-out.

Participants who wish to change to the Pension Plan will receive service credit for the total number of years in the ORP. This service credit will be purchased with funds in participants' ORP accounts; any remaining cost will be paid by participants from personal funds. To request an estimate of the Pension Plan buy-in cost, please call the Division of Retirement at 1-866-446-9377, Option 3.

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Employee Education Program accepting applications for spring semester

The Employee Education Program (EEP) is a popular benefit available to eligible UF faculty and staff. The program covers the matriculation fees of up to six credit hours of covered college-level courses per semester.

Employees interested in participating in the EEP during the spring semester should register and complete their application forms by the following deadlines:

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Training registration now open

Interested in signing up for workshops offered this spring by Training and Organizational Development? T&OD’s workshop schedule, including its very popular computer application training as well as the Supervisory Challenge and Pro3 series, is now open at www.hr.ufl.edu/training.