Experiencing a work or life event? Don’t forget to update your benefits

UF employees experiencing or expecting to experience a “qualifying status change” should contact University Benefits and Retirement as soon as possible to ensure they receive the appropriate benefits. Employees have only 31 days after a qualifying event occurs to make coverage changes. A status change includes any of the following:

• Start of or return from leave of absence (i.e., parental, medical leave or personal leave)
• Marriage
• Termination
• Birth or adoption of a child
• Death or ineligibility of a dependent
• Court order pertaining to children (i.e., legal guardianship or a divorce decree)
• Change in FTE
• Gain or loss of other coverage
• Eligibility for Medicare or Medicaid
• Change in spouse's employment

As previously communicated, the 2006 Legislative Session included health care premium increases for the university and part-time employees. Full-time employees are not impacted by this change. Benefits-eligible full-time UF employees will continue to pay the same amount as in 2006. However, benefits-eligible part-time UF employees will experience a proportional increase based on their FTE beginning in April (for May coverage).

The new contributions for full-time employees will look like this:

Premium contributions for part-time employees may be calculated using this formula:

• Step 1: (state contribution) X FTE = (calculated state contribution)
• Step 2: (total contribution) - (calculated state contribution) = (employee’s contribution)

For example, an employee with individual coverage of .50 FTE would calculate their contributions like this:

• Step 1: $188.93/bw X .50 FTE = $94.47/bw
• Step 2: $213.93/bw - $94.47/bw = $119.46/bw

The employee would pay $119.46/bw or $238.92 per month for coverage.

Departments making budget projections and/or adjustments should refer to the Employer’s Costs for Grant/Contract Funded Positions – Fiscal Year 2006-2007 DDD Memo dated July 13, 2006, for additional employer costs. Employees who have questions or concerns about these changes should contact University Benefits and Retirement at 392-1225 (SC 622-1225) or benefits@ufl.edu.

Double-deductions begin for nine- and ten-month employees

To ensure coverage for health, state life, optional, and supplemental insurances continue during the summer, nine- and ten-month employees will have double-deductions taken from their paychecks beginning with the February 2 paycheck and continuing through May 11. Normal payroll deductions will resume in September.

Roth post-tax retirement option introduced

Changes in the tax law now allow employees to designate all or part of their elective salary deferrals to a post-tax retirement option called a “Roth 403(b) plan.” The new option does not increase the amount an employee can contribute to a retirement plan, but does provide some attractive options for you to consider.

The new plan will become effective for the pay period of 2/23/07 - 3/8/07.

Faculty and staff interested in participating in the new option--called a Roth 403(b) plan--will enroll through Human Resource Services.

Under a Roth 403(b) plan, salary contributions are “after tax,” which means salary is taxed as regular income before it is deferred to a Roth account. Employees participating in this plan will have the same ability to manage their contributions as they have with other salary deferral plans. This is of particular benefit for those employees who anticipate a much higher taxable income later in their career.

Qualified distributions, which include earnings on the original contributions, are nontaxable to the employee. Qualified distributions are those that have been in the plan at least five years and meet certain other requirements.

To request a salary deferral to this new plan, download the form at http://www.hr.ufl.edu/benefits/403instructions.htm

Questions? Contact University Benefits and Retirement at (352)392-4941 (SC 622-4941) or retirement@ufl.edu.

Academic Personnel: Administration for the Extended Leave of Absence program has changed

Effective March 1, 2007, Central Leave Administration will begin administering the Extended Leave of Absence program for Academic Personnel. This will complete the effort of consolidating the leave administration responsibility under one central office.

Employees and departments will no longer need to contact two different central offices to obtain leave information for their staff members and Academic Personnel. Central Leave Administration will become a one-stop shop for the university to obtain information or assistance regarding leave issues.

Please note that the Faculty Development Office will continue to handle the Professional Development Leave program for Academic Personnel.

The process for approving an extended leave of absence request – an absence that lasts longer than 15 consecutive workdays – still remains the same except for the request documentation. The Extended Leave of Absence form (formerly known as the Personnel Leave of Absence form) will be used to put employees (staff and Academic Personnel) on, or to return employees from, an extended leave of absence. This is a change for Academic Personnel who currently submit a separate written request to seek approval.

If you have questions about this change or need assistance with your leave benefits, please feel free to contact Central Leave Administration at 392-5732 or email central-leave@ufl.edu.

UF supervisors: It’s time to complete performance appraisals

February 28 marks the end of the standard evaluation period for all USPS and TEAMS employees. Performance appraisals should be completed and are due to Human Resource Services by March 31. For more information, please visit www.hr.ufl.edu/performance.

Overview sessions are available for new UF supervisors and for supervisors who need a refresher. For dates and times, please visit http://www.hr.ufl.edu/training/schedule.htm#GET150 

To register for any of the sessions, click “Register for Courses Now!” at www.hr.ufl.edu/training. Search for course code GET150 "Performance Mgmt Overview.”  

Questions about performance appraisals? Contact Employee Relations at 392-1072 (SC 622-1072) or emprel@ufl.edu. For information about training, please contact Training and Organizational Development at 392-4626 (SC 622-4626) or training@ufl.edu.

Review your leave balances and history in myUFL

Did you know you can easily find out your current leave balances? Just look at your current earnings statement under “My Self Service” in the myUFL system. The navigation to view your current earnings statement is: My Self Service > Payroll and Compensation > View Paycheck. Only current leave balances are reflected under this feature.

If you wish to view previous leave balances, use the “View Leave History” feature under “My Self Service.” The navigation is: My Self Service > Payroll and Compensation > View Leave History. To go to any given pay period, simply choose the desired pay period in the drop down field next to “Pay Period End Date,” and the system will populate the screen with the leave balances for the selected pay period.

Have questions about your leave balances? Contact Central Leave Administration at 392-5732 (SC 622-5732) or central-leave@ufl.edu.