Dear Colleagues,
After much discussion at both the local and systemwide levels, we want to announce the following fixed Winter Curtailment days: December 23, 28, 29, 30, 2020, and January 4, 2021. Our campus Winter Curtailment is separate from any kind of curtailment that UCOP is proposing to the UC Regents. We will know more about the UCOP proposal after next week’s UC Regents Meeting.
To help you plan accordingly, the holiday and campus closure days are officially:
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Wednesday, December 23, 2020: Closure day
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Thursday, December 24, 2020: Administrative & Academic Holiday
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Friday, December 25, 2020: Administrative & Academic Holiday
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Monday, December 28, 2020: Closure day
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Tuesday, December 29, 2020: Closure day
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Wednesday, December 30, 2020: Closure day
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Thursday, December 31, 2020: Administrative & Academic Holiday
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Friday, January 1, 2021: Administrative & Academic Holiday
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Monday, January 4, 2021: Closure Day
Additional, flexible curtailments days are under consideration (both before and after the fixed days) but have not yet been confirmed. We will be able to provide more information about the options that might be available to us following the UC Regents meeting next week.
Consistent with prior Winter Curtailments, here are the options for staff on the closure days:
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Use vacation leave accruals. Any employee who earns vacation leave, but does not have sufficient accrued vacation leave to cover the five-day closure period, may use up to five days of vacation leave in advance of accrual to cover the closure days.
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Use Accrued Compensatory Time Off (CTO). Eligible non-exempt employees who have accrued CTO leave by working overtime may use such time. Information about CTO agreements for employees covered by labor agreements can be found at the People & Culture website under the section for the relevant collective bargaining agreement. Information about CTO for non-exempt employees in positions covered by the Personnel Policies for Staff Members (PPSM) program can be found at the UCOP website.
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Take Leave Without Pay (LWOP). Managers will want to consider the impact of LWOP, particularly for part-time employees. For example, an employee in a half-time appointment who takes an LWOP may lose eligibility for certain benefits and/or holiday pay.
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Use other leaves if applicable. In most situations, Sick and Administrative Leave provisions are not intended for this purpose and should not be used to cover the closure period. An exception should be made for the employee who has been approved for extended sick leave due to serious illness or injury when the approved leave includes the closure period.
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Voluntarily adjust their work schedule. Departments may offer to adjust a work schedule for a part-time, non-exempt employee so that the employee satisfies the working hours appropriate to the appointment level, before the closure period. For example, an employee with a half-time appointment who works four hours a day could work one eight-hour day earlier in December. Please have employees confirm in writing that any such changes in schedule are voluntary.
What should managers and supervisors do?
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Inform employees with high vacation balance hours that the holiday closure period is a convenient time for staff to use these hours.
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Decide what coverage your unit needs on reduced staffing days. Help employees plan for reduced staffing days by determining who wants to continue working on those days and making alternate work arrangements if needed.
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If departments require staff employees to work on any of the closure days (December 23, 28, 29, 30, 2020, and January 4, 2021), the time should be counted as regular hours of work for that day.
Questions?
Managers with questions about the suitability of the alternatives above for staff, or how to proceed with these options, are encouraged to contact their HR Partner. Staff with questions about adjusting their work schedule in advance or about how to plan for working through reduced staffing days should talk with their manager.
Thanks,
Eugene
Eugene Whitlock, Chief People & Culture Officer
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