UC Irvine Salary Expense Reduction and Furlough Supplemental FAQs. For Campus, School of Medicine and College of Health Sciences Employees

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1 UC Irvine Salary Expense Reductin and Furlugh Supplemental FAQs Fr Campus, Schl f Medicine and Cllege f Health Sciences Emplyees The UC Office f the President (UCOP) web site is the authritative resurce regarding this prgram. These questins and answers are prvided by the campus Human Resurces Office t supplement thse published n the UCOP web site. Updated 7/24/2009 Is this a permanent pay reductin? N, the Salary Reductin will last fr 12 mnths, and unless the duratin is extended by actin f The Regents, yur pre furlugh salary will be restred at the cnclusin f the 12 mnth perid. Is the deductin taken n my ttal salary r my base salary? The salary rate is defined as the mnthly salary the emplyee is appinted t receive under an academic, nnacademic, and/r administrative title payable thrugh the University. This includes stipends. It des nt include: vertime payments, shift r ther differential pay, cnsulting fees r payments in lieu f private practice, general assistance "by agreement" payments, cmpensatin fr extensin teaching, any remuneratin received which is in excess f 100% f full time equivalent f yur regular and nrmal psitin, and perquisites and any bnuses r ther special cmpensatin. What part f my salary will be used t determine my salary tier? An emplyee's 100% salary rate, as f January 1, 2009 (r the hire date, if later), will be used t determine the salary tier. D stipends and vertime impact yur salary tier fr furlugh purpses? Stipends are included in yur salary rate, s they are used t determine yur salary tier and are subject t salary reductin. Overtime is nt cunted fr this purpse. Page 1

2 Hw will furlugh days be accrued and usage tracked? The Office f the President is prgramming the Payrll Persnnel System t autmatically accrue the apprpriate number f furlugh hurs each mnth and a methd fr departmental payrll prcessrs t reprt use f accrued furlugh hurs in the Payrll Persnnel System. Departmental timesheets shuld be mdified t allw emplyees t indicate use f furlugh time separately frm the use f sick leave and vacatin hurs. Hw much flexibility will emplyees have in taking furlugh days ff? Will there be mandatry furlugh days at UCI? There are many cmplex factrs that must be cnsidered in determining the best implementatin plan fr this campus. Mandatry furlugh days are ne f the ptins being cnsidered by campus leaders, but n final decisins have been made. Can emplyees take partial furlugh days r must they take full days? Generally, furlugh time shuld be recrded the same as vacatin in ne day increments fr exempt emplyees, ¼ hur increments fr nn exempt emplyees. Will the vacatin maximum be raised t accunt fr furlugh time? Furlugh accruals will accumulate in a separate bank frm vacatin hurs, s n adjustment t vacatin limits is planned at this time. Will peple in psitins that are split funded have the same percentage f furlugh assigned as thers wh are funding? Academic and staff emplyees whse Included Cmpensatin as defined in the Plan is 100 percent funded frm federal, state, ther gvernment r private cntracts, grants r cperative agreements, because salary savings frm these emplyees must remain within the cntract, grant r cperative agreement, and thus cannt cntribute t increasing campus general fund resurces. (Academic and staff emplyees whse salaries are partially funded frm federal, state, ther gvernment r private cntracts, grants r cperative agreements are included. Hwever, the campuses, wrking with the Office f the President, will determine by Octber 15, 2009, whether the University s payrll systems and prcesses required t supprt the Plan can be mdified such that, as t thse emplyees, cntract/grant funded salary can be prspectively excluded.) Hw will furlugh balances be handled when an emplyee separates? This matter is being reviewed by the Office f the President, but n guidance has been prvided t campuses at this time. Page 2

3 Are emplyees n individual emplyment cntracts subject t the furlugh prgram? This will depend n the terms f the cntract. The salary reductin and furlugh plan excludes emplyees whse participatin is precluded by law. Emplyees with cntracts that cannt be changed unilaterally by the University will be asked fr a vluntary salary reductin apprpriate fr their pay tier. If the emplyee agrees t accept the salary reductin and furlugh, the Cntract must be amended t reflect that the agreement is made by mutual cnsent as an addendum t cntract which is signed and dated. Human Resurces will wrk with the Office f General Cunsel t develp guidelines fr hw t handle these situatins. What happens if emplyees n individual emplyment cntracts wn t agree t vluntarily take a pay reductin? The university must hnr the terms f the cntract, but many cntracts include an ptin t cancel a cntract with required ntice. This ptin culd be exercised if circumstances indicate that wuld be an apprpriate curse f actin. Managers must cntact Human Resurces prir t cancelling an emplyment cntract. Hw is vertime calculated fr peple subject t the furlugh? Furlugh days are nt cunted as time wrked fr vertime purpses in accrdance with requirements f the FLSA. Will hardship exemptins be ffered? We currently have received n guidance n this tpic frm the Office f the President. Will hardship lans be available fr staff having difficulty due t furlugh pay cuts? The university has an emergency lan prgram, and this pssibility is being evaluated. Hw will the plan wrk fr part time emplyees? Part time emplyees will be alltted furlugh days and have their salary reduced in prprtin t their full time equivalent salary. Fr example, an emplyee wh has a 60% appintment and earns $60,000 per year ($100,000 full time equivalent) is within Salary Tier 5 that allts 21 furlugh days and an 8% salary reductin, s the emplyee will receive 12.6 furlugh days and a $4,800 salary reductin (8% f $60,000). If an emplyee is appinted at 50% time, will they lse their benefits when the furlugh is implemented? N, the prgram was designed t ensure cntinuance f benefits eligibility and retirement service credit Page 3

4 at the individual s pre furlugh rate. If an emplyee is currently wrking at a reduced percentage, but is nt n START, can they increase their percentage t ffset the furlugh deductin? N, the intent f the prgram is t generate salary savings. Allwing such an actin undermines the principle f shared sacrifice and prduces lcalized inequities amng departmental staff. Are new hires subject t the furlugh prgram? The emplyees hired int psitins that are subject t the salary reductin and furlugh plan will participate in the prgram. Fr guidance n hw t cmmunicate this t candidates, please refer t the sample ffer letters n the emplyment services SNAP page r cntact yur Human Resurces emplyment representative. Hw d furlughs impact 9/80 r ther alternate wrk schedules? Furlugh hurs are a separate bank f hurs that must be used within the 12 mnth perid f the prgram. The furlugh prgram des nt directly impact alternate wrk schedules. Hwever, alternate wrk schedules are a privilege, nt a right f emplyees. Given the severity f the budget crisis, and the ptential impact ff that additinal days ff may have n peratins, managers may have the need t cancel alternate schedules fr sme r all emplyees. Hw des this prgram impact rehired retirees? Rehired retirees are expected t participate in the prgram if they hld psitins that are part f the salary reductin and furlugh plan. Their pay will be reduced and furlugh time will be accrued in a manner cnsistent with ther emplyees in similar persnnel prgrams, appintment types, and appintment percentages. Will the furlugh prgram impact severance payments if emplyees are laid ff? N, severance payments will be based n the emplyee s pre salary reductin rate f pay. If an emplyee separates, will the amunt f pay received fr the vacatin pay ff be reduced because f the furlugh prgram? There shuld be n impact n the vacatin pay ff (terminal vacatin pay) because the tw banks f hurs are defined and handled separately. Will the settlement payments t VSIP participants be impacted by the furlugh pay reductin? N, the VSIP settlement payments will be based n the emplyee s pre salary reductin rate f pay. Page 4

5 Hw des this prgram impact represented emplyees? Existing rights under law r cntract will be used t implement the plan. Where bargaining is required, the University will bargain in gd faith s as t avid implementing layffs t the greatest extent pssible. Will nn represented emplyees salary be reduced even if the represented emplyees dn t participate? Yes, all emplyees identified as being subject t the salary reductin and furlugh plan will be required t participate in the prgram. Page 5