Human Resource Bulletin Policies and Procedures 1999/00 Introduction This second annual policies and procedures newsletter highlights important federal and state laws and/or policies that relate to employment with Virginia Commonwealth University. It also includes an insert highlighting various aspects of the new Virginia Sickness and Disability Program. For quick reference and easy access, we have posted this newsletter and last year s related issue on the HR website at www.vcu.edu/hr. On the main menu, click on HR Special Announcements/ Holidays and scroll to the Lines of Communications (Reminders: Policies and Procedures). This symbol means that you can access various Human Resource and Payroll forms at www.vcu.edu/hr/forms/index.html or call 225-4196 for copies. Workers Compensation Requirements In January 1999, Governor Gilmore issued Executive Order Number Thirty-Seven (99), Workplace Safety and Health, that outlines related safety initiatives and requirements. Here are some ways that faculty and staff can help ensure VCU s compliance: Faculty and Staff Following the process below will help protect your workers compensation benefits. Inform your supervisor immediately about a work-related accident or illness. Within 24 hours of the occurrence, hand-deliver completed Accident Report and Physician Selection forms to Employee Health Services at West Hospital, first floor, room 120. Review your work area and report any safety concerns to the Office of Environmental Health and Safety at 828-6347. Note: Participants in the Virginia Sickness and Disability Program (VSDP) also must contact CORE, the program s third-party administrator, if they expect their disability to exceed seven days (also see insert). Department Heads and Managers Where appropriate, include safety expectations and goals in manager and employee performance plans. When requested to provide "light or modified-duty" assignments, assess the workplace for appropriate tasks and duties that will help encourage an employee s return to work. Review the work area and report any safety concerns to the Office of Environmental Health and Safety at 828-6347.
Page 2 New Hiring Requirements On July 1, 1999, a new state hiring law went into effect that requires male applicants to indicate whether they have registered for the Selective Service or to provide documentation from the Selective Service System that this requirement has been terminated or become inapplicable. More information on Selective Service registration is available on the Internet at www.sss.gov. Here is what this new law means to VCU: Classified and hourly male applicants will complete a Selective Service Statement as part of the Human Resource hiring process. New faculty will complete the statement as part of the HR orientation process. Departments that do not hire through HR should have applicants complete and sign a similar Selective Service statement (see above) and forward a signed copy and any required documentation to HR with the hiring paperwork. Clinical Staff Certification and Licensure Many of the teaching and research programs of Virginia Commonwealth University rely on faculty and staff with specific types of licensure or certification to provide services and to receive accreditation from various federal, state, and private agencies. Those faculty and staff must maintain active clinical or licensure certifications to protect patients and prevent the institution s risk of liability. Departments should collect appropriate supporting documentation at the time of hire and periodically thereafter at certification or licensure renewals. Non-compliance risks program accreditation and continued employment. Reporting Absences and the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) helps employees balance the demands of the workplace and their families by providing paid or unpaid leave for certain medical reasons. Eligible employees may take up to 480 hours each calendar year of paid or unpaid leave for qualifying medical conditions relating to themselves or family members. Follow the steps below to ensure that benefits are accessed appropriately. Faculty and Staff Guidelines: Whether you participate in the Virginia Sickness and Disability Program (VSDP) or the traditional sick leave plan, you must notify your supervisor when absent from work (also see insert). Your manager will determine your eligibility for benefits under FMLA based on the medical documentation you provide (see the fact sheet entitled The Family and Medical Leave Act: What Faculty and Staff Need to Know ). Notify your manager of your anticipated return-to-work date and possible medical restrictions and provide a physician s medical release upon your return to work.
Page 3 Manager Guidelines: Periodically communicate call-in procedures and expectations to all faculty and staff to avoid miscommunication or incorrect reporting of leave. Inform faculty and staff of their FMLA rights whether or not they specifically request FMLA-related leave. Failure to provide this notification automatically entitles an employee to coverage under the provisions of the Act for qualified FMLA absences. The fact sheet entitled The Family and Medical Leave Act: What Faculty and Staff Need to Know will fulfill the notification obligation. If you are unsure whether the absence is FMLA related, provide a copy of the fact sheet to the employee to protect the rights and responsibilities of the employee and the University. Within two work days of receiving the employee s verbal or written request for illness-related leave, confirm in writing to the employee that the leave has been designated as FMLA pending receipt of medical documentation and whether it will be paid or unpaid leave. Designate an employee s illness-related leave as FMLA if enough information is available to determine his or her eligibility and qualification. For more information, contact Employee Relations by e-mail at emprel@vcu.edu or call 828-1510. Faculty and Staff Benefits Information Are your retirement and life insurance beneficiaries up to date? Faculty and staff who participate in the Virginia Retirement System (VRS) may call 649-8059 to request a copy of their beneficiary information. Beneficiary change forms are available on the VRS web site at www.state.va.us/vrs/vrs.htm. Faculty members in the Optional Retirement Plan (ORP) should contact their vendor for retirement beneficiary information and forms. Dependent children health benefits Participants in central Virginia s health care plans may cover eligible dependent children: through the last day of the calendar year in which the child turns age 23; or the end of the month in which the child marries or becomes self-supporting, whichever occurs first. Health care plans consider a child who is employed full time as self-supporting, regardless of place of residence. The only exception is a child who enrolls as a student in the spring semester, works full time during the summer months, and enrolls as a student again in the fall. Key Advantage participants with dependent children living out-of-state (i.e., with another parent or enrolled in college) may complete a Claims Exception Form to have claims paid at the highest level of coverage. Out-of-country travel Will you or your covered dependent(s) need a new prescription or a refill while you are away? To avoid delays, call Human Resources at 225-4196 for assistance. It could take several weeks to coordinate this process with you, your physician, your health care plan, and Human Resources. Page 4 Key Advantage with SmileKeepers
If you select the SmileKeepers Dental Health Maintenance Organization (DHMO), you must select a primary care dentist for you and your family from the SmileKeepers network of dentists. If the dentist you choose stops participating in the SmileKeepers plan, you may pick another dentist from the network. You may use your floating enrollment to choose another health benefits plan if you have not exercised this option within the last 12 months. Relocating with Work/Life Resources The Human Resource Division s Work/Life Resources program offers faculty and staff a variety of resources and services to help them balance their work and family responsibilities. One of the newest resources is a relocation packet for new and prospective faculty or staff who have moved to Richmond. The material includes information about Virginia Commonwealth University and MCV Hospitals, the Richmond vicinity, area schools, and the local real estate market. In addition, these packets provide the spouse or partner of a new faculty and staff member with information on employment and related referral services. Hiring departments and search committees may call 828-1688 or e-mail worklife@vcu.edu for relocation materials or for more information about these and other services available from Work/Life Resources. Information about Work/Life Resources also is available on the HR website at www.vcu.edu/hr. Are You Y2K Ready? Many departments will need to identify individuals who can be reached in the event the institution experiences Year 2000 problems with computers or computer-supported operations. Other departments may require that some employees report to work on weekends or official University holidays to support the institution s Y2K efforts. Departments are encouraged to determine their Y2K year-end staffing requirements and to notify affected employees as early as practical. H UMAN R ESOURCE D IVISION P. O. Box 842511 Phone: 828-0177 Fax: 828-2968 www.vcu.edu/hr
S P E C I A L I N S E R T Virginia Sickness and Disability Program (VSDP) Over 2,900 faculty and staff elected to participate in the new Virginia Sickness and Disability Program (VSDP) during the spring 1999 enrollment period. In addition, all staff hired after January 1, 1999, participate in the program. This insert provides important VSDP information. Administering this program is a team effort. It involves faculty and staff participants, their department managers and timekeepers, and the staff of Human Resources, the Virginia Retirement System (VRS), and CORE, Inc., the third-party administrator. Initiating a VSDP Claim VSDP participants should follow these steps to help ensure prompt claim coverage. For more information on related roles and responsibilities, see the chart on the reverse page. ❶ Call CORE at 1-800-652-5602 to initiate a claim and access your VSDP benefits. Once CORE approves your claim, call CORE each time you are absent for that medical condition. ❷ Keep your supervisor informed of your absences, any need for leave extensions, your expected return-to-work date, and any required job modifications; provide the supervisor with your physician s official medical release upon your return to work. ❸ Assist your health care provider in helping to ensure that CORE receives appropriate medical information in a timely manner to approve your claim. Your involvement in this important process can help avoid delays and closure of your claim before you have accessed all your benefits. Year-end Use of VSDP Leave One notable difference in VSDP is that unused sick and personal and family leave balances do not carry-over at year-end as does the balance in the traditional sick leave program. Human Resources requests your assistance in using VSDP leave for valid sick-leave related reasons. HR recognizes the concern that some employees may take off time in November and December in order to use expiring VSDP sick and personal and family leave balances. This action is a misuse of the benefits available in the VSDP leave program, and it is unfair to faculty and staff who manage their leave responsibly. Your support is important in helping to prevent sick-leave abuse and to make the first year of VSDP s implementation successful. VSDP Resources Leave Control karobins@vcu.edu 828-1712 Benefits benefits@vcu.edu 225-4196 Employee Relations emprel@vcu.edu 828-1510 Human Resource Division Policies and Procedures 1999/00 P. O. Box 842511 Phone: 828-0177 Fax: 828-2968 www.vcu.edu/hr
VSDP Roles and Responsibilities VSDP Participant Call CORE at 1-800-652-5602 to initiate a claim. Regularly inform your department of absences, an expected return-to-work date, and related medical restrictions; provide your physician s official medical release when you return to work. Promptly complete and return forms requested by CORE. Call Human Resources at 828-1712 to coordinate leave use. Notify your manager and contact CORE to access benefits under the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) for both personal illness and seriously ill family members. Contact CORE for claim status and follow up as necessary with your licensed treating professional. NOTE: Complete the necessary documentation and communicate with your health care provider and/or CORE to avoid delaying approval of your claim. A delay can result in your being charged additional leave and or leave without pay until the claim status is resolved. Participant s Department Human Resources (Customer Service and Payroll) CORE (third-party administrator) Communicate department call-in procedures for VSDP or sick leave use. Coordinate with Human Resources regarding leave use or docks in pay while VSDP claim or extension approval is pending from CORE. Coordinate with Human Resources for employee s return to work, modified duty requests, or reduced work-hour requests to ensure accurate pay. Maintain detailed and accurate records of employee absences and physician s release to return to work. Communicate with employee regarding waiting-period options (for example, whether to use leave balances or request leave without pay). Monitor all VSDP claims and coordinate with department when payroll deadlines approach; follow up with CORE for status information as needed. Inform employee in writing concerning levels of pay and leave usage as the claim progresses. Communicate with departments about VSDP, employee status, leave activity, PAF processing, and job modifications. Provide Human Resources with an Action Report that includes information about anticipated length of time away from work and level of benefit; provide regular Action Report updates until employee returns to work and CORE closes the case. Provide participant with benefit packet and collect information (including a medical release form) to contact licensed treating professional about the condition, prognosis, treatment, and related follow-up; develop a return-to-work plan with the VSDP nurse and the treating professional. Notify participant in writing of claim approval. Provide information about Long Term Disability (LTD) benefits if participant is unable to return to work before Short Term Disability (STD) benefits expire. Assist participant with application for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and appeals process if CORE denies claim. PLEASE NOTE: Because CORE will track FMLA use as will employee departments, VSDP participants also should contact CORE when they will be out for approved FMLA-related family absences. This effort will help departments and CORE maintain accurate FMLA records.