Employee news roundup

Published date
12:27 p.m.
News Type

Dear faculty and staff,

Thank you for all you are doing to adapt to remote work and instruction in such a swift manner during this challenging time. We know that our students are benefitting from this herculean effort to make sure their education can continue and stay on track, even as the world changes so dramatically.

We have a number of housekeeping items to share, including work-from-home / telecommuting plans, business continuity plans, live paycheck delivery, hourly worker time submissions, being on campus, energy conservation, a survey related to internet and technology needs, and a signal about cleaning efforts.

Work-From-Home / Telecommuting Plans

All employees not working on campus must submit a supervisor-approved, completed work-from-home / telecommuting plan to their supervisor and to Human Resources as soon as possible. Employees working from home should also provide a daily report to their supervisors, unless other arrangements have been made.

Continuity of Business

All offices should complete a continuity of business plan, using this Departmental Business Continuity Planning Guide. Copies of the plan should be shared with all members of the office, and forwarded to supervisors and the appropriate Cabinet member. 

Live Paycheck Delivery

Per guidance from the State Department of Taxation and Finance, LIVE paychecks will be mailed starting the week of March 23, 2020, to the address on the paycheck.

Employees who typically pick up live checks should verify their address is correct in the payroll system with their payroll office and/or sign up for Direct Deposit. Direct deposit will not be affected and signing up is strongly encouraged. Any checks lost in the mail will likely have extremely long turnaround times for replacement.

Hourly Worker Time Submissions

Per a Memorandum from the Governor’s Office of Employee Relations, guidance on continuing payment for employees who are hourly has emerged. Student temp service employees are included in this guidance. Please set up plans with students and other temp employees working from home. The focus is on steps that will need to be taken in the next several weeks with the intent of continuing payments for those employees. Please ensure the general guidelines below are followed:

Employees with a recurring set schedule: Until further notice, employees who work a set schedule or less than a set schedule should complete their timecards (or have a designated timekeeper do so) reflecting their normal schedule and be paid accordingly. Hourly employees who work more than their set schedule should be paid for actual hours worked.

Employee without a recurring work schedule: Such employees should be paid for any actual hours worked as reported on their timecard. If that amount is less than their average pay for the two most recent pay periods, the employee should be paid for the average number of hours worked in those pay periods, unless actual hours work exceed the average. This guidance includes all hourly, temporary and student workers, unless there is a reason to end their assignment.

Being On Campus

Anyone who finds it necessary to visit campus to retrieve belongings, conduct essential in-person business or otherwise accomplish something that cannot be done remotely may do so while practicing social distancing and good hygiene. In particular:

  • Avoid any personal contact, keeping a distance of at least six feet
  • Wash hands before coming to campus and after leaving
  • Do not linger or stay on campus longer than necessary to complete specific tasks

Employees should seek to accomplish as much as necessary by remote means, such as email, phone, Microsoft Teams, video conferencing or other technology. Employees can make arrangements ahead of time to make campus visits efficient and brief as possible.

Energy Conservation

With so many people not working on campus, this is an opportunity for employees to reduce campus energy usage. If you visit campus, consider taking any or all of the following steps to help conserve power:

  • Turn off power strips
  • Unplug any electronics plugged directly into the wall (many devices use electricity even when “turned off,” including TVs, printers, chargers, copiers, coffee makers, microwaves, lamps, and space heaters)
  • Switch off all lights
  • Shut all windows and shades
  • Close all interior and exterior doors

Internet and Technology Needs

To better respond to SUNY system inquiries, and respond to the technology and internet access needs of students and employees, Technology Services has prepared an online Technology Needs survey. Please complete this survey to help the college and system better understand what can be provided.

Internet and Technology Needs

People on campus may soon begin to notice strips of tape across doorknobs. These tape strips (or lack of them) will help our cleaning staff know which rooms to clean.

You can help. If you open a door that has a strip of tape on it, discard the tape. This will signify that the room has been in use and therefore needs to be cleaned.

However, as more employees work remotely, the number of rooms not in use increases. A clean, unused room — one that has a taped doorknob — need not be cleaned.

This a simple measure, but an important one. A doorknob with tape on it opens into a clean room. A doorknob without tape opens into a room that needs to be cleaned.