News for Employees
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Guthrie chosen to lead Office of Human Resources
Wayne Guthrie, senior vice president, staff operations, for the Arthritis Foundation in Atlanta, has been named UW–Madison’s chief human resources officer. Guthrie has a wide range of human resources and leadership experience in higher education, nonprofit and private organizations, Vice Chancellor for Finance and Administration Laurent Heller said in announcing the appointment. Guthrie will start his new role on Jan. 9.
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A post-election message from the Chancellor
Excerpted from Blank’s Slate: Regardless of your political affiliation, I think all Americans agree that we would like to see America thrive in the future as a vibrant democracy and a world leader. Here at UW-Madison, we will continue to strive to be a lively intellectual environment that is also a welcoming and inclusive place for our students, faculty, staff, alumni and friends. In the coming days, I ask that people engage respectfully in debate over current events. The more inclusive, interconnected and engaged we are as a community, the stronger and more resilient we become. Read more.
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DoIT Tech Store holds customer appreciation week
The DoIT Tech Store is holding Customer Appreciation Week this week through Friday. Features include waiving the $25 Payroll Deduction fee; deals on bundled Apple, Dell and Microsoft products; closeout deals; and refreshments, freebies and prizes at the Dayton Street location. Also, note that the DoIT Tech Store has reduced hours over the holidays.
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Athletics announces new policies in wake of noose incident
Athletics has adjusted policies related to the expectations placed upon attendees of its home athletic events. The changes are part of an ongoing review of fan behavior, carry-in and ticket policies. Specifically, items prohibited in athletics facilities will now include nooses and ropes, which will be treated as weapons that constitute a threat to safety (as will replicas of weapons). In addition, any person who engages in violent, threatening, abusive or otherwise disorderly conduct which tends to provoke a disturbance or incite violence will be ejected. UW Athletics promotes a welcoming atmosphere in its venues. Racist and other offensive behavior is not appropriate.
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Use WiscVPN to protect data, get access
It seems as if each week brings news of some new breach of data security. WiscVPN can help protect you and your data from such breaches, and if you’re using a public wireless network it is absolutely vital. VPN stands for Virtual Private Network. A variety of campus network resources can only be accessed by campus-based computers or via the campus LAN on an Ethernet connection. WiscVPN not only allows you to secure access to restricted campus resources from any network, it also encrypts data while it is in transit. Learn more and download WiscVPN on your devices.
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Deadline is Friday for excellence award nominations
As a reminder, the deadline for nominations for the UW-Madison Academic Staff Excellence Awards is Friday, Jan. 13. Nine winners in seven categories will be named in March and honored at an awards ceremony in April and at the Academic Staff Assembly meeting in May. Nomination materials for all awards should be submitted electronically here. If you have questions regarding the awards, please contact Jake Smith at 263-2985, or email pdrc@soas.wisc.edu.
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Campus network service improvements are underway
Campus network service will be more secure and reliable due to some behind-the-scenes work underway at DoIT. This work includes replacing existing, open-source software, authoritative Domain Name System (DNS) and Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) services with a commercially supported system. These updates will also ensure vital sites for relaying messages, such as wisc.edu and alerts.wisc.edu, have additional protection from network disruption. The change will make it quicker and easier to deploy security fixes and new features. It’s expected to be complete by late January.
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Benefits enrollment period ends at 4:30 p.m. Friday
The Annual Benefits Enrollment period, your opportunity to review your benefits coverage and make choices for the 2017 plan year, is nearing its end. Employees must enroll or make changes by 4:30 p.m., Friday, Nov. 11. Enroll through the eBenefits online tool. Changes are effective January 1, 2017. You may be eligible to change coverage for health, dental, vision and life insurance, as well as Flexible Spending Accounts and Health Savings Accounts. FSAs, HSAs and Opt-Out Incentive plans require a new enrollment each year to continue participation. Review the benefit checklist. You can log into the MyUW portal to review your current benefit enrollments under the ‘View Benefits Summary Detail’ tab. The Annual Benefits Enrollment website will show changes in plans and coverage for 2017.
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Be sure to plan vacation time as year nears end
As the end of the year nears, winter holidays are when many employees are thinking about taking a long, well-deserved break. Several upcoming holidays are falling on weekends so be sure to consult the legal holiday list to ensure you are getting approval for and are using floating holidays available to you within the given time frame.
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FLSA changes to affect some employees' status
Approximately 3,000 campus employees will be affected when the Fair Labor Standards Act salary threshold is raised to $47,476 annually on Dec. 1. Some employees will see changes in their pay or FTE status, but most will experience a change in their FLSA exemption status, meaning they will move from salaried to hourly. Those who manage an employee who will be moving from FLSA exempt (salaried) to non-exempt (hourly) on Dec. 1, are encouraged to attend a forum being held on Nov. 3 and Nov. 18.