News for Employees
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Update on Metro Transit and Service Changes
Madison Metro Transit ended rider capacity limits on June 2, but face masks are required by federal law until at least September 13, 2021. Metro will continue limited routes and reduced service levels into 2022, when a network redesign is planned. However, certain service updates will go into effect August 22 to help improve service to and from the UW campus and UW Hospital. Details can be found at cityofmadison.com/metro. Information on UW employee bus passes can be found at transportation.wisc.edu/bus.
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WiscVPN to get multi-factor authentication
Beginning August 23, multi-factor authentication (MFA) with Duo will be added to UW–Madison’s Virtual Private Network (WiscVPN). This upgrade is part of the mandated security processes from UW System Interim President Tommy Thompson and helps protect WiscVPN against user credential theft. The new login process will be similar to the current MFA authentication options.
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Employees Paid Over Nine Months Should Prepare for Transition to Biweekly Pay
All UW System employees — including UW–Madison employees — who are paid over nine months will be moved to a biweekly pay schedule in August. Employees who are paid over nine months and have contracts starting in August will receive a partial biweekly paycheck on September 9 for August 23–28, and will receive their first full biweekly paycheck on September 23 for August 29–September 11. Following that, biweekly paychecks will continue to be received every other Thursday. These employees are also encouraged to review the Checklist for UW–Madison Employees Paid Over Nine Months.
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Phishing alert issued for 'benefits' email
An active phishing campaign is targeting UW–Madison email addresses. The attacker offers to provide financial assistance to qualifying employees. But the sure signs it’s bogus include misspellings and a link to a non-UW URL. Get details on this phishing attempt and tips for recognizing typical phishing methods.
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Town Halls to Focus on COVID and Reuniting Campus
Two town hall events are scheduled for Thursday, Aug. 12, as plans for reuniting campus proceed. An Employee Town Hall: Making sense of Delta, vaccines, and where we are now will be from noon to 1 p.m. It will be followed by an Instructor Town Hall: Navigating fall 2021 return from 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. Both events can be attended in person or online. For details and updates, visit covidresponse.wisc.edu.
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Employees Should Report Leave Time Used Promptly
Employees request leave time, such as vacation, personal holidays, and sick leave, using the Time and Absence module in MyUW. In conjunction with the move to a biweekly pay schedule for all UW System employees—including UW–Madison employees—Faculty, Academic Staff, and Limited Appointees are now expected to enter their leave as soon as possible after the leave time is used. These employees should not wait until the end of the calendar month to enter leave taken for that month. If no leave is taken in a given calendar month, Faculty, Academic Staff, and Limited Appointees should use the No Leave Taken function in MyUW to submit a report as soon as possible after the calendar month has ended. University Staff should continue to use timesheets, as they have been, for leave reporting.
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Update on 2021–22 Parking Applications and Offers
A second group of 2021–22 parking offers was emailed August 4–5. These offers must be accepted and purchased by August 17 or the offer expires. Those who missed earlier application periods can apply August 4–17. Offers for the third application period will be sent August 18. Other application and offer dates can be found on the Transportation Services website. Employee bus passes, multi-day passes, reduced cost, and motorcycle, moped, afternoon and night permits for 2021–22 are available to purchase online or at a Transportation Services office. For more parking and transportation details, visit transportation.wisc.edu.
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Feedback Requested on Food Waste Collection on Campus
In recent years, UW–Madison maintained a successful campus food waste collection program. On July 30, 2021, UW–Madison was forced to suspend collection of food waste (commonly referred to as “compost”) generated on campus. The Office of Sustainability is seeking input from campus users to help inform next steps for a short and long term solution to managing food waste. All members of the campus community are invited to complete a brief survey about this issue.
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Change to Campus Masking Policy
Effective Thursday, Aug. 5, all students, employees and visitors to campus will be required to wear masks when inside campus buildings. This policy change is being made in response to the recent arrival in the U.S. of the more infectious Delta variant of COVID-19. Vaccination rates in Dane County and on campus are higher than in other parts of the state and U.S. and this has helped limit the impact of the Delta variant. However, the virus continues to spread rapidly among unvaccinated people. Masks may be removed if you are working alone inside an office or lab with the door closed. Masks are not required in outdoor spaces, but may be worn if you wish. University Health Services (UHS) continues to offer free COVID-19 vaccines. If you are vaccinated, or get vaccinated soon, let UHS know to help inform campus public health policies. (If you were vaccinated at UHS, you do not need to take additional action.) Read more at news.wisc.edu/changes-to-campus-masking-policy.
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Campus Units Can Order Disposable Face Masks and More at No Cost
Disposable face masks and cloth face coverings can still be ordered from the MDS warehouse through ShopUW+ at no cost to campus units. Mask fitters, face shields, hand sanitizer and disinfecting wipes are also available at no cost. Orders will typically be delivered the next working day after the order is placed. While all campus employees are eligible to login from the ShopUW+ login menu, using their NetID and password, only those employees identified by their school/college/division as Requesters can place orders for these catalog items directly. To find these items from the ShopUW+ home page, log in and go to Shopping Home > Facility Supplies > MDS Warehouse. A keyword search (e.g., “mask”) can be used to find the items of interest.