Dear employees,
In accordance with Gov. DeSantis’ “safer at home” order, the university has restricted all on-campus operations to Critical Function Personnel only effective April 3, 2020, until at least April 30, 2020. All faculty and staff are encouraged to continue to work remotely until further notice with the following exceptions:
On-Campus Critical Function Personnel
At this time, Critical Function Personnel are defined as employees designated to report to campus while on-campus operations are restricted, with appropriate documentation issued by Emergency Management. In accordance with the Critical Function Personnel communication sent on March 25 and April 2, authorization is given for the express purpose of enabling those persons who have to get to campus to perform critical functions that cannot be performed remotely to do so. On-campus Critical Function Personnel must be approved by a Dean or VP and include, but are not limited to:
- Those ensuring the safety and security of campus facilities and community (e.g. health care services, police);
- Those maintaining research labs that cannot suspend operations;
- Those providing limited services to students who remain on campus (e.g. housing staff, designated food services);
- Those required for continuity of services in maintenance/grounds/custodial/transportation;
- Those who are essential for business continuity (e.g. financial transactions and services staff);
- Those providing information technology support;
- Those facilitating distance learning.
The purpose of these guidelines is to ensure that the fewest individuals possible are on campus at any time, in an effort to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. For those who must come to campus, departments should continue alternative schedules to promote social distancing, and people should spend the minimum time necessary on campus to perform the authorized critical functions.
Temporary Reassignment Program
The USF Temporary Reassignment Program has been created to assist employees whose work is not considered essential or critical and who are unable to work remotely with opportunities that could keep them in a paid status by performing alternate, needed work for another university area.
Alternate assignments may range from work that can be performed remotely, or in limited cases, critical work that must be performed on a USF campus or at another USF site. Reassignments under this program are optional and are initiated by an employee’s supervisor, working directly with HR.
This change in assignment does not alter an employee’s current, established rate of pay and benefits, but may involve change in hours, duties and supervision. The program is temporary and subject to change and may be discontinued with or without notice.
Leave options
Under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA), certain employees are eligible for up to 80 hours of emergency sick leave for certain conditions (hours are pro-rated for part-time employees). Those conditions are explained in detail at the Department of Labor (DOL) website. The DOL also provides for expanded Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) leave up to an additional 10 weeks under specific circumstances. Additionally, a set of frequently asked questions and answers can be found here.
For employees performing critical functions on campus, supervisors are encouraged to implement staggered shifts where operations permit in addition to observing published CDC guidance, such as social distancing and good hygiene. An unintended consequence of staggered shifts is some employees could be unable to work regular full-time hours in a regular work week. Therefore, on a temporary basis, the university will provide up to 80 hours of administrative leave for mission critical employees who are directed to physically report for work on a USF campus through April 30.
This program is available to OPS and regular hourly employees only (e.g. salaried employees are excluded). The purpose of this program is to permit hourly employees to complete their essential, on campus duties without worrying about whether they will lose pay on a weekly basis by working on staggered shifts and following additional CDC guidelines.
Employees other than those qualifying for the leave above are subject to regular work rules.
If the university restricts on-campus operations beyond April 30, leave statuses will be reevaluated at that time.
If you have questions or concerns about your specific work assignment, contact your supervisor or the Division of Human Resources Employee Relations team at employee-relations@usf.edu or your Regional HR Office or USF Health HR Office.
Thank you for your continued patience and adaptability during these uncertain times.