General

What is changing?

Beginning May 1, 2019, an Employee Handbook for Non-Union Employees is available for this group of employees and their supervisors/principal investigators to use and refer to in various employment scenarios.

Why is the university leading this change?

This group of valued employees make significant contributions to the institution. By formalizing our working relationship, we are ensuring that the university is a fair and equitable employer, allowing us to continue to attract and retain Canada’s best researchers. Historically, research employees have been hired by principle investigators through research grants without the human resources support that is available to other employment groups. That support is now available.

Principal investigators, colleges/units have worked hard to ensure research employees receive fair compensation and benefits, but have not had the support to ensure consistency across campus. The Employee Handbook for Non-Union Employees was introduced May 1, 2019 to provide that consistency. This will align us with the majority of the U15 Universities who have standardized terms and conditions for research positions.

How were Colleges/Deans involved?

The research-intensive colleges—Agriculture and Bioresources, Western College of Veterinary Medicine, Arts and Science and Medicine—have been consulted with and informed about this project. Administrative groups have provided significant feedback to guide this project. Senior leaders, deans, and faculty have been informed through communications from the AVP HR.

Employees

How will this affect me?

  • You have access to campus services and benefits that have not previously been accessible
  • You receive consistent and equitable employment terms and conditions
  • All eligible employees are receiving benefits effective July 1, 2019, with current staff to be transitioned to the appropriate benefits plans over the next few months
  • Effective July 1, 2019, sick and vacation time is managed by salaried employees (not casuals) entering absence time through PAWS
  • Current salaries will remain unchanged. Salary increases already scheduled for 2019 will proceed. Decisions regarding 2020 salary increases will be finalized and communicated to employees in the fall of 2019.
  • You now have access to HR SBA support

What are the Salary Bands and how is my position placed?

  • A new salary structure has been established for all Non-Union Employees, which aligns with the Non-Union Employee Handbook.
  • Salary bands are a simplified structure to group together research positions based on salary. They give confidence to hiring managers and employees that salaries fall within an appropriate range.
  • Positions are placed in a salary band to provide guidance to hiring managers of an appropriate salary range.
  • All Non-Union positions across campus have been placed within a Salary Band, based on their current salaries. The bands are broad and there are many positions within the same band that have different job profiles. While the salaries are within the same general range (the band), each position has its own market rates, and target rates of pay.
  • Salary band placement is intended to allow appropriate salary growth within the band and will be reviewed on an annual basis.
  • As the new structure is established, work will continue towards better understanding the salaries on campus with respect to internal and external comparisons. This will include the collection of job profiles, supervisor consultation, market analysis, and other measures.

Are there any changes to my vacation?

If before July 1, 2019, you were accruing vacation at a rate (number of vacation days per year) below that outlined in the handbook your accrual was increased to match the handbook.

If before July 1, 2019 you were at or above the maximum outlined in the handbook and:

  • On the ASPA equivalent plan, you will stay at your current accrual rate but will be red-circled
  • On the CUPE equivalent plan, you will stay at your current accrual rate but will be red-circled
  • Research Professionals (e.g. Research Scientists/Professional Research Associates/RPROF) are entitled to six (6) weeks of vacation per year

Vacation accrual rates change on your Service Date. Often your Service Date is the most recent date of hire, but there are other factors that may change this. Ask your HR SBA what your Service Date is.

The service date is used to determine when you will receive a vacation accrual increase. For example, 6 years from your service date is when the vacation accrual rate would change from 15 days to 20 days, except for Research Scientists and Professional Research Associates.

Annual vacation follows the fiscal year, May 1 - April 30. Vacation time is encouraged to be taken throughout the year, and the annual entitlement should be used prior to April 30 to reduce vacation carry over into the following fiscal year beginning May 1.

How do I access PAWS to view or enter my absence time (sick/vacation)?

How do I find my sick time balance?

  • In PAWS, sick time balances began to accrue on July 1, 2019.
  • Any accrued sick time prior to that date needs to be managed at the unit level, in the same way it has been managed in the past, until that accrual has been depleted.

How do I access My Career Centre to review and apply to posted jobs?

My Career Centre is accessible through PAWS

  1. Search for the My Career Centre app in PAWS
  2. Click My Career Centre and at the top select Add to Favorites
  3. My Career Centre will now show up in the left navigation menu
  4. Click My Career Centre, then Take me to my Career Centre

I currently receive Earned Days Off (EDOs). Will this change?

  • If you are currently on an EDO schedule, this can continue to be offered to you for the current appointment; however, the continuation of EDOs being offered will be determined by your department or college. This will be up to your department/college to continue or not.
  • EDOs are not tracked in PAWS. It is up to your department to track and manage them.

Am I eligible for benefits?

Non-union employees are eligible for benefits if they work at least half time (0.5 FTE) and in a term appointment of at least six month. 

  • Casual employees do not meet the threshold for hours worked and are not eligible.
  • Visiting professors and visiting students receive benefits from their home organization and are not included.
  • Term positions with a duration of two years or greater will receive disability.
  • Benefits sessions for employees are available by registering at training.usask.ca for ConnectionPoint Benefit Enrolment Session.
  • Part-time employees may be eligible for part-time benefits after working 390 hours within 26 consecutive weeks of employment.

What benefits am I eligible for?

What if I have multiple positions/appointments?

You bear the responsibility to disclose your multiple positions to all of your supervisors.

  • With multiple appointments, you may reach a total of 40 hours per week without your supervisor being aware.
  • Supervisors of an employee working multiple appointments shall determine an overtime arrangement with the other supervisor in advance.

What if I work overtime hours?

  • Given the nature of research activities, employees may need to work flexible work hours, for example an employee may need to work more hours one day, and will work fewer hours in the following days.
  • Employees and their supervisors are required to monitor hours of work and review workload over cyclical periods. Overtime hours should be managed by having the employee taking time-off-in-lieu.
  • If overtime provisions apply, hours must be documented and approved by the employee’s supervisor in advance of the work being completed.
  • Positions of a professional or supervisory nature are exempt from overtime. Nonetheless, where an employee is working above and beyond their standard work hours, time-off-in-lieu should be expected.

What are the timelines?

Implementation will be a phased approach, beginning May 1, 2019, to align with existing practices and processing timelines.

Effective May 1, 2019, support for non-unionized employees was universally available from HR SBAs, ConnectionPoint, the Recruitment and Total Rewards teams.

Effective July 1, 2019, benefits are mandatory for all eligible non-unionized employees.

For Principal Investigators/Supervisors/Hiring Managers

How will this affect me?

  • Use of ConnectionPoint services, central administration systems and access to HR SBA support will be available.
  • Approval of sick and vacation time for salaried employees will be done through PAWS
  • Tools and templates for administrative services will be available, such as consistent letters of offer, interview guides and sample questions
  • Electronic Job Submission (EJS) requirements as follows:
    • Supervisor names must be included on EJS submissions
    • Benefits are mandatory for any new position
    • Overtime payment requests must be submitted through the EJS where time-in-lieu arrangements cannot be accommodated
  • Supervisors are responsible for approving and tracking overtime worked by their employees
    • This can be delegated to another individual such as a departmental assistant or a lab manager
  • Supervisors of an employee working multiple appointments shall determine an overtime arrangement with the other supervisor(s) in advance.

What if my employee works overtime hours?

  • Given the nature of research activities, employees may need to work flexible work hours, for example an employee may need to work more hours one day, and will work fewer hours in the following days.
  • Employees and their supervisors are required to monitor hours of work and review workload over cyclical periods. Overtime hours should be managed by the employee taking time-off-in-lieu.
  • If overtime provisions apply, hours must be documented and approved by the employee’s supervisor in advance of the work being completed.
  • Positions of a professional or supervisory nature are exempt from overtime. Nonetheless, where an employee is working above and beyond their standard work hours, time-off-in-lieu should be expected.

What will vacation time look like?

  • If an employee was accruing vacation at a rate (number of vacation days per year) below that outlined in the handbook, it was increased to match the handbook on July 1, 2019.
  • If an employee is at or above the maximum outlined in the handbook:
    • If on the ASPA equivalent plan, they will stay at their current accrual rate but will be red-circled,
    • If on the CUPE equivalent plan, they will stay at their current accrual rate but will be red-circled,
    • Research Professionals (e.g. Research Scientists/Professional Research Associates/RPROF) are entitled to six (6) weeks of vacation per year.
  • Vacation accrual rates change on your employee’s service date. Often the service date is the most recent date of hire, but there are other factors that may change this. Ask your HR SBA what your employee’s Service Date is.
  • The service date is used to determine when an employee will receive a vacation accrual increase. For example, 6 years from the service date is when the vacation accrual rate would change from 15 days to 20 days, except for Research Scientists and Professional Research Associates.

I currently offer Earned Days Off (EDOs). Will this need to change?

If you currently offer EDOs, this can continue to be offered; however, the continuation of EDOs being offered will be determined by your department or college and will be tracked and managed within your department, not through online time tracking.

Is my employee eligible for benefits?

Non-union employees are eligible for benefits if they work at least half time (0.5 FTE) and in a term appointment of at least six month. 

  • Casual employees do not meet the threshold for hours worked and are not eligible.
  • Visiting professors and visiting students receive benefits from their home organization and are not included.
  • Term positions with a duration of two years or greater will receive disability.
  • Benefits sessions for employees are available by registering at training.usask.ca for ConnectionPoint Benefit Enrolment Session.
  • Part-time employees may be eligible for part-time benefits after working 390 hours within 26 consecutive weeks of employment.

What benefits is my employee eligible for?

How do I access PAWS to approve my employees’ absence time (sick/vacation)?

Where do I access the Applicant Tracking System (ATS/My Career Centre), and how do I use the system?

My Career Centre is accessible through PAWS

  1. Search for the My Career Centre app in PAWS
  2. Click My Career Centre and at the top select Add to Favorites
  3. My Career Centre will now show up in the left navigation menu
  4. Click My Career Centre, then Take me to my Career Centre

Registration for ATS training sessions is available through training.usask.ca

Offer letter and job posting templates are available by searching Knowledge Base. HR SBAs are available to assist with drafting offer letters and job postings.

Where does the money come from to pay for benefits?

  • Consistent with the RCM model, moving forward all research grants or projects will need to budget for any costs associated with this change.
  • Any new grant or other funding application budgets should include the full cost of benefits.

How will I place new hires into the new compensation model?

Contact your HR SBA or the Compensation team and they will assist with placing employees into the compensation model.

What are the timelines?

  • Implementation of the handbook was phased-in, beginning May 1, 2019, to align with existing practices and processing timelines.
  • Effective May 1, 2019, support for non-unionized employees was universally available from HR SBAs, Connection Point, the Recruitment and Total Rewards teams.
  • Effective July 1, 2019, benefits are mandatory for all eligible non-unionized employees.