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Volume 21, Issue 2

December 2008

In this issue:

UM Staff Advisory Council was formed to provide two-way communication between staff and the
President on pertinent issues. If you have comments
or questions about any subject related to UM System staff, please contact
one of your Council members. They are there for you!

UM Staff Advisory Council Members 2008-2009

What is new in Benefits in the upcoming year

Greetings! Here are projects up and coming
The PeopleSoft E Benefit module is currently functioning in a “pilot stage” for UM System and UM-Kansas City employees. This module is currently being used to handle enrollment change period transactions through on line access via My HR. Early in 2009, the module will be made available to all faculty and staff throughout the UM System for enrollment changes as well as for new employees enrolling in UM benefits for the first time. This module provides immediate feedback and enrollment confirmation for employees.

Development of a new pension administration system for the UM Retirement, Disability, and Death Benefit Plan is nearing completion and should be available to faculty and staff in early 2009 as well. This system will allow UM Faculty and Staff Benefits to provide improved turn-around time in processing retirement transactions as well as retirement estimates. This system will also feature an enhanced self –service modeling component that allows faculty and staff to model various retirement scenarios in planning for their future.

The UM Retirement and Staff Benefits Committee is beginning a long range planning effort to identify priorities for changes in UM benefit program offerings in future years as resources become available. This Committee is comprised of faculty and staff representatives from each campus as well as representatives from the UM retiree population. As a part of this effort, each faculty and staff member will be asked to participate in an on line survey regarding UM benefit programs. The survey will be conducted in a manner that protects the identity of those being surveyed. All faculty and staff will be encouraged to participate in this survey.


New Smoking Policy

Policy goes into effect January 20, 2009

In recognition of the health, safety and comfort benefits of smoke-free air and the responsibility to provide and maintain an optimally healthy and safe working and living environment for faculty, students, staff and visitors, the University of Missouri is establishing the goal of being smoke free by January 1, 2014, in all its owned or leased buildings and University owned or leased vehicles. Effective January 20, 2009, smoking is also prohibited on University of Missouri owned or leased property within twenty (20) feet of building entrances, exits, open windows, and fresh air intake systems. The University reserves the right to specify additional designated smoking and non-smoking areas on its campus grounds.

Exceptions to these prohibitions include:

1) Areas specifically designated for smoking.

2) Academic research approved by the Campus Institutional Review Board, provided that the research is conducted in an appropriately ventilated area.

3) University of Missouri Health Care will continue with its current smoke-free policy.

Smoking Cessation

The campus will work in conjunction with the Atkins Wellness Program to provide smoking cessation programs for all faculty and staff employees and with the Wellness Resource Center to provide smoking cessation programs for students.

Implementation

The implementation date of this policy is January 20, 2009.The campus intends to move from the twenty-foot rule to one of designated outdoor smoking areas by July 1, 2011. We like for staff to offer any suggestions on “Areas specifically designated for smoking” that is referenced in the text. We would appreciate your input on these locations and look forward to hearing from you. Please contact any council member with your suggestions so we can pass those along for you.

Words From the Editor

Greetings from your SAC Newsletter editor.  This holiday may not be as merry for most as in past years due to the changes in the economy and our world this past year. When things get bad or I fall on hard times I try to remind myself of all the times I felt that sinking feeling before in my life and how I thought I would never rise above it but I did EVERY single time…and we will all rise above these hard times and see a brighter future tomorrow. Yes things may even get worse before they get better but believe me hope will always be there for us.

In our last council meeting we brought up the question of what can we do to help us all get through this hard time a little easier. One of the council members brought up the energy crisis in the 1970’s and what the campuses and staff did to conserve energy during that hard time. I think this may be a good time for each of us to take action and do at least one thing differently to help conserve energy and help us save money and maybe even someone's job in the future by doing so. If your office is well lit from natural lighting do you really need the overhead lights on all day to see? Can you walk the stairs instead of taking the elevator? If you are not going to access your work computer from home how about powering your computer and monitor down for the night to save some money and energy. Turn lights and devices off in conference rooms and offices when not in use. If you have an electronic document do you really need to print a hard copy of it? These are just a few suggestions and you can ask yourself what you can do in your area but if we all did even just one of these things every day we can make a difference together.We welcome any suggestions you have to help improve the situation for us all. Please email or call a council member with your suggestions so you can help us help you.

From all of us we wish you a Happy Holiday season and brighter future tomorrow

Thanks,

Joan Goodwin

December 2008 Service Awards

Congratulations to the following UM-System Staff members who have attained these milestones of service

5 Years of Service

Elliott,Erin C~ Goverment Relations

10 Years of Service

Lee,Jennifer M~ Library Systems

Cundiff,Belinda M~ Presidents Office

Rivera Jr,Luis Antonio~ UM Information & Computing SVC

20 Years of Service

Oetting,Martin Christy ~ Goverment Relations

Website's of Interest this Issue:

Events Calendar - University of Missouri Columbia

Events Calendar - City of Columbia/Chamber of Commerce

Standing Committees

  • Benefits Committee: Chair: Nathan Billings
  • Parking & Transportation Committee: Chair: Beth Perrin
  • Staff Awareness Committee: Chair: Karla Dowd
  • Staff Recognition Week: All SAC members serve on this committee

UM-SAC will do our best to keep all UM employee's informed on various topics, issues, and problems that arise during the year. We welcome suggestions from you on issues of interest and look forward to presenting those matters to the entities that can best assist in those matters or make change. If you have any questions, ideas, and/or concerns, please call or email any of the UM-SAC members.

SAC website
Note from Editor!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Staff Advisory Council meetings are open to all UM System Staff. Meeting times are 8:30 a.m. -10:30 a.m. the second Friday of the month. The location of each meeting changes, so contact a council
member if you are interested in attending.
Joan Goodwin