Posts Tagged: coronavirus
Human Resources: Vaccination reminders
Influenza: As you may have heard, in 2021 President Drake issued an Executive Order requiring all covered UC students, faculty, other academic appointees, and staff to get vaccinated against influenza or opt out by submitting a vaccine declination statement. The Seasonal Influenza Vaccination Program policy has been updated for AY 2022-23 and we encourage all employees to visit this webpage and/or the UCOP website updates. The deadline for the flu vaccination is December 1, 2022.
SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19): For the safety and well-being of the entire university community, UC has implemented the COVID-19 vaccination policy. This policy requires, with few exceptions, that all students, faculty and staff be fully vaccinated against the COVID-19 virus, including appropriate boosters.
What's next? All employees shall comply with the Influenza and COVID-19 vaccines and boosters as appropriate. Save your records and we will reach out soon to let you know how to document your vaccination status, safely and securely.
Employee comments sought on vaccination program policy
On August 30, 2022, the Policy on Vaccination Programs – With Interim Amendments was issued, with an effective date of September 1, 2022. The University of California Office of the President invites comments on revisions from the interim amendments to finalize this Presidential Policy.
This policy is renamed “Policy on Vaccination Programs” and primarily consolidates the University's existing systemwide vaccination requirements other than the Student Immunization Policy into a single document. Key revisions that are being distributed for systemwide review include the following:
- The COVID-19 Vaccination Program Attachment incorporates language from the July 15, 2021, SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) Vaccination Program policy. This is primarily a reorganization and simplification of existing policy language and is not intended to institute substantive changes in policy regarding existing COVID-19 vaccination requirements.
- In alignment with CDC guidance, the deadlines for completion of the primary COVID-19 vaccination series have been extended to allow for a longer interval period between doses.
- Locations are encouraged to evaluate COVID-19 vaccination program participation, but healthcare locations are not required to do so.
- The COVID-19 Vaccination Program corrective action/discipline language for policy-covered academic appointees has been clarified.
- The Seasonal Influenza Vaccination Program Attachment (Program Attachment #2, page 48 of the policy) incorporates language from the president's past flu vaccine executive orders. The Seasonal Influenza Vaccination Program is an opt-out program, which means covered individuals may decline vaccination after receiving vaccine education. The program has an annual compliance date of no later than December 1. Locations may choose an earlier compliance date. The first compliance date for new employees depends on when their first date of employment is in relation to the flu season.
- The language has been updated throughout consistent with current public health usage.
The following groups are Covered Non-Affiliates instead of Covered Individuals: “K-12 students and children enrolled in day-care programs and camps sponsored by the University or operated at a University facility or location; as well as individuals enrolled in UC extension programs, continuing education, lifelong learning, seminars, workshops and other non-degree-granting educational programs.” For clarity, individuals enrolled in professional development and recreational programs are also included in the definition of “Covered Non-Affiliates.” This provides locations with flexibility on local program implementation as locations define the requirements for Covered Non-Affiliates.
The draft policy is posted on UCNet and can also be accessed at https://ucanr.edu/sites/PCPA/Revisions.
If you have any questions or if you wish to comment, please contact Robin Sanchez at rgsanchez@ucanr.edu, no later than December 9, 2022. Please indicate “Vaccination Program Employee Comment” in the subject line.
Flexible Work Agreements, workplace safety and reasonable accommodations
As the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic continue, employees may have questions on how to address potential concerns for health, safety, and overall well-being while continuing to work in accordance with Flexible Work Agreements. UC ANR continues to support best practices for workplace safety, accommodations, and reporting by focusing on:
Safety in the workplace:
- Employees should continue screening themselves for COVID-19 symptoms before coming to work and stay home when they are sick or have symptoms that are not from a known condition;
- Employees should report COVID-19 symptoms, close exposures, and positive tests (using the COVID-19 Screening Report survey); HR & EHS will communicate COVID-19 cases at work or in programming as appropriate;
- Isolate and quarantine when necessary;
- Use masks when required by local public health authorities or other conditions;
- Continue COVID-19 hygiene, cleaning and disinfection in the workplace;
- Ensure you have taken UC ANR's online COVID-19 prevention training;
- Each location has a COVID-19 Prevention Plan (these should be reviewed monthly and kept up to date);
- See the UC ANR COVID-19 website for additional information about on-going safety standards: http://ucanr.edu/COVID19
Reasonable accommodation options:
Reasonable accommodation is a reasonable change or modification that will enable an employee to perform the essential functions of the job.
- If an employee has a medical condition that affects their ability to work within the conditions of their Flexible Work Agreement, it is critical to engage in the interactive process and coordinate with Human Resources to ensure we are accommodating appropriately based on feedback from a medical provider.
- We recognize that some employees may have the need for individual flexibility on any given day, based on workload or circumstances, and supervisors/directors have the authority to review and approve those requests; however, as a standard, employees should be working as stipulated in their Flexible Work Agreements.
- Human Resources can assist in facilitating these discussions.
Reporting COVID-positive cases:
HR and Risk & Safety follow up on every employee COVID-19 case to support the need for leave time and return to work, as well as regulatory-required reporting, contact tracing, tracking, and communication. We are ready to provide guidance and support for all locations in managing the response to these cases. Please see our guidance for reporting a positive COVID-19 case or exposure.
COVID-19 status; confidential conflict management services
COVID-19 status report
The number of COVID-19 cases has continued to surge in California over the past two weeks. According to the CDC COVID Data Tracker, in California, 42 counties are experiencing a high rate of cases, 13 have a moderate rate, and only three counties have a low rate of infections. In areas with high COVID-19 transmission, CDC and CDPH recommend wearing a mask when indoors or when you are close in crowded situations.
This statewide surge continues to affect our ANR colleagues, with the first two weeks of July having the most cases since early January 2022. We have seen multiple cases occur at several ANR locations, as well as at some statewide meetings. Gatherings over the July 4th holiday and travel out of state appears to have led to many of the cases experienced by our UC ANR colleagues. When multiple cases occur at the same location in a short time period, workplace safety standards require additional investigation and interventions, including a return to mandatory mask use for all employees.
Please remember that we all need to continue to monitor ourselves for symptoms and take precautions if we learn we have been exposed to someone who has COVID-19. Employees who have symptoms, are exposed to someone who has COVID, or test positive need to report this to their supervisor and use the COVID-19 Screening Report survey to report their conditions. Follow the guidance of the survey if you are advised to stay home from work. If necessary, ANR's COVID-19 response team will follow up with you to provide more information about quarantine, leave, and your return to work. Even if you have been away from work for a few days, it is important to report your COVID-19 case, so we can determine if additional notification or other measures are required and manage your return to work.
This ongoing rate of COVID-19 cases requires our vigilance to prevent spreading the illness at work or during UC ANR activities in the community. Thank you for your continued efforts to keep yourself, your families and your UC ANR colleagues safe.
Related news: UC issues final COVID-19 vaccination policy
Confidential conflict management services for UC ANR employees
The UC Davis Ombuds Office has started providing UC ANR staff and faculty with off-the-record conflict management services as of July 1, 2022. The Ombuds Office focuses on helping employees to develop strategies for navigating challenging situations, planning for difficult conversations, and/or addressing conflict. The Ombuds Office operates confidentially, informally, impartially and independently.
There is no issue too big or too small to bring to the Ombuds Office. Common concerns that the Ombuds Office helps with include interpersonal issues with coworkers or volunteers, role or workload concerns, professional roadblocks, red tape, communication challenges, and abrasive behavior or unfair treatment. Conflict and disagreement are inevitable in our work environments, and the Ombuds Office helps build employees' conflict competence to harness the positive potential of differences and conflict to improve professional relationships.
The Ombuds Office offers the following services (available virtually from any location):
- Individual meetings: 90-minute confidential conflict coaching sessions with an Ombuds.
- Mediations: Informal, voluntary and confidential discussions between individuals in conflict, facilitated by an Ombuds.
- Workshops: Staff and faculty can learn strategies for improving conflict management and communication skills by attending Conflict Competence workshops. To register, visit https://lms.ucdavis.edu/. For details, please visit https://ombuds.ucdavis.edu/services/training.
- Presentations: Brief informational presentations to increase awareness about the Ombuds role and services.
To learn more about Ombuds Office services, call the Ombuds Office at (530) 754-7233 or visit their website at https://ombuds.ucdavis.edu.
4th of July safety and COVID-19 protocols
As we head off into a long holiday weekend and many of us are taking extended summer vacations, I wanted to wish everyone a safe 4th of July and share a reminder of COVID-19 protocols.
Stay safe over the holiday weekend - If you are making fireworks part of your July 4th celebration, please keep to the “Safe and Sane” versions. To prevent fires and injuries, remember to keep everyone, especially youngsters, a safe distance from fireworks, read the instructions, and have a bucket of water and a hose handy to keep you and your family safe! For more firework safety information, see https://www.readyforwildfire.org/more/fireworks-safety/
Take steps to prevent heat illness. Know the signs and symptoms of heat illness. If you are out in the heat, drink plenty of water, take rest breaks in the shade, and watch your friends and family for signs of heat stress. Our safety note on Heat Illness Awareness is intended for the workplace, but the information is applicable at home as well.
The rate of COVID-19 cases remains high in most parts of the state. According to the CDC COVID Data Tracker, in California, 38 counties are experiencing a high rate of cases, 18 have a moderate rate, and only two counties have a low rate of infections. We are seeing this COVID-19 surge continue within ANR, with June having the second highest number of cases in a month since the pandemic began. In areas with high COVID-19 transmission, CDC and CDPH recommend wearing a mask when indoors.
Please remember that we all need to continue to monitor ourselves for symptoms and take precautions if we learn we have been exposed to someone who has COVID-19. Employees who have symptoms, are exposed to someone who has COVID, or test positive need to report this to their supervisor and use the COVID-19 Screening Report survey to report their conditions. Follow the guidance of the survey if you are advised to stay home from work. If necessary, ANR's COVID-19 response team will follow up with you to provide more information about quarantine, leave, and your return to work. Even if you have been away from work for a few days, it is important to report your COVID-19 case, so we can determine if additional notification or other measures are required and manage your return to work.
Have a happy and healthy July 4th holiday!
Brian Oatman
Director, Risk & Safety Services