Remote Working FAQ

If a staff member has a medical exemption and work from home 100%, will they be required to come to division or staff meetings?

If the medical exemption you are referring to is in conjunction with an ADA accommodation or FMLA designation you must honor it. I recommend you discuss this with your department HR or your Employee Relations Consultant.

What consideration is given to employees with children at home who are unvaccinated? (No vaccine available for young children now)

The manager will need to focus on the job duties of the employee’s position and if they are able to get their work done, attend meetings, be available for students/customers/etc. given the type of flexibility the employee is requesting. If the operations of the unit are not significantly affected while allowing flexibility, the manager should consider approving these requests.

Because of HIPPA, how will supervisors understand if the vaccination requirement or waiver of an employee is satisfied?

That process is being developed. At this time we do not support asking employees and/or colleagues if they have been vaccinated. More to follow.

Will HR be creating a campus work from home policy?

Currently HR is not creating a new work from home policy. Instead, we are providing tools and guidance for supervisors and departments to consider for each department and position. HR and the ER team will be available for consultation on a case by case basis. HR is creating a work from home/flexible work agreement between employee and supervisor that addresses considerations from working from home. Link to guidance: https://www.colorado.edu/hr/remote-working-and-alternate-work-schedule-manager-guidance

If we already know an employee has to work 100% on-campus, do we still send the questionnaire only to open up a situation where they ask to NOT work in-person?

We would recommend that you still have a conversation with the employee and ask them to complete the questionnaire; but come prepared with your business justification to the questions as to why in-person best fits the guiding principles. The conversation garners trust and respect.

Does CU take on new liability for harm to dependents that may occur while an employee is simultaneously supervising dependents and working? (Clarification: I mean if a dependent comes to harm because the employee was “distracted” by work, they may try to

It is the employee’s responsibility to procure any type of dependent care they may require, and thus that liability is their responsibility. However, supervisors cannot pursue discipline if the employee is providing care but it is not impacting work productivity and success and meeting expectations.

There were statements during the Step 2. slide which sounded like policies and expectations, such as supervisors can require that all staff are in person without distractions for a particular meeting/activity or the change in whether childcare is required

Our recommendation is that if a remote work mode is established that the supervisor provides clear expectations pertaining to work responsibilities, productivity, availability, etc. This includes being available and engaged during team meetings for example. If attendance and engagement is problematic due to distractions in the remote work environment, we recommend that the supervisor discuss those concerns and modify as appropriate (the schedule or the work mode).

How do we address the work from home agreement if it will change between the summer and fall -- do we need to create a new one?

Yes, we would encourage employees and supervisors to continue these conversations throughout summer and fall. We anticipate there will be many departments who experience a change in what type of work arrangements are needed or work best for the operations. If an employee needs a new or updated arrangement at any point, we recommend documenting this with an updated agreement to ensure employees are always aware of work expectations.

Why isn’t the pilot through Spring? For some of us, summer is relatively dead time with no student contact. Fall is going to be unusual in that we’ll see exactly how students are engaging with us, our community and our space. Will we be able to flex and/o

June 1 is the first day that departments can begin implementing their iterative experimental plans and we certainly recommend pivoting and being agile to changing environments. We don't know what summer or fall look will look like, so we have to get comfortable with the unknown and being able to pivot and be nimble to changing departmental needs. It will also be important to give employees reasonable time to adjust and change as well.

If we have new employees beginning after June 1, should we have this conversation with them as well?

You may have a modality established or you may want to be flexible with the new employee. If a modality is firmly established, that should be communicated directly to the new employee before/at the time of offer. The basis for either depends on the role.

For your HR groups that are going fully remote (like the HR Service Center), have you had any employees who did not want to be fully remote? If so, how are you handling that?

Yes, the HRSC has received requests from a few employees who want to come into the office every other week or a few times a month to maintain the social aspect of the team and get out of the house! For these requests, HR is working to honor these as much as possible while also being considerate of space in our building. We are working to designate “hoteling” offices where employees who want to pop-in on a random basis are able to schedule use of these office spaces. There will also be shared work environments available with docking stations.

For the iteration period, how will campus handle office space if an employee goes remote and then the supervisor decides that employee needs to return to campus full time?

The supervisor will need to work with their department and appropriate officer to ensure that space will be provided if they determine that the employee needs to return; therefore retaining some space for potential future use during the experimentation phase.

In a small office (5 or fewer) accommodating one person’s desires may feel like the others are carrying the burden of either keeping the office open or taking on the responsibility of creating social/community environments. How do we deal with the intangi

As the supervisor, it will be your responsibility to assess the small office needs to ensure that each employee is contributing to the overall effectiveness of their and the office’s function-so that one or others are not burdened by one person’s different work modality. You may find yourself in this case addressing performance and or whether the remote modality was the correct decision for that employee or role. Do your best to determine impact using objective measures. As far as creating social/community, we believe the questionnaire, 1:1 and team meetings will help you determine what will work best for your team.

If an employee prefers to work in person even though their job could be performed remotely, will this be an allowable option?

While employee preference is important, it first depends on the nature of the work and what fits best with the guiding principles. It will be completely up to the department and officer to determine if the employee could work in hybrid modality and if the department has space and financial resources to accommodate it. But that respectful, two way dialogue with the employee should certainly happen, as well as both the supervisor and employee completing the staff questionnaire and discussing the benefits and challenges to the proposed modality.

If an employee prefers to work remotely and is able to perform at a high level, can departments compel the employee to return to campus occasionally for department/committee meetings, or would the onus be on the department to provide hybrid meeting option

The department can compel the employee to return to campus for required meetings and work-related events. Whenever possible, this requirement should be clearly communicated to the employee ahead of time when putting remote work agreements into place - they should understand which events and meetings they will be required to attend in-person. The department can also consider providing hybrid meeting options, but should consider available resources and impact on flow and productivity of the meeting or event.

What if you have a Classified staff employee whose position is 100% student/public facing and they do not want to come back due to age/health issues?

At this time, the employee would need to work with the ADA compliance office to determine if an accommodation would be appropriate. State executive orders have determined that employers can require employees to return to work absent ADA accommodations. If the employee is refusing to return to work, we suggest you contact your Employee Relations consultant to evaluate this case and provide additional guidance. Departments and supervisors have the right to ask employees to return to work based on the nature of their position.

This position may be able to work remotely once or twice a week. However, based on my past experiences as a supervisor during the Pandemic, this person's performance with remote modality did not meet expectations. If he/she still wants to work remotely on

I recommend you start with the guiding principles and ask the employee to complete the questionnaire. In reviewing the questionnaire with the employee you can be candid in discussing what worked and what did not work. You may want to consider how you set and followed up on expectations and what if any other factors may have contributed to the performance concerns. Make your decision based on the outcome of the 4-step process that Lisa shared in the presentation.

When will contact tracing end on campus? Will there be any limits on capacity and/or need for socially distant workspaces in the fall?

Based on the guidance released by the Pandemic Response Office this morning, case investigation and contact tracing will continue through the summer and fall semesters. Classroom capacities and standard event sizes will return to pre-COVID-19 sizes beginning in the fall semester, which will likely be mirrored in staff office spaces. Currently, mask requirements for indoor spaces will be in place through at least June 30. Beyond that, decisions will likely be driven by public health agencies and the PRO.

The university has said that staff and students need to be vaccinated prior to Sept. 15. If staff are required to return to campus prior to Sept. 15, can we require them to be fully vaccinated prior to their return?

At this time we do not support asking employees and/or colleagues if they have been vaccinated. Your unit can continue to promote the campus safety protocols to ensure the safety of your team members.

Can supervisors ask staff who are parents, who are working remotely or hybrid, what their childcare plans are? Or, as long as they are completing their duties, this question is off limits?

Supervisors are able to ask staff what their childcare plans are, however this should not be a major factor when supervisors are deciding if they are going to approve a remote work arrangement. This decision should be based mainly on the job duties and if they are conducive to remote work. Supervisors can also assess childcare arrangements when discussing core business hours, required attendance at team meetings, etc. If the childcare conflicts with any job requirements, they can provide expectations to employees about working during certain hours and timeframes. The supervisor should monitor performance accordingly and address issues as they arise.

Are there any policies or guidance on the topic of staff who want to work 100% remotely and move out of the Boulder area?

The HR website is a good place to start for review of analysis and decision making related to your employee’s work mode. Link: https://www.colorado.edu/hr/covid-19/summer-fall-transition. There are several factors to consider regarding remote work including whether the employee’s role is university staff or classified staff. After this presentation and reviewing the website and your unit’s strategic direction you may want to consult with your department HR or your Employee Relations consultant.

What are HR recommendations for equitable distribution of technology for remote work? It seems like many staff have had to start using personal equipment (cell phones, tablets, laptops, wifi) as part of remote work changes

Campus HR will continuing working on guidance and tools to help departments think critically about topics such a parking and technology

What considerations to compensation change have been considered when thinking about staff who will be able to work remotely either partially or most of the time? Thinking about that example of a front desk person who must be on campus compared to say a sc

Campus HR will continue to work with unit managers to ensure job descriptions are up to date and reviewed as needed to ensure appropriate compensation for positions based on job duties and responsibilities. Compensation is based on a variety of factors including nature and level of work and external and internal factors. A change in work modality alone may not necessarily impact a position's compensation. If there have been substantial changes to a job, it is recommended that the position description be updated and sent to Campus HR for review.

The quadrant exercise for mapping positions/duties to modality creates an equity issue in terms of job hierarchy, where “higher” job functions are likelier remote than “lower” job functions. What guidance do you have on this issue so that we do not reinfo

There will inherently be some positions that are more conducive to remote work based on the essential job duties of the position. We would not necessarily consider this inequitable as long as the analysis of remote work possibilities for each position in the unit is fair, consistent, and based on job duties.

How is the CO Equal Pay Act being considered regarding positions that will now be able to be primarily remote or hybrid? It seems like some positions could be up for reevaluation?

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