UA Remote Work Project
The project team has concluded its work, and President Pitney approved the , effective November 1.
Thank you to everyone who participated and supported the process of updating university regulation.
BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic dramatically changed where and how university employees work. This caused us to look at the workplace in a different way. There have been advantages and disadvantages to working from home. The university would like to continue taking advantage of the good things about working from home and allow employees, supervisors and campuses the flexibility moving forward to accomplish their work through a combination of onsite and remote workplace options, while increasing employee engagement, provided business needs are met.
With representation from the system office and all three universities, the Post-COVID Workplace Team reviewed UA regulations for opportunities to adapt them to guide long-term onsite, remote, and hybrid work opportunities. Tools, tips and training on the new regulations are now available through the new remote work website and HR Training calendar.
- Create a list of legally required constraints so we know the parameters in which the team can operate while designing a workplace plan.
- Develop a robust line of communication between governance and advisory groups (including faculty, staff, students and DE&I) and the project team.
- Develop surveys to assess employees and supervisors thoughts on remote work and the possibilities of Post-COVID workplace.
- Develop overall regulation and procedure recommendations on remote work, on-site work and hybrid work that can be consistently applied to all campuses and all departments (equitable application), can be supported by campus leadership, allows supervisors the flexibility to make the best business decisions for their departments and is compliant to any legal constraints.
- Determine the physical and financial support that the university will provide those employees working remote (i.e. personal equipment vs. UA provided equipment, subsidy for internet service at home, office and computer equipment, inventory control, etc.).
- Develop the mechanism for jobs to be assessed to determine if they require on-site workplace, or if they may be eligible for remote workplace or hybrid workplace.
- Develop guidelines to help supervisors identify which employees and under what circumstances employees may or should work outside the state of Alaska.
- Develop checklists, procedures, guides, etc in order for supervisors to decide if a remote work arrangement is best for their employee and department.
- Develop supervisor training so they can implement the new procedures and workplace culture consistently. This will include how to supervise remotely, how to keep employees accountable for their job performance, how to decide which employees can work remotely, etc.
- Develop employee training so they can be successful in the new workplace and feel engaged in the organization culture, identify with the campus and be professional in successfully fulfilling job duties.
Exclusions
- Curriculum development or methods of instructional delivery
- Allocation/utilization of campus space released through remote work
- Specific determinations of who will work remotely
- Specific determinations or department/unit planning regarding return to work plans
- Determination of when campuses move between COVID Operational phases
- COVID compliance plans at campus facilities that are required to have employees back in the office
Find tips, tools, and resources at UA Remote Work.
Project Coordination
Director of HR Operations Michelle Pope oversaw the remote work project. She guided the Project Team, Technical Resources Experts group and the Transition Monitoring Team. She conducted stakeholder interviews with the President and Chancellors to guide the development of the project scope and key deliverables and was the primary project manager throughout the duration of the effort.
Michelle Pope
Director of HR Operations
(907) 450-8207
mlpope@alaska.edu