Human Resources and Payroll Services Newsletter

Contact Information Business Hours Office of Human Resources & Payroll Services Office 8:00 a.m.- 5:00 p.m. SGC (Stop N Go Center) Monday - Friday 1919 N University, H102

PO Box 6050, Dept. 3140 Break Hours

Fargo, ND 58108 7:30 a.m.- 4:00 p.m. PH: 701.231.8961 Monday - Friday FAX: 701.231.9686 J

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The Resource

Check out our NDSU virtual tour!

If you’re a new employee and want to tour the campus, click on

the link below! The tour is also great for current employees.

https://tours.bemorecolorful.com/v/GOAzA7bvqQp

In this issue: Staffing Updates

Recruiting Solutions Update

COVID-19 Updates

2021 Benefits Updates

Payroll Services Updates

2021 Performance Management Updates

NDSU Leadership Development Program

Winter Weather Storm Procedures

OFFICE OF HUMAN RESOURCES STAFF

John Woolsey – Director of Human Resources john.woolsey@ndsu.edu 1-8788 Salary Administration, Policy Interpretation, Employee Relations, Supervisor Coaching Jill Sackenreuter – Associate Director of Recruitment and Administration jill.sackenreuter@ndsu.edu 1-8525 Manage Recruitment Process/Exempt Recruitment, Employee Relations, Job Family Assignments, Benefits & Shared Leave Administration Kristina Astrup - Associate Director of Organizational Development kristina.astrup@ndsu.edu 1-8965 New Employee Orientation, Training and Development, Performance Management, Employee Relations, Newsletters Sara Oestrich– Human Resources Assistant 1-6293 sara.oestrich@ndsu.edu Recruitment Support, Tuition Waiver processing, Imaging/Records Management, Employment Verifications Maria Wingenbach – Benefits Specialist maria.wingenbach@ndsu.edu 1-5602 Benefits Administration, COBRA processing, Supplemental Retirement Accounts, Exit Interviews, Retirement Process, FMLA, ACA, ADA Cindy Breyer – Recruitment Specialist lucinda.breyer@ndsu.edu 1-5678 Non-exempt Recruitment, Online Employment System Contact, Onboarding, Benefits Administration Assistance (backup) Liz Thompson – HRMS Technician elizabeth.thompson.1@ndsu.edu 1-5922 HRMS PeopleSoft Contact, Salary Administration/Reporting Assistance, Data Requests, PeopleAdmin Technical Support Sophia Yohannes-Smadi – Human Resources and Payroll Services Office Assistant

sophia.yohannes@ndsu.edu 1-8961 Reception, Non-benefited & International Form I-9s, W-2 reprints, Staff Recognition Events, Scheduling appointments

Please check out our homepage at:

www.ndsu.edu/hr for current news and

announcements!

Upcoming Holidays

Monday, January 18 Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

Monday, February 15

Presidents’ Day

Friday, April 2 Good Friday

PAYROLL SERVICES STAFF

Patricia Hanson – Director of Payroll patricia.hanson@ndsu.edu 1-8990

Manages Payroll Operations, Paycheck Adjustments, PeopleSoft Self Service/

Manager Self-Service, Year-End Processes

Sheila Tindall – Senior Employment Records Technician

sheila.tindall@ndsu.edu 1-5657

Process Benefited Hires & Changes, Adjustments, NDWRs, W-4s, Data

Verification, Summer Salary, Early Employee IDs

Tina Berger – Benefits Associate tina.berger@ndsu.edu 1-7543 Balance & Process Benefits & Payroll Deductions Logan Johnson – Benefits Associate Logan.johnson.2@ndsu.edu 1-6297 Balance & Process Benefits & Payroll Deductions Laura Garske-Hermanson – International Payroll Coordinator laura.garske-hermanson@ndsu.edu 1-7328

International Employment Eligibility

Julie Giffey – Payroll Records Technician julie.giffey@ndsu.edu 1-8958 Hiring, Change 101s/DocuSign, Terms (Grad, PTA & timeslip), Front End Payroll Duties, ACH, W-4, and NDW-R Backup Kim Pithey – Payroll Records Technician kimberly.pithey@ndsu.edu 1-5677 Summer School, Taxable Expenses, Other Earnings, Backend Payroll Duties Timeslips/TLAB, Adjustments, Employment Verifications, ACH, W-4s, and NDW-Rs Kari Schmitz-Eilertson – Payroll Coordinator kari.schmitzeilertso@ndsu.edu 1-6251 TLAB, Payroll Processing, Off-Cycles, General Deductions, Wage Garnishments Deanna Boucher – Payroll Accountant deanna.boucher@ndsu.edu 1-7119 Tax Payments, Reconciliations, Department Billing

Logan Johnson, Benefits Associate Logan Johnson joined the Payroll Services Department as a Benefits Associate on May 4th. Johnson’s role on campus focuses on balancing and processing benefits and payroll deduc-tions.

Johnson previously worked as an Account Executive at Discovery Benefits, a Wex Company. He

graduated from NDSU with a Bachelor ’s of Science in Management with a HR focus .

FUN FACT! Logan is a black belt in Tae Kwon Do.

“I am excited to be working at NDSU as I had such an incredible experience when I attended as a student. It feels great to be a part of something like that and to keep the wheels turning.”

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Human Resources and Payroll Services Departments: Staffing Updates

Sophia Yohannes-Smadi, Human Resources & Payroll Services Office Assistant Sophia Yohannes-Smadi joined NDSU on July 6th as the Human Resources and Payroll Services Office Assis-tant. Some of her duties include reception, non -benefited and international form I-9s, scheduling appoint-ments, and working on Staff Recognition events.

Yohannes-Smadi has a background working in the natural food industry; before joining NDSU, Yohannes -Smadi spent 5 years working as Store Manager for the Fargo Natural Grocers. She has also worked in food co -ops in North Dakota and Minnesota. Since graduating from NDSU, Yohannes -Smadi has also held positions with local nonprofits including Lutheran Social Services of North Dakota, where she served as the Program Assistant for New Americans Services, and at Bluestem Center for the Arts as Marketing Coordinator. “I have truly enjoyed learning the in and outs of human resources and payroll and love the new challenges it pro-vides every day. I’m proud to tell people that I work at NDSU!”

Sophia’s favorite “Stay at Home” pandemic activities: learning to play chess with her 7 year old, baking, Lego builds with her kids, and virtual game nights with friends from high school.

“I’m very excited to be back at NDSU; there ’s a great sense of community and everyone here has been so welcoming and so helpful! Leaving retail management after many years and moving into an administrative role has provided me with a work -life balance that has been invaluable to me and my family and it ’s given me the opportunity to work on some creative projects at home. I am very grateful for that.”

Recruiting Solutions In August, the Human Resources team started training on Recruiting Solutions, an online employment system. This system replaces the previous PeopleAdmin system used for online recruiting and hiring. Recruiting Solutions is com-prised of two modules in the PeopleSoft system. Candidate Gateway (where candidates go to look and apply for jobs) and Talent Acquisition Manager (the internal HR module for recruiters, hiring supervisors, and others to create, post, interview and hire candidates). The goal of the project is to streamline and make process improvements. The system-wide NDUS implementation of Recruiting Solutions integrated with the current Peoplesoft HRMS. It is designed to create a better candidate experience and improve efficiencies for employee onboarding. We continue to update training resources and provide training sessions if needed. You can view training resources along with re-cordings of the training sessions on the Recruiting Solutions site at https://www.ndsu.edu/hr/recruiting_solutions/.

If you are new to using Recruiting Solutions – please refer to the Quick Step Guides to provide step by step instruc-tions on how to post your job opening and how to hire your new employee.

Quick Step Guides: https://www.ndsu.edu/fileadmin/hr/docs/RecruitingSolutions/Quick_Step_Guide_-_Full_Time_Benefitted_Positions.pdf

https://www.ndsu.edu/fileadmin/hr/docs/RecruitingSolutions/Quick_Step_Guide_-__Students_Grads_Temp_Part-time_Positions.pdf

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The Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) The Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA), which expired on December 31, 2020, was not extended as a part of the recent stimulus bill. Therefore, FFCRA (COVID) leave will no longer be available to employees as of January 1, 2021.

Benefited employees, who need to take leave due to COVID after December 31, 2020, may be able to use accrued sick leave for quarantine related absences and accrued annual leave for COVID related school/daycare closures. Temporary/Non-benefited employees will need to take leave without pay.

For further questions related to this email please contact John Woolsey at 701-231-8788 or at john.woolsey@ndsu.edu

COVID-19 Updates, FMLA and EAP Information

Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA)

Do I need to complete FMLA paperwork?

Since the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) was not extended beyond December 31, 2020 this is no longer an option for FMLA. However, if the absence involves hospitalization or longer-term treatment, this would be eligible for FMLA and paperwork should be requested.

For other medical conditions (such as surgery or pregnancy), our FMLA policy remains in effect. If you have worked for NDSU for 12-months and have one of these events, this federal law should be utilized even if the employee has accrued sick leave:

Birth of a child

Serious health condition of the employee

Serious health condition of an employee’s family member

29 C.F.R. 825.301(a) states, “Once the employer has acquired knowledge that the leave is being taken for an FMLA-qualifying reason, the employer must [designate the absence as FMLA leave]”, regardless of whether the employee wants FMLA to apply. FMLA and paid leave run concurrently, employees do not need to be out of leave to qualify for FMLA.

https://www.ndsu.edu/hr/benefits/leave/fmla/

For questions regarding FMLA and when/if it should be used, or to apply for FMLA, please contact Maria

Employee Assistance Program (EAP) - The Village

If you or a family member are needing assistance during this challenging time—or any other time, for that matter —please utilize NDSU’s Employee Assistance Program (EAP). Our plan is through the Village Family Services. Services are available 24/7, 365 days a year, with nationwide accessibility. There is no cost to your household, within certain limits. All NDSU benefited employees and members of their household are able to seek assistance through The Vil-lage EAP. The Village EAP is a confidential, independent counseling program that offers professional guidance in a variety of areas, such as: relationship issues, emotional health issues, drug and alcohol issues, workplace issues, cri-sis counseling, financial issues, legal issues, and wellness.

https://www.thevillagefamily.org/content/village-eap

Password: VillageEAP

1-800-627-8220

If you or someone in your household is having an issue just call the toll-free number, explain the issue and that you work at NDSU, and they will set you up with a provider that can help. All the information you provide is confidential

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Health Care and Dependent Care FSA Information

The NDSU flexible spending plan features a grace period to incur expenses and file claims.

Grace Period: The grace period ends March 15, 2021 for both health care and dependent care FSAs. The grace period allows employees to continue to incur expenses to apply to the prior year balance.

2021 BENEFIT INFORMATION 403(b) and 457(b) Plan Limits

HSA Limits

Defined Contribution Plans 2021 2020 Change

Maximum employee elective deferral $19,500 $19,500 no change

Employee catch-up contribution (if age 50 or older by

year-end) 1

$6,500 $6,500 no change

Maximum employee elective deferral plus catch-up con-

tribution (if age 50 or older by year end)

$26,000 $26,000 no change

1 The $6,500 catch-up contribution limit for participants age 50 or older applies from the start of the year for those turn-ing 50 at any time during the year. 2 Total contributions from all sources may not exceed 100% of a participant's compensation.

Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) 2021 2020 Change

HSA contribution limit

(employer + employee)

Self-only: $3,600

Family: $7,200

Self-only: $3,550

Family: $7,100

Self-only: +$50

Family: +$100

HSA catch-up contributions

(age 55 or older)

$1,000 $1,000 no change

2021 Benefit Information

Wellness Program

Employees are provided the opportunity to earn up to $250 per year for both the employee and their participating spouse using the health club reimbursement program, the points system or a combination of both programs. Health club option includes a $20 per month health club reimburse-ment for both employees and spouse if they exercise at a NIHCA (National Independent Health Club Association) affiliated health club 12 or more days out of the month. The Dakota Wellness Program site allows employees and their covered spouse to register online and earn points for health and wellness activities that may be redeemed for incentives and prizes.

Register for the Dakota Wellness Program at: https://www.sanfordhealthplan.org/ndpersdakotawellnessprogram Sanford Health Plan Member Services: (800) 499-3416

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Payroll Office is Now Payroll Services

The NDSU Payroll office is now a separate department from Human Resources and has changed its name to Payroll Services. The new name represents our continued commitment to provide employees and other Shared Services campuses with the highest level of service. Please send any questions regarding the name change, or the services we provide to Pat Hanson, Director of Payroll Services.

Employees Encouraged to Review Paychecks

Payroll Services strongly recommends that employees review their paychecks each payday. Frequent review of your paycheck will allow you to report any errors in a timely manner and determine if there are any changes that need to be made. Using Employee Self-Service, employees are able to change their direct deposit accounts, federal and state tax withholding, address and access tax documents (if consent has been given for electronic delivery).

Employee Self-Service can be accessed at: https://prd.hcm.ndus.edu/psp/hehp/?cmd=login

Form NDW-R Due for 2021

If you are a resident of Minnesota and are having, or would like to have, Minnesota state income tax with-held from your paychecks, please submit a new Form NDW-R to NDSU Payroll Services by February 28, 2021. This form needs to be filled out every year in order to continue to have the exemption from North Dakota withholding. Employees who do not complete this form by the February 28 deadline will have North Dakota state income tax withheld from their paychecks beginning March 15.

The Form NDW-R is available at: www.ndsu.edu/fileadmin/vpfa/forms/HR-NDWRfillable.pdf or in the Payroll Services office (SGC 102).

When filling out the NDW-R form, please complete the “Employee Information” section, answer the four questions and sign/date at the bottom. The section entitled “Employer Information” has been filled out by the NDSU Payroll Services office. Please remember to make a copy of the form for your records.

Completed forms should be returned to the NDSU Payroll Services office: hand-delivered to SGC 102 or via postal service at PO Box 6050, Department 3138, Fargo, ND 58108-6050. If you would like to email the form, you must use the Secure File Transfer system located at: https://filetransfer.ndsu.edu/filedrop/

New URL for HCM (HRMS and Employee Self-Service)

To allow users to log into PeopleSoft HCM (HRMS and Employee Self-Service) and Financials applications within the same browser, a change to the URL’s needs to take place. This change took effect in Production for both HCM and FIN on December 30th.

If users have the old URL’s bookmarked, they will be forwarded to the new URL for a short period of time. Please up-date your bookmarks accordingly.

Old URL for HCM: https://adminsys.ndus.edu/psp/hehp/?cmd=login New URL for HCM: https://prd.hcm.ndus.edu/psp/hehp/?cmd=login

Old URL for Financials: https://adminsys.ndus.edu/psp/hefp/?cmd=login New URL for Financials: https://prd.fin.ndus.edu/psp/hefp/?cmd=login

All campus IT departments have also been contacted about these changes. If there are any shortcuts to environments on websites/intranets, these need to be updated on or after December 30th.

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2021 Performance Management Update

Performance Review Reminders The “plan” consists of performance and professional development goals for this review year (March 2020-March 2021). For those that utilized the online program for the 2020 performance review, the future goals you identified should flow over. You will be able to change/edit performance goals and add professional de-velopment goals. The evaluation step of the program will open January 8, 2021 with a deadline of March 31, 2021. Both you and your employee will be able to login at anytime and access some features for on-going performance management such as making progress notes or attaching documents.

Paper copies will continue to be accepted. The template may be found under the Human Resources/Payroll https://www.ndsu.edu/forms/#human9. If you elect to submit by paper, reminders and notifications will still be generated from the online system. If you plan to utilize a paper review, your employee will remain obligated in the online system until a paper copy is received. This will allow us to more easily track for completion compliance. If you have questions or encounter problems, please contact HR at ndsu.hr@ndsu.edu.

Please note: 2000 Band will continue to use their current performance review process.

Returning to Campus!

The NDSU Office of Human Resources and NDSU Payroll Services office will be moving from the Stop’n Go

Center, SGC, (Northeast of FARGODOME) to Hastings Hall in February 2021. Both offices are looking forward

to being located back on campus, with easier accessibility for employees.

NDSU Leadership Development Program: Fall Book Review

Due to COVID-19, we decided to explore some different options for fall 2020. We introduced a leadership book re-view. During the months of October, November, and December, we met virtually to discuss the book The 360-Degree Leader: Developing Your Influence from Anywhere In the Organization by John C. Maxwell. The book is written from the perspective of being a leader in the middle of the organization. The main concept is that anyone can be a leader, no matter your role or title.

Leadership is influence, nothing more, nothing less. John C. Maxwell

We had 75 participants in the book review and had two groups meeting virtually every other week to discuss the sec-tions of the book. During the sessions we discussed the 5 Levels of Leadership, leadership myths and challenges, how to lead up, how to lead across, how to lead down, and the value of 360-Degree Leaders. Participants were provided a copy of the book and received resources including a companion workbook to complete during the book review.

We will be reviewing additional options for the winter/spring leadership development program. Please watch for more information. Please reach out to Kristina Astrup, Associate Director of Organizational Development at 701.231.8965 or kristina.astrup@ndsu.edu with any questions.

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Winter Weather Storm Procedures

The Division of Finance and Administration announced the storm procedures and protocol being used to de-termine impacts to the NDSU campus operations. A Severe Weather Protocol Crisis Management Response Team (CMRT) will assist the administration in providing advice on weather related operations.

Decisions made by the administration which will disrupt the operations of the University will be announced through the following OFFICIAL NDSU campus notification method:

Campus Emergency Notification Systems (CENS): The formal mass notification procedures identified in NDSU Policy 721 - Campus Emergency Notifica-tion Systems (CENS). By that policy, all employees are required to participate and are automatically enrolled in the CENS procedure through the PeopleSoft HR/Payroll process. All students are RE-QUIRED to participate in CENS and are automatically enrolled during the registration process. To confirm enrollment, go to Campus Connection and access the Emergency Notification Update link and complete the Emergency Contact Information form.

Additional methods that will be used are:

www.ndsu.edu: The winter weather alert will be posted on the NDSU home page and will provide up-dates on the status of University classes and office operations during the storm.

231-INFO (231-4636): The NDSU Emergency Announcement phone number will provide current infor-mation on the status of University classes and office operations during storms for anyone without inter-net access. (Please do not use the University Police phone line to check on updates in order to leave this line available for critical operational calls.)

Local Media Outlets (television, radio, inforum.com)

Once a disruption of campus operations has been cleared to return to normal operations, the formal CENS notification process will provide that “all clear” message.

Snow or low temperatures normally are not reasons to close the university, but significant amounts of snow might warrant a delayed start. Snow combined with severe wind chills or blizzard conditions also may war-rant closing the university.

The following actions may be taken by NDSU:

Full Operation

Delayed Start

Continued Delayed Start (if closed day prior)

Early Closure

Closed

Continued Closure (if closed day before)

NOTE: Please check the respective Athletics, Fine Arts, Memorial Union, Libraries and Wallman Wellness Cen-ter websites for information concerning their areas. Also please check with other specific events, as they may be canceled or rescheduled.

North Dakota State University does not discriminate on the basis of age, color, disability, gender expression/identity, genetic

information, marital status, national origin, public assistance status, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation or status as a U.S.

veteran. Direct inquiries to Equal Opportunity Specialist, Old Main 201, 701-231-7708 or Title IX/ADA Coordinator, Old Main 102,

701-231-6409.