Administering
USM and UMES Policies – Assists
departmental administrators and employees in understanding and applying various
Board of Regents and UMCP human resources policies and procedures in the areas
of wage and salary administration, leave and timekeeping, performance management,
discipline, layoff and other employee relations issues.
Collective
Bargaining - Advise and
train management on collective bargaining issues such as familiarizing
management with MOU provisions and representation rights for covered exempt,
nonexempt and sworn police officers, and interprets resulting Memoranda of
Understanding (MOUs).
Disciplinary
Matters - Assists management in
investigating and evaluating employee conduct for potential discipline.
Provides assistance in determining what, if any, discipline may be appropriate
and in creating necessary documents. Provides guidance on union employee right
to representation during investigations.
Family
& Medical Leave Issues - Assists
employees and management in applying the provisions of the University’s Family
and Medical Leave policy. Interfaces, as necessary, with employees and health
care providers to ensure proper application of the policy. Assists in creation
of notification letters to employees regarding rights and obligations. (Policy
VII – 7.50 Policy on Family and Medical Leave and Policy VII – 7.45 Policy on
Sick Leave.
Fitness
for Duty Issues - Schedules
medical evaluations with qualified health care provider where there are
questions regarding whether an employee is fit to perform the duties of his/her
job because of existing health issues. Assists in preparing the documents
needed to maximize medical reviews. Helps departments understand the
information received after the consultation, ensuring appropriate
confidentiality, and assists in the implementation of recommendations of the
evaluating health care provider (if any). Assists in acute alcohol or drug
situations.
Grievances –
Whenever possible, employees are encouraged to resolve grievances informally
through discussions with their supervisors.
If a resolution cannot be reached by way of informal discussions, the
grievance procedure allows employees to bring workplace concerns to the
attention of upper management. Employee Relations assists with guiding the
employee and management through the grievance process.
Layoffs
- Assists management with the layoff
approval process. Calculates points for bumping purposes (nonexempt employees
only). Assists administrators and employees in understanding the layoff, recall
and re-employment policies. Assists administrators in preparing for meetings
with affected employees and communicating with remaining employees about the
layoff. (Policy VII-1.30 Policy on Layoff for Nonexempt Staff Employee and
Policy VII-1.32 – Policy on Layoff and Recall of Regular Exempt Staff
Employees.
Modified Duty Requests - Assists
managers with employees unable to perform the duties of the job because of illness
or injury. (Policy VII – 7.41 – Policy on Modified Duty)
Talent Appraisal Process – The performance evaluation process is referred to as the
Talent Appraisal Process. Continuous communication and feedback are key
elements leading to optimal job performance.
Employee Relations assists management and employees to set and clarify
expectations and training on how to provide on-going feedback and evaluation
results.