Copyright © *|2017|*   -   All rights reserved.
Our mailing address is:
PAVIR - PO Box V-38
Palo Alto, CA  94304
Core Office: (650) 858-3970
Fax: (650) 858-3907
info@pavir.org

Remember the Date

PAVIR follows the Federal Holiday schedule, so please mark your calendars with the following upcoming holiday.

• Monday, 2/20/2017 – Presidents Day

Eligible employees will only receive holiday pay if their regular schedule includes Mondays. 

Please note, the PAVIR Administrative office will be closed on this date.

 
Meet Nobel Laureate Dr. Ferid Murad

PAVIR and VAPAHCS are delighted to invite you to meet Dr. Ferid Murad, Nobel Laureate, on March 1, 2017 from 2:30pm to 4:00pm in the Donna McCartney Conference Room on the first floor of building #105.  He will give a 60 min talk on “Discovering of Nitric Oxide and Cyclic GMP and their Role in Cell Signaling and Drug Development.”  The presentation will be followed by a Q&A session, and time to mingle.  Snacks and beverages will be provided. 

Dr. Murad joins the VAPAHCS research community as a Senior Research Advisor.  He states, “I have always been very interested in talking with other researchers, no matter at what level of their career they are.  I like to plan my talks so that everybody has a chance to learn - non-scientists and accomplished researchers alike.” 

Professor Murad earned his B.A. from DePauw University and his M.D. and Ph.D. from Case Western Reserve University. He completed his residency at Massachusetts General Hospital and a fellowship at the National Institutes of Health.  His distinguished career includes holding the position of the Chief of Medical Service at VAPAHCS from 1981-1986.  At Stanford University, he served as a Professor, Departments of Internal Medicine and Pharmacology, and both as Associate and Acting Chairman of the Department of Medicine.  Most recently, he held an academic appointment at the George Washington University, Washington, D.C.

For more information, visit https://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/medicine/laureates/1998/murad-facts.html
Exempt Employees: Time Off Requests and Timecard Approval

PAVIR is pleased to share this process improvement, reducing administrative work for a large group of our employees and their supervisors.  Effective with the pay period ending February 28, 2017, exempt employees and TimeCard Approvers (TCAs) no longer need to approve exempt employees’ timecards.  However, exempt employees still need to submit time off requests (such as sick leave, vacation, bereavement leave, jury duty, and leave without pay) for approval by TCAs.  TCAs still need to approve these time off requests in ADP by the last work day of the pay period.  This will allow time off balances to be updated accurately and timely.

Due to an ADP system limitation, we are not able to remove exempt employees’ timecards from the TCAs’ login approval screens.  In order to identify exempt employees versus non-exempt employees’ timecards, TCAs will see that non-exempt employees’ timecards have in-and-out time entries whereas exempt employee timecards only show time off hours.  See tables below showing a non-exempt versus an exempt employee timecard.

1. NON-EXEMPT Employee Timecard will have an IN – OUT column
              

2. EXEMPT Employee Timecard will NOT have an IN – OUT column
Employee Wellness

All PAVIR employees are WOCs, and we are welcome to participate in the VAPACHS Wellness events.  For February, this includes:

Light Athletic Stretch and Release Yoga

Tuesdays, 10 Week Drop-In
February 7– April 11, 2017, 5:00 – 6:00 p.m.
Palo Alto Division, Bldg 105, RM 110B & V-Tel capable to all sites

U-Jam Dance Fitness

Come get some cardio in while Dancing!
Thursdays, 7 Week Drop-In
February 16 – March 30, 2017, 4:45 – 5:45 p.m.
Palo Alto Division, Bldg 105, RM 110B & V-Tel capable to all sites

Bereavement Leave and Jury Duty Time Off

In another effort to introduce new efficiencies, and effective February 16, 2017, the ADP system has been enhanced to allow employees to submit time-off requests for bereavement leave and jury duty.  This will replace manual entries on employee timecards for these requests.  According to PAVIR policy, TCAs can only approve paid bereavement leave up to 3 days per incident. Please refer to the 2017 Employee Handbook in ADP for qualified incidents.  Any bereavement leave in excess of three days per incident must be covered by the employee’s sick (up to five days) or vacation balance or leave without pay.  Also, TCAs can only approve up to five paid Jury Duty days per event.
Vacation/Sick Leave Reporting – Exempt Employees
 
As noted in previous newsletters, but worth repeating, is that beginning January 1, 2017, employees classified as exempt who work more than 30 hours per week will be required to record sick and vacation hours when taking less than a full day off.  In the past, exempt employees were not required to record sick or vacation unless they were absent for one full day.
 
Under the new PAVIR Board approved handbook, vacation hours for exempt employees are recorded in four-hour or full day increments.  To help understand this change here are a few examples:
 
Exempt employee is working only a half day (4 hours in the morning), and taking planned vacation time off for 4 hours in the afternoon.
  • Employee submits a time off request for four hours of paid vacation in ADP.
Exempt employee works 6 hours of an 8-hour day, and leaves for the rest of the day.
  • No action is necessary in ADP.
 Exempt employee works 4 hours and 15 minutes and leaves work for a non-medical reason for 3 hours and 45 minutes.
  • No action on the time off request is necessary on the part of the exempt employee.
 
For sick leave hours, exempt employees are required to record leave in one hour increments, except that sick leave of less than two hours is not expected to be recorded.  There may be an exception for exempt employees who are on federal or state leaves of absences.  Here are some examples:
 
Exempt employee comes to work in the morning on schedule, and after 2 hours of work isn’t feeling well (unplanned illness that is not qualified for FMLA or other protected time) and needs to leave for the remainder of the day.
  • Submit a sick time off request for 6 hours in ADP.
 
Exempt employee comes to work not feeling well (unplanned illness that is not qualified for FMLA or other protected time), and works only 45 minutes then leaves to go home.
  • Submit a sick time off request for 7 hours in ADP. 

Exempt employee’s tour of duty is from 8:00am to 4:30pm and is not feeling well at 11:45am.
  • Submit a request for 3 hours of sick leave in ADP.

Exempt employee has worked for 6.5 hours and starts not feeling well.  Employee decides to leave work. 
  • Due to the 2-hour rule no sick leave needs to be requested or recorded in ADP.

Introducing tick@lab – Easing the Burden for Researchers

Beginning with submissions for the March IACUC meeting, researchers will enter all new protocols, amendments, renewals and annual reports for review by that committee into VAPAHCS’ new online software:  tick@lab by a-tune software.  Users will be contacted for training which will take place in early March.  The tick@lab system has been customized and configured for our requirements.  Users will find they need to enter information in only one place – no more appendices! 

Administrators and committee members are also looking forward to the efficiencies that tick@lab will provide.  Dr. Castro and his team are working on the second phase of this project utilizing the Building 54 management part of the software which will include among other things billing and ordering.

Update on Year End 1095C forms

The Affordable Care Act requires that Form 1095-C, Employer-Provided Health Insurance Offer and Coverage for 2016 must be distributed to employees by March 2, 2017.  Employees who are full-time and regularly scheduled to work thirty (30) or more hours per week will receive this form. part-time, or those regularly scheduled for twenty-nine hours or less per week will not receive this form. Employees will be receiving a hard copy of the 1095C forms at their home or mailing address in ADP in the week of February 13, 2017 with information regarding their enrollment status in the medical plans that PAVIR offered during the 2016 calendar year. 

Alternatively, employees may login to https://workforcenow.adp.com and go to MYSELF > Pay > Annual Statement to download their 1095C form. If you would like to learn more about this form and the new IRS requirements, please visit https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/i109495c.pdf.  You can use the information on this form to complete your 2016 personal tax return.  If you do not receive your 2016 1095C form, please contact HR directly to receive a copy. 
Cell Phones: Legal Update

You may already be aware, but as of January 1, 2017, drivers in California are prohibited from holding their cell phones while they drive. The law prohibits holding a cell phone while driving for any purpose, including checking maps, texting, talking or for any other reason.

The new law provides that people may only use their cell phones while they are driving if the phones are mounted on their dashes or windshields (in a location that does not interfere with the driver’s view or the activation of an air bag) and are set up for voice activation or hands-free use. If a driver’s hand does make contact, it can only be a single touch or swipe.  Systems that are embedded in the vehicle and installed by the manufacturer are exempted.



 






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