TO: Faculty and Staff
FROM: Geoff Gamble, Provost
DATE: April 13, 2000
SUBJECT: Voluntary Separation Plan
The University of Vermont is offering a Voluntary Separation Plan designed to reduce the number of faculty and staff members over the next three years. The plan has been developed to provide an incentive to employees who are interested in voluntarily leaving their positions, subject to selection criteria described below.
Faculty and staff, who have 10 complete years of service as of October 1, 2000, will be eligible to apply providing that the service was full time as required for full time benefit eligibility. The plan is organized by the following categories:
1. Tenured faculty at least 50 years old on October 1, 2000
2. Tenured faculty under age 50 on October 1, 2000
3. Officers of the Library (no age requirement)
4. Non-tenured faculty, administration and staff (no age requirement)
Central funding of Voluntary Separations will not be provided for positions funded by research grants, Ledger 3 self-funded budgets, and formula funded positions, such as in the College of Medicine and Ag Extension. Special communications will be sent to College of Medicine and Ag Extension chairs and directors from the dean/director. Other colleges and departments may also choose to distribute separate communications to their faculty and staff.
As of this date, this plan will not apply to staff members represented by collective bargaining units unless and until it is mutually agreed to by the University and the respective bargaining unit.
The primary purpose of this Voluntary Separation Plan is to enable the University to achieve targeted budget reductions through reduction in the number of its general fund positions and, to the greatest extent possible, to accomplish this through the offering of voluntary separation incentives.
It is with great regret that the University must set upon this course of action that will reduce the number of people in our community.
The Schedule
The plan will be available from April 13, 2000 until October 1, 2000. To be considered, applications must be postmarked by, or received in the Office of the Provost or Human Resources, by close of business, October 2. Requests will be considered as soon after receipt as reasonably possible. However, separations may occur anytime prior to June 30, 2003. In most instances, requests for separation will occur by June 30, 2002 because of the need to reduce budgets at the beginning of FY2003, rather than at the end.
Please note that faculty and staff approved for Voluntary Separation, who are age 50 on or before October 1, 2000, and whose application for Voluntary Separation is postmarked by, or received in the Human Resources or Provost’s Office, on or before June 30, 2000, will qualify for post retirement medical premiums at a grandparented rate equivalent to the costs they would have paid had they retired on June 30, 2000.
Summary details of the plan are included in the attached chart. Applications and a more detailed description of the official plan is available from Human Resources, the Provost’s Office or your dean or director. Information workshops are being scheduled for late April and early May. In addition, a Voluntary Separation Plan website with more information can be accessed at http://www.uvm.edu/~volsep/.
Selection Criteria
Decisions to fund a voluntary separation package for any individual will be based on the following criteria determined at three different levels: you, your dean, director, or Vice President and the Provost, with one exception as noted below.
*An exception to the selection criteria applies to eligible tenured faculty, at least 50 years old on or before October 1, 2000. All requests in this category will be approved. Approval will depend on mutual agreement between the faculty member, dean and Provost only as to the specific termination date to occur within 3 years of July 1, 2000. However, because of the need to reduce budgets by the beginning of FY03, separations will be encouraged to take place prior to June 30, 2002. Such agreements may not require elimination of the position for position reductions, though the employing department or college must obtain permission from the Provost before initiating the process of filling the vacancy.
Faculty members should note that the existing Faculty Early Retirement Plan will no longer be available after October 1, 2000. Those who meet the eligibility requirements for the plan, and would like to apply, may do so by submitting their application, with accompanying department head and dean endorsement, to the Office of the Provost by close of business, October 2, 2000.The attached chart provides summary information. A more detailed description of the Early Retirement Plan is available from the Office of the Provost. Faculty who choose the Early Retirement Plan may not also apply for the Voluntary Separation Plan.
Timing of Separations Including Phasing Out
Faculty and staff members may enter into a voluntary separation agreement and leave the University at a mutually acceptable date before June 30, 2003. At the discretion of deans and directors, faculty and staff may also be asked to phase their employment out over a period of time.
In approving phased separations, deans and directors will consider how they correspond with the unit’s general fund budgetary reductions and position plans.
The employee who is identified for phase out will enter into an agreement which reduces their FTE in increments over a period of as many as three years or delays their separation entirely for
as long as three years. During this phase out, benefits and terms and conditions of employment will be as for active employees within their respective FTE with certain exceptions, as described in the detailed description of the Voluntary Separation plan.
Re-Employment
Faculty and staff members who leave the University under the terms of the Voluntary Separation Plan may be re-employed after separation. Return to employment in the unit will be at the sole discretion of the department chair or unit manager. In addition, faculty and staff who leave the University under this plan are not prohibited from applying for other UVM positions following their departure. Former employees who have separated under this plan will neither receive preference for positions by virtue of their status as former employees, nor will they be credited for prior UVM service. Upon return to active employment, employment will be in accordance with the policies and provisions of the Staff Handbook, Officer’s Handbook or bargaining unit contract, whichever applies. Medical, dental, life and other insurance premiums will be paid for by the re-employed individual as for other active employees. When the individual returns to retirement, the benefit entitlements for which they qualified prior to re-employment will be reinstated. Faculty who had tenure before separation will return without tenure.
How to Apply for a Voluntary Separation Agreement
Consider your situation carefully. If you have been thinking of leaving your position for other opportunities, or preparing for retirement, a voluntary separation agreement may be appropriate for you. If you think you may meet the selection criteria, faculty should contact the Provost’s Office; staff should contact Human Resources. Your early response may have an effect on your prospects. You may also wish to talk over these issues with someone in the Employee Assistance Program. Individual communications about your possible voluntary separations will be shared only on a need-to-know basis.
For More Information
Additional information that may be helpful is available on the web at the following website: http://www.uvm.edu/~volsep/. A more detailed description of the Voluntary Separation Plan, and application forms, are available from your dean or director, the Provost’s Office or Human Resources.
Voluntary Separation Implementation Team
A Voluntary Separation Implementation Team has been established to provide technical advice and assistance to deans and directors and employees. The team is also responsible for tracking the status of and managing the process of approval or denial of applications. The team members are:
Ron Frey, Director of Human Resources, 230 Waterman, 656-4490, rfrey@zoo.uvm.edu.
Ron is the person to whom all staff applications are initially submitted. He will be able to answer questions regarding the content of the Voluntary Separation Plan and may be contacted to assist faculty or staff in learning the current status of their applications.
Tim O’Brien, Asst. Director, Human Resources, 237 Waterman, 656-3111, tpobrien@zoo.uvm.edu
Tim is well informed regarding current and post retirement benefit issues. He will also be knowledgeable with the benefits associated with the Voluntary Separation Plan.
Lee Stewart, Assoc. Director, Human Resources, 227 Waterman, 656-3433, lstewart@zoo.uvm.edu
Lee is an informed person in the area of payroll distributions and will be the record keeper and facilitator of voluntary separation agreements that have been completed.
Gina Bailey, Special Assistant to the Provost, 348 Waterman, 656-1393, gina.bailey@uvm.edu
Gina is the person to whom all faculty applications are initially submitted. Gina will serve as liaison between the colleges and departments and the Provost as recommendations are made by units and the provost reviews agreements.
Nate Peters, Director, FAB, 355 Waterman, 656-1164, Ndpeters@zoo.uvm.edu and
Betsy Baker, Position Mngt. Project Coordinator, 355 Waterman, 656-1275, ebaker@zoo.uvm.edu
Nate and Betsy will be available to answer questions regarding the status of budgets and the reallocation of funds to the central budget. They will coordinate all matters related to implementation of budget reductions and transfers and the elimination of positions.
Last modified April 17 2000 10:40 AM
