CHAPTER 10: BENEFITSRev. 1/2000For the purpose of this chapter, "full-time" shall mean employment with the University 50% or more full-time equivalent, which employment is expected to continue for six months or more. 10.01 GROUP INSURANCE PROGRAMS
10.01.01 Employer Paid Life and Disability Insurance
10.01.02 Optional Employee Participation Insurance
Dental Insurance: Both indemnity and pre-paid programs which are partially subsidized by the University are available. They offer preventive care, basic services, major services and prosthetics. Life Insurance: Programs that supplement the employer paid life insurance described in Section 10.01.01 are available on a voluntary basis. Additional dependent coverage is also available. There is no subsidy for these programs. Short-term Disability Insurance: Voluntary programs are available that provide benefits of a percentage of the base salary with maximum weekly benefits. There is no subsidy for this program. The medical, dental, life insurance and, in some cases, short-term disability programs are offered on a pretax basis, which means deductions for these premiums are taken before taxes, thereby reducing taxable income. Pretaxing premiums for these programs also limits when changes to these programs can be made, generally during an open enrollment period, unless a change in family status occurs (e.g., marriage; divorce; the death of a spouse or child; the birth, adoption or change in dependent status of a child; or a change in a spouse's employment). Enrollment in any of these programs must be completed within 30 calendar days of the effective date of an employee's initial contract or family status event, or during open enrollment periods. Employees on paid sabbatical or professional leave continue to participate in insurance programs through payroll deductions. Employees on approved unpaid leaves may continue to participate in insurance programs providing arrangements are made with Human Resourcs for the employee to pay the full premiums, either in advance of the leave or monthly during the leave. Under the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA), an employee who terminates service or loses eligibility for benefits (or dependents who lose eligibility for benefits) may continue participation in medical and dental plans for up to 18 months by paying the required premium. Employees have 60 days to elect COBRA upon notification by the employer. Arizona Revised Statutes, Articles 2 and 2.1, Chapter 5, Title 38, require all appointed personnel employed for 20 hours a week or more and scheduled to work five months or more, to participate in the Arizona State Retirement System or an authorized optional retirement plan. Election into a retirement plan must be made within 30 calendar days of the effective date of the employee's initial contract. Employees who do not make an election within 30 days will permanently default to membership in the Arizona State Retirement System.
10.02.01 Arizona State Retirement System (Defined Benefit Plan)
Employees who terminate their employment before becoming eligible for a retirement annuity may withdraw their personal contributions with accrued interest by making application on a form prescribed by the Arizona State Retirement Office. Employees with five to ten years credited service in the plan also may withdraw a portion of the employer contributions. Employees with ten or more years of credited service in the plan are eligible to withdraw 100% of employer contributions. Upon retirement, several payment options are available. Benefits derived from the state retirement plan are based on years of service, employee's age at time of retirement and average earnings. Schedules are available from the Arizona State Retirement System Office. Additional information is available from the Arizona State Retirement System Office or online as follows:
10.02.02 Optional Retirement Plans (Defined Contribution Plans)
Employees who participate in the Optional Retirement Plan and who have an active membership (monies on deposit) in a qualified defined benefit or qualified defined contribution retirement plan from a college, university, or higher education organization located in a state other than Arizona, or in a similar type of retirement plan in any country other than the United States, shall be immediately vested in the Arizona ORP upon verification of eligibility. Employees leaving The University of Arizona may continue contributing to their ORP account through employment with another participating institution, or may leave funds on deposit, request a distribution, transfer, or rollover funds. Additional information is available from Human Resources or online as follows:
10.03 FEDERAL OLD AGE SURVIVORS DISABILITY INSURANCE (OASDI) With the exception of nonresident aliens and full-time students, all employees of the University are covered by Federal Old Age Survivors Disability Insurance (OASDI). Deductions from earnings are made in accordance with federal legislation. A sum equal to or greater than that deducted from employees' earnings is contributed by the University. All employees, including nonresident aliens, students, and federal employees, must present Social Security numbers to the Payroll Department before they can be paid. 10.04 WORKERS' COMPENSATION INSURANCE All employees are covered by workers' compensation insurance while acting within the course and scope of their employment for the University. Any accident occurring within the course of employment should be reported immediately to the employee's department head, who will promptly forward an Incident Report Form to the Office of Risk Management and Safety. Medical and hospital expenses resulting from on-the-job injuries are covered, and, depending on the nature of the injury, varying degrees of compensation may be available to the employee as well. Certain benefits are paid to the dependents of an employee whose death is caused by an accident during the course of an employee's employment. Injured employees are encouraged to use Campus Health Service. Questions regarding workers' compensation should be directed to the Risk Management and Safety Office. Unemployment insurance is provided for all employees of the University. This benefit, funded by the University, is available to all employees who become unemployed through no fault of their own. The State of Arizona Department of Economic Security determines eligibility for benefits. 10.06 EMPLOYEE ASSISTANCE/UA LIFE&WORK CONNECTIONS The University provides a variety of health promotion, employee assistance, child care and elder care programs for University employees who are benefits-eligible. These services are provided by trained and certified helping professionals. Employee Assistance Counseling/Consultation provides free, voluntary and confidential consultation, short-term counseling when appropriate, and referral to community resources. Elder Care and Life Cycle Resources offers assistance to employees providing care for aging family members or anticipating their own needs as they approach retirement. Worksite Wellness provides educational presentations on nutrition, fitness, body image, cancer prevention, conducts worksite health screenings and lifestyle consultations, provides referrals to community resources, and offers CPR training. Child Care and Family Resources provides child care services and information to faculty, staff and students. These programs include resource and referral services, a sick child care program and a financial assistance program for child care expenses. Additional information is available from UA Life&Work Connections or online as follows:
10.07 AUTOMOBILE INSURANCE All full-time employees are eligible to participate in a group (mass marketing) program for personal automobile insurance. Premiums are paid through payroll deductions. Further information, including procedures for obtaining rate quotations, can be obtained from Human Resources.
10.08 CREDIT UNIONS All full-time employees are eligible for membership in the Arizona State Employees' Savings and Credit Union and the DM Federal Credit Union (formerly Saguaro Credit Union). Both credit unions offer payroll deductions for the purpose of savings or loan payments. Enrollment applications and payroll deduction authorization forms are available from Human Resources.
10.09 QUALIFIED TUITION REDUCTION The University provides a Qualified Tuition Reduction program which enables eligible individuals to enroll in courses of study at reduced registration fees. The Qualified Tuition Reduction is reciprocal among the three state universities. Employees: Benefits-eligible employees who work .50 FTE through 1.0 FTE may register for up to 9 credit hours per regular semester, up to 6 credit hours per regular summer session, and up to 4 credit hours per winter session at the reduced rate of $25. The Qualified Tuition Reduction does not include any laboratory, course, or materials fees. Eligibility for this benefit begins on the first day of benefits-eligible employment. Spouses: Spouses of benefits-eligible employees who register for 1-9 or more credit hours per regular semester and 1-6 per summer session shall pay the reduced rate of $25 per semester, winter session or summer session for the total number of credit hours, plus any laboratory, course or materials fees. Eligible spouses may enroll at the special rate for classes that begin subsequent to the employee's date of employment. Dependents: Dependent children of benefits-eligible employees may register for one or more courses at the rate of 25 percent of the full fees plus any laboratory, course or materials fees. Eligible dependent children may enroll at the special rate for classes that begin subsequent to the employee's date of employment. A dependent child is defined as one who is less than age 30 as of the first day of the semester for which application is made for reduced registration fees and who is eligible to be claimed as a dependent for federal tax purposes. Retirees: Retired employees and their spouses and eligible dependent children, who were eligible for Qualified Tuition Reductions at the time of the employee's retirement, may continue to be eligible under the same terms and fee schedule as eligible employees if they
Police Officers: University of Arizona police officers who retire before age 50 pursuant to the provisions of the Arizona Public Safety Personnel Retirement System and who have completed five continuous years of eligible employment in the Arizona University System immediately preceding retirement, and their spouses and dependent children, are eligible for the Qualified Tuition Reduction benefit. Leaves of Absence: Benefits-eligible employees on approved leaves of absence, and their spouses and eligible dependent children continue to be eligible for the Qualified Tuition Reduction for the duration of the approved absence. Layoff/Reduction in Force (applies to classified staff employees only): Otherwise eligible classified staff employees whose positions have been eliminated as a result of a layoff/reduction in force, and their spouses and dependent children, are eligible to receive the Qualified Tuition Reduction benefit for a period not to exceed 12 months from the effective date of the layoff/reduction in force if the classified staff employee has been employed at least 5 consecutive years at the University immediately prior to the effective date of the layoff and if he or she received a satisfactory or better performance evaluation. Classified staff employees who have been laid off, and their spouses and dependent children, may continue to receive the Qualified Tuition Reduction benefit for any semester or summer session when registration for classes for that semester or session occurs at least one day before the expiration of the 12 month period from the layoff effective date. Spouses/Dependents of Deceased Employees: Upon the death of an eligible employee, retiree or employee who terminated employment for reasons relating to his or her long-term disability, with at least 5 continuous years of full-time employment with the University, the employee's spouse and/or otherwise eligible dependent children may enroll with the Qualified Tuition Reduction. The spousal benefit terminates at the time a surviving spouse remarries. The dependent benefit terminates at the time the dependent becomes 30, is no longer claimed as a dependent by the surviving spouse or estate, or the surviving parent remarries. Affiliated Unit Employees: Employees of an affiliated unit and their spouses and dependent children may qualify for inclusion under the provisions of this policy, with the approval of the President or designee, if the employee is a member of an ROTC unit or if an approved written contract exists between the University and the affiliated unit that expressly grants Qualified Tuition Reduction to employees of the affiliated unit. Other: Otherwise eligible employees who terminate employment for reasons relating to their long-term disability, and their spouses and dependent children, are eligible to participate if they have at least 5 years of continuous eligible service with the University immediately preceding their separation from employment. If the employee's long-term disability benefits cease, the employee ceases to be eligible for the Qualified Tuition Reduction benefit.
10.09.02 General This policy is not intended to limit the total number of credit hours an employee may take; however, credit hours taken in excess of the limits specified in this policy shall be paid for by the employee at the actual resident tuition rate for those hours. Employees and their spouses are not eligible for student perquisites such as, but not limited to, student activity tickets or student health insurance programs. Employees may enroll for courses during normal work hours with prior approval from their responsible administrators, directors or department heads, providing the time lost from work (including travel to and from class) is made up during the same work week.
10.09.03 Fee Rates -- Tuition and Registration Costs
Full-time employees may purchase season tickets for major athletic events, attend cultural events, make purchases from a University bookstore, and purchase membership for use of Campus Recreation facilities at discounted rates. A California Visitors Package with discount coupons is available from Human Resources.
10.11 PRE-TAX SAVINGS PROGRAMS
A variety of optional pre-tax savings programs are available to benefits-eligible employees. Tax-Deferred Annuities (403b): Employees may reduce their salaries through payroll deductions to purchase tax-deferred retirement annuities through approved companies. The Internal Revenue Service has established strict guidelines that govern the maximum amount employees may invest in this program. State of Arizona Deferred Compensation (457) Plan: This plan allows employees to take income out of their peak earning years and set it aside to provide additional retirement income. The State of Arizona owns the deferred compensation plan assets until they are paid out to the employee upon withdrawal of funds. Flexible Spending Accounts: Under this voluntary plan, employees may have money withheld from each paycheck to pay for eligible medical and dental expenses and/or dependent care expenses. After incurring an expense, the employee submits a claim and is reimbursed from untaxed deposits in the flexible spending account. Normally these expenses are only partially tax deductible; but with a flexible spending account these expenses are 100% tax deductible. There are limits on the amounts an employee can have withheld each plan year. Any unused dollars in the account at the end of the year will be forfeited. Additional information is available from Human Resources or online as follows:
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