HEALTHCARE (INSURANCE) BENEFITS UPDATE:

Several of you have inquired through the Covid19 email box about benefits coverage for the month of May 2020.  

Good News: UGN will continue to cover the full cost of team members’ portion of benefits while on furlough for May 2020.  With the many hardships our team members are experiencing during this pandemic, UGN wanted to lessen that burden on you and your family for another month even though our customers are still closed. 

When you return to work, the responsibility of benefit costs will follow our standard practice. Unfortunately, if the furlough is extended past May, team members will need to assume their portion of the monthly contribution.

Finally, the safety of our team members is our top priority at UGN.  We have developed a protocol which will help us to in our operations and have implemented further safety precautions.  While the protocol will be reviewed with team members upon your return, UGN’s Safe Work Playbook is available in the sections below.  If possible, please take time to review it so that you are prepared when you return to work.   

Spam Emails

It has been brought to our attention that fraudulent emails have been sent to a few Team Members with the subject line containing the Team Member’s name and a reference to termination. This email is SPAM and does not originate from UGN.

Please know that UGN is not notifying Team Members of their furlough status/employment via email. Should you receive a message like this, please let your manager know and delete the email. Please do not click on any links contained in the message.

Health Self-Assessment

To prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) in our community and reduce the risk of exposure within our workplace, each Team Member of UGN is required to complete this questionnaire daily before entering an office or plant. Click HERE for instructions to fill out the form.

Health Self-Assessment – English

Para evitar la propagación del nuevo coronavirus (COVID-19) en nuestra comunidad y reducir el riesgo de exposición dentro de nuestro lugar de trabajo, cada miembro del equipo de UGN debe completar este cuestionario diariamente antes de ingresar a una oficina o planta. Haga clic AQUÍ para obtener instrucciones para completar el formulario.

Autoevaluación de salud – Español

Questions from Team Members 

1. Are we considered employed or unemployed during the furlough? You are still considered employed.                   
2. Do we get holiday pay for Good Friday (4/10/20)? While on furlough, you will not receive holiday pay.        
3. What if my unemployment insurance is waiting for my employer to verify my job? We believe we have provided all the required information to the state unemployment offices to process our Team Members’ unemployment claims.  There are other situations where Team Members have received similar statements, but the problem was that the state unemployment office was so overwhelmed by the number of applications, it was taking more time than usual to process them.  Please continue to check with your state unemployment office.  If you can’t confirm that your claim is being processed, please contact us again.                                                                                          
4. Is UGN still covering our health care benefits during furlough? UGN is covering all team members’ benefit costs for the month of May. When you return to work, the responsibility of benefit costs will follow our standard practice. Unfortunately, if the furlough is extended past May, team members will need to assume their portion of the monthly contribution.                                                                                                        
5. How will 401K loan payments work if you’ve been furloughed?  Are there any forbearance plans in affect? Fidelity told us that currently, any team member on furlough with a loan has been updated to a “Leave of Absence” status in Fidelity. This will prevent the loan from going into default while the team member is not receiving a paycheck. When the team member returns, the loan will be re-amortized. The team member also has the option of calling Fidelity to make a payment directly to them, (800) 294-4015. Fidelity has told us they are hoping to iron out a formal method for loan repayments and the CARES act within the next few weeks, however they do not have any directive yet.                                                                                                             
6. How will all of this affect dependent care FSA?  I did some googling and learned we may be able change our contributions (once back to work).  Is this true and what about money already accrued?  If we end up unable to use it, will we still lose it? You cannot change your FSA contributions because the plan does not provide for that and yes, you must use your balance or you will lose it.                                                                                    
7. What is the company’s plans for making a safe working environment? UGN is very much focused on the health and safety of our Team Members at all times and is especially so now with the extraordinary challenges we and so many companies are facing. Thus, we have created our Safe Work Playbook, which is posted below. It explains our return to work protocols.

Safe Work Playbook

The health and safety of our team members is our number one priority. Click on the above image to review our guide for COVID-19 Pandemic Preparedness and Response.

We’ve made changes to ensure our team member’s safety. The below flier can be found with more details on page 50 of the UGN Safe Work Playbook.