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Vacation Reminders From Human Resources

Managers and supervisors are asked to share the information below with their staff members who  accrue vacation leave.

Vacation Cutback in September
Please remind classified and unclassified staff in your department to check their vacation balance and make sure they are not at risk of losing any accrued vacation time. According to the university policy regarding annual vacation leave for nonteaching unclassified and classified personnel, the maximum amount of vacation an employee can accrue is that which can be earned in a three-year period.

Employees who are over their accrual maximum must use the time by Sept. 30; if not, they will lose any vacation hours accrued beyond the maximum.

Vacation hours are earned each pay period and vary according to the employee’s years of service with Kent State and job appointment (i.e., classified or unclassified status). An explanation of vacation accrual rates, eligibility and usage is available at www.kent.edu/hr/benefits/leave/vacation.cfm.

Employees who may be approaching their maximum vacation balance will be notified by email from Human Resource Records in July.

Report Your Leave Time
With the summer vacation season here, it is important to make sure your employees report and submit their vacation leave as it is taken and that they check their balances. You should also make sure that the leave reports are approved in a timely manner. Accurate and timely reporting is important to make sure the time is being deducted correctly and that employees are not exceeding their accrual maximum.

Employees can check their leave balance in the MyHR tab of FlashLine, in the Employment Details channel. Leave is recorded in the Time Reporting channels of the MyHR tab. Approvers will find the leave reports in the My Action Itemstab. It is important for approvers to process leave reports in a timely manner. Please check the My Action Itemstab frequently for pending actions.

If you have questions, contact a member of the Human Resources Records team at 330-672-8316.
 

New Supervisory Course on Communication

Getting your message across in a way that is clear and coherent is a critical skill in both organizational and personal life. Beginning this fall, Human Resources Training and Development will offer Communication Effectiveness for Supervisors, a new workshop that looks at the large and often complex subject of communicating with others. The four-hour, instructor-led workshop provides a self-assessment with tips and practical exercises on seven communication competencies. Communication Effectiveness for Supervisors replaces the former Interpersonal Communication for Supervisor's workshop.

This workshop is open to all faculty and staff. To register, go to www.kent.edu/hr/register or through the Training and Development channel under the MyHR tab in FlashLine. If you have questions or seek additional information on this workshop, please contact Ron Smith at 330-672-2602 or rsmith5@kent.edu.   

Training and Development Schedule of Courses Now Available for 2013-2014

Continual learning is one of many opportunities we have available to us here at Kent State and it is key to our personal and professional development. Assisting in that endeavor is the Human Resources Training and Development department that has just released the latest schedule of courses for 2013-14. The list of course offerings is extensive, covering such topics as:

• Supervisory and management skills
• Listening skills
• Emotional Intelligence
• Time Management
• Diversity in the Workplace
• Communication Skills

Whether the training is for you or someone on your staff, you will likely find many opportunities for participation. In addition, many courses are offered in more than one format (i.e., instructor led or online) providing more flexibility in participation. 

For a full list of Human Resources Training and Development courses or to register for a particular course, click here. For additional questions or information regarding training opportunities, contact Human Resources Training and Development at 330-672-2100 or hrd@kent.edu.
 

Human Resources Knowledge Sharing (HRKS) Takes to the Road

During the months of July and August, representatives from the Division of Human Resources will travel to the Kent State Regional Campuses, the ������ College of Podiatric Medicine and the ������ Regional Academic Center in Twinsburg. HRKS representatives will be on site to talk with employees, answer questions or provide guidance on HR-related issues. Visits are designed to be informal and nonagenda driven.

Running concurrently with the HRKS visits, will be an information session provided by University Benefits and designed for supervisors and managers regarding the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA). The session, “Family and Medical Leave Act – What Every Supervisor and Manager Needs to Know,” will be offered at each campus location.

The HRKS campus travel schedule is being finalized, and a full list of dates and times will be communicated via the campus listserv by July 15. For more information, please contact Karen Watson, manager, Employee Relations, at 330-672-4636 or kswatson@kent.edu.
 

Airport Rewards Card

Please take a moment to make sure that employees within your departments, who travel in and out of Cleveland Hopkins Airport, have signed up for their reduced parking Rewards Card.
 
One card earns free days at Park Place Airport Parking and Airport Fast Park. The free card works as a loyalty program, which not only allows Kent State employees to earn days of free parking, but also guarantees a parking spot at all times.

Employees should sign up only once for the location that is most likely to be used (previously the two lots were under different management and each lot had their own card). Whichever lot is selected, one Rewards Card will earn free days at the other lot as well. 

If you or one of your employees has not yet registered, please register using the links provided below. When registering, employees must include Kent State or KSU as the "company name" and corporate code 0640207.
 
For Park Place Airport Parking, enroll at
.
 
For Airport Fast Park, enroll at 
.
 
Current card holders (regardless of the lot) need not take any action. If employees had previously signed up for one of the cards using a KSU promo code, that card was assigned to the KSU group, and these new changes have been taken care of internally. The cards will now earn free days at both lots.

If you have questions or require assistance with registration, contact Paul Sokol at psokol@thefastpark.com or 440-724-4570.
 

Dates to Remember:
National Grilling Month

July 1
Canada Day
July 4  Independence Day (university closed)
July 5  Summer classes end for first-year podiatric medicine students
July 9  Ramadan begins at sundown (Islamic observance)
July 13  Summer I classes end
July 15  Summer III classes begin

Tell Us What You Think

This e-newsletter is designed to keep you, the managers and supervisors, informed. Please take a few minutes to let us know what you think of it, along with any comments or suggestions. You may contact us atmanagersfeedback@kent.edu. We look forward to hearing from you.

For information about events and programs for university employees, please check out the Faculty and Staff calendar and share the information with your staff.