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New UMMS Pay Practices

During this uncertain time, one certainty has become clear for us at the University of Maryland Medical System: we are stronger together. As we have faced unprecedented challenges in our response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we have joined forces across our System like never before. Now is the time to further integrate how we work together across the System and position UMMS for long-term sustainability.  Standardized practices and policies are one important step on this journey.

Our brave, talented and dedicated workforce is our greatest asset, and we are demonstrating our commitment to our team members through responsible fiscal management. One way we are doing this is by adopting clear, standardized pay practices. The new pay practices will go into effect for most locations across the System in early 2021.A few of our member organizations will adopt the new standards later in 2021, aligned with their planned transition to the new People Planning tools. View FAQs and training resources for People Planning.

We know the new standards will impact each team member differently. The resources here on this site will help you navigate the changes. Click on each of the topics below for in-depth information about what’s new and what it means to you.

 

Understanding Our New Paycheck

Learn about the New PTO Program

Learn about the PAM

YOUR PAY YOUR SCHEDULE YOUR TIME OFF ASK A QUESTION MANAGER CHECKLIST UNDERSTANDING YOUR PAYCHECK
MANAGER RESOURCES UMMS PEOPLE PLANNING POLICIES

WHAT IS NEW?
UMMS has a new set of pay guidelines that apply when you are scheduled On Call and asked to come to work. These are called Call In Guarantees (previously known as Call Back pay). The Call In Guarantee is now four hours of base pay.

HOW IS IT DIFFERENT?
Previously, Call In rules varied by hospital. These new guidelines standardize Call In Guarantees across the System.

HOW DOES IT AFFECT ME?
If you are asked to come to work when you are scheduled On Call, you are guaranteed four hours of base pay (and will receive shift differential pay, as appropriate, based on actual hours worked). Your hourly On Call rate stops as soon as you clock in for the On Call shift. The following scenarios explain what happens next.

Scenario A: Back-to-Back Call In Shifts Scenario B: Overlapping Call In Shifts
1. If you are called in and work only 1 hour, you will still receive pay for a 4-hour shift. 1 hour will be paid at base rate plus shift differential, if it applies. 3 hours will be paid at your base pay rate.1. If you are called in and work only 1 hour, you will still receive pay for a 4-hour shift. 1 hour will be paid at base rate shift differential, if it applies. 3 hours will be paid at your base pay rate.
2. If you are asked to return to work again after the initial 4-hour guarantee period has passed and you work less than 4 hours, you are again eligible for a 4-hour Call In Guarantee period.2. If you are asked to return again during that same 4-hour guarantee timeframe, you will be paid for your hours worked at base pay rate plus shift differential if it applies. However, you will not be entitled to an additional 4-hour guarantee.

WHY IS IT CHANGING?
Creating standard guidelines for Call In Guarantees ensures that you know what to expect no matter where or when you work within UMMS. Standard rates ensure that Call In pay is consistent across the System and competitive within our markets.

FAQs

The standard rate for team members who are scheduled On Call is $3.50 per hour. Employees who are on call are paid this rate for each hour that they are on call, even when they are not called to report to work.

A “Call In Guarantee” (previously known as “Call Back”) is the amount of hours you are guaranteed to be paid when you are scheduled On Call and report to work. If you are scheduled On Call and report to work, you are guaranteed four hours of pay even if you are sent home before you have worked the full four hours.

No. You will be paid the On Call rate of $3.50 per hour when you are scheduled On Call and not at work. If you are scheduled On Call and report to work, you will receive your regular base rate for the hours worked on that shift (a minimum of four hours), plus any applicable shift differential.

To be eligible for the Call In Guarantee, you must be scheduled On Call and called in to work outside your regularly scheduled shift.

No. The Call In Guarantee will be automatically calculated when you clock in as long as you are scheduled to be On Call during that time.

If you are sent home due to low census or another reason and placed On Call, you would then be eligible for the Call In Guarantee if called in to work. Only team members who are scheduled to be On Call are eligible for the Call In Guarantee.

Yes. You can receive the Call In Guarantee a maximum of three times, for a total of 12 hours of work.

To receive the Call Back Guarantee, you must first complete your regularly scheduled shift and not be on premises when called back in. In the example above – where you were already on site – you would receive your base rate of pay plus any applicable shift differential for the hours actually worked on evening shift, but you would not be eligible for the guaranteed four hours.

WHAT IS NEW?
Our new timekeeping clocks document the exact time when you start and finish your work shift.

HOW IS IT DIFFERENT?
Previously, clocks rounded your time up or down to the nearest 1/4 hour. For example, if you clocked in at 8:04 a.m., the clock rounded your start time down to 8:00 a.m. If you arrived at 8:11 a.m., the clock rounded up to 8:15 a.m.

Now, when you clock in at 8:04 a.m., your timecard will show 8:04 a.m., so you will know — and be paid for — exactly the time that you worked each day.

HOW DOES IT AFFECT ME?
You will continue to clock in and clock out the same way you do today. Your pay will be based on the exact time you clocked in and exact time you clocked out each day.

WHY IS IT CHANGING?
At UMMS, we recognize and respect the value of your time. You must be paid for the hours that you work.

FAQs

No. You will continue to clock in and clock out in the same way.

No. The timekeeping clocks will remain where they are at all locations.

We are taking steps to ensure that all team members have prompt access to clock in and clock out when they enter and leave for their shifts. If you do experience an issue clocking in or out, you may request a correction on the time clock during your clock in or clock out procedure. This correction will then be reviewed and approved by the timekeeper or manager.

If you forget to clock in or clock out, please request a correction within the same week. You may do so within the time clock, directly on your timecard.

Yes. Only non-exempt (hourly) team members are now required to clock in and out. Exempt team members fulfill the duties of their position regardless of the number of hours they work, and they no longer are required to clock in or clock out.

Your pay will be based on the exact time you clocked in and exact time you clocked out each day.

Yes. The exact timekeeping capability will be implemented across all methods of clocking in and out across the System.

The new practice of exact timekeeping should not result in any change in team members’ actual work time. However, it may require that managers more closely monitor team members’ timecards. If managers find that a team member is routinely clocking in early or clocking out late, they may need to meet with their team member to discuss the importance of adhering to their schedule. Employees should also report to their manager if their ability to clock in or clock out according to their schedule is due to an issue at the time clock; managers will monitor and escalate this concern if it becomes an ongoing issue.

WHAT IS NEW?
Your ability to take paid time off from work has been standardized into a System-wide Paid Time Off (PTO) program. This program is comprised of three leave banks: PTO, Reserved Sick Bank and Maryland Sick and Safe Leave (SSL). This fact sheet focuses on the PTO program.

  • PTO – all paid time away from work that isn’t SSL. When SSL is exhausted, a team member will use PTO for reasons that qualify for SSL.
  • Reserved Sick Time — unused sick hours from existing plans that can only be used for absences that would qualify for leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA).
  • SSL — paid leave away from work that is provided by Maryland law for designated health situations for you and your immediate family

HOW IS IT DIFFERENT?
Previously, time-off benefits differed by hospital and separated leave banks. For hospitals that did not have a PTO program, the new PTO bank eliminates the need to designate time off as vacation, personal or holiday time off by bringing all leave together under a single benefit. Reserved sick time and SSL have other, specific guidelines for use.

HOW DOES IT AFFECT ME?

Your available time off will be consolidated into a single bank.

If you are used to seeing your time separated based on the type of time off, you will now see that time consolidated into one single bank of paid time off hours*.

You can accumulate up to 1.5 times your annual accrual in your PTO bank.

For example, if your annual PTO accrual is 20 days, the most days that you can accumulate in your PTO bank at any one time is 30 (20 days x 1.5 = 30 days). As you take PTO and your balance falls below your maximum, you will begin to accrue time again.

You’ll keep your current time-off balances.

Employees with unused vacation or personal time when the new PTO program begins will have unused hours rolled over as PTO into your new PTO bank. Employees with unused sick time when the new PTO program begins will have those days available in a a new Reserved Sick Bank. Please see the FAQ on PTO for more information on the Reserved Sick Bank.

You will be paid for unused PTO if you leave UMMS.

If you’ve worked for UMMS for longer than 90 days, UMMS will pay you at your base pay rate for your accrued PTO balance as of the date of your separation.

PTO Accrual Schedule (1.0 FTE)


FAQs

No. If your unused paid leave that is being rolled into your new PTO bank on January 31, 2021 results in your balance being above the maximum, you will be allowed to keep all of those hours. If you are at or above the maximum when the new program begins, you will not accrue new hours until the balance is below the maximum.

Time away from work is important for your personal and professional wellbeing. UMMS encourages all team members to take time off throughout the year. This model is a best practice in the health care industry and competitive with other health care organizations in our area.

With the new PTO program, team members with an 1.0 FTE can accumulate up to 1.5 times their annual accrual in the PTO bank. This maximum accrual does not have a start and end time. For example, if your annual PTO accrual is 22 days, the most days that you can accumulate in your PTO bank at any one time is 33 (22 days x 1.5 = 33 days). As you take PTO and your balance falls below your maximum, you will begin to accrue time again. PTO accrual is prorated for part-time team members.

FMLA does not impact the accrual of PTO while on leave. The accrual of PTO during a leave depends on whether you are on a paid or unpaid leave. An team member will accrue PTO hours during paid leaves, with the exception of hours paid under eligible UMMS-sponsored short and long-term disability plans. An team member will not accrue PTO hours when they are on an unpaid leave of absence.

In most situations, this team member would be eligible to accrue at the 20+ years of service tier. UMMS considers consecutive service with any member organization within the System when assigning years of service. If you leave UMMS for another organization not affiliated with the System at the time of departure, your years of service will not carry with you, even if that organization is later acquired by UMMS.

If you want to work on an UMMS observed holiday when your department is closed, and you are not expected to work, you should first talk with your manager for approval in advance. If approved, you would not use PTO hours for that day, and those hours would be available to use at a future date. If an exempt team member works on a holiday, neither the team member nor their manager need to do anything in the system; the team member will be paid “Regular” hours.

Yes. Creating opportunities for team member growth is one of our top priorities. A key benefit of the new pay practices and policies is that team members won’t have to “start over” when they advance their career across professions or at different UMMS locations. Employees transferring from one UMMS member organization to another will retain their years of service and carry their PTO balance to the new UMMS facility up to the balance limit corresponding to the new position. Any remaining PTO balance will be paid out by the former UMMS facility. Your unused Sick and Safe Leave and Reserved Sick Leave hours will also carry with you to the new member organization.

Yes. The new UMMS People Planning: Timekeeping will allow team members to request PTO directly at the timeclock. It is important to remember that this is still a request. The team member’s manager or timekeeper assigned to that department must approve or deny the request before the desired PTO date. If approved, the PTO is recorded on the team member’s timecard. All the details about how to request and approve PTO will be covered in the People Planning: Timekeeping training.

PTO accrues at an increasing rate, based on your years of service with UMMS. View the accrual schedule for exempt and non-exempt team members here.

When you are sick, you have a few options for paid leave:

  1.   First, use your Maryland Sick and Safe Leave (SSL).
  2. Then, if you are on an approved leave of absence and your organization previously offered sick time, you must use any hours you have available in your Reserved Sick Leave. Reserved Sick Leave is any unused hours from sick time held in a reserve bank accessible for situations when FMLA would apply.
  3. Finally, you can use your PTO.

Yes. As part of our standardization effort, across the System we have shortened the required waiting period to access Short Term Disability from 14 days to 7 days. This means that team members are eligible to receive Short Term Disability one week sooner, and will not have to use as much of their paid leave before that benefit begins.

Your total PTO bucket includes time for UMMS observed holidays. If you are non-exempt and work on one of these days, you are eligible for premium holiday pay. Both exempt and non-exempt team members should submit a PTO request for holidays in the same way they submit a request for other PTO.

Paid Time Off (PTO) accruals include the following holidays standard across the System. If you are non-exempt, your department is open on an UMMS observed holiday and you work on these days during the hours noted below, you will receive premium pay.

  • New Year’s Day (29 hours beginning at 7:00 p.m. day prior)
  • Martin Luther King Jr. Day (3rd Monday in January; 24 hours beginning at 12:00 a.m. day of)
  • Memorial Day (Last Monday in May; 24 hours beginning at 12:00 a.m. day of)
  • Independence Day (July 4; 24 hours beginning at 12:00 a.m. day of)
  • Labor Day (1st Monday in September; 24 hours beginning at 12:00 a.m. day of)
  • Thanksgiving Day (4th Thursday in November; 24 hours beginning at 12:00 a.m. day of)
  • Christmas Day (December 25; 29 hours beginning at 7:00 p.m. day prior)

No. Maryland Sick and Safe Leave is separate from the UMMS PTO Program and administered according to Maryland state law. Refer to the Maryland Sick and Safe Leave policy for details on using SSL.

Yes. UMMS offers Maryland Sick and Safe Leave to all team members, regardless of residence.

You can request PTO on the time clocks located on site, or online through the People Planning Timekeeping application. There may also be department-based standards in your area that you should follow for requesting PTO.

While you will begin accruing paid time off hours starting with your first pay period, you may not take paid time off until the start of the first full pay period after your 90th day at work.

No. UMMS encourages all team members to use their paid time off from work throughout the year. If you separate from UMMS and you’ve worked for the System for longer than 90 days, UMMS will pay you at your base pay rate for your accrued PTO balance as of the date of your separation.

Yes. As part of our standardization effort, across the System we have shortened the required waiting period to access Short Term Disability from 14 days to 7 days. This means that team members are eligible to receive Short Term Disability one week sooner, and will not have to use as much of their paid leave before that benefit begins.

If a team member is still in their 90-day probationary period, they will be allowed to take PTO for an UMMS Observed Holiday. If they have not yet accrued enough time to cover the holiday, they will be temporarily allowed to let their balance fall below 0 hours for the pay period in which the holiday falls.

No. Exempt team members will take PTO in full-day increments only. When an exempt team member works a partial day, they are still expected to complete the expectations or their job. This means at times it may be necessary that they work beyond their scheduled time. If partial-day absences prevent the team member from completing the expectations of their job, the manager will address this as a performance issue with the team member.

These two situations are covered with separate leave policies by each member organization and not a part of the PTO program. These policies can be found with all other team member policies for your organization.

No. While your existing accrued paid leave will not be lost, UMMS is not offering compensation for any paid leave differences. Unused vacation, personal or PTO that you have when the new program goes into effect will be rolled into your new PTO bank. For team members at member organizations who offered sick time, those unused hours will be moved to a Reserved Sick Leave bank, available for use when no other paid time off remains.

No. The balance you begin with in your Reserved Sick Leave will not grow. The balance does not expire and will not be paid out if you separate from UMMS.

Employees who regularly work 12 or more hours a week are eligible to accrue up to 40 hours of SSL per calendar year. Non-exempt team members earn one hour of SSL for each 30 hours worked; exempt team members accrue based on 40 hours per week (or their FTE, whichever is less). If you don’t use your SSL, you can carry over unused time to the next year, but your total SSL bank cannot exceed a total of 64 hours.

You can use SSL for your own health or for the health of a family member. This includes:

  • mental or physical illness, injury, or condition
  • preventive medical care
  • maternity or paternity leave
  • domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking

No. If your office is closed on an UMMS observed holiday, you must use your accrued PTO hours for that holiday. Remember, under the new program, UMMS observed holiday hours will be added to our “PTO” hours and will now part of the total PTO bucket.

Employees who are assigned an FTE (Full Time Equivalent) of 0.5 or above (scheduled for approximately 20 hours per week) are eligible to accrue PTO at the standard accrual schedule. Based on time worked, this accrual is prorated and will typically be approximately half of the time accrued by a team member assigned a 1.0 FTE. Employees who are assigned to work an FTE less than 0.5 are not eligible to accrue PTO. If you have questions about your eligibility, please speak with your manager.

We set the accrual schedules for exempt and non-exempt team members based on an examination of paid leave at our member organizations as well as comparisons to paid leave in our market areas. The new accrual schedule is designed to ensure that our team members have ample paid leave for their personal well-being.

No. In June 2020, UMMS offered a one-time vacation/PTO buy-back option for team members who had accrued more time than they thought they could use before it expired and/or wanted the additional money. This was a limited program associated with the System’s COVID-19 response. Please check with your HR Business Partner for more information.


Observed Holiday

FAQs

Paid time off hours for UMMS observed holidays are now included in team members’ PTO accrual and part of your PTO “bank” of time. A new video helps explain the new PTO program, and here’s more information about how holidays will work:

EXEMPT/
NON-EXEMPT		 IS YOUR DEPARTMENT CLOSED? DO YOU HAVE PTO HOURS AVAILABLE? HOW IT WORKS
Exempt Yes Yes You will take this day off. You should either submit a time-off request using the PTO Planned pay code or your manager/timekeeper will need to enter PTO Planned on your schedule. The hours you are normally scheduled to work will automatically be deducted from your PTO accrual.
Exempt Yes No You will still take this day off. You should either submit a time-off request using the PTO Planned pay code or your manager/timekeeper will need to enter PTO Planned on your schedule. Your PTO accrual will temporarily go into a negative balance to cover the hours you were scheduled to work.
Exempt No Yes If you work on this day, you will be paid your normal base salary and may use these PTO hours another day. If you do not work on this day, you should either submit a time-off request using the PTO Planned pay code or your manager/ timekeeper will need to enter PTO Planned on your schedule.
Exempt No No If you work on this day, you will be paid your normal base salary. If you do not work on this day, you may work weekends or have already met your weekly scheduled hours and not need to take PTO. If that is not the case, you should either submit a time-off request using the PTO Planned pay code or your manager/timekeeper will need to enter PTO Planned on your schedule. Your PTO accrual will temporarily go into a negative balance to cover your scheduled hours.
Non-Exempt Yes No You will still take this day off. You should either submit a time-off request using the PTO Planned pay code or your manager/timekeeper will need to enter PTO Planned on your schedule.  Your PTO accrual will temporarily go into a negative balance to cover the hours you were scheduled to work.
Non-Exempt Yes Yes You will take this day off. You should either submit a time-off request using the PTO Planned pay code or your manager/timekeeper will need to enter PTO Planned on your schedule.  The hours you were scheduled to work will automatically be deducted from your PTO accrual.
Non-Exempt No Yes If you work on this day, you will be paid 1.5 times your normal hourly rate and may use these PTO hours another day. If you do not work on this day, you should either submit a time-off request using the PTO Planned pay code or your manager/timekeeper will need to enter PTO Planned on your schedule.
Non-Exempt No No If you work on this day, you will be paid 1.5 times your normal hourly rate. If you do not work on this day, you may work weekends or have already met your weekly scheduled hours and not need to take PTO. If that is not the case, you should either submit a time-off request using the PTO Planned pay code or your manager/timekeeper will need to enter PTO Planned on your schedule.  Your PTO accrual will temporarily go into a negative balance to cover your scheduled hours.

Remember, if your PTO bank goes into the negative in any of the above scenarios, it will rise again as you accrue more time each pay period.

UMMS observes the following seven (7) holidays:

  • New Year’s Day (January 1)
  • Martin Luther King Jr. Day (3rd Monday in January)
  • Memorial Day (Last Monday in May)
  • Independence Day (July 4)
  • Labor Day (1st Monday in September)
  • Thanksgiving Day (4th Thursday in November)
  • Christmas Day (December 25)
  • Good Friday is observed at UM St. Joseph Medical Center only.

Yes. If you are a non-exempt team member and are on call during an UMMS Observed Holiday, you will receive $3.50 for each hour you are on call. If you are called into work during the holiday hours, you will be paid 1.5 times your base hourly rate for all hours worked on the holiday, plus any applicable shift differential. You are also guaranteed four hours of pay thanks to the new Call In Guarantee.

UMMS will pay a premium rate to non-exempt (hourly) team members who work on observed holidays.

Exempt (salaried) team members who work on a designated holiday will be paid their normal base salary.

Non-exempt (hourly) team members who are required to work on the actual day of a designated holiday are paid 1.5 times their normal hourly rate for all hours worked on the holiday.

For purposes of being paid the holiday premium of 1.5 times a team members’ base hourly rate, the holiday start and end times are as follows:

Collective bargaining agreements may contain provisions that supersede or are supplemental to the provisions of this policy. Employees under a labor contract should refer to those document rules.

Employees who do not work holidays because their department or unit is closed are required to use this accrued PTO. Employees who work on observed holidays can use that PTO for permitted reasons at another time according to the organization’s PTO policy.

When an observed holiday falls on a Saturday, administrative offices will be closed on the preceding Friday. When an observed holiday falls on a Sunday, offices will be closed the following Monday. Premium holiday pay is paid to team members who work on the actual holiday.

If you work in a department that is closed for a designated holiday and do not have sufficient accrued PTO to cover the holiday, your PTO balance will be allowed to go into a negative balance in the pay period in which the holiday falls.

When you are sick, you have a few options for paid leave:

  1. First, use your Maryland Sick and Safe Leave (SSL).
  2. Then, if you are on an approved leave of absence and your organization previously offered sick time, you may be able to use your Reserved Sick Leave. Reserved Sick Leave is any unused hours from sick time held in a reserve bank accessible for situations when FMLA would apply.
  3. Finally, you can use your PTO.

Link to: Manager Resources

Policies

These policies have been in effect at all UMMS member organizations since January 2021, and they will continue to be relevant as we roll out the new technologies.

Attendance Policy & FAQ
Corrective Action Policy & FAQ
Maryland Sick & Safe Leave Policy
Observed Holidays Policy & FAQ
On Call Policy
Overtime Compensation Policy & FAQ
PTO Policy & FAQ
Recording and Payment of Work Time & FAQ
Reserved Sick Leave Policy & FAQ
Shift Differential Policy

Managers and Timekeepers: Follow the support plan below.

If the question is about: Find help first by: Then:
  • Pay
  • PTO

 

 Asking your manager, timekeeper or HR Business Partner Contact HRConnections online or the HR Service Center at 855-486-6747.
  • Access to specific functions in UMMS People Planning
 Asking your manager or timekeeper Contact the IS&T Service Desk at helpdesk@umm.edu or 410-328-4357
  • Timeclocks
  • Logging into UMMS People Planning (other than access requests)
 Contacting the IS&T Service Desk at helpdesk@umm.edu or 410-328-4357 Contact the IS&T Service Desk at helpdesk@umm.edu or 410-328-4357.
  • Missed punch
  • Schedule questions
 Asking your manager, timekeeper or HR Business Partner Contact HRConnections online or the HR Service Center at 855-486-6747.

Updated: 5/27/2022

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