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Benefits
Changing Plans or Coverage
Tuition Reimbursement
Leaves of Absence
Payroll Issues
Employment Information
Employment Verification
Employee Orientation
Telephone Directory
Benefits
Q.
How do employees enroll in the university health or dental insurance,
or the medical/dependent care reimbursement accounts?
A. Benefits-eligible faculty and staff must complete a Benefits Enrollment form within 30 days of their date of hire. If enrollment is not completed within 30 days of date of hire, the employee must wait until the annual Open Enrollment period to enroll. Open Enrollment is held each fall in late November and coverage is effective on January 1 of the following year.
Q. How do employees make changes to their enrollment in the university health or dental insurance, or the medical/dependent care reimbursement accounts?
A. Generally, changes to an employee's health or dental insurance or to the medical/dependent care reimbursement accounts are only allowed during the annual Open Enrollment period. Open Enrollment is held each fall in late November and coverage is effective on January 1 of the following year.
However,
if an employee experiences a "qualifying event," a change in
enrollment will be allowed if forms and documentation are submitted within
30 days of the event. Qualifying events are: birth/adoption of a child;
marriage or divorce; death of a spouse or dependent; change in employment
status of spouse; and termination of university employment.
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Making
Changes to Plans and Coverage
Q. How do recently
married employees add their spouse to health and/or dental plans?
A. Employees may add their new spouse to health and/or dental plan coverage by completing a Benefits Enrollment form for his/her current health and/or dental plan. The employee must also submit a copy of the marriage certificate with the enrollment form. Forms are available on the HRM website and from HRM/Benefits, 250 Columbus Place. Completed forms and a copy of the marriage certificate must be received in HRM/Benefits within 30 days of the date of the marriage.
At this time, the employee may also want to review his/her medical/dependent care reimbursement account elections, as well as life insurance and retirement plan beneficiary designations and complete a Personal Information form.
Q. How do employees add a spousal equivalent to their
health and/or dental coverage?
A. Same-sex partners of benefits-eligible faculty and staff are eligible for coverage under the university health and dental coverage, provided a Same Sex Spousal Equivalency Certification is on file with HRM/Benefits. Benefits-eligible faculty and staff may enroll their same-sex spousal equivalent when there has been a qualifying life event or during the annual open enrollment period. Please contact HRM/Benefits at ext. 2230 for assistance.
Q. How do employees who just had a baby or adopted a
child add the child to their health and/or dental coverage?
A. To add a child to health and/or dental plan coverage, employees need to complete a Benefits Enrollment form for their current health and/or dental plan. Forms are available on the HRM website and from HRM/Benefits, 250 Columbus Place. Completed forms must be received in HRM/Benefits within 30 days of the birth. If possible, a copy of the birth or adoption certificate should accompany the health/dental application. If not immediately available, please contact HRM/Benefits for instructions.
At this time, employees may also want to review their medical/dependent care reimbursement account elections, as well as life insurance and retirement plan beneficiary designations.
Q. How do employees change their address for the health
and dental insurance plans?
A. Change of address information is sent electronically to the health and dental insurance companies by HRM/Benefits. Please complete a Personal Information form and return it to HRM/Benefits. The form is available on the HRM website and in the HRM Office at 250 Columbus Place.
Q. How do employees make a change to their retirement
plan or supplemental retirement plan contributions?
A. Participants may make a change to the amount of their contribution at any time by submitting a new original Salary Reduction Agreement form. Forms are available on the HRM website and at HRM/Benefits, 250 Columbus Place.
Q. How do employees make a change to their investment
company election?
A. Participants may change investment companies, switching from TIAA-CREF to Fidelity, or from Fidelity to TIAA-CREF, at any time by completing a new Salary Reduction Agreement. If the participant has not previously had an account with the new investment company, an application for the new investment company will also be required. Forms are available on the HRM website and at HRM/Benefits, 250 Columbus Place.
Q. How do employees make a change to their selection
of funds within an investment company?
A. Participants may make a change in their investment fund choices within the investment company at any time by phone or on the Internet. Please contact Fidelity at (800) 343-0860 and/or TIAA-CREF at (800) 842-2776 for assistance and additional information.
Q. How can employees verify or change their retirement
plan beneficiary election?
A. Participants may verify or change their retirement plan beneficiary election at any time by contacting Fidelity at (800) 343-0860 and/or TIAA-CREF at (800) 842-2776. Beneficiary forms are also available to print from the HRM website and can be returned directly to the investment company at the address on the form.
Q. How do employees make a change to their address for
retirement plan investment accounts?
A. Participants may verify or change their address for their Retirement Plan accounts by contacting Fidelity at (800) 343-0860 and/or TIAA-CREF at (800) 842-2776. Please be sure to also complete a Personal Information form which is available on the HRM website and at the HRM office at 250 Columbus Place.
Q. How do employees verify or change their life insurance
beneficiary?
A.
Contact HRM/Benefits at ext. 2230 to verify your current life insurance
beneficiary election. If you would like to make a change in your beneficiary
election, please complete a Benefits Enrollment form which is available
on the HRM website and at the HRM Office at 250 Columbus Place.
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Tuition
Waiver Benefits
Q. How do employees
apply for tuition waiver benefits?
A. After registering for class, eligible faculty and staff must submit a Tuition Waiver Form to HRM/Benefits within 30 days of the start of the class. If the waiver request is for graduate level courses and the course if job-related, you should also complete a Graduate Level Job-Related Designation Form.
If the waiver request is for a dependent child, a completed Dependent Certification Form must also be submitted. All forms are available on the HRM website and at Human Resources Management, 250 Columbus Place.
HRM/Benefits will review the waiver request. If approved, the Tuition Waiver Form will be signed and forwarded to the Billings/Receivables Systems Group for processing. A copy will also be sent to the employee’s campus address. If the Tuition Waiver Form is incomplete or the waiver request is not approved, the form will be returned to you with a written explanation.
Please refer to the Tuition Wavier Policy on the HRM website for additional information.
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Leaves
of Absence
Q. How do employees
apply for a leave of absence?
A. All leaves of absence, other than faculty professional leaves and sabbaticals, should be requested through the HRM/Benefits office. This includes medical leave, maternity leave, family leave, personal leave and military leave. An Application for Leave of Absence must be completed, and if applicable an Application for Sick Leave/Interim Disability will also be required. Please note that these forms must be completed once an absence due to illness exceeds five days. Faculty and staff are urged to contact HRM/Benefits as soon as possible to discuss their need for a leave of absence.
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Payroll
Information
Q. When are employees paid?
A. Office support, Technical, Crafts, Trades and Service staff
are all paid weekly every Friday.
Administrative Professional staff are paid semimonthly, on the 15th and
on the last business day of the month.
Faculty members are paid semimonthly.
Q. Who do employees call if they have a question about their paycheck?
A. Paycheck and other payroll-related issues are handled by the
HR/Payroll Service Center. Please call ext. 2230 to be speak with an individual
who can answer your questions.
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Employee
Information
Q. Who handles employee information?
A. The Human Resources Information Systems staff collects and maintains
employee information, including employee records, data stored in the HR
system, certain information for the payroll department and the telephone
directory (published version and Web version). All employee information
maintained in HRM is considered confidential and, as such, is handled
within the strictest guidelines.
Q. How do employees make a change to their information (address
change, telephone number, etc.)?
A. Maintenance of employee information is handled by HRIS. If an
employee needs to change any of his/her personal or other information,
the employee can obtain a Change of Information form from HRM or download
a copy from the HRM Web site, complete the form and submit it to HRM.
Information changes will be applied to the HR system and, if applicable,
to the Telephone Directory.
Q. Who do employees need to contact for a name change?
A. If an employee's name changes, he/she should contact HRM to
complete a Change of Information form, the Benefits office if he/she will
be adding or deleting anyone from his/her benefits policies, and the Information
Systems department to have his/her system account name change.
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Employment
Verifications
Q. Who do employees refer someone to for verification of their
employment with the university (for mortgage applications, credit applications,
etc.)?
A. Refer all required verifications to Human Resources Management
at ext. 2230.
Q. Who do employees refer someone to for verification of their educational
history verification and/or transcripts from Northeastern University?
A. Refer all education verifications to the Registrar's office at
ext. 2300.
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Orientation
for New Hires
Q. When is orientation held and who should attend?
A. Orientation for new hires is held every other Monday (or Tuesday
if Monday is a holiday) at 8:30 a.m. (8 a.m. during the four-day summer
schedule). Orientation is held in Human Resources Management at 250 Columbus
Place. New employees should attend during the first week of their employment
because it is in orientation that they will receive information on university
benefit programs, some of which have strict enrollment deadlines. New
administrative/professional staff or their departments need to contact
HRM at ext. 2230 to be scheduled for orientation. Weekly staff will automatically
be scheduled by HRM for orientation on the first Monday of their employment.
Q. Is orientation required, and what happens if an employee does
not attend?
A. All new employees are required to attend orientation in order
to enroll in the university benefit programs, and to receive other important
information on Husky ID cards, parking and paychecks. As benefits enrollment
is not automatic, it is imperative that every new employee attend orientation
to ensure they are enrolled in university benefits prior to the enrollment
deadline.
Q. How long does Orientation last?
A. Orientation lasts for approximately two hours.
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Telephone
Directory
Q. How do employees change their information listed in the Telephone
Directory?
A. Maintenance of employee information is handled by HRIS in Human
Resources Management. To change information listed in the Telephone Directory,
obtain a Change of Information form from HRM or download a copy off the
HRM Web page, complete the form and submit to HRM. Information changes
will be applied to the Telephone Directory on the Web. The next published
copy of the Telephone Directory will also reflect these changes.
Q. If an employee did not receive a copy of the Telephone Directory,
where can he/she obtain one?
A. The latest copy of the Telephone Directory is available at 716
Columbus Ave., Room 250.
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