The OU Staff Senate welcomed three guest speakers who discussed upcoming community service, updates on titles and new remote work options for staff during its Wednesday meeting.
Interim Director of OU Human Resources Carrie Irwin spoke on the updated remote work process for in-state staff members, originally outlined in a March 1 email. Irwin said the policy and process is currently only open to staff, not faculty members, and there will be some workers who are ineligible entirely.
“Think about positions like OUPD officers or workers in some of our food service facilities,” Irwin said. “They’ve got to be on-site to be able to do their job, and so it's really a non-starter for them to be considered for remote work.”
Staff members who want to utilize the hybrid option — working remotely for one to three days per week — would be required to fill out a remote work agreement, which will be reviewed and approved by their supervisor and sent to the dean or equivalent for their signature and approval. Irwin said full remote work requests must also receive a next level of approval by the respective vice president of the department.
She also said the new guidelines are showing initial promise, with remote work attestations — evidence of the entire process being completed — coming through today, but recognizes this is still brand new and is open to constructive criticism.
“I’m interested in your feedback as we continue to navigate this new process,” Irwin said. “It’s new for all of us, and hopefully we find it to be efficient, intuitive and easy to navigate.”
Diana Biggerstaff also spoke at the meeting, introducing a payroll title change.
“We are not changing a person's role or a person’s duties, and we’re not changing their internal title,” Biggerstaff said. “What it means is if you were in a title, for example, like managerial associate and you (double as a) general restaurant manager, (you will now) have a title that’s more appropriate to the job.”
Senior and member of the Big Event campus engagement executive team Marcus Ake was also a guest speaker and promoted the upcoming day of community service. He said this is a great, non-labor intensive way to give back to the Normanites who support the university and “share their roads (and) stores” with the OU community.
