Tag: health insurance

March 18, 2021

The 2021 American Relief Plan Act: What you should know

The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 signed by the President last Thursday is an extensive document that will assist schools, our students, their families, neighbors and businesses in the community surrounding TU campuses, alums, and most (if not all) of us.

There are significant provisions highlighted below that members of the TAUP bargaining unit should be aware of. You can search for further details in the Act’s full text and see a summary of all of the provisions here.

State Funding

“The bill requires each state receiving K-12 funds to maintain spending in fiscal year 2022 and 2023 on higher education, at least at the proportionate levels of the state’s spending on those categories relative to the state’s overall spending, averaged over fiscal years 2017, 2018, and 2019.” The American Association of Public and Land Grant Universities Analysis of the ARPA 2021

Funds for Institutions of Higher Ed and Students

This chart compares funding from past relief acts to the American Rescue Plan Act and clarifies how funds are to be spent.

Temple should be receiving about $78M from the ARPA

1. Half of the funds will go directly to students
2. The other half can be used to defray expenses associated with coronavirus including:
  1. Payroll, including re-hiring furloughed and laid off employees
  2. Reimbursement for expenses already incurred
  3. Technology costs associated with a transition to distance education
  4. Faculty and staff trainings
  5. Lost revenue
  6. Make additional financial aid grants to students
3. Institutions must use a portion of their allocation for:
  1. Implementing evidence-based practices to monitor and suppress coronavirus in accordance with public health guidelines; and
  2. Conduct direct outreach to financial aid applicants about the opportunity to receive a financial aid adjustment due to the recent unemployment of a family member or independent student, or other circumstances

Funding for Research and Creative Work

The National Science Foundation, National Institute of Standards and Technology, National Endowment for the Arts, National Endowment for the Humanities and the Institute of Museum and LIbrary Services are among a number of organizations where funding has been increased and the usual spending timelines for the use of these funds have been extended.

Stimulus Payments

Cutting to the chase: you can calculate your stimulus payment here. The ARPA’s stimulus includes dependents regardless of their age.

Student Loan Forgiveness Support

The ARPA provides additional tax relief for those who have their student loans forgiven between December 31, 2020 and January 1, 2026.

When certain student loans are forgiven, the “forgiven” sum may be added to the individual’s gross income for that year, creating an extraordinary tax burden. The ARPA removes that tax for loans forgiven within the stated five year period. All federal student loans, and certain private education and institutional loans, will be eligible.

Changes in Eligibility and Premiums for Obamacare and Help with COBRA

If your health insurance is provided through the ACA (Obamacare), your premium rates will decrease due to ARPA’s increased subsidies detailed here. The changes are retroactive to January 1, 2021, so those who are already enrolled should receive compensation for their 2021 payments.

You can calculate what your premium would be under the current plan here.

To sign up or to change your plan, go to Healthcare.gov. Even if you earned too much to qualify in the past, you may qualify now.

For individuals who will lose work and want to maintain their current health plan between April 1st and September 30th of 2021, employers or insurers must cover 6 months of COBRA benefits and will receive a tax credit to offset the costs. More info here.

Child Tax Credit

The expanded Child Tax Credit will reduce child poverty in the U.S. by more than 40% and will be available to most people who need help to pay for the care of children under 13 or other dependents. You can calculate your tax credit here.

The credit for the first six months of the year will be applied to income taxes at the end of the year. In July, checks will be sent monthly. Credits range from $500 to $3600 per child depending on their age, and the credit begins to decrease for those with incomes above $112,500. More helpful information here.

Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit

To help people work, the Child and Dependent Care Credit can offer 50% of up to $8,000 in caregiving expenses and up to $16,000 for the care of two or more dependents. Certain family members do not qualify as caregivers for the credit. Child care is for children under 13 and dependent care must be for a dependent who has lived with you for more than six months and is physically or mentally incapable of self-care. More info here.

Dependent Care Reimbursement Accounts

ARPA offers an increase from $5000 to $10,500 as the maximum amount that can be contributed on a tax-free basis to a Dependent Care Reimbursement/Flexible Spending Account. For married individuals filing separately, the increase is from $2,500 to $5,250. Follow the link for Information on Temple’s Dependent Care/Flexible Spending Account Benefit.

Unemployment

The ARPA extends Unemployment Insurance (UI) benefits and programs.

In the past year, the PEUC benefit (Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation) extended UI benefits for those who had exhausted their initial claim. With the ARPA, individuals may now receive up to 79 weeks of benefits.

The new PUA (Pandemic Unemployment Assistance) program for self-employed individuals, gig workers and others who have not qualified for assistance in the past will be extended from 50 to 79 weeks, until September 6th.

Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (FPUC) has been the federal government’s weekly unemployment supplement. It will continue to be $300 per week until September 6th.

Individuals who have received Unemployment in 2020 will not have to pay taxes on $10,200 of the funds received. Couples who file joint returns can each receive this benefit if they have been on UI. Those with an adjusted joint income above $150,000 will not qualify for this tax benefit.

For Veterans and Members of the Military Interested in Higher Ed

The Act closes what is known as the 90/10 loophole. It pertains to for-profit institutions who are obliged to show their viability as businesses by earning at least 10% of their revenue sources outside of student aid.

Since GI benefits were not considered to be student aid, for-profits have been generating their 10% through aggressive recruiting of veterans and individuals currently serving in the military. Closing this loophole will protect servicemembers and veterans from predatory admissions. It will be implemented starting January 1, 2023

August 4, 2020

New Contract Gains Begin!

It’s Good to Have a Union

Although the pandemic has altered so many aspects of our lives, the contract TAUP ratified remains in force. This means that many of the policies, pay increases and programs established in our new contract began in July, and with August’s arrival, almost all of the new elements will be activated.

The New Contract is Now Online!

We are still waiting for agreement on final language with the administration on a very small number of details, but we are posting the new TAUP contract online at this time. Once final details are confirmed, hard copy versions will be printed and distributed to everyone in the collective bargaining unit.

We have to wait until next year for the Tuition Exchange to become available for all Full-Time members, but almost all of the other provisions of the contract are now in place including:

Gains for Full Time CBU Members

The contract’s second 1.625% raise to base pay for full timers kicks in with the paycheck issued at the end of July. The first across-the-board raise of 1.625% occurred when the contract was ratified and was retroactive to October 1, 2019.
Effective July 1, 2020, eligible NTTs who contribute 4.5% of their base salary to their pension shall receive an employer contribution of 7.5% of base salary, a 0.5% increase.
Faculty with 403(b) plans may now withdraw funds for hardship
For APs,the university has established an electronic process by which the performance development system can be used for submission of accomplishments to be considered for merit, andthe process will be aligned with the timing of the merit process.
Tenure track and NTT job openings will now be posted on Taleo, so bargaining unit members who wish to be informed of available jobs can establish profiles and receive email alerts for positions.
An increased clarity on the work-balance timeline and more faculty voice in determining what counts as a prestigious fellowship.
NTTs/PIRCs receive greater access to sabbaticals, and guaranteed representation on merit, promotion, and sabbatical committees.
Librarians will now have access to a maternity leave bank, a more transparent process for promotion to the highest rank, and a quicker accrual of sick leave upon hire
Academic professionals now have a shorter probationary period, new vacation policy, and increase clarity on merit as well as their job descriptions
Student Feedback Forms can no longer be used as a primary or sole criteria for personnel decisions. Multiple means of evaluation should be used.

Gains for Adjunct Faculty

An increase to $1550 for the minimum adjunct per-credit rate (as of 7/1/20)
Formal guidelines have been written in every school for the appointment and ranking of adjunct faculty, including a new minimum rate of pay at each rank. Adjuncts may request information about their appointment and rank from their chair. TAUP has received the new minimum rates per rank at each school and will be publishing them on the TAUP website this week and the TAUP Adjunct Constituency Council will be holding a town hall on Wednesday August 12 at 2pm. An announcement and RSVP will be sent next week.
At the beginning of the fall semester, adjuncts may apply for a promotion and will be able to receive multi-semester appointments. Each school will have established a promotion process which adjuncts may request from their chair or dean’s office.
Adjuncts who made between $1550 and $2000 per credit hour in Fall 2019, but did not teach in Spring 2020, and are teaching again in Fall 2020 will receive a $500 bonus
Each newly-hired adjunct will have access to an orientation session, as well as contact information for a chair or other faculty member within their department for support, consultation, review of course materials, classroom observation, referrals to the Center for the Advancement of Teaching, or other university resources.
Student Feedback Forms can no longer be used as a primary or sole criteria for personnel decisions. Multiple means of evaluation should be used.

Changes in Healthcare

The raises the union has negotiated and protected raises are especially important given the announcement that Temple has recently increased the cost of health insurance premiums for all University employees by 9.6%. Though unions cannot control the cost of premiums, we do negotiate the percentage of that premium that members pay. Our contract guarantees that the percentage of the premium that TAUP members pay will not increase this year.

The Potential Fiscal Impact of COVID-19

Non-union employees at Temple will not be receiving raises this year, and many individuals in the administration have received a pay cut. Our contract guarantees that the Temple administration cannot take away our hard-earned gains. But we may expect that the pandemic could lead the administration to ask again for concessions from all of its unions. Just as in the Spring when this occurred, TAUP leaders will listen carefully to any request, ask the administration questions to insure transparency and the need for concessions, and discuss any proposals that are made with TAUP members. Any change to the terms of the contract would need to be ratified by dues-paying members.

There is Power in a Union

The power of a union has never been more important than in challenging times like the ones we currently face. If you are not a member, JOIN TAUP.

August 28, 2018

Adjunct Faculty Welcome Back Reminders and Updates!

e-Bulletin 20180828

Greetings to everyone returning to teach this week! The Adjunct Constituency Council (ACC) of TAUP has compiled a list of timely reminders and information for the start of your semester, just scroll down!

But first, we want to be sure you know about an event we’re having to kick off the school year. You may have attended school or departmental orientations, now you can meet your adjunct colleagues and get more information on any of the items below and more at our union’s…

Adjunct Dis-Orientation!

THIS Wednesday August 29th, 4-6pm

The Draught Horse

1431 Cecil B. Moore

Whether you’re new to Temple or you’ve been teaching here for years, come by, say hi and enjoy your first drink on us!

RSVP HERE!

Parking Permits

Adjuncts are eligible for free parking at Temple lots on days that you are required to be on campus.You can find details on our Adjunct FAQ page

Health Insurance- Sign up before the end of the month!

Adjuncts who are eligible for the TAUP bargaining unit can sign up for health insurance with a subsidy from Temple. Click here to confirm your eligibility. Then go here for benefit information and for the application links.

Course Cancellations: Fees & Unemployment

If you have a course cancelled within 7 days of the start of the semester through the end of the drop/add period, you are eligible to receive a payment of 4% of what you would have been paid for the semester.

Whether your course was cancelled recently or not, if you are not being employed by the University at the same level as you were in the Spring, you may be eligible to apply for Unemployment Compensation, even if you have other income.

Be sure to contact us if either of these apply to you.

Adobe Creative Suite Access

This summer, according to the IT Department, there was an error that inadvertently removed access for “inactive adjunct faculty”. Any returning faculty that lost access during due to this error can renew their access at any time by visiting TUPortal and following the “Adobe Creative Cloud” link in the applications menu.

Have you Read the TAUP Adjunct Contract?

Go here to read over our union contract and let us know if you have any questions! We’ll be in negotiations for an even stronger contract in the Spring and we need your input and suggestions.

Best Practices: Employment Letter & SFF’s

Always be sure to download, print out and file away your Employment Letters every semester.

This term, be sure that you are receiving the $1500 per credit rate that was negotiated for adjuncts. It’s also wise to download your SFF’s for future reference.