Tuesday, Mar 17, 2020
Dear faculty and staff,
As we continue to navigate the challenges related to coronavirus both at Rider and in our extended community, Rider University is announcing today detailed guidance for all employees.
Rider University remains open and maintains its commitment to fulfilling its educational mission to the students we serve. However, we also have a responsibility to our employees’ health and well being, as well as society’s greater good.
Today we are taking new steps to achieve both of these objectives including an announcement to continue remote instruction for the remainder of the spring semester.
To help mitigate the potential spread of the coronavirus, Rider has also implemented the following policies and practices for employees until further notice. Given the fluidity of this pandemic, these policies and practices will be reviewed and changes will be communicated on an as-needed basis.
Working remotely
Effective Wednesday, March 18, 2020, all full and part-time employees who are able to be reasonably productive remotely are encouraged, but not required, to do so. You must have authorization from your department head, dean or division head to work from home.
The University remains open, and the work of the institution must continue. If a situation arises in a particular area where more telecommuting interest exists than business needs allow, work-from-home priority will be given first to those employees with compromised health and those with unanticipated family or child care obligations.
If an employee’s work does not lend itself to being reasonably productive remotely, employees have two options:
- Employees can come to work if they are comfortable doing so. Rider is not closed.
- If an employee is not comfortable coming to work and is not in a position to work remotely or decides to take time off, he/she may take time off and use accrued time, or have the option of taking time off without pay (there will be no repercussions for doing so).
- In this case, sick and/or vacation time will be allowed.
- An employee may be granted a six month advance on vacation accrual, upon request from the supervisor.
Part-time employees who do not have the option of being reasonably productive remotely will only be paid for actual hours worked, consistent with existing practice.
Despite these changes to our University operations, Rider will remain open and operational. We ask that everyone come together and work collaboratively to continue providing the same high level of service our students and community have come to know and expect.
Working on campus
Although many of our employees will transition to work from home, for those employees who remain working on-site, we strongly encourage social distancing and other personal health precautions to prevent the spread of the virus.
Effective immediately, we will enact stricter social distancing policies in the workplace including no in-person meetings of 10 people or more. In some instances, we may reassign employee work areas to limit distance between individuals.
The University continues its enhanced cleaning and disinfecting protocols overnight and throughout the day, using disinfectants recommended by the CDC for killing viruses like coronavirus. All offices and workspaces are being cleaned every day according to specific protocols that include disinfecting doorknobs and other hard surfaces.
Additional cleaning and disinfecting are being conducted in the residence halls during the extended spring break. This includes individual residence rooms, common areas and bathrooms. Call Facilities Management at ext. 5080 if you need additional cleaning for your individual workspace.
Diagnosed or directly exposed employees
Employees who are confirmed to have coronavirus should stay home, take care of themselves and NOT return to campus until their personal healthcare provider has determined the risk of secondary transmission to others to be low. This is based on CDC guidance. No doctor’s note will be required other than for the processing of longer absences covered under our short-term disability policy.
Employees who come in direct contact with someone confirmed to have coronavirus, whether or not they personally have symptoms, should NOT return to campus until they have self-isolated for 14 days and are symptom-free, or have been released to do so by a physician.
In either case, employees should notify their supervisor or dean, who in turn, should contact Human Resources. Situations involving individuals who feel they have unique circumstances will be reviewed on a case by case basis.
We encourage all members of our University community to continue the preventive practices recommended by public health officials, such as those listed below, to help prevent the spread of germs that cause respiratory illnesses like coronavirus.
The official source of information about Rider’s response to COVID-19 is www.rider.edu/coronavirus. It will be updated as new information becomes available.
Rider’s Human Resources Department can be reached at 609-896-5140.