Monday Update

Last week’s updates from UBC

• May 6: UBC Bulletin: Scheduling time off for COVID-19 vaccination appointment
• May 7: President’s Blog: Weekly Update
• May 10: UBC Broadcast: UBC Alert test notification this week

Updates on UBC’s response to COVID-19 are at covid19.ubc.ca.

Managing your mental health

HR has collected mental health resources to help you manage your ups and downs. Our VPFO HR staff is always available for a confidential conversation.

• Self-guided: Self and Community Care: Building skills to manage stress: Learn to integrate relaxation and your personal needs into your daily life in this self-paced webinar.
• Self-guided: Wellbeing in the Workplace: Learn tools and skills to support wellbeing while working within changing environments in this self-paced webinar.
• June 1, 2, 3, 4, & 7: 5 days of Mindfulness: Join your community for 5 days of mindfulness to feel more connected while working from home and improve your ability to manage stress.

Operations updates

Facilities

Building Operations, Energy & Water Services and Infrastructure Development

• UBC’s Heating and Ventilation Systems (HVAC): With the updated guidance from the BC Centre for Disease Control, a HVAC working group has been established to determine and recommend any further technical measures that should be taken with building ventilation systems to ensure a high standard of safety and reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission. For information, visit the Facilities website.

Finance

Comptroller, Finance & Operational Excellence and Treasury

• A feature story on the launch of Workday: UBC launched its new HR and Finance system on November 2, 2020. A new story has been added to UBC’s Strategic Plan website, recapping the accomplishment, including some recent stats on Workday usage.
• Changes to equipment asset registration in Workday: A note that users will no longer receive Workday inbox items to register equipment assets after May 1, 2021.

Operations & Advising

Communications & Engagement, Human Resources, and Safety & Risk Services

• COVID-19 Return to Campus Primer released: In anticipation of the COVID-19 Go-Forward Guidelines for B.C.’s Post-Secondary Sector, the COVID-19 Return to Campus Primer has been released. Safety & Risk Services will be providing direction on safety plans very soon. Please continue to use existing safety plans in your areas.
• UBC Alert test notification this week: A test notification will be sent out to students, faculty and staff via a phone call and text message, on Thursday, May 13 to UBC Okanagan campus, and Friday, May 14 to UBC Vancouver campus. Please login to Workday to check your contact details. For information, visit Safety & Risk Services website.
• Aligning Campus Security into SRS: Campus security will be taking on 24/7 First Aid responsibilities for students, faculty, staff and visitors, to improve customer service across the university by bringing related services under one unit. Further details will be shared regarding this transition in the coming months.
• Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH) reopening vaccination site at UBC Pharmaceutical Sciences (PharmSci): The VCH vaccination site is reopening on Wednesday, May 12 at PharmSci for administering COVID-19 vaccines to eligible members of the public. For information, visit the Safety & Risk Services website.
• Carpooling safety: COVID-19 transmission rates associated with carpooling to the workplace are on the rise. If you carpool to work, a reminder to follow carpooling safety guidelines to minimize the risk of COVID-19 transmission.
• Communications tips & tricks: Last year the Communications team hosted a series of workshops to help us adapt to remote working. Over the next few weeks we will bring back these resources that are still relevant in 2021 – starting with the presentation on easy tips to make your email work for you, available on the VPFO Comms website.
• VPFO HR on-site support schedule: Due to increased safety measures, the VPFO HR team will be working from home on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday for the month of April. For any questions, please contact Senior HR Manager, Arvind Kang (arvind.s.kang@ubc.ca).
  • May 10: Arvind Kang, Kasia Burza
  • May 11: WFH
  • May 12: Sonia Lachar, Gregor Macdonald
  • May 13: WFH
  • May 14: WFH

Other notable updates

Save the Date: UBC’s National Forum on Anti-Asian Racism

UBC is convening a two-day virtual event to address the ongoing crisis of escalating anti-Asian racism in Canada.

On June 10-11 join experts, leaders, and community organizers across different sectors for the National Forum on Anti-Asian Racism. This is an opportunity for candid conversations about how to address the ongoing crisis of anti-Asian racism in Canada.

Learn more about this event.

Helpful news

Some interesting news articles people have found informative, helpful, or fun! These are provided for information and entertainment only. Unless noted, UBC doesn’t specifically endorse or supply this content.

• When we’re overwhelmed during busy times, the way we react can actually make things worse. By being aware of the five common mistakes overwhelmed people tend to make, you can make things easier on yourself and those around you.
• Vancouver had the highest number of anti-Asian hate crimes in North America last year. This article on the UBC Beyond discusses ways you can be an active witness and stay safe while taking action against racism.

Have an article for your peers? Email communications@vpfo.ubc.ca.