Updates from UBC
- July 6: Letter from Santa: Black Opportunity Fund partners with UBC to empower next generation of Black leaders
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.
- July 13: Self and Community Care Facilitated Webinar: This 2-part facilitated webinar focuses on increasing mental health literacy for individuals.
- July 19: Strengthening Resilience: Learn about evidence-informed strategies to strengthen resilience, as well as resources that are available to support resilience and wellbeing.
- July 22: Pet-ditate Meditate with your pet: Pets and mindfulness can both reduce stress and improve feelings of wellbeing. Join us as we combine our pets and mindfulness in these 15-minute sessions.
- August 10 (Part 1) & 18 (Part 2): Understanding Mental Health: This session aims to increase mental health literacy while providing tools and skills to respond effectively in a caring and respectful way.
Free group counselling to help navigate change
As more changes come along our way, it can be helpful during this time to get support to navigate through these changes.
Visit the UBC HR website for some recommended group counselling options from our Employee and Family Assistance Program.
Operations updates
Facilities
Building Operations, Energy & Water Services and Infrastructure Development
- Updated information on building ventilation: Information regarding building ventilation in preparation for increased campus activity for Winter 2021/2022 Term 1 has been updated on the UBC Facilities website.
Finance
Comptroller, Finance & Operational Excellence and Treasury
- Responsible Investing: UBC Investment Management Trust (IMANT) has shared the first UBC Endowment Carbon Footprint Report, covering the year 2020. Read more on the UBC Finance website.
- UBC’s Financial Results for 2020/21: A reminder that UBC’s audited financial statements are now available to review on the UBC Finance website.
Operations & Advising
Communications & Engagement, Human Resources, and Safety & Risk Services
- Updated COVID-19 Safety Plans and Framework: UBC has updated its COVID-19 Safety Planning Framework to align with Step 3 of the BC Restart Plan and the Return-to-Campus Guidelines. Visit the SRS website for our safety plans, required training, FAQs, guidance documents, signage and updated Campus Rules.
- Review of the Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute completed: Safety & Risk Services has completed a health and space review of the Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute. The team is putting together their report and recommendations to continue to foster a safe and healthy working environment.
- Have museums sidelined Asian history: This week, Dr. Viviane Gosselin, Curator of Contemporary Culture at the Museum of Vancouver, discusses the role of museums in shaping the histories of Asian Canadians, available on the VPFO EDI webpage.
- 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 any questions, please contact Senior HR Manager, Arvind Kang.
- July 12: Arvind Kang, Rachel Lau
- July 13: WFH
- July 14: Arvind Kang, Gregor Macdonald, Monica Haab
- July 15: WFH
- July 16: WFH
People in motion
Please join us in welcoming those who are joining us, celebrating promotions, and saying goodbye to team members who are moving on to their next steps.
- Shiraz Khan joins Customer Services & Informatics as Service Centre Coordinator on Monday, July 12. Welcome Shiraz!
Job openings
As opportunities arise within our teams, we’d like to share them through this channel in case you or someone in your network may be interested.
Information on all positions is always available on the UBC HR Careers website, or through the Career application in your Workday account. The following positions are currently open:
- Payroll Representative (JR3018) – closing July 13
- Finance Manager, Infrastructure Development, Safety & Risk Services and Financial Operations (JR2869) – closing July 15
- Supply Chain Analyst (JR3067) – closing July 15
- Head Service Worker (JR3092) – closing July 15
- Finance Manager, Project Accounting (JR2868)– closing July 18
- Trades 2 – Carpenter (JR3233) – closing July 20
- Utility Worker (JR3234) – closing July 20
- People & Process Manager, Mech Systems & HVAC Trades (JR3132) – closing July 21
If you yourself are applying, please remember to apply as an internal candidate. Refer to the following knowledge base article for support: How do I apply for an internal job posting?.
Other notable updates
Submit your questions for the VPFO Townhall on July 15
Peter Smailes, Vice-President Finance & Operations, is hosting a townhall for our portfolio to look back on our experiences over the past year and a half and forward to a brighter fall and beyond. The agenda will include:
Our last 18 months
- COVID-19, working apart and coming together.
Where we are today
- Equity, Diversity & Inclusion, transformation, and a financial health update.
Our focus this fall
- Strategic renewal, systems renewal, Operational Excellence, and our focus in the Okanagan.
Our return to campus
- The VPFO’s approach, our safety plan, keeping our spaces safe, and your return checklist.
We welcome questions in advance on any of these topics. Please send your questions to vp.finops@ubc.ca and we will try to answer the larger questions at the townhall and your more specific questions through your senior leader following the townhall.
Welcome Back: Being Aware and Taking Care
Safety & Risk Services has put together a series of online sessions that will launch the week of July 26-30, 2021, to help support a safe and healthy work environment and a smooth transition to campus in September 2021.
We invite you to join us during this week to hear from guest speakers, subject matter experts from SRS, and enroll in the online series that can be taken at your own convenience and pace on UBC Workplace Learning.
For more information, please visit the event page on the SRS website.
UBC’s EFAP provider Morneau Shepell is changing its name to LifeWorks
As of July 1, 2021, our Employee and Family Assistance Program (EFAP) provider, Morneau Shepell, has changed its name and branding to LifeWorks.
UBC’s EFAP gives you access to unique, short-term solution-focused confidential counselling services, work-life services, and clinically-developed resources to help you and your family with a wide range of issues. You will still have access to these services, but now it will be under the LifeWorks banner instead of Morneau Shepell.
For more information, including new resources on the platform and access instructions, visit the HR website.
Cybersecurity tips & tricks: Protect your personal information
At UBC, we are responsible for substantial amounts of personal information, and protecting this information is everyone’s responsibility. Personal Information is recorded information about an identifiable individual, with the exception of the names and business contact information of employees, volunteers and service providers.
In the final week, we’ll share tips on how to protect your personal information:
- Only share the minimum amount of personal information necessary.
- Use secure storage methods such as network folders.
- Avoid using email for high-risk personal information. If email has to be used, encrypt the attachments that contain the personal information.
Learn more on the UBC Privacy Matters website.
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.
- Start your week off right with this heartwarming story about the work that UBC faculty and students are doing to support pets (and pet owners) in Vancouver’s Downtown East Side community.
- This FastCompany article offers 3 simple but creative strategies to avoid post-vacation despair and make your transition back to work and life easy and smooth.
Have an article for the VPFO team? Email communications@vpfo.ubc.ca.