(Approved by UMGC President on October 12, 2021)
Purpose and Applicability
University of Maryland Global Campus (UMGC) is committed to providing a safe workplace to safeguard the health of UMGC staff and faculty, employees, contractors, guests, and visitors and their families as well as the community at large from spreading SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. Because the spread of SARS-CoV-2 may be reduced by vaccinations—and in alignment with the University System of Maryland (USM) vaccination mandate—all UMGC employees and contractors are expected to get vaccinated.
All UMGC employees and contractors who come to a UMGC location to work or attend on-site meetings or events must be vaccinated and provide proof of vaccination by December 8, 2021 unless an exception is approved as a reasonable accommodation based on disability or religion. In addition, UMGC employees and contractors are expected to adhere to any local, state, or site-specific requirements, including those requiring masks, social distancing, temperature screenings, and health attestations. Employees not in compliance with this policy may be subject to disciplinary action up to and including termination.
This policy complies with the USM vaccination mandate and is based on guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and local health authorities. Nonexempt employees who are included in the representation of the collective bargaining unit are subject to the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) and applicable UMGC HR Policies. Where there is a conflict between the two, the MOU will prevail.
Definitions
Covered Employee – A UMGC employee or contractor who physically reports to a work location for the purpose of working and/or attending a work-related meeting or event. Covered employees also include any employee or contractor who meets with alumni, current and potential students, customers, donors, colleagues, contractors or other individuals or organizations at an off-site location for purpose of conducting UMGC business or promoting UMGC services and programs.
Work Location – Includes, but is not limited to, Adelphi and Largo locations, Regional Center Offices (RCOs), other USM institutions and campuses, community colleges, military bases, Kaiserslautern headquarters, or non-UMGC locations where UMGC business is conducted or UMGC services or programs are promoted.
UMGC Contractor – A person or company, or an employee of a contracting firm (e.g., AccelerEd, HelioCampus, CBS, Stevenson, AGS, etc.), that undertakes a contract with UMGC to provide materials or labor to perform a service or work.
Fully Vaccinated – An individual is considered fully vaccinated two weeks after their second dose of a two-dose series, such as the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines, or two weeks after a single-dose vaccine, such as Johnson & Johnson or Janssen vaccine. A person is considered fully vaccinated if they have received vaccinations approved or authorized for emergency use by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) or COVID vaccines (e.g., Pfizer or Moderna, Johnson & Johnson or Janssen) that have been listed for emergency use by the World Health Organization (e.g., AstraZeneca/Oxford).
Proof of Vaccination – Acceptable proof of vaccination includes, but is not limited to, CDC Vaccination Card Record, Vaccine Passport, Excelsior Pass, Common Pass, IATA Travel Pass, and/or a local, state, or county issued health form.
Procedure
Covered employees will be notified by the Office of Human Resources about the vaccination requirement and provided with timeframe(s) for having the vaccine(s) administered. If vaccine boosters are required by federal, state, local, or site authorities, Human Resources will notify Covered Employees and provide a deadline for getting such booster vaccines.
COVID-19 vaccinations are free, whether an individual has health insurance or not. Vaccinations may be submitted for reimbursement through your health insurance where applicable.
All covered employees will be given time during scheduled work hours, if necessary, to get vaccinated. Employees must work with their supervisors to schedule appropriate time to comply with this policy.
A covered employee is required to upload proof of vaccination or copy of Approved Exception Letter for medical or religious reasons into Workday. Some covered employees in Global Military Operations are also required to complete and upload additional forms like DD 3150. Employees can click here to get more information on how to upload their proof of vaccination.
When an employee uploads proof of vaccination or exception, Human Resources will review and approve if the proof of vaccination or exception is sufficient. If the proof of vaccination or exception is not acceptable, Human Resources will notify the employee. Employees and contractors are responsible for maintaining current vaccination and exception records in Workday.
A UMGC staff and faculty employee and contractor's proof of vaccination and exception letters will be treated like medical information and maintained by Human Resources in a secured file; access to the information for tracking and reporting purposes will be restricted to the Human Resources, Employee and Labor Relations teams only. Information for whether a staff or faculty employee or contractor is vaccinated or unvaccinated or granted an exception will be shared on a business-need-to-know basis. This may include supervisors, contractor's employer, Security, or others who are responsible for maintaining workplace safety and addressing violations or reporting duties and responsibilities.
Reasonable Accommodation
Medical Reason
Employees in need of an exemption from this policy due to a medical reason must contact Employee Accommodations in Equity at employee-accommodations@umgc.edu to begin the interactive accommodation process as soon as possible after vaccination deadlines have been announced.
Religious Reason
Employees in need of an exemption from this policy because of a sincerely held religious belief should contact Fair Practices at fairpractices@umgc.edu to begin the interactive accommodation process as soon as possible after vaccination deadlines have been announced.
Medical and Religious accommodations will be granted by UMGC where they do not cause UMGC undue hardship or pose a direct threat to the health and safety of others. There may be circumstances when an approved exception is granted by UMGC as a reasonable accommodation is not acceptable for the purpose of accessing a third party owned and operated work location (e.g., military base). In such circumstances, UMGC employees and contractors are expected to comply with the requirement and obtain an approved exception as a reasonable accommodation from the third-party site owner and operator. The third-party site owner and operator decision regarding access to its facilities will supersede UMGC's approved exception.
For more information on UMGC's Employee Accommodations, how to submit an employee accommodation request, and the interactive dialogue process can be found at https://engage.umgc.edu/community/diversity-and-equity/equity/employee-accommodations.