Posted on behalf of Kate Ross, Associate Vice-President, Enrolment Services and Registrar
Over the last couple of weeks, we have been able to expand our personal bubble and the province began to open up as we enter phase two. What does this mean for the university and in particular ES?
Like other organizations, UBC will have to comply with Work Safe BC guidelines and health protocols. Given that we are a large and complex place –in many respects a small city with food outlets, recreational facilities, research labs, offices, etc. — it will require significant planning. The initiative called Restart UBC will require each unit to create plans and have them approved by the Crisis Management Team (aka the Executive of the University).
To support the development of these plans, guidelines and templates should be available in about two weeks’ time. Saying this, I believe that the direction we will receive is that if we can work from home we will continue to do so. One of our challenges is that we have densified workspaces and it is difficult to physically distance in these spaces. We could probably only have 30% occupancy in Brock Hall and the UNC. It will take us time to work through the logistics and figure out a way forward.
In the meantime, Annie and I have started to meet with ES employees in smaller groups so we can connect, answer questions that are on your mind and hear what is working and what you need to continue to thrive in our new work arrangements. There have certainly been some themes so far that I think it is important to address.
In many respects people like working from home and see the benefits of not commuting and hope that the university will be more open to these kinds of arrangements in the future. We will certainly discuss this as providing for flexibility in how we do our work is an important and positive outcome. We will also need direction from the university.
Other questions arose about layoffs and budget. I want you to know that there is not consideration of layoffs within ES at this time. If anything, we are an area that has needed additional resources to help us with backlogs in our work. We are one of the few areas to have staff redeployed to assist with our work. To date, the Provost Office has approved all ES positions requested that are vacant or temporary in nature. As for budget, ES is working with our 2019/20 budget levels and will need to be frugal in our spending over the year. The university needs to see how enrolment unfolds to determine the full financial impact to the institution.
The final theme is about work/life balance. This takes different flavours depending on one’s circumstances. Small apartments with no place to set up a permanent workspace can make it difficult to create separation. Small or school-aged children at home requires balancing many different things resulting in feelings of not doing anything well or feeling overwhelmed. With summer coming, how to provide structure in an unstructured way if day camps or child care are not available. I know that we are a resourceful group and are good at supporting each other so I wonder if we should set up some channels on zoom for people to connect who have common concerns to problem solve and share ideas or we could collect tips/tricks or hacks that you are using. I know when I became a single parent, it was the community around me that sustained me, just having others to talk to helped me be more resourceful. If you are interested in starting a channel or sharing a tip/trick please reach out to Ashley.
Continue to stay well, wash your hands, and be kind to yourself and others.
Warmly,
Kate