SHARE Update October 2020

This email was sent to SHARE members on Monday 10/19/2020…

Hi SHARE member,

SHARE Member Meeting Wednesday, October 21

All SHARE members are invited to a lunchtime meeting this Wednesday, October 21. We will be there 12:00-1:30 PM. Please drop in on your lunch break. We will have a short agenda starting on the half-hour at 12:00, 12:30 and 1:00, and open discussion the rest of the time.

Report on Furloughs and Layoffs

Twenty-nine SHARE members were furloughed in June. Over the past months, some were recalled to their jobs and some found new jobs. On October 5, some of the remaining furloughed people were informed that their jobs were going to be eliminated and they would be laid off. SHARE has been working with the furloughed employees throughout and is continuing to work with the laid off employees as they figure out what they will do next. 

SHARE members who were laid off will get paid notice through November 5, and their severance pay, and they will keep their health insurance to the end of the year. In addition, they have recall rights if their job comes back in the next two years, and internal preference for two years for looking for other jobs at UMass. Some of the laid off employees have been working with the COVID Testing program and have the option to continue in that role while the program continues. A few people have neither been recalled fully to their jobs, nor laid off. UMass has until the end of November to make those decisions.

Voter Registration

The deadline to register to vote in Massachusetts is this Saturday, October 24. You can register in person, by mail, or online at https://www.sec.state.ma.us/OVR/Pages/CheckEligibility.aspx?&Action=Register

To check your voter registration status, click here: https://www.sec.state.ma.us/VoterRegistrationSearch/MyVoterRegStatus.aspx

Take care, stay safe, and stay connected!

The SHARE Staff:

Andrea (andrea.caceres@theshareunion.org)

Jana (jana.hol@theshareunion.org)

Jameal (jameal.jackson@umassmed.edu)

Elisabeth (elisabeth.szanto@theshareunion.org)