Benefits – Page 2 – Subject Matter Minute Blog

Subject Matter Minute, Episode #59 – Open Enrollment Changes 2023

The below post is taken from the Video Blog, the Subject Matter Minute. If it’s a little hard to read, it’s because it’s taken from the spoken word. You can view the episode on YouTube if you would like. Find it here: Episode #59 – Open Enrollment Changes 2023

If YouTube is blocked for you or your agency, you can scroll to the bottom of this post to view it from Google Drive. (I would prefer you view it on YouTube, so I know how many people have watched)

You can also listen to an audio version.

Hello and welcome to the Subject Matter Minute, I’m Matt Nagy, thanks for joining me! I started putting this episode together last week when the weather was still perfect. Has everyone else been enjoying the most perfect fall ever? It may be coming to an end now, but, I can’t believe I had to work last week. There should be a “perfect weather” holiday. Right? (maybe that’s a good retention strategy the state could consider?) anyways… I digress…

Speaking of nature… I want to show you guys a little video of my wife’s office in Steamboat. The quality is really poor, but you’ll get the idea. (Bear Video) The whole family! I guess they were trying to make an appointment! It would be cute except I just read the article about those two wrestlers who were attacked near Cody. If you haven’t read it, search for it… it’s quite a story.

Ok, now that I told you to go outside to enjoy the weather and then basically told you to stay indoors, cause, well, bears…. Let’s get to the content!

As you SHOULD know… we are nearly halfway through Open Enrollment for 2023. And while a month ago might have been better, now still seems like a good time to talk about a few open enrollment changes. (music)

So… open enrollment starts on October 1st and goes through the end of November. This is the time that you can add, drop, and/or make changes to the benefits that we all get through Employees’ Group Insurance. The changes that we make take effect the following year. So the changes we make now are put in place for the 2023 calendar year. While you can go view your benefits on the portal, nothing needs to be done if you aren’t making any changes. However, don’t forget that flex medical and daycare has to be enrolled in each year if you wish to participate.

It seems like for me, the only thing that I sometimes change is the flexible spending account amount. Although I did drop short-term disability last year as I figured I had accrued enough sick leave to cover the short term.

Otherwise, you can go in and change your health insurance deductible,
elect or drop preventive dental and/or the optional dental (if the 3-year waiting rule is met),
you can elect or drop basic and voluntary life insurance (in limited amounts and possible underwriting),
elect, drop or change your vision plan (if waiting period/commitment period met),
elect or drop ambulance coverage (if waiting period is met),
elect or drop short term disability or long-term disability,
elect flexible spending accounts for 2023 .
and finally, add, drop, or change dependents where appropriate. (documents may be needed!)

There are some small changes that will go into effect in 2023. If you recall, vision insurance had a waiting and commitment period of two years. This meant that if you didn’t elect it when you first were hired, or you dropped it, you had to wait 2 years to get it. It also meant that once you elect it, you had to keep it for 2 years. That period has been reduced to 1 year.

The benefit for optional dental has been increased from $1500 to $2000 per calendar year. So if you have optional dental, delta dental will pay up to $2000 for things such as crowns. This is a good thing for me, as my teeth are all sorts of cracked up!

Also, the maximum you can use for the medical reimbursement went up from $2700 to $2850. So, if you are always maxing that account out, you can bump up your monthly amount a bit.

Please keep in mind that I, by no means, have gone through all the details. Sometimes documents are needed, and sometimes you need one thing to get another. There are other waiting periods. But those are details that I’ve gone through in other Subject Matter Minutes, I’ve put links to the appropriate ones below. I have also included a link to a video taking you through the entire portal open enrollment process below. Of course, if you have real questions, important questions, please contact EGI. (contact info on screen)

Finally, please don’t wait until the last minute to get this done. EGI business hours are Monday – Friday 8 am-5 pm, so while we can submit an online enrollment until midnight on 11/30, if you experience any errors or technical problems, there is no way to get assistance after hours. Alright? We are given 2 months to get this done, so get in there and make it happen.

Alright, that’s it for today! But before I go, I want to give a shout-out to Travis McGinnis of Big Piney. It was great chatting with you at the UW football game the other night! It’s great meeting cool state employees like you. Now, everyone… go outside before winter hits…get on your bike, go on a hike, sit on your porch… wait, unless there have been bear sightings nearby.

Subject Matter Minute, Episode #56 – Pre-Retirement Checklist

If YouTube is blocked for you or your agency, you can scroll to the bottom of this post to view it from Google Drive. (I would prefer you view it on YouTube, so I know how many people have watched)

You can also listen to an audio version.

Hello and welcome to the Subject Matter Minute! I appreciate you!

My last episode was on the upcoming raises. Well, you should all now know how much you got. I’m really hoping all of you fabulous, hard-working state employees were pleasantly surprised with what you got. I had low expectations, so that helped. (giggle) But I was pleasantly surprised. Now let’s cross our fingers that there is more money in the next couple of years to add to that and get us closer to the mid-point of our pay grades. Remember that even though it hurts, high gas prices can be good for state employees!

Alright, before I get started, I want to give a shout-out to a couple of state employees that I met at the Laramie Brewfest during Jubilee Days. Hello to Lisa of DFS and Tasha of Game and Fish. You guys are a hoot! My wife and I had a great time drinking with ya and cracking ourselves up! Am I right??

Ok, let’s get down to business. We’ve all heard the expression, “the great resignation,” right? You might even be sick of it right now, but…. Apparently, a ton of people are getting out of the game. And while right now, due to the state of the stock market, might not be the best time, if you are ready and thinking about it, WRS has a pre-retirement checklist to help you get there. …and I’m very envious of you.

Before I hit that checklist, I want to hit a couple of items that are the same, both for folks that are retiring and folks that are just moving on to another employer. Of course, we hope that never happens, but we realize it’s going to happen from time to time. First of all, whether you are retiring or just moving on, know that HR will be in touch. Not only because I’m sure there are probably a few things you need to return, but because they also want to hear from you. In fact, most will conduct what’s referred to as an exit interview – this is your chance to be honest with HR about why you are leaving. Regardless, along with an exit interview, there are a couple of items in the Personnel Rules and the Compensation Policy that pertain to retiring.

Chapter 11 of the personnel rules, which covers separation, goes over notification procedure, rescinding notification, and failure to notify. So first of all, when you decide that you are leaving the state and/or retiring, you need to provide written notification to your supervisor specifying the date and time of your resignation. Of course, you want to do it as far ahead as possible, and the rules mention that if you notify with less than 2 weeks, without good reason, you will not separate in good standing. This only matters if you want to go back to work at the state. Still, it’s kinda rude to give less than two weeks’ notice. Also, if you change your mind before the resignation date that you set, you can change it with the approval of the agency head. So if you are getting cold feet, or the stock market is doing even worse, you can push it back. 🙂

The Compensation policy goes over how you will be paid for the leave you have accumulated when you retire. First of all, you will be paid for all of your annual leave… at your hourly rate. For sick leave, you will be paid for 50% of what you have, but only up to 480 hours. So if you have an ungodly amount of sick leave, you are still only going to get a max of 480 hours.

Longevity pay is an interesting one. First of all, you will get longevity pay for the month that you quit/retire no matter how many days you work that month. So, you work 2 days, you get your longevity pay for that month. Second, you also may get what’s referred to as a Longevity Payout. This combines your annual and sick leave paid out and applies the number of hours as if they were hours worked. So… if your annual and sick leave balances add up to an equivalent of a month’s time, or several months, you will get longevity pay for each of those months.

Also, you will get paid for any comp time you have remaining.

An exempt employee will get paid for any unused Paid Time Off.

And finally, if you have any other type of leave accrued, use it before you leave or retire. You will lose those hours. So, leave like wellness, personal, or admin leave.

And one little fun tidbit here… if you get paid out for your annual and sick leave and then decide you can’t stand retirement and get rehired within 31 days of your retirement, you will have to pay all that money back. So…… don’t do that.

Ok… so that covers the personnel rules and compensation part of retiring. Now let’s hit this checklist that WRS puts out. It’s approximately 8 things to do before you reach your retirement date.

At 6 to 8 months from retiring, you need to request an estimate of your pension benefits. You can do that on the website or you can give them a call. Now, if you are planning to retire on the “earliest date for unreduced retirement benefits” then WRS says you need to contact a Benefits Specialist for final verification of the Rule of 85 date within 3 months prior to terminating your job. … just to make sure you got it right. You can find your earliest date for unreduced retirement benefits at the bottom of page 1 of your statement.

Next… if you are planning to keep the state insurance, health and dental, through EGI, then you need to contact EGI 3 months out from retiring.

You should also consider social security and medicare. If you are eligible for social security benefits and want to start receiving them when you retire, apply approximately 3 months before. Go to www.ssa.gov or contact your local Social Security office to do this. If you are Medicare age eligible and wish to apply for Medicare, those benefits can also be applied for at: www.ssa.gov. (Click on Menu at the top and click Medicare under the Benefits section).

There is another option for your annual and sick leave benefits. You can defer them into your 457 deferred compensation plan. If you decide to do this, after careful consideration, a completed final Deferral Authorization of Accrued Leave Payouts Form must be submitted to WRS the month before your last working day. The form is on the WRS website.

Speaking of the 457 Deferred Comp plan… you should think about this account as well. Everyone should at least have a little bit in there as they match $20 a month… right? Ok, well, first of all, you don’t have to do anything with it right away. But if you do want to start withdrawing funds, go ahead and contact WRS about it. And just so you know, you will be required to start taking distributions from your 457 account in the calendar year that you turn 72.

And finally… 2-3 weeks before retiring, you can submit your pension application. Please make sure that your termination date is submitted and set before you do this. You may submit your pension application by logging into your pension account or by printing off the pension application from the website.

If you are getting close to retirement, first of all, I envy you sooooo much. But secondly, there are a ton of things to consider! Hopefully, this gives you an idea of the state-related things that you need to think about. But, no matter what, I would get on the phone with WRS to make sure you are checking all the boxes.

Alright… thanks for watching! Keep enjoying this fabulous summer and I’ll see you next time!

Subject Matter Minute, Episode #55 – Market Adjustment (Raises!) Process

If YouTube is blocked for you or your agency, you can scroll to the bottom of this post to view it from Google Drive. (I would prefer you view it on YouTube, so I know how many people have watched)

You can also listen to an audio version.

I know us long-timers have been uncertain as to whether we would see another raise again anytime soon. But this is good news! Raises are coming and they are coming soon. I’m going to give you the background information and the timelines of this process. And since the state could use the same process in the future, this episode should be somewhat evergreen…. If you are watching it in the future.

First of all, the process to get us July raises began years ago. A&I HRD currently uses 6 different salary surveys that are vetted and published yearly. Each year when the surveys are published, A&I HRD compares our current pay tables and actual employee pay to the relevant labor market which consists of other states and private entities. So, we are trying to compare apples to apples here.

If we look at a timeline over the course of the last two years, it may shed a little more light as to why it is not uncommon for the data to be up to 2 years dated by the time raises take effect:

2020 – market data was collected and published towards the end of the calendar year.
2021 (spring) – A&I HRD performed its market analysis and submitted proposals to the Governor.
2021 (fall) – The Governor reviewed these proposals, compared these to revenue forecasts submitted by the Consensus Revenue Estimating Group (CREG), and made a recommendation to the Legislature.
2022 (spring) – The Legislature made adjustments and approved the compensation package for pay increases.

Ok, next I want to break down some of what HRD’s market analysis looks like and how it led to the proposal that was eventually adopted.

Each year a bunch of turnover metrics are tracked and published. Employees write letters relating to issues with pay. HRD also sent out the Employee Satisfaction Survey. They look at recruitment data and how long it takes to fill a position once it is advertised. They also look at vacancy rates, and how many positions sit vacant because we are unable to fill them. Market data and the cost to move employees to the new market rate is calculated. All of this is compiled in the Workforce Report which can be found on A&I’s website (refer to SMM #51). Given the severity of the current market lag, HRD took this information a step further and compiled a 157-page document on Compensation Facts. This was sent to the JAC last December to support the paytable movement and pay increases for employees.

So, in this document, instead of looking simply statewide as HRD often does in their published documents, each agency had its own highlights which allowed directors to speak to the legislature about pay issues in their agency. This seemed to help.

At the time the Compensation Facts book was published, the Executive Branch was $97.8 million dollars per year behind the 2020 market in employee pay. We work on a 2-year biennium, which means to move employees to the 2020 market rate would have been an ask of almost $196 million dollars. So HRD created a more realistic plan to try and get employees closer to the market without breaking the bank. The first step – move the pay tables to the new market rates. The second step – implement the Market Merit Matrix. The Market Merit Matrix allocates a percent increase to an employee based on our performance and the relationship of our pay to MPP, or midpoint, of the pay grade. The last time a matrix was implemented was in 2015!

With support from the Governor’s Office and the Legislature, the Executive Branch was ultimately awarded $37.2 million in General Funds to adjust employee compensation.

So how do we not know exactly what each employee’s raise is today? Well, we don’t. Our workforce is anything but static. The first step is to move the pay tables to the 2020 rates from where we are currently, which are 2017 rates. The State Compensation Policy requires each employee to be paid at the minimum (at least) of the pay grade for their job. So we must first move each employee that is behind the paytable minimum to that new minimum.

Once everyone is at the new minimum, the market merit matrix is implemented. Because the workforce is constantly in motion with new hires, transfers, and terminations, HRD had to implement a cut-off date of April 1st… meaning our pay and position details as of April 1st will determine the increase. (If you experienced a job change or pay change after April 1st, please consult your agency HR to see if you are eligible for a matrix increase.) Here’s what the matrix looks like without the actual percentages in it. Here is where the percent raise will be once the table is finished. So, the yellow fields on top numbered 7 through 1 are an individual’s position in the range based on the percent of market. So… bottom 10% here, all the way to the top 10% here. The performance aspect of the matrix, rows 0-14, are based on the employee’s PMI score from the 2020-2021 review period.

As you know, we only see a word score at the end of our evaluation… so, “meets expectations” or “commendable.” The decimal point figures in the matrix come from a background calculation that takes the total number of points awarded on the PMI and divides them by the number of scored competencies. This allows incremental improvement in work areas to be reflected in pay.

As an example, let’s say a non-supervisor gets the following scores on their 6 competencies. Each has a point value associated with it. You add those points, divide by 6 (because there are 6 competencies) and that is your score with a decimal point. A supervisor would do the same but would add up 8 competencies and divide by those 8.

The next big question you are probably interested in, is when we will know what our raises will be? HRD is working to allocate the matrix dollars and will send out individual letters with our matrix details, percent raise, and new pay rate by the end of June. . Our raise (or market adjustment 🙂 is effective July 1st – this means that you will see the difference in our July paycheck… so at the end of July.

Please know that HRD’s work does not, and has not stopped with this allocation and the matrix they are building. As noted before, HRD performs a market analysis each year. The Joint Appropriation Committee (JAC) has made employee compensation an interim priority topic for further discussion this year. This means that even as these raises take effect, discussions on employee pay are ongoing and happening in the background which… who knows…may lead to more good news in the future.

Subject Matter Minute, Episode #54 – Online Training Webpage

If YouTube is blocked for you or your agency, you can scroll to the bottom of this post to view it from Google Drive. (I would prefer you view on YouTube, so I know how many people have watched)

You can also listen to an audio version.

Hello and welcome to another Subject Matter Minute, I’m Matt Nagy, thanks for joining me!

Today’s topic is training, and that got me thinking about the fact that I have never given you guys my work background. I certainly didn’t start off in training. So, if you’ve got a second, I’m going to tell you how I ended up at the state. I mean, you do know quite a bit about me already, so why not this? Remember, you can always click below to skip this.

Well, it all began at the University of Wyoming where I got a Broadcasting/Journalism degree. Nice thing about UW is that we got to play with all the equipment, so we actually got to make television. And so you know, this was before computers were used for editing video. Yeah… we had to do it with monstrous ¾ inch and Betamax tape. And when you shot video, you had this huge tape deck that you recorded to. Serious pain. But we didn’t know any better.

After I got my degree I stayed where I was and worked for UWTV. Basically working for the guys that taught me. I spent like 9 or 10 years there.

Then I had a kid. My boss at the time let me flex my schedule and it was great. But then a co-worker became the boss and decided that didn’t work for him. So… I quit and became a stay-at-home dad. (interesting side-note… the first day that I stayed home was the day that the planes hit the towers. I was home watching the Today Show. That’s also my birthday. 🙂

Anyways… I had been creating websites on the side, so I did bring home some money, but it was fabulous taking care of my girls, and raising them for years.

Then Governor Freudenthal created an organization called the Wyoming Distance Learning Center and I decided it was time to get back to work and it was a great choice. We were tasked with helping any State government agency or organization with distance learning. It was fun, hard, and short. Cause then Governor Mead came in and killed it.

My co-workers all got jobs elsewhere and I was absorbed by the state. That was back in 2012… I missed the Tier 1 retirement by 2 months. So now I have to wait till I’m 65 to retire…..

So…… was I going to talk about something else in this episode???

Oh yeah! Training! (music)

So, that is how I became an eLearning training guy at the state. And as such, I am responsible for training! So… I have created training, I’ve collaborated with some folks for training and I’ve found other sources of training at the state and I have put it all together on a neatly organized webpage.

So… if you are in need of training, you have employees who are in need of training, or you are just curious about what we have to offer, follow me over to the A&I website.

So here we are on the colorful A&I website. It’s simply ai.wyo.gov. There’s a couple ways to get to the online learning page. You can go up to divisions – human resources – consultative services, and there’s online learning right there, or you can go the easy way. Come down here to under “for state employees” and click on online learning.

Read the intro… you’ll see that we’ve created things on wyotraining.wyo.gov. You can access my youtube channel here and you can subscribe. The first thing up here is suicide prevention. These courses are provided by the governor’s office, the Wyoming department of health, and the Wyoming department of administration and information – they partnered to provide these. They usually cost money, but they are now free to state employees, and there’s a bunch of different ones. That’s really good information for both somebody who is feeling suicidal, but also for somebody who knows somebody who may be. If you’re interested in that, watch this little intro video. There’s also an infographic right here and more information here on the wyoming department of health’s website.

If you haven’t noticed I’ve been sending out financial literacy webinar emails once a month. This is a lunch and learn that is put on by the “society for financial awareness.” These are the past topics that we’ve covered. You can click here to any one of them. Make sure that when you get the email that you sign up because you’ll get an email about the recording and honestly the live version is very good. He’ll answer questions as well.

As all my long time listeners know we have access to linkedin learning training anyone at the state or anyone actually at the state that has a library card. The state library puts it on, but anybody with any library card can get there. You’ll have to input your card number and the pin wyld to access it. There’s a link to the login page… there’s more information from the state library… and of course there’s the subject matter minute episode all about it.

Down here are all the courses that I’ve created over the years that reside on wyotraining.wyo.gov, so take a look at this list… check them out. You will need a key to get into any of these… there’s a link to the keys right here. It’s not really keeping anybody out… that’s really just so I can sort by agency.

Down below that we have more that are more geared towards managers and supervisors. Some of them are videos that anybody can access, but check those out if you’re a supervisor or a manager or want to be one.

Next we have a large catalog of training from risk management. If you click on this catalog right here it’ll open up the catalog and they have anything from active shooter to hazardous materials handling. And all of them have a preview button. Let’s do driver safety. Let’s open that. You can go through this preview. I don’t think it’s the entire course… which wouldn’t make sense, but it gives you an idea of the quality and if it’s what you need. So we have access to all of those through risk management, and if you want to access those talk to your HR rep and they will get you access.

Next we have a short list of miscellaneous courses that didn’t fit anywhere else, so check those out. Most of them are videos on youtube… so easy to access. And then finally down here at the bottom we have the subject matter minute latest episode as well as a link to the subject matter minute page which puts all of the topics covered in a list. You can also go to the blog, the audio only stuff, and you can go to the playlist on youtube and you can subscribe. So that’s the A&I website. If you guys have any more training available to all state employees that could be put on this page please let me know.

Ok, so this is part of what I do at the state, and now you know where to find it. If you have any questions, feel free to contact me. And, until then, I’ll see you next time, on the Subject Matter Minute.

Subject Matter Minute, Episode #53 – Current Covid-19 Policies

If YouTube is blocked for you or your agency, you can scroll to the bottom of this post to view it from Google Drive. (I would prefer you view on YouTube, so I know how many people have watched)

You can also listen to an audio version.

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Subject Matter Minute! Congratulations on surviving another trip around the sun! Welcome to 2022. Also known as COVID: Year 3.

I’ll get back to the covid thing, but first I want to say that I hope everyone had a great holiday season!? Hopefully, your flight wasn’t one of the thousands that got canceled and you ended up spending the holiday on a smelly coffee-stained airport carpet. I know a lot of people did…. Hopefully, it was none of you.

I had a fun break. I especially enjoyed it when the snow gods dumped 5 feet of snow on the Snowy Range Ski area. It was over a week, but I got to enjoy the two best days of snowboarding I’ve ever experienced there. (at Snowy Range, that is) It was delightfully deep. And now… finally… we have a mountain range full of snow to play in. I was starting to get worried.

Hopefully, those of you that enjoy the snow are also getting out to play now.

Alright… let’s talk about COVID. (music)

Before we get started, I want to thank Tricia Flores and Nicki Reitmeyer, both of HRD, for getting me the info on what the current state of affairs is at the state regarding covid.

Also, since the pandemic is an ever-changing, fluid situation, this episode is very time and date-specific. If you are watching much past the weeks of January 10 through, say…. January 28th, you may want to find out if things are different. Today I’m going to tell you what the policies and procedures are NOW.

Let’s start with the basics. Masks. Mask policy at the state is currently set by each agency’s Director. So, if you are just heading back into the office for the first time or you are visiting another agency, please find out before you get there whether or not you need a mask. Let’s just keep that simple.

Next… if you have possibly been exposed or are showing symptoms, you can get a covid test that is at no cost to you. Cigna will cover it. For now. They regularly re-evaluate this and coverage could change. The bottom line is that it’s currently free to you and me. Now… Cigna will not cover the test if it’s simply so you can get on a flight to Cancun. You must have possibly been exposed or be experiencing symptoms. However, as you have probably heard, the Federal Government has purchased home tests that will be available soon. The ordering system is not set up as of this recording. I assume that these tests can be used for whatever situation you deem necessary.

Next, let’s talk about leave associated with covid and the vaccine.

First of all, the policy makes it very clear that the hope is that people can telework. Any admin leave will only be allowed if you are unable to telework. (I’ll get back to that)

Also, while the State personnel system does not ordinarily provide regular paid leave to AWEC and TP01 classifications, the COVID-19 Administrative Leave Policy will apply to both.

First, the policy goes through a list of negatives. Basically when covid admin leave will be denied. Instead of going through those, let’s concentrate on when it will be granted. 🙂

So, the factors to be considered in determining whether COVID-19 Administrative Leave applies includes:

whether we have the option to telework, in which case we must telework instead of using the Leave;
whether the Governor or State Health Officer has ordered the closure of your Agency or your building;
whether we have been directed by the Agency to self-quarantine;
whether we have been directed by a doctor to self-quarantine;
whether we have been diagnosed with COVID-19;
whether we have had direct contact with a person that has been diagnosed with COVID-19;
whether we provide an essential government service that, if limited, would adversely impact the Agency’s ability to function. (I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that even if your job is deemed “essential”… if you are horribly sick with Covid-19, you will be allowed to take Covid leave. Don’t quote me on that, however.)

Ok, these are the factors used to determine if you can use COVID leave.

Once it is determined that you are eligible for the leave, HRD will determine the amount needed. This is initially up to 5 working days. HRD will re-evaluate at the end of the 5 days to see if more time is needed.

COVID admin leave can also be used if schools or daycares are closed due to COVID.

The HRD Admin may grant twenty days of COVID-19 Administrative Leave to us under the following circumstances:

We are the custodian of a child under 13 years of age, or of a child under 18 years of age who has disabilities that require full-time care; and
The school or daycare which the child attends has closed due to COVID-19; and
We are unable to telework.

However, if childcare responsibilities are shared among two state employees (either because both employees are parents or guardians of the child, share custody of the child, or share a household with the child), then:

COVID-19 Administrative Leave will only be granted under this policy if neither of the state employees is able to telework; and
The twenty days granted under this policy must be shared among the two state employees. Ok? You only get 20 between ya.

Also… something to keep in mind. The COVID-19 Administrative Leave doesn’t have to be taken consecutively. So if you can telework intermittently, or find someone to help with childcare intermittently, you can spread out the leave.

Ok… Also…One hour of admin is approved to receive the vaccine. An hour per shot.

Up to 3 days of admin leave can be used for reactions to the vaccination.

Up to 10 days of admin leave can be used for the time that you are waiting for COVID-19 test results. However, if the test is negative and you are still feeling sick, any additional time must be sick leave.

As with all COVID admin leave, the HRD Administrator has the authority to approve beyond these general guidelines on a case by case basis with a detailed request. So, if you are feeling sick beyond the 5 days, it is possible to get more admin leave. I know some people are sick for a long time.

I feel like I need to revisit the teleworking thing. It sounds like if you are able to telework that you cannot use the admin leave. This isn’t true. If you are unable to telework because you are sick with covid, or your young child needs care due to daycare closure… you are unable to telework… so you can use the leave. Hopefully, that’s clear. 🙂

To finish out the admin leave info, the time code to use for this leave is: Salary =ADQRT, Hourly=HRAQT.

Meanwhile, scientists are learning more about the disease every day and they are adjusting guidelines based on this knowledge. The Wyoming Health Department has just released new quarantine and isolation guidelines based on the CDC’s new guidelines. These guidelines are quite complicated as they recommend different procedures based on vaccinated or not vaccinated, fully vaccinated vs. not fully vaccinated, date of last vaccination shot, etc. So…. I’m going to give you the link to the page that explains this on the CDC website. It’s much more clear there. Also, the recommendations for healthcare and correctional facilities are slightly different, so I’ve put the link to those below the video as well.

Ok… remember, if you are watching this video much past the release date, you will definitely want to check with your supervisor or your HR Rep to see if the rules have changed. Honestly, you’ll want to do that anyway… Right now, however, a ton of people are getting sick with COVID, or dealing with it in one way or another, so it’s good to know your options.

Alright, that’s it for today. Be careful out there and stay well! See ya next time.

Subject Matter Minute, Episode #45 – Cigna Mental & Emotional Health Goodies

You can also listen to an audio version.

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Subject Matter Minute. I’m Matt Nagy, thanks for taking a bit of time out of your busy day to put up with my shenanigans. I appreciate you.

So, for spring break, my wife, my youngest, and I went to the Pacific Northwest for a bit of an active vacation. Awe man… I love it up there. To be able to Mountain bike one day on tight grippy trails and then snowboard the next day in deep deep snow, is an amazing experience. We visited some friends in Bellingham Washington, which if you don’t know, is practically in Canada. Mount Baker is a 10,000-foot mountain that basically starts at sea level. That’s very different from around here. But anyway, we got a powder day at Baker and then went south to Mount Hood in Oregon and got another powder day. My blessed boarding season continues. Considering COVID and the late start to the snow, I’ve hit practically nothing but powder days between there, Steamboat, and Snowy Range. But….. that’s neither here, nor there.

I realized recently that I’ve been a bit remiss about thanking some of my subject matter experts. And since this show is built on their expertise, that’s not good. The last episode was on the new telework policy and I got all my info from our very own Jenny Wacker, a Project Manager for A&I, with whom I regularly work.

I also did an episode on the new Ambulance Insurance being offered through EGI, which of course means the subject matter experts were my usuals down there… Karyn Williams and Pam Unruh. Finally, I did an episode on the employee assistance program and I want to thank Amanda Santee for helping me out with that information. Thanks to everyone who has helped me in all the episodes!

Ok… I should probably get to today’s subject, eh? Today we are going to talk about a slew of Cigna health goodies. (music)

What do I mean by a slew of health goodies? Well, it turns out that the State of Wyoming actually offers a ton of services for our mental and emotional health through Cigna. It seems we even have access to another Employee Assistance Program through them. The State has an interest in keeping us both physically and mentally healthy, as it costs the health plan less down the road, so hopefully, we have lower premium increases as well. I don’t think many people understand that Cigna runs the health plan and provides resources, but the State pays out the claims. So, any savings benefits the State. So, in essence, the healthier we are, the better the health plan does, which in turn, saves us money.

So, as far as these goodies go, some are free, and some behavioral visits with a professional, virtually or in person, would be run through your health plan just like a doctor visit.

Before I get too far, I do want to thank my subject matter expert, Alice Burron, who is the State’s go-between for all things Cigna. While you can read all about this in the below resources, if you really want to know more about this stuff, Alice is your person. Thanks, Alice.

Ok, so they’ve lumped the “slew” into 5 categories: Virtual Counseling, Emotional Health and Well-Being, Mental Health, Substance Use, and Coaching and Support. I have linked a “resource guide” in the show notes that goes over the highlights of these areas. So, basically, they are covering everything outside of physical problems. These are services geared toward your emotional and mental health. This is anything from software to help with happiness, to the ability to text with a mental health provider, to help with your finances, to autism coaching to help with your child. … and everything in-between.

I’ve linked resources to most of these areas in the show notes.

The resource guide basically goes over everything that is available. Let’s take a look at it real quick.

This is the guide. Cigna calls it their “behavioral programs.” As I said before, they group things into 5 areas, or 5 buckets, if you will. Virtual Counseling, Emotional Health & Wellbeing, Mental Health, Substance Use, and Coaching and Support. So then we go into more detail on these areas.

The first is Virtual Counseling. The idea here is you can receive behavioral health care without leaving the home. We have access to over 44,000 clinicians and can schedule virtual appointments with them to discuss a wide range of issues. They also have new options such as text therapy and Talkspace, which is a service they give us access to.

Next is Emotional Health and Well-Being. These items are at no additional cost to us. We can get up to 3 free sessions with a licensed clinician in the EAP network. View on-demand seminars, get access to loads of resources. Again, you can find support for a wide range of topics that you can see here. And then we have access to a couple of self-service tools. iPrevail will tailor a program to your needs and connect you with a peer coach, while happify can help you reduce anxiety, stress and boost overall health.

Next is Mental Health. Cigna can help you find support when you need it. From inpatient and outpatient services to online tools, behavioral coaches, and educational support. They provide coaching and support in areas such as autism, eating disorders, and support for parents and families. They also provide free monthly seminars on these topics and more.

The next area is Substance Use. Again, they can set us up with inpatient and outpatient services, online tools, behavioral coaches, and educational support.

The last bucket of services is Coaching and Support Services. As you’ve heard, you can get coaching across all of these areas. Any of the topics or issues mentioned and unmentioned can be helped with our access to behavioral expert coaching.

Ok, so that is the digital resource guide. You probably noticed that there is a lot of crossover with the services offered. The bottom line is that there are a bunch of different ways to get help with our behavioral issues.

Now let’s look at what’s available on the myCigna website. Please keep in mind that they update the website regularly, so the details may have changed by the time you watch this. Just keep looking around, you’ll find the stuff.

When you log into my.cigna.com you will see this page. The two areas of the site that we are talking about today are the coverage and wellness tabs. Under the coverage tab, we will look at the Employee Assistance Program section, and then we will look at the goods under the wellness tab.

So under coverage, let’s click on the EAP. This is where you will find all of the things that you can get assistance with. This is confidential and at no cost to us. Just like the other EAP we have access to, this will support us in the areas of Emotional Health and Family Support, Home Live Referrals, Financial and Legal Assistance, and Job and Career Support.

The site is a bit off right now. Wyoming employees actually don’t have access to the chat with us feature. So, you can click here to schedule a call with an EAP consultant. There are also links to resources on this page and you can start up Happify or iPrevail here at the bottom.

Ok, let’s check out the wellness section now. Hover over wellness and select wellness home. You will see that the wellness section is about more than just mental and emotional health. Although all the physical stuff will help with your mental well-being as well.

Ok, let’s click on stress, as that will take us to the mental health area. You can see here that you can once again sign up for Happify and iPrevail here. There’s a link to some apps and activities, keeping stress in check, measuring stress, and more.

There’s also an area where you can get some discounts on some fitness things, such as a Fitbit, yoga, and acupuncture. Then below that is a nice repository of resources. Work-Life, coping with stress, mindfulness and meditation, and stress relief.

Again, I would suggest that you look through all these areas as it all helps with our emotional and mental health.

Ok, there you go…. More resources out there for State employees. And while I feel fabulous since I’ve been vaccinated, and still have a job, I know that some of you are dealing with more than I am. So please… look through this stuff. When speaking with Alice I learned that one in four people pre-COVID and now almost half the population after the onset of COVID, are experiencing some challenge in their emotional well-being. So I hope some of these resources resonate with those of you in need. I think Wyoming is even more challenged with the current economic situation. Ya know? We need this stuff more than ever.

Alright, that’s it for today! See you next time on the Subject Matter Minute.

Subject Matter Minute, Episode #44 – Telework Policy

You can also listen to an audio version.

Hello and welcome to the Subject Matter Minute. I’m Matt Nagy… thank you so much for joining me!

So right now we are at the peak of the Coronavirus pandemic in the US. That means that a ton of us at the State, that are able, are currently teleworking. Some, like me, were teleworking before COVID, but most of you are probably working under the current emergency telework policy that was put into place when the situation required it. Those that were doing it before the pandemic were working under the guidelines of the previous policy that was created way back in 1999.

Since we are unable to continue to work under an emergency policy forever, and since the previous policy was horribly out of date, A&I and HRD decided that it was time for a fresh, new policy that reflects the current work situations, the culture, and of course the budget realities at the state of Wyoming.

Before I go any further, there is something that I need to make very clear. If you are watching this video on the teleworking website then you have already seen the important note in large type, but if not, to put it simply: “Telework approval is at the sole discretion of the agency head, and is not subject to appeal or grievance. Telework is not an expressed or implied employee right or benefit, but a staffing and work arrangement at the sole discretion of management.” (disclaimer stamp)

This means that even if your position and your temperament are perfect for teleworking, it’s still up to management, and if they simply don’t like the idea of teleworking, you are out of luck. I mean, you can keep asking, but……..

Having said that, let’s briefly talk about the policy and highlight the changes that are in it. First of all, the new policy removes the 3 day limit on teleworking. A qualified state employee can now work 5 days a week remotely. (of course, only if that works for the agency and the manager) (disclaimer stamp) Secondly, the need for an MOU (or memorandum of understanding) with the AG’s office has been removed, as there is now an agreement in the PMI system. The policy used to only be for permanent employees, while now it also includes probationary employees. And finally, the old agreement expired every 2 years, while this one remains in effect indefinitely.

Ok, let’s get into the process as it’s laid out in the policy.

But first, let me show you where everything related to the policy can be found. Go to the A&I website, click on “For State Employees” and then on “Telework Wyoming.” Beneath our beautiful new telework logo you will find the approval process. These are the steps required to begin teleworking.

Step #1 is inquiring. If you are interested in teleworking in any fashion, talk to your manager. Don’t forget the disclaimer. (disclaimer stamp)

Step #2 is reviewing and understanding the actual policy. You can access the policy right here. You can ask questions of your manager, or your agency HR Representative.

Step #3 is on the manager. They (or you as a manager) have to evaluate and decide. We have created a couple of simple flowcharts to help the manager decide if both the position and the individual in the position are eligible for remote work. Of course…. No matter what the flowcharts “say,” the decision on eligibility is still entirely up to management. (disclaimer stamp)

The next step could be a denied request. While a manager does not have to explain the reasons for the denial, it would be best if a discussion occurs so the employee understands why the position or the employee doesn’t meet the selection criteria.

The next step could also be an approved request. If it’s approved then the manager contacts an HRD representative to sign up the employee for the required ETS training. At this point, there are 3 required courses. This is also a good time to explore the Telework toolkit that you can see here. There is additional training, best practices, and other resources available on that page.

Step #6 is putting together the required documentation. There are several documents and certificates from the ETS training that will need to be uploaded by the supervisor into the PMI system. Once this happens, the supervisor notifies HRD and the employee is assigned a telework agreement.

The telework agreement is in the PMI system. I’m not going to go through that process in this show, but we will create another video showing the steps involved. It will be very similar to most processes that you experience in the system.

Ok… once that’s done, the employee begins working according to the telework agreement.

I previously mentioned that this agreement remains in effect indefinitely, and it does… but, like everyone else, managers will review the performance of teleworkers during the regular PMI phases.

This might be a good spot for another disclaimer. Management can revoke the employee’s telework agreement at any time, for any reason. Or… for no reason at all. I guess that means that if you are allowed to telework, and you enjoy it, enjoy it while it lasts. (chuckle)(disclaimer stamp)

Ok, that’s it folks. Teleworking at the state of Wyoming has gone mainstream and more people that are able can do it. Talk to your manager if you are interested.

Thanks for joining me on the subject matter minute, I’ll see ya next time.

Subject Matter Minute, Episode #43 – Prepping for the Evaluation Phase

You can also listen to an audio version.

Hello everyone! I hope everyone had a fabulous holiday! I know I did. Just hanging with my immediate family was definitely different than usual, but it sure was relaxing. No scary driving, no deciding which family to visit, no drunken uncles to deal with…. So relaxing.

But, unfortunately, now it’s back to work. And part of our work here at the state is the Performance Management Initiative. Whether you love it or hate it, PMI is something we all have to take care of as state employees.

Today I want to talk about Prepping for the Evaluation Phase.

Before I dive in, I want to thank my subject matter expert, Brenda Kelly-Mitchell of HRD. She is the Jedi Master and I a mere Padawan. (chuckle…. I have to admit, I’m not a StarWars geek, I had to look that up.)

So, hopefully, you have been staying active with the PMI system all year long. I know that most are not, but, I’m telling you, that if you do, it makes it all easier in the end.

There are 3 things that you should be doing year-round and that you should definitely do now, in preparation for the evaluation, if you haven’t. 1. Get feedback into the Saba Talentspace system. 2. Monitor and/or document progress of goals, and 3. Refer to the “rater chart.”

Ok, so getting feedback into the system. As you know, or should know, our PMI software is now called Saba Talentspace. And within Talentspace is a feature called Feedback Central. Feedback Central allows you to receive feedback from your supervisor and your colleagues. It also allows you to give feedback. Now I’m not going to go over how to do that in the system because I’ve already done that in episode #26. So, check that out if you need a refresher after you watch this.

So, what should you put in the system? Has a co-worker thanked you for a job well done? Or has a customer or client commented about your work ethic? Copy those emails or chats into Feedback Central. You can also request feedback from your supervisor when you would like their input. Also, enter your own notes about what you have been working on and how it’s been going. Again, this is why it’s easier to do this throughout the year. But…. think back and get these things in the system.

Supervisors…. Be sure to be reading through your employees’ feedback. This will make it easier to pull the appropriate feedback into the evaluation form. Also, please give your employees feedback. Positive, constructive, whatever, just get it into the system so you know how it’s been going over the evaluation period.

Ok, next is documenting the progress of goals. You should be doing this throughout the year. But again, if you haven’t, get in there now and update them. You can show your progress as a percentage, or you can select a status from a dropdown menu, and finally, you can make comments on the goal. So, if you are having a hard time getting the goal completed because you are waiting on someone else, this is the place to note that. Or if you’ve gone above and beyond the goal… put it in the comments section. Again, I’m not going to demonstrate how to do this in Talentspace because it is also in episode #26.

So the third thing that you should be doing throughout the year, and now, is referring to the “Rater Chart.” If you haven’t seen the rater chart, this is what it looks like. You can access it in the show notes, as well. This is a guide for rating competencies. As employees, the reason you should be referring to it regularly is that it gives you an idea of what to strive for. If you are eager to get a “commendable” in customer service, it helps to know what your supervisor will be rating you on. As a supervisor, you may need clarification on what the different ratings mean. Referring to it regularly can help you re-balance your ideas of where your employees actually are.

A lot of people don’t realize that “meets expectations” is actually good. So rating expectations can easily get out of whack.

The rater chart can help both supervisors and employees manage their expectations of ratings.

I know that the PMI process can be frustrating and even annoying to some. Especially when there is no chance of tying money or any sort of reward to it. But… like I’ve said before… you just need to assume that someday… someday in the distant future… there may once again be some money for raises. So, please take the PMI seriously and try to do it to the best of your ability.

Oh, and, please don’t shoot the messenger.

That’s it for today. Here’s to a better year ahead.

Subject Matter Minute, Episode #42 – Ambulance Insurance

You can also listen to an audio version.

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Subject Matter Minute. I truly appreciate you guys. Sorry this episode’s a bit late or later in the month than usual, but to be honest I wanted to make sure we still had a functioning government in this country after the election. I’m only half kidding.

Two out of the three last episodes have been good news. The other was on leave… so just news, right? I told you about our access to LinkedIn learning, which I truly hope all of you are taking advantage of, and then I covered our new employee assistance program, which also I hope you’re taking advantage of… especially during this pandemic and the crazy election. Today I got some more decent news. Now we’re being offered an inexpensive ambulance insurance plan.

I thought of something I should probably mention here. Kind of sounds like the state is spending more money on these programs. I’m happy to say that that is not true the LinkedIn learning was acquired through the library through a federal covid grant, and the employee assistance program was previously being purchased by several agencies, and we consolidated it and now we’re breaking even on that. The ambulance insurance is optional insurance that we have to pay for. I just wanted to get that out there considering the current financial situation of the state.

If you recall I did an episode not too long ago about air ambulance coverage for us. It was episode 34. Check it out if you want. My conclusion towards the end of the show was that state of Wyoming employees don’t really have to worry too much about getting hit with a high bill. However, it is possible that we could. Besides the costs going up in the industry, every company charges different rates. So here’s the deal… first of all, all ambulance service in the state is out of network. That means that Cigna pays 75 percent after your deductible, up to your out-of-pocket maximum of 2000, and any non-covered amounts. That means that we have to pay our deductible and up to $2000, plus anything that is determined to be over the maximum allowable charge or not covered. These are the unknowns. This is called balance billing in case you’ve heard that term thrown around.

Here’s the other thing… any ambulance ride needs to be deemed “medically necessary” by Cigna, and this is not guaranteed. And of course we have no say whether or not we’re placed on an ambulance when we’re injured… we may not even be conscious. So, if it’s deemed not medically necessary by cigna, you get stuck with the entire bill.

I’m not trying to scare you. I’m not trying to scare everybody… I’m just talking about the possibilities, okay?

So currently one out of ten Wyoming citizens, not just Wyoming state employees but Wyoming citizens, will need a ground or air ambulance ride every year. It’s the large distances between towns that kind of put us above average for this need.

Okay let’s talk about this new ambulance insurance. First of all, it’s only $19 a month for you and your family. This insurance, through a company called MASA, covers everything that your insurance doesn’t, including your deductible. It covers you, your spouse, and any dependent children up to the age of 26. It covers you anywhere in the US and Canada. Finally, the insurance will cover any ambulance ride that your insurance, or Cigna at this point, deems medically unnecessary after the fact.

This insurance is being offered through Employees’ Group Insurance, which means that you can sign up through the portal. Also, we are currently in the open enrollment period (when this video aired) so you can sign up right now, and you can ONLY sign up during the open enrollment period. I’ll remind everyone how to do that right now…

You can either go directly to egiportal.wyo.gov or you can also find it on the A&I website by going to the home page, going to employees group insurance, scrolling down to “benefit portal” where you will find a couple of videos about how to do stuff… but if you’ve already done stuff, click on employee portal access and that’ll open it up. That’ll bring you into your dashboard. Here you can see ambulance is a tab now. Go ahead and click on “modify benefits” and that’ll bring you to this page where you again have to click over here, on the right, modify benefits.

That will bring you to the change enrollment page where you need to come down here to this drop-down, and select open enrollment because I’m showing you how to do it during open enrollment. Otherwise, you would have to have a qualifying event, but that’s a whole other topic.

Open enrollment… click next. Now what it’s doing is taking you through all these tabs up here on the top. If you need to change things in different areas you can just keep going through these tabs, but for this purpose, I’m going to go straight to ambulance. You have a drop-down here that says decline drop or employee or family. Let’s select family. Then you have to check this box, because you’re going to be doing it for one year, then click next and that takes you to the next tab which is disability.

What I’m going to do is go to the next thing you would have to do if you were only doing ambulance coverage. You need to go to dependents. That brings you to the page where your dependents are listed. You can see right here that Little Wayne says “no” under ambulance. You need to go to edit so your dependents come into this page, and click ‘cover dependent on ambulance plan.’

Now you can see that Little Wayne has the ambulance coverage. So once you do the ambulance tab and the dependents tab, if you have dependents, if you’ve chosen family, then you can go to next. That will bring you to the summary which shows you all the stuff. Then you click this… you accept all this red stuff, and then you click submit.

That’s the new ambulance insurance offered by the state. I think our family is going to do it just for that peace of mind aspect. You know your medical bills are going to be pretty high if you’re getting an ambulance ride or especially an air ambulance ride, so at least this shaves off the cost of the actual ride.

That’s it for today! You guys have a great month, and I’ll see you next time.

Subject Matter Minute, Episode #41 – Statewide EAP

You can also listen to an audio version.

Hello, and welcome to the show! Thanks for watching.

One thing you learn quickly when you start working at the state is that there are a whole bunch of acronyms that people throw around. I still regularly ask…. Um, what does that stand for?? Well, today we are going to talk about one of those acronyms… the EAP.

But first…. Remember back in the day when I asked for your input on what to do and how to do an Alaskan cruise? Well, those were the good old’ days before COVID, and that trip got canceled. Like so many others… But, my mom was determined to get us all together to do something. So, a couple of weeks ago we went on a horse pack trip in the Wind River Mountains. This wasn’t our first trip… in fact, it was really the 10 year anniversary of our previous trip with my parents and my two girls.

So, this is how we did it. You bring a big pile of gear, food, and drinks to the Diamond 4 Ranch, which is about an hour and a half drive straight up into the Winds from Lander. Gotta tell you, my Highlander didn’t really like that road. Anyway… they take that pile and pack it all onto the back of horses and then you ride about 8-10 miles into the backcountry. They drop you and all your gear off and they leave. Then 5 days later, they come back in to see who has survived.

Oh, did I mention that there are bears in the Winds? Well, we didn’t see any.

Even though I haven’t done it in a long time, I used to backpack, and I’ve got to say that I really preferred having my cot in the backcountry.

I’m not much of a horse guy. Sorry, I’m sure a lot of you are… But, I’m allergic to them and my legs don’t bend that way. So, I hiked in. The rest of the family rode and had a decent time, but I really enjoyed the hike.

The weather and scenery were amazing, and we were still able to have a campfire, so the trip was awesome. If any of you happen to have a big pile of money lying around, you should give it a go. My parents were very generous and used their pile for us… so that was nice.

Ok. Hopefully, if you don’t want to hear my gibberish, you know how to skip it by now. All you have to do is go to the show notes and click on the time that I provide. Or you can click within the playbar of the video. (show how while saying this)

The last episode was some good news and so is this one. Last month we talked about our new access to LinkedIn Learning training. This month we are going to talk about our new Employee Assistance Plan. (music)

An employee assistance program (EAP) is a work-based intervention program designed to assist employees in resolving personal problems that may be adversely affecting the employee’s performance. EAPs traditionally have helped workers with issues like alcohol or substance abuse. However, most now cover a broad range of issues such as child or elder care, relationship challenges, financial or legal problems, wellness matters, and traumatic events like workplace violence. And luckily for us, ours covers all those things. The company is called FEI Behavioral Health and they have 4 categories of direct help for us. They are Counseling services, Work-Life services, Legal Services, and Financial Services. There is a wide range of topics contained within each of these categories. The website also contains a ton of information that you can read, watch, and listen to. But, let’s just go to the site, so I can show you….

The website is https://www.feieap.com/. You will see this login page when you get there. The login for the State of Wyoming is “sowy1”. Now you are in the State of Wyoming area.

First of all, if you need help with any of those areas that I mentioned, in any way, you can simply call this phone number. (888-218-7360) Really, in the end, you’re either going to call this phone number or you’re going to use the contact request form right here. That’s the basics of what you need to know.

Let’s check out their website. Down here it has a list of our services. Benefits overview for Wyoming – it’s a pdf that tells you exactly how many visits you get, how many visits are covered, how many sessions are covered. Some monthly promotions. Corrections has their own area in here, so they can check that out. Here are the four areas of help: eap services, work life services, legal services, and financial services.

EAP is more about mental health. You can see what kind of things are covered here. Their counselors are experienced, and they can cover these sorts of issues. There are a few things that aren’t covered, but you can get three sessions with a counselor for free.

Work life services is about elder and child care issues. If you’re caring for people; family care issues. If you’re having those kind of issues come in here and check it out.

We all know what legal services are. They have a ton of resources over here on the right. You can talk to somebody about any legal issues. Tells you how it works right here.

Financial services… read through here, find out what you might need. Here’s a bunch of resources again over on the right.

You can scroll through here and see what other sorts of things they got going on. Here’s the same stuff… legal services, financial services…. you can subscribe to a newsletter, you can look at past newsletters, you can look at past webinars, sign up for webinars. That’s the kind of stuff that you have up here as well. They have manager resources; helpful documents and a blog for managers. They have a ton of training and webinars through here on all sorts of things. Same with this, it’s in demand stuff. So look through here there are topics galore and helpful articles. This is just the online intake form just like the contact request form. If you don’t want to call you can go ahead and fill this out… now, you will be getting a call once you do fill this out, but this will give them a good idea of what you’re talking about so maybe you can talk a little bit less to the folks setting it up.

I’m going to scroll down here and just show you that there are monthly featured articles down here: CBD, articles on returning to school, COVID-19, tension stuff, and a ton of featured topics down here. this is all free to us and help from actual humans, up to a certain point, is free to us as well.

So, there you have it. A new benefit from the State. I actually have already used the financial aspect. I have been doing a side gig for about 20 years with UW Athletics… part of the production crew for the big screens and streaming of games. Well, as you know, fall sports have been canceled, so I decided to call FEI and see if there was any federal money I might be able to tap into. As of now, the PPP program is not giving out money, so I’m just going to have to deal with making less this year. Unless they actually do the games in the spring… But, the guy I spoke with was excellent and gave me all the information that was out there.

Alright folks… thanks for joining me on the Subject Matter Minute! I’ll see ya next time.