Temporary Employee Benefits

 
 

Welcome to the University of Alaska

Temporary employees are eligible for certain benefits depending on the nature of the position and which category the position falls. 

Enrollment Guide

The Enrollment Guide provides more detail on medical, dental, and vision coverage.

Questions?
If there are questions on the benefits provided below, please reach out to UA Benefits at ua-benefits@alaska.edu or (907) 450-8242.


 

Hired to work 29 hours per week or less


Definition of Position

Hired to work 29 hours per week or less
Temporary employees that are expected to work up to 29 hours per week or less at hire.

Medical, Dental, and Vision Eligibility

Eligible if meet the work requirements
Temporary employees who are expected to work 29 hours per week or less at hire are not eligible for health care benefits unless they work an average of 30+ hours per week (130 hours per month) over the previous 6 months.

6 month lookback
If a temporary employee is expected to work 29 hours per week or less at hire, but actually works an average of 30 hours per week (130 hours per month) over their first 6 months of employment, they are eligible for coverage for the next 6 months as long as they are actively working at UA. After the 6 month period is over, the employee will need to meet the hour requirements over the previous 6 months again in order to maintain coverage for the next 6 months.

How do we notify a temporary employee of their eligibility?
A member of the benefits team will notify temporary employees and their HR Coordinators via email with information and a form to enroll if they are eligible.

Example of earning medical, dental, and visions eligibility
For example, if a temporary employee was hired in January to work 29 hours per week or less, they are not eligible for coverage in January when they are hired. From January - June, this employee works an average of 32 hours per week. This employee would then receive an opportunity to enroll in coverage from July - December. If this employee continues to work 30+ hours per week from July - December, they will be given an opportunity to continue their coverage in January - June of the following year. If this employee's hours reduce to 27 hours per week between July - December, then the coverage the employee had will cease in December. 

Due Dates and Coverage Dates

30 days to enroll
If a temporary employee is eligible for coverage, they will have no more than 30 days to enroll from the date they are considered eligible.

Coverage dates
Coverage begins on the first day a temporary employee is eligible (the benefits team will provide this date to temporary employees). Coverage will end at the end of the pay period in which a temporary employee is (1) no longer eligible because they didn't work the required number of hours over the last 6 months or (2) because they have separated from service. 

 

 

Hired to work 30+ hours per week

Table of Contents

Who is a temporary employee?

A temporary employee is a student, graduate student, adjunct, or temporary. 

Initial COBRA Notice

COBRA Initial Notice

Rehired Retiree

Employees who are re-entering the workforce after retirement from a PERS or TRS plan with the State of Alaska Division of Retirement and Benefits (DRB)must meet the bona fide termination regulations.

  • Former employees who have retired from PERS or TRS cannot return to work in any capacity with the same employer from which they retired for at least 6 months if under 62 years old at retirement or 60 days if over 62 years old at retirement.
  • There can be no pre-arranged return to work agreement - either written or verbal.

Former employees have retired from PERS or TRS and are returning to the workforce, please reach out to the DRB at 1-800-821-2251. The DRB also provides bona fide retirement resources on their website. 

No form submitted?

If a temporary employee is eligible for coverage and does not submit a form within 30 days of notification of eligibility, they will automatically waive their right to health care coverage unless they experience a qualifying life event.

Definition of Position

Hired to work 30+ hours per week or more
Temporary employees that are expected to work 30+ hours per week or more at hire.

Medical, Dental, and Vision Eligibility

Eligible as of first day of work
Temporary employees that are expected to work at least 30 hours per week or more on a regular basis at the time of hire are eligible at the time of hire.

How do we notify a temporary employee of their eligibility?
A member of the benefits team will notify temporary employees and their HR Coordinators via email with information and a form to enroll if they are eligible.

Due Dates and Coverage Dates

30 days to enroll
Temporary employees will have no more than 30 days to enroll from from their start date. 

Coverage dates
Coverage can begin on the first day of employment. To qualify for first-day coverage, a new temporary employee must submit their form by 5:00pm on the Thursday prior to the end of their first pay period.  If a form is not submitted by that deadline, coverage will begin on the first day of the pay period in which the form is submitted. Coverage will end at the end of the pay period in which a temporary employee separates service from the University or moves to less than 29 hours per week on average. 

Review the chart of pay periods to see when coverage will begin based on what pay period the form is submitted.

 

 

 

Benefit Breakdown

 

Benefits Available to ALL Temporary Employees

Retirement Available to ALL Temporary Employees

403(b)
Temporary employees are eligible to participate in a Tax-Deferred Annuity (TDA) 403(b) or a Roth 403(b) retirement plan. More information on the 403(b) accounts can be found on our 403(b) webpage.

Benefits Available to Qualified Temporary Employees

  • Medical
  • Dental
  • Vision

 

Benefits Not Available to Temporary Employees

Regardless of hours worked and health care eligibility, temporary employees are not eligible to participate in:

  • Health Savings Account (HSA)
  • Flexible Spending Account (FSA)
  • Basic and Supplemental Life Insurance
  • Accidental Death and Dismemberment insurance 
  • Sick leave
  • Annual leave or Faculty Time Off (FTO)
  • Parental leave
  • Short and long-term disability
  • PERS, TRS, ORP, or UA Pension Plan retirements
  • Tuition waiver
  • Wellness plan

Graduate Students

Graduate students who are eligible for health care based on their hours worked will receive a notice from UA Benefits. Otherwise, a Graduate Student may have access to health care through their graduate school. Please reach out to them directly to discuss health care benefits.