Benefits Package

The Payroll and Benefits Office offers benefits orientations to newly hired benefits eligible employees. In the orientation you will receive details on the state benefits package and retirement plan choices, and how to complete the enrollment forms.

New employees who are benefits eligible will receive a welcome email from the Payroll & Benefits office to their evergreen email with information regarding scheduling an orientation. Orientations can be done either In-person or Remote.

• Employees are benefits eligible when appointed to a classified, exempt, or temporary position that is at least 50 percent appointment with duration of more than six consecutive months.
• Continuing Faculty and Adjunct Faculty are benefits eligible when appointed for at least a 50 percent contract and duration of three or more academic quarters consecutively.
• Part-Time Faculty can become eligible for insurance benefits in one of two ways:
  1. If your appointment is quarter-to-quarter, you will become eligible when you achieve a second consecutive quarter of 50% Full-time Equivalent (FTE) or greater. In this case, your coverage begins the first of the month following the beginning of the second-quarter appointment.
  2. If your appointment is for one quarter only and is paid at a 50% FTE or greater, and at any time in the last 12 months you were eligible for benefits coverage under faculty eligibility here or at any other WA state higher education institute.

• Your lawful spouse
• Your Washington State-registered domestic partner 
• Eligible children up to age 26

See who qualifies as an Eligible Family Member and Verification Requirements.

Eligible employees may choose one of the PPO, Managed Care, or Consumer-Directed Health Plans found in the employee Employee Medical Enrollment Guide.

Note: Eligible employees who do not submit enrollment forms on time will be enrolled in UMP Classic as a single subscriber.

Surcharges

• Tobacco Use Surcharge – This monthly $25 surcharge is required in addition to your medical plan premium if you or a family member enrolled on your PEBB medical coverage uses a tobacco product.
• Spousal Coverage Surcharge – This monthly $50 surcharge is required in addition to your medical plan premium if you have a spouse or registered domestic partner enrolled on your PEBB medical coverage, and your spouse or registered domestic partner has chosen not to enroll in employer-based group medical insurance that is comparable to Uniform Medical Plan (UMP) Classic.
• Find out if a Health Care Authority Surcharge applies to you.

Waiving Employee Medical Coverage

Employees may waive health plan enrollment if they have other employer-based group medical insurance. If you waive coverage on yourself or dependents, your enrollment forms still need to be completed. If we do not receive your enrollment forms, you will default to Uniform Medical and be responsible for the premiums effective on your eligibility date.

Dental premiums are paid in full for you and your qualified dependent(s). You can select from the managed-care or preferred-provider plans found in the Employee Dental Enrollment Guide.

Note: Eligible employees who do not submit enrollment forms on time will be enrolled in Uniform Dental Plan as a single subscriber.

PEBB offers consumer-directed health plans (CDHPs) with health savings accounts (HSAs) to eligible members. You can use your HSA to pay for IRS qualified out-of-pocket medical expenses like deductibles, copays, and coinsurance, including services that may not be covered by your health plan. You can spend HSA funds on qualified expenses for your spouse or other tax dependents, even if they aren't covered on your plan. The plans' HSA trustee is HealthEquity, Inc.

Note: You must meet certain eligibility requirements to enroll in a CDHP/HSA. If you (the subscriber) are not eligible for a CDHP/HSA and enroll, you may be liable for tax penalties.

The Medical FSA is an employer-sponsored benefit that allows you to set aside money from your paycheck on a pre-tax basis to pay for out-of-pocket health care costs like deductibles, copays, coinsurance, dental, vision, and more. You can use your Medical FSA for you, your spouse or your qualified tax dependent's health care expenses, even if they are not enrolled in your PEBB medical or dental plan. The Health Care Authority contracts with Navia Benefit Solutions (formerly Flex-Plan Services, Inc.) to provide this benefit.

Note: Medical FSA participation is only valid for the plan year in which you enroll and does not continue automatically. You must enroll or re-enroll each year before the end of the PEBB annual open enrollment period to participate in a Medical FSA.

The DCAP allows you to redirect a portion of your salary on a pre-tax basis to pay for your qualified day care costs for your dependents (e.g. preschool, babysitting, before/after school care, in-home care for a disabled dependent). The Health Care Authority contracts with Navia Benefit Solutions (formerly Flex-Plan Services, Inc.) to provide this benefit.

Long-term disability (LTD) insurance pays a portion of your monthly salary if you are unable to work due to serious injury or illness. The PEBB Program offers two kinds of LTD insurance: employer-paid and employee-paid.

You will be automatically enrolled in employee-paid LTD Current and new employees will be automatically enrolled in an employee-paid LTD plan that covers 60 percent of your pre-disability earnings.

You can reduce to a lower-cost 50-percent coverage level or decline the coverage at any time. If you later decide to enroll in or increase coverage, you will have to provide evidence of insurability and be approved by the insurer.

PEBB’s full employee benefits package includes basic life insurance at no cost to you. It provides:

• $35,000 for death from any cause.
• An additional $5,000 in case of accidental death or dismemberment.

You can build on your basic coverage with supplemental options. You may need to provide evidence of insurability, depending on what coverage you apply for and when.

Under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) health insurance coverage will be required for most individuals beginning in 2014, and every state must have a health insurance Marketplace to help people buy health insurance. The Marketplace offers assistance to help you find and compare medical health insurance options offered by private companies, and will also help you find out if you qualify for premium tax credits or other financial assistance. Washington Healthplanfinder is the Marketplace serving Washington residents. If you are an employee (benefits eligible or ineligible) and are interested in finding out more about the Marketplace and Healthplanfinder please read this Employer Notice of Benefit Exchange (PDF).

Medical and Retirement Benefit Eligibility

Adjunct faculty members may be eligible for medical/dental and/or retirement benefits while employed at The Evergreen State College. A summary of eligibility criteria is below. Complete information on medical/dental eligibility and the associated appeal process may be found at the Public Employees Benefits Board (PEBB) website. More information on the college’s retirement plan can be found at Payroll & Benefits.

Medical/Dental Eligibility Criteria Summary

What are the scenarios in which an adjunct faculty member will/may be eligible for medical/dental benefits?

1. If you are contracted with Evergreen half-time or more, for the full academic year or equivalent nine-month period, you are eligible and benefits will commence on the first of the month following the date of employment. Eligibility will continue until the beginning of the first full month of the next academic year unless the employment relationship is terminated and it is not anticipated that you will return to Evergreen or any other institution of higher education, eligibility will cease the last day of the month specified in the letter of resignation, or on the date specified in any contract or hire letter, or the effective date of an Evergreen initiated canceled contract notice. If you have received a multi-year and/or a new contract that meets eligibility requirements for the upcoming academic year, your benefits will continue over the summer quarter.
2. If you are not contracted for the full academic year or equivalent nine-month period but are contracted half-time or more for two quarters, you will be eligible at the beginning of the second quarter. Once eligibility is established, you will receive employer contributions for benefits in subsequent quarters if you are contracted at half-time or more.
3. If you are employed by more than one state institution of higher education, you may be eligible to establish or maintain eligibility. In order for us to determine your eligibility, it is your responsibility to notify the Payroll and Benefits Office within thirty (30) days after the initial Evergreen contract date or within thirty (30) days of the new contract at another state institution of higher education whichever is later.

Once established, how does a temporary faculty member maintain eligibility for medical/dental benefits?

You must meet the criteria of “two-year averaging” rule. This rule allows an employee to average their workload over the academic year (three quarters). This allows you to maintain your eligibility, even if you work less than half time in a given quarter.

In order to qualify for “averaging”, you must:

• Work at least two quarters and be contracted for at least 24 credits (Evergreen’s definition of an annual half-time load for the faculty) and
• Have worked an average of half-time or more in the two preceding academic years.

To be considered eligible under this rule, you must notify the Payroll and Benefits Office in writing by April 30th of the year in which you want your eligibility reviewed.

Will I be contacted if I am determined eligible?

Yes. You will receive an email from the Payroll and Benefits Office. You will have 31 days to enroll in one of the available plans or you will be automatically enrolled in the default medical/dental plans. If determined eligible you will be invited to a benefits orientation.

What if I am already covered under another medical plan and wish to waive my enrollment?

To waive enrollment in the medical plan you must still fill out the medical enrollment form available at the Payroll & Benefits office within 31 days after you become benefits eligible and select that you wish to waive your medical coverage. You may not waive dental coverage.

What if I am determined not to be benefits eligible?

You have the right to appeal this and any benefits eligibility decision. This process begins with requesting a review by the Evergreen Payroll and Benefits Office. For a complete explanation of the appeals process and the appeals forms visit the PEBB Website.

Other information about benefits eligibility

References for Benefits Rules:

• (WAC) 182-12-114 - Employee benefits eligibility
• (WAC) 182-12-131 - Maintaining Employer Contribution
• (WAC) 182-16 - Employee’s appeal rights

Retirement Plan Participation

A faculty member who is contracted at least fifty percent of the normal full-time workload per month in at least six consecutive months is eligible and required to enroll in the College or a state-sponsored retirement plan. For more information please consult the Payroll and Benefits Office.

Payroll Information

The Deans’ Faculty Hiring Coordinator will be in contact with you for completion of additional paperwork including the required I-9 employment eligibility form.

When your position is set up you will be able to submit your W4 form and Direct deposit information through the employee dashboard.   The dashboard can be accessed through my.evergreen.edu in the employee section.

If you have questions about benefits or payroll you can contact the Payroll & Benefits Office at payrolldl@evergreen.edu or (360) 867-6460.

For contract start and end dates, please refer to your contract for the terms of employment.

Pay Check Direct Deposit

Faculty members will receive their pay via payroll direct deposit per the Collective Bargaining Agreement Article 12.4 Compensation: Electronic Funds Transfer. This can be set up by logging into your my.evergreen.edu account and choosing the employee dashboard. 

Once an update has been made to your online account, you will receive an email from payroll@evergreen.edu which will provide further instruction on how to complete the necessary verification process before we can officially credit the account.

Until your direct deposit takes effect (usually one pay period after updating the account information), your paycheck will be mailed to your home address. You can confirm the mailing address we have on file by checking your profile information on my.evergreen.edu.

Pay Dates

The first fall pay is October 10th, First winter check is 1/25 and first spring pay is 4/25. Your salary will be divided in six semi-monthly payments. Please note there is no pay date on January 10th.  Paydates can vary based on holidays and weekends. After your evergreen email has been set up you can access the paydates on the Payroll & Benefits Intranet site.