Did You Know?

Posted on October 1, 2008

Did You Know?

EPAY Pilot Program Launched, Watch Your E-mail Box for Electronic Pay Advice
Outstanding Performance Award Nominations Due October 3
Fairfax County Wants Your Input on Closing the Budget Gap for FY 2010, Next Sessions to Be Held October 14, 16

Mark Your Calendar for Support Employee Week April 20-24, and Teacher Appreciation Week May 4-8
Fairfax County Government Silver Lining Initiative to Help First-Time Homebuyers
FCPS to Honor Retirees on October 29, RSVP Deadline Is October 8
Directives Web Site Moved to New Location

EPAY Pilot Program Launched, Watch Your E-mail Box for Electronic Pay Advice

Starting with a pilot group, FCPS has begun converting to a paperless system for pay advices (pay stub information) for employees by e-mailing an electronic pay advice (EPAY). This is a cost-saving initiative included in the approved FY 2009 budget. FCPS anticipates a substantial immediate savings in postage fees and paper costs. Savings will also be realized in reduced labor costs associated with printing, sorting, managing, and mailing pay advices.

Electronic pay advices will also provide a much “greener” solution to communicating accurate and timely pay information to our nearly 24,000 employees. In addition, electronic delivery of the secure FCPS network to employees’ FCPS mailboxes will also offer far more security than the current paper pay advice that must travel many miles and through many hands.

When the program is fully implemented, monthly paid employees will be automatically enrolled and may opt out. Biweekly employees will not be enrolled but may opt in to receive their pay advices electronically. See form
FS 73-11.

Using the FCPS secured web site, employees will be sent an e-mail to their official FCPS e-mail account with their current pay advice attached as a PDF file. This will provide the employee the opportunity to review pay information as well as print or save as desired. All pay-related information continues to be available on UConnect.

Your electronic pay advice will be sent to you three days prior to pay day, one to two days earlier than you would normally receive your advice through the postal system.

If you have any questions, or for more information, send an e-mail to the Office of Payroll Management at payroll.help@fcps.edu.

Outstanding Performance Award Nominations Due October 3

The Outstanding Performance Award (OPA) Committee will meet on October 23. All unified-scale (except school-based administrators) employees and instructional assistants are eligible for nomination. An OPA recipient may receive a maximum payment of $1,000 net after taxes.

All nominations should be sent to T. G. Bowen, director, Office of Salary Services, Gatehouse Administration Center I, suite 2400, and must be submitted by October 3. In addition to the original OPA nomination, 15 copies should be submitted for distribution to committee members. Additional information pertaining to the OPA can be found in the current version of Regulation 4670.

Fairfax County Wants Your Input on Closing the Budget Gap for FY 2010, Next Sessions to Be Held October 14, 16

The Fairfax County government is projecting a budget deficit of more than $400 million for FY 2010 (beginning July 1, 2009), which must be addressed through a combination of spending reductions and other strategies. The challenge is to develop a budget with an appropriate level of services that is both sustainable and acceptable to the community.

Fairfax County government and Fairfax County Public Schools invite you to attend one of the 20 community dialogue sessions scheduled to gather comments from the public, which will be used as a key factor to help guide the development of criteria for making budget decisions.

Each community dialogue will consist of presentations by county and school budget staff members followed by facilitated small-group discussions. The next set of community dialogues will be held:

Tuesday, October 14, 7 to 9:30 p.m., Fairfax County Government Center.
Thursday, October 16, 7 to 9:30 p.m., South County Government Center.

A complete list of dates, times, and locations can be found at http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/government/budget/publicmeetings.htm. Registration is required. For more information, including addresses, or to register, go to www.fairfaxcounty.gov/budget or call 703-324-2391, TTY 711.

If you are unable to attend one of the community dialogue sessions, Fairfax County still wants to hear from you. If you have suggestions or comments, you can call the budget hot line at 703-324-9400 or complete the budget feedback form online at www.fairfaxcounty.gov/budget.

Editor's Note: You can learn more about FCPS' budget situation in a video featuring Superintendent Jack Dale, and you can share your input on budget priorities in an online survey. You may also leave a message at 571-423-3597 or send an e-mail at tips@fcps.edu.

Mark Your Calendar for Support Employee Recognition Week April 20-24, and Teacher Appreciation Week May 4-8

FCPS recognizes support employees by designating one week (the third full week of April) each year as Support Employee Recognition Week. The week is a systemwide, all-inclusive celebration of all employees who support the educational mission of the school system. While individual school-based and nonschool-based recognition traditions may continue, this centrally recognized week is the main FCPS celebration of all support employees.

Every day the teachers of FCPS demonstrate their personal and professional dedication to providing an excellent education for the children in our community. FCPS designates one week (the first full week in May) as Teacher Appreciation Week to celebrate our teachers and to recognize the energy, dedication, and vision that they contribute to our school system.

For more information, visit http://www.fcps.edu/DHR/employees/appreciation/.

Fairfax County Government Silver Lining Initiative to Help First-Time Homebuyers

On June 30, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors approved the Silver Lining Initiative, a commitment to help first-time homebuyers purchase foreclosed homes. Priority for this program is given to households currently on the first-time homebuyers waiting list and Fairfax County Public Schools and government employees. To participate, you must attend an orientation. Sessions will be held:

Thursday, October 16, 7 to 8:30 p.m., 3700 Pender Dr., Fairfax.
Thursday, November 20, 7 to 8:30 p.m., 3700 Pender Dr., Fairfax.

Space is limited. To learn more about the program, the required qualifications, and how to apply for an orientation, go to http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/rha/homeownership/help.htm.

FCPS to Honor Retirees on October 29, RSVP Deadline Is October 8

If you plan to retire this year and want to participate in the fall 2008 retirement ceremony—We Honor You-Celebrating Your Service to FCPS—you should submit your Notification of Resignation/Retirement form (HR-2) as soon as possible.

Invitations have been mailed. The retirement ceremony will be held on Wednesday, October 29, at Robinson Secondary School at 7 p.m. The ceremony will be shown live on Channel 21 and will be rebroadcast on Monday, November 3, at 7:30 p.m. Invitees are asked to respond to the invitation by Wednesday, October 8.

More information about the retirement ceremony, including retiree testimonials and photos from previous ceremonies, is available at www.fcps.edu/DHR/wehonoryou.

Directives Web Site Moved to New Location

FCPS notices, policies, and regulations have moved to a new location. If you currently have bookmarks to directives on the FCPS web site go to http://www.fcps.edu/suptapps/schoolboardapps/numericindex.cfm to find the most current version of a directive. Although your current bookmark still takes you to the directive, it is possible that you are not linking to the most current version.