Faculty and Staff: COVID-19 FAQ
Last updated Monday March 30, 2020 at 10:03 AM EDT
Click here to return to the main COVID-19 FAQ page.
With COVID-19, the goal of social distancing is to slow down the outbreak of the virus in order to reduce the chance of infection among high-risk populations and to reduce the burden on health care systems and workers.
Telecommuting requests may be refused if:
● Employees cannot perform the core duties of their work from home
● It is not operationally feasible for an employee to work from home
The COVID-19 Temporary Special Telecommuting Work Arrangements Guideline is available on the HR & Equity website as a resource for employees and managers. Information Technology Services (ITS) has also prepared technical work-from-home resources to support employees accessing work material while telecommuting.
For the duration of the COVID-19 pandemic, employees who are requesting work-from-home arrangements due to being immuno-compromised themselves can work directly with their Manager, Chair, or Department Head. These requests do not need to be reviewed by Environmental Health & Safety, and supervisors should approve these requests wherever possible.
For any research projects that have received an exemption to continue, the University is requiring social distancing as a measure to help disrupt the chain of transmission of COVID-19 in an effort to protect vulnerable individuals and to reduce overburden on our healthcare system. All those in research environments should continue to review the information from the University’s homepage, which is continually updated.
All other research should continue as possible remotely. No other on-campus research (i.e., research activities that have not received exemptions from the University) may be conducted.
For all the latest information, please see the University’s Coronavirus page. Please take the time to review our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs), the HR & Equity COVID-19 website, and the Research COVID-19 FAQs.
Any pre-tenure or pre-continuing status faculty member may request a one year delay in their timeline to tenure or continuing status on the grounds of the “serious personal circumstances beyond their control” associated with the current COVID-19 situation. In addition, any pre-permanent status librarian may request a delay in the date of their review for permanent status on the grounds of the impact the current COVID-19 situation. Read more…
The University encourages faculty & staff to be mindful of their own mental health by
- Turning off and stop watching email, the news or social media;
- Ensure that you are taking time for family or loved ones (even if virtually);
- Engaging in exercise and relaxation, such as this daily mindfulness exercise recommended by Professor Blake Poland:
- A Mindful Society via Facebook Live, offered every morning at 10:00 a.m.
- Visiting U of T HR and external resources: