CLERICAL AND SERVICE STAFF ADVISORY COMMITTEE

Frequently Asked Questions

Topics:
Healthy Purdue | Job Description | Communications

Q: I have been reluctant to participate in the Wellness Program because I am concerned that the information will be used to target people with high risk health issues for termination, higher health insurance premiums, restricted benefits packages, or negatively impact future career advancement.  How is the information that is gathered used, and what guarantee is there that my information won't be used against me as described?

The purpose of the screening and other activities is to provide these services to Purdue employees to encourage regular visits to a health care provider and to offer information to help increase awareness and knowledge about health.

Screening data has nothing to do with an employee's position. The information from the screening has no impact on the career of the employee.

We use the aggregate data without any names attached to help us identify our highest health priorities and concerns among employees so that we can design our medical benefits to address them and so we can provide programming to focus on those key areas.

The data is not used to target individuals based on their scores.  Our approach is to make the services available and offer incentives to encourage participation in the activities. 

The program is part of medical benefits at Purdue.  As the program continues to grow and evolve, we will be moving toward a model where the incentives for participation will be part of the benefits.

Julie K. Huetteman, Ph.D., Program Manager, Health and Wellness,
Purdue University WorkLife Programs

Q: My supervisor is asking me to perform tasks that are clearly outside my job description. I don't want the extra responsibility or liability. If I say no, I am concerned that it will reflect poorly on my job performance evaluation and ultimately affect potential merit raises. What should I do?

A. First of all, job descriptions have numerous purposes. Descriptions are needed for hiring, training and performance reviews. Job descriptions are also used to indicate the level of skill, effort, working conditions, and responsibility in the work being performed. However, it is Purdue's policy that written descriptions are not intended to limit or in any way modify the right of the supervisor to assign, direct, or manage the work of employees. In other words, your job description can not encompass every specific detail of your job. So your supervisor, within reason, can assign or direct you to perform work outside of what is stated on the description. Keep in mind, if you have been assigned the primary duties of a higher level position for more than 10 consecutive working days you should be paid at or between the minimum and maximum of the appropriate pay range for the assignment. If these duties become a regular part of your day-to-day activities, a review of the job description with your supervisor would be deemed appropriate and should be submitted to PFHR for classification review.

If you are apprehensive that you do not have the knowledge or skill to perform the "extra" responsibilities in a successful manner, I would encourage you to have an open and honest communication with your supervisor to make them aware of these concerns. This would allow your supervisor to have a better understanding of your concerns and to hopefully relieve your level of anxiety.
Refusal to perform work-related assigned tasks could be considered an insubordinate act depending on the circumstances. Physical Facilities supervisors who face insubordination in the workplace generally handle the situation by following the normal disciplinary procedures. While insubordination can be addressed using verbal warnings, written warnings and suspensions, extreme examples of insubordination may warrant immediate dismissal.

Refusal to carry out an order may result from a misunderstanding of instructions or a fear of unsafe work. In certain circumstances, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration protects workers who refuse to perform work if the employee believes, in good faith, that performing the work would put the employee in imminent danger. An employee’s refusal to do something that is illegal, unethical, or is a violation of University policy would not be considered insubordination.

Please feel free to contact PFHR for any further clarification.

Q: I wonder if there is anything that can be done to improve the timing of important communications. When our leader announced his retirement, the rest of the Purdue community found out before Physical Facilities. When an interim replacement was named, again, it was announced to everyone, before it was announced to the folks it will affect most. We have a communications manager, could the message not be released to PhysFac folks within a short amount of time after a general announcement, if not before?

A: Communicating important, timely news to our Physical Facilities staff is always the goal of the PF Communications staff. However, there are times when information originates in other areas outside of our department, our campus, or away from our campus. It is during these times when we must rely on others to provide us with the timely news so we may share it with everyone in Physical Facilities.

Gail Riese, Communications Manager, Physical Facilities