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PPS System Releases & Updates

Employee ID Conversion - Information for Service Centers

| Background | Logistics | Q&A | How & When | Employee ID Cards | PPS Interface/Functionality | Local Databases | Systemwide Issues | Additional Questions |

Background

UC Santa Cruz has embarked on a project to implement employee identification numbers (EID) that are not based on individual Social Security Numbers (SSN). This project is in response to growing community concerns regarding confidentiality and privacy issues. ID numbers for academic, staff, and student employees in the Payroll/Personnel System (PPS) will be converted to a randomly generated 9-digit number through a mass, one-time process.

The new EID is a unique, nonpersonal identifier that can be collected and used for appropriate business needs. The use of SSN should be limited to those purposes outlined in the California Information Practices Act, or authorized by law. Therefore, all campus units should make every effort to transition from SSN to EID in local data collection systems.

Logistics

The PPS implementation is scheduled to take place the weekend of November 2 - 3, 2002. PPS will be unavailable while the changes to various systems are applied. Additionally, it is possible the conversion processes may run longer and thus, we have tentatively scheduled PPS to be down on Monday, November 4. An email will be sent to the PPS listserve on the morning of Monday, November 4, regarding PPS availability.

A report of current employees by Service Center, including old and new EID, will be distributed by mid-November.

Staff HR will distribute an initial stock of full-sheet, perforated, blank ID cards to Service Centers at the request of Service Center staff in anticipation of employee requests for replacement ID cards. Please see below for additional information.

Q & A

Following are answers to some questions that have come up in anticipation of this conversion.

How & When:

Q: How and when will employees find out what their new Employee ID number is?
A: New Employee ID numbers will appear on Surepay statements and paper check stubs on the first payday after implementation, which is November 27, 2002, and thereafter.

Q: How will new employees receive an Employee ID number?
A: Newly hired employees will automatically be assigned a randomly generated ID number as PPS representatives enter their HIRE bundle information into PPS. The "Employee ID" field of the EEID function will be closed to entry. In most cases, new and rehired employees will be advised to enter their EID on their ID card after receiving their first paycheck.

Q: Will rehired employees have multiple Employee ID numbers?
A: Rehired employees will be reassigned their previous random ID number.

Q: Does the Employee ID conversion apply to student employees?
A: The Employee ID conversion applies to all UCSC employees, both student and non-student.

Q: How will History work after the EID conversion? Will employees in History get new EIDs?
A: Existing payroll earnings records and the PPS History database will be converted to reference the new randomly generated ID number to ensure consistency throughout our systems.

Employee ID Cards:

Q: Won't every employee want a new Employee ID card?
A: Current employees have been advised that their ID cards are still valid. The new EID can be added to the current card, and the old ID number can be crossed or whited out without invalidating the card. Employees have also been advised that they may request a new ID card from their Service Center and that any other changes to an employee ID card (e.g. name change, end date, etc.) will need to be handled in the Service Center.

Q: Would it be possible for the Service Centers to get blank Employee ID cards in full sheets instead of as pre-cut, individual cards?
A: Yes. At the request of the Service Centers, Jean Fargo from Staff HR investigated this possibility, and it is do-able. Upon request, Jean will distribute an initial stock of full-sheet, perforated, blank ID cards to Service Centers in anticipation of employee requests for replacement ID cards. Service Centers can request the blank ID cards directly from Jean at jbf@ucsc.edu or x9-5444. The cards come 8 cards to a sheet. Just indicate the number of cards you would like to have sent to your Service Center and Jean will do the math for the number of sheets to send to you. Jean will send the cards out via campus mail unless you specifically tell her that you want to come and pick them up at the Staff HR office.

Q: If the Service Center issues a replacement ID card, do they need to collect the old ID card?
A: Yes.

PPS Interface/Functionality:

Q: Will I have to know an employee's EID to look him or her up in PPS?
A: The functionality of PPS will not change. PPS users will continue to look up employee records by Employee ID, name, or SSN.

Q: Will the format of PPS reports change after the EID conversion?
A: Yes. All reports issued from PPS will use the new randomly generated employee ID numbers.

Q: Will PPADs be generated after the EID conversion?
A: No. The Employee ID conversion process does not generate PPAD forms.

Local Databases:

Q: My office has its own database/data collection system that includes Social Security Number. How do we change it over to use the new Employee ID number instead?
A: Doug Patten can help you convert your local data collection system from SSN to Employee ID. He can be reached at djpatten@ucsc.edu or at x 9-4223.

Systemwide Issues:

Q: What about electronic transactions that used to use Social Security Number, like bencom?
A: Electronic transactions using bencom.fone, At Your Service, UC For Yourself and the Open Enrollment Action Line will continue to be accessible through the use of your SSN and PIN. These systems do not refer to employee ID numbers.

Q: What will happen with the systems at UCOP, like the UCRS?
A: The Office of the President will convert existing ID numbers to the new Employee ID numbers for UCSC employees in the UC Retirement System and related plans, the Corporate Personnel System and the University-wide Directory System.

Additional Questions:

Q: Where do Service Centers go with additional questions about the EID conversion and related issues?
A: Questions about Employee ID Cards should be directed to Staff HR or Academic HR, as appropriate.
Other questions can be directed to the PPS Office at x 9-1080 or pps_office@ucsc.edu.

Q: Where will employees go with their questions about the EID conversion and related issues?
A: Employees have been instructed to direct questions to their Service Center.