myHR Archives
myHR: December 9, 2020
Celebrate the Holiday Season with Penn Winter Discounts
The holiday season may look a little different this year, but faculty and staff can still take advantage of unique gift giving opportunities through various discounts at Penn’s arts, cultural, and recreational facilities. You can also enjoy special Penn shopping deals online. Here are some deals you won’t want to miss.
Shopping
Deals@Penn: Visit the Deals@Penn website for information about the YouDecide discount program and other offers for Penn faculty and staff all
year long. Save on everything from apparel to entertainment.
Penn Bookstore: Check out the 2020 Gift Catalog.
Choose from a wide array of merchandise that proudly displays the Penn brand including apparel and unique collectibles. Enjoy free shipping on all catalog and online orders now through December 18, 2020. Use the code PENNSHIP when placing your order.
Fitness
Penn Campus Recreation: Enjoy the gift of fitness with your coworkers by signing up for a free virtual group exercise membership. Visit the Penn Campus Recreation website to register for access to a robust schedule of virtual programming.
Arts & Culture
Annenberg Center: The Annenberg Center offers a 20% discount to Penn faculty and staff for all Annenberg Center Presents live stream events, including this season’s highly anticipated performance of Martha Graham Dance. Use promo code
PENN when purchasing tickets online or on the phone. Visit annenbergcenter.org for tickets and information.
Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA): Discover your inner compass with Mindfulness
at the Museum every Friday at 12 noon. These virtual sessions are focused on helping you to develop healthier minds and bodies, reduce stress, foster compassion, and increase memory skills. The December session, Restorative Contact with Gabrielle
Revlock, explores why touch is an important part of human development. Though ICA is closed until January 1, 2021, you can enjoy a full calendar of free virtual programs. Also, consider
these
publications as holiday gifts.
Morris Arboretum: The arboretum’s Holiday Garden Railway is a delight for rail fans and greenery lovers of all ages. The spectacular display is open daily from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. through December 31. The Holiday Garden Railway Nights will
be available for 10 evenings on Saturdays and Sundays through December 27 from 4:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. The arboretum will be closed December 24, 25 and January 1. Regular admission to Morris Arboretum is free for Penn Card holders. Advance tickets
are required for admission to both the daytime and nighttime displays.
For more information or to purchase tickets, visit the Morris Arboretum website or call 215-247-5777,
ext. 109 or 125.
Penn Museum: The Penn Museum Shop is now available online, where you can purchase one-of-a-kind gifts from around the world,
including jewelry, hand-made scarves and other accessories, clothing, Mexican hot chocolate, African spices and sauces, and books. Penn Card holders receive a 25% discount (exclusions may apply) between December 8-24, 2020. Use code PennEmpHol20.
Also, consider participating in a series of virtual experiences that include The Deep Dig, a series of online classes that encourage students
to examine archaeology,
The Great Lecture Series on great monuments and how their meanings have shifted over time, and more. With these virtual experiences you can unwind,
learn, and be together with family from the safety and comfort of your own home. For more virtual events and lectures visit the Penn Museum website’s calendar.
Please note that in adherence to the city’s “Safer at Home” guidelines, the Penn Museum will be closed through January 1, 2021. Tours and programs continue online.
Redeeming Your Be in the Know Rewards
If you are participating in the 2020-2021 Be in the Know campaign, you’ve probably noticed a colored bar at the top of the Virgin Pulse wellness platform that tracks your earned rewards. By completing qualifying campaign activities, benefits-eligible staff and faculty can earn points and Pulse Cash rewards, up to a maximum of $300* this year. For example, when you complete the required Health Check, you earn 50 points and $50 in Pulse Cash. It’s exciting to see how the healthy activities you complete at home and online convert to rewards. But how do you redeem the Pulse Cash that you’ve earned?
The good news − it’s incredibly fast and easy! When you’re ready, go ahead and “spend” your Pulse Cash for the rewards of your choice, right on the Virgin Pulse platform.
Simply visit the Rewards page and choose from a variety of options, including select wellness items, many retail and VISA gift cards, or charitable donations. Although participants can no longer receive their rewards as cash in their paychecks or
credits at Penn Campus Recreation, you can purchase a VISA gift card to spend just about anywhere or use toward the purchase of Penn Campus Rec memberships and services.
With the holiday season fast approaching, give the gift of wellness
and redeem your Pulse Cash rewards for a special item for yourself, or for a family member or friend. Think of your Pulse Cash as an account with money in it – so take advantage and don’t let your rewards go to waste!
To
get started, log in to your Virgin Pulse account, check that colored bar to see how much of the maximum reward you’ve earned, and
follow these steps to begin shopping.
- From the Virgin Pulse homepage, hover over “Rewards” in the top-navigation menu. In the drop-down menu that appears, select “My Rewards". This page will show a “REEDEM NOW TOTAL BALANCE” tracker, with your current amount of available rewards to spend.
- On the "My Rewards" page, toggle to the "Spend" tab, then choose your redemption option: Shop the Store, Get a Gift Card, or Donate It.
- If you want to spend your Pulse Cash in the Virgin Pulse Store for wellness items, click on "Shop the Store" to be re-directed to the Virgin Pulse Store. Choose an item you would like to purchase, click on "Buy Now"
and the item will be sent to the Shopping cart.
While on the Shopping cart page, enter the amount of Pulse Cash you'd like to spend on the purchase in the "Use your Virgin Pulse Reward Cash" field, and click "Apply cash" for the Pulse Cash to apply to your purchase.
Finish your purchase by checking off the "I agree with the terms of service and I adhere to them unconditionally" check box and continue to the Checkout screen where you will be able to enter your shipping address and complete your order. - If you choose the “Get a Gift Card” as your redemption option, simply choose which gift card and the amount you wish to spend. Click on "Next" and then "Submit" to confirm your gift card purchase. An email will be sent to the email address associated with your Virgin Pulse account for you to complete the transaction. Check the "Junk", "Spam", or "Trash" folders in your email account, as there may be an email filter in place.
- If you opt for the “Donate It” option, you can use your Pulse Cash to donate to one of the available charities listed on Virgin Pulse’s platform or you can purchase a “Charity On Top” gift card. With
Charity on Top, you’ll receive a gift card after your purchase, which you’ll use to donate to one of 1.8 million available charities. There’s an extra step with
Charity on Top, where you’ll need to go to their website to redeem the purchased gift card and make your donation. However, the perks of Charity on Top are that
it allows you to choose from a vast number of charitable organizations – plus you can also use it as the perfect holiday gift.
After you have made your charity choice on the Virgin Pulse platform, enter the amount of Pulse Cash you would like to donate in the appropriate field and click on "Next", then "Submit" to confirm your donation. You should receive a Donation Confirmation email shortly afterwards.
Pulse Cash can be earned and redeemed quickly, with no more administrative delays and many exciting reward options to optimize your Be in the Know experience. Happy shopping!
For more information about the 2020-2021
Be in the Know campaign, visit www.hr.upenn.edu/beintheknow.
*Be in the Know rewards remain subject to applicable payroll taxes.
Penn will periodically process these taxes through participants’ paychecks, as rewards are earned, not redeemed. The next cycle of taxes will be processed in 2021. You will be notified of the exact date in a future communication.
Public Health Emergency Leave for Temporary Employees
In September, the City of Philadelphia amended its Promoting Healthy Families and Workplace Ordinance, which provides
up to 40 hours of paid sick leave each year to eligible employees, to include two weeks of Paid Emergency Public Health Leave (PHEL)
for workers who declare a public health emergency like COVID-19. Prior to the PHEL amendment, Penn has provided paid leave to full-time and part-time employees for illness or other need for an absence related to the pandemic. During the time the ordinance
is in effect, Penn temporary staff will also be eligible for two weeks of paid emergency public health leave.
Penn-paid temporary employees who have worked at least 40 hours at any time during the preceding 12
months, and who are unable to work their schedules due to a COVID-19 related incident, may use up to two weeks or 80 hours of PHEL for their absence. The amount of PHEL available to a temp is intended to be consistent with the number of hours the
employee regularly works during a two-week period.
A temporary worker may use PHEL for one of the following reasons:
- Care for self or family member advised to self-isolate by a healthcare provider;
- Care for self or family member with symptoms related to COVID-19 and seeking a medical diagnosis;
- Care for self or family member during federal, state, or local quarantine or isolation order related to COVID-19; and
- Caring for a child whose school or childcare center has been closed or whose childcare provider is unavailable due to COVID-19.
Temporary workers needing PHEL should request time off in Workday. When requesting time off related to COVID-19, select PHEL Sick instead of choosing sick leave.
This benefit is in addition to sick time granted to temps under the Temporary Staff on Penn’s Payroll (Extra Persons) policy.
Temporary workers are covered under PHEL through December 31, 2020.
The Gift of the Present
What if you could give your friends, family, and yourself the gift of greater focus and inner calm? You can’t buy this gift online or in stores, but you might get it through the practice of mindfulness. Scientist and meditation educator Jon Kabat-Zinn defines mindfulness as “the awareness that comes from paying attention in a particular way on purpose, in the present moment, and nonjudgmentally.”
The simple, yet challenging practice of focusing on the present moment builds your ability to guide your thoughts toward what matters most to you. That may be greater productivity, deeper relaxation, stronger connections with your loved ones, or broader compassion for your neighbors near and far.
In this season of giving, Penn offers faculty and staff free, virtual programs to learn more about mindfulness practice.
- Mindfulness, a virtual workshop on December 11 from 12:30 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.
- Guided Mindful Meditation, a virtual workshop on December 15 from 12:30 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.
- Mindfulness in the Workplace, a one-hour webinar available at any time through Health Advocate
- Mindfulness, a 15-minute webinar available at any time through Health Advocate
“Mindfulness practice is a structured mental process that steadies and deepens awareness by bringing attention to rest on a stable focus,” says Dr. Michael Baime, founder and director of the Penn Center for Mindfulness. Through mindful meditation, you exercise the parts of your brain that manage attention and regulate and balance emotions. By improving your ability to redirect your attention and attend to your feelings; your life experiences will become richer at work, at home, and in your community.
Normally, Baime observes, we are constantly thinking, planning, scheming, remembering and longing. Imagine you have five or ten minutes where you don’t have to do anything. It may sound heavenly, but if you’re waiting in line at the store, doing nothing might not feel so great. Instead of appreciating the break, our brains fill with thoughts. Maybe we reach for our phones or start worrying about physical distancing as our minds try to predict the future or replay the past. Mindfulness guides our thoughts away from regrets or predictions and into the present where you just might notice something wonderful.
Baime says, “What mindfulness lets you do is show up more fully, more often, and to notice that in a more satisfying way.”
According to Baime, there’s no single correct way to practice mindfulness. Penn’s workshops will introduce you to basic methods for you to try on your own, such as focus on breathing, while opening the door to other ways to train your attention.
“Your attention is going to wander off pretty quickly,” says Baime. “Just to come back simply. Don’t give yourself a hard time; just notice that you’ve wandered and come back. You might wander and come back a hundred times.”
Meditation practice activates key networks in the brain and builds them up, which Baime says, “changes the hardware you use to have a life.”
Learn how to update your mental hardware and give yourself the gift of the present by registering for a Penn mindfulness program this month.
“You don’t have to do anything special,” says Baime. “You just have to show up.”
For additional resources, visit www.hr.upenn.edu/mindwellatpenn.
Keeping It Real for Joyful Holidays
Winter holidays can be filled with magical wonders and cheer, especially for children. We may strive to create a picture-perfect celebration for our friends and family, more so if they can only see us on video calls or social media. As this challenging year ends, you may feel pressure to put on a brave face at all times. Yet when it comes to your well-being, it helps to let go of perfectionism, especially if you or your loved ones are in recovery.
In Pressure at Home for the Holidays: Overcoming the Myth of the Picture-Perfect Holiday and Finding the Gift of Joy, Erin Goodhart Sr. Clinical Director of Women's Services at the Caron Treatment Center , shares solutions for holiday stress relief that are useful for everyone. Here are Goodhart’s tips from the article:
Be realistic about your time commitments and make time to decompress. A lot of people, especially [parents], try to do everything, and it can be difficult for them to set boundaries and ask for help. Trying to do too much will only add to your sense of stress. There is only so much time in the day, so scale back on your to-do list and focus on what is truly important. Also, make it a priority to take a break occasionally and decompress. Take a walk, meditate, or sit by the fire reading a book. Whatever recharges your batteries.
Be in the moment. Often in the holidays, we’re so focused on the next task, the next event, the next holiday gathering, that we lose sight of what’s happening here with us now in this moment. Part of managing the pressures of the holidays is trying to stay in the present and be part of the full emotional experience happening right now. Anxiety and depression can start to creep in when we start living too far in the future.
Set boundaries. People often bristle when told they need to set boundaries because they don’t truly know what that means. Boundaries can simply mean not overbooking yourself, being clear about what you are able to bring to an event, or about people visiting your house. Boundaries don’t have to be harsh; they can be a way to protect yourself emotionally and physically, so you can stay resilient and enjoy the time you have with your family and friends while prioritizing your self-care. To learn more about the importance of setting boundaries, please click here.
When setting your boundaries, think in terms of the time you have available, the travel you are willing to do, the food you can cook or buy, or the gifts you can give without financial strain. Be clear about what you can realistically do during the holiday period.
Communicate your expectations. People seem better at communicating their needs effectively at other times of the year, but somehow the holidays add an extra level of intensity and pressure to family gatherings that makes communication difficult. None of us are mind readers, yet we often expect people to intuitively know our needs and expectations. It is unfair to our friends and family to hold them accountable to our unspoken expectations, and, truthfully, we are also being unfair to ourselves because it sets us up to be disappointed and overwhelmed.
Reach out to those around you. Holidays are “supposed to be” a happy, wonderful time. What happens if you’re not feeling happy or wonderful?
If you notice somebody struggling or isolating, it’s okay to reach out. Invite them for coffee and see how they’re doing. There’s also benefit in inviting people to a family function and allowing them the space to say yes or no.
If you are the one who is struggling, reach out to a trusted friend or loved one or seek support with a 12-step group or professional, where you don’t have to put on a façade and act like everything is okay. Find somebody you can talk to, someone that you can be yourself with who will support you. Finding support will reduce that level of pressure to put on a happy face.
Prioritize your self-care. Nurture your whole self mentally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually for a complete sense of wellness. If you approach potentially difficult times from a good place, then you’ve created a foundation to reduce stress.
Stick to a healthy schedule. It can be tough to sustain self-care every day in the rush of the holidays. Sit down on Sunday and plan out your week – when will you exercise? Meditate? Attend a meeting? Talk to a sponsor? When do you have fun, social time scheduled? Identify the times you anticipate will be stressful and bookend those times with positive activities.
Take a break from social media. Not everything you do needs to be shared immediately on Instagram. It’s hard enough dealing with the demands of the holiday season without adding in the sense that everything must be “picture perfect” to be shared on social media. Plus, it pulls you away from being “present” in the moment. The Pressure to Perform survey commissioned by Caron and conducted by The Harris Poll showed that social media adds tremendously to the stress and pressure that people feel in their lives, making every activity seem like a competition. To learn more about how social media adds pressure to the holidays, please click here.
Fun doesn’t need to revolve around alcohol. There is this sense [in some social circles and families] that we can’t celebrate the holidays without alcohol. That is not true. Festivities center around doing things that we enjoy or bring joy to others: Volunteering, singing, baking, participating in seasonal activities, having hot chocolate or flavored coffees.
Put your recovery first. For those in recovery, or who are looking to make a change in their lives, the holidays with family can be a tough time. That’s why it’s important to make a plan on how to deal with that stress and communicate it with your loved ones.
For early recovery, for that first holiday, [you may need to limit social activities that may lead to a relapse]. I realize that may cause some disruption, but I would certainly encourage families to respect that boundary, if that’s what their loved one asks for.
It is also important for those in recovery to have a support system in place -- a therapist, sponsor, or even a friend -- they can call when they feel stressed. No matter where or when, there is likely to be a community nearby ready to support those in recovery. If traveling to a different city for the holidays, take some time to research for potential support groups, perhaps asking friends if they have a recommendation.
In early recovery, families are more willing to make the adjustments. As more time passes, the family seems to forget about that need. In an ideal situation, families should continue checking with the person in recovery. What is their level of comfort? How would they like to see this holiday play out? Again, families can’t read minds, so it is up to the person in recovery to share their needs, wants and boundaries.
Lastly, remember there is no such thing as a picture-perfect holiday. What are the memories or feelings we want our family and friends to associate with the holidays? Do we want it to be negative or positive? It is okay to skip making Grandma’s cookies if it means reducing the stress level. People overextend themselves during the holidays, and that leads them to get resentful, angry, and frustrated because they’re stretched too thin. Being mindful, where you are fully in the present moment, can help reduce stress. Also, feel empowered to say no when something is not in your best interest. That’s easier said than done, but, again, if you have a support system in place that encourages you to set limits, if you and your partner are on the same page, if you have a realistic picture of what you want the holidays to look like, that can make them easier to manage.
Caron, known as a Center of Excellence for substance abuse treatment, offers additional recovery resources for continued education and healing. Caron is part of all Penn health plan networks.
For more resources, visit www.hr.upenn.edu/mindwellatpenn.
Healthy Meals: Healthy Gingerbread Loaf
Add to your treats table this holiday season with this healthy gingerbread loaf. Made with hearty staples such as whole wheat flour, molasses, applesauce, and coconut oil, this gingerbread loaf has all the flavor and spice of the holidays without the extra sugar.
Click here to send us your healthy recipes and tips.
Did You Know: Scholarships for Working Women
Every year the Chamber of Commerce for Greater Philadelphia grants the Paradigm Scholarship for Working Women. The $5,000 merit scholarship for tuition and books is awarded to 10 women pursuing undergraduate degrees while working full-time for Chamber member organizations, including Penn. For more information and the online application, visit http://chmbr.biz/PdgmSchlr21. The deadline to apply is December 31, 2020.