The
2020 Form W-4, Employee’s Withholding Certificate, is very
different from previous versions. This is due to the federal tax law changes
that took place in 2018. One of the goals for the update is to replace
complicated worksheets with more straightforward questions to employees and to
enhance employee privacy.

All
newly hired employees after January 1^st, 2020 will be required to
complete the new W-4 form. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is not requiring
current employees to complete the revised form unless you make changes to your
withholdings after January 1^st. Please note: if you do not
submit a new form, withholding will continue based on your previously submitted
form.

Even
though the IRS does not require all employees to complete the revised form, you
may wish to perform a “paycheck checkup” to see if you need to make adjustments
to your current withholding. To conduct the checkup, you can use the IRS’s Tax
Withholding Estimator (www.irs.gov/W4App).
To effectively use the estimator, it is helpful to have a copy of your most
recent pay stub and tax return. It is likely that the estimator will be updated
to account for the 2020 tax tables in early January.

The
IRS has also published Frequently Asked Questions that you may find helpful as
you complete the form (https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/faqs-on-the-draft-2020-form-w-4).

If
you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to Payroll or HR.

The latest
issue of the GMHEC newsletter, has been published! View
the full newsletter here.

Stay tuned to MiddPoints for future issues of The
Connection!

On Monday, November 11, Christy represented veterans (and her own military experience in various branches of the military) as a member of her American Legion Post 24 in Woodstock, VT. The Post provided a Veteran’s Day Ceremony that included presenting a color guard (with rifle escort) and Christy was selected to read the poem In Flanders Fields to those gathered for the event in Woodstock, VT.

The College
will be closed for the December break beginning at 5:01pm on Friday,
December 20, 2019 through 11:59pm on Wednesday,
January 1, 2020. The following changes
have been made to the time entry and time approval deadlines.

LAST PAYROLL OF 2019 (BW26):

• Deadline for submitting AND approving time – Friday, 12/13/19 at NOON (12:00pm)
  •  Remember to submit your time prior to NOON to allow supervisors adequate time to approve timesheets; please note, the pay period is 12/02/19-12/15/19 and does not include any Holiday time.

• Paychecks* will be delivered through regular campus mail on Friday, 12/20/19
• Paychecks* and direct Deposits will be dated Friday, 12/20/19

FIRST PAYROLL OF 2020 (BW1):

• Deadline for submitting AND approving time – Wednesday, 12/18/19 at NOON (12:00pm)
  •  Remember to submit your time prior to NOON to allow supervisors adequate time to approve timesheets; please note, the pay period is 12/16/19-12/29/19 and does include Holiday time.

• Paychecks* will be delivered through regular campus mail on Friday, 1/03/20
• Paychecks* and direct deposits will be dated Friday, 1/03/20

Holiday
pay time entry procedures go/middpoints

*Sign up for direct deposit go/payroll/direct
deposit

Please inform all your
staff of this change in the payroll schedule

Payroll/Human
Resources

This calendar is included below and will also be available on the Human Resources website.

Holiday/Floating Holiday Schedule:

Holiday Breaks and Floating Holidays begin at close of business the day before the designated holiday (or holiday break) and end at 11:59 pm on the designated holiday (or holiday break).

Holiday (H) – On designated Holidays all Middlebury operations are closed, except for a small number of mission-essential functions such as Public Safety, the heating plant, etc., which may run on reduced capacity. The actual total number of Holidays may vary slightly from year-to-year depending on whether or not year-end holidays fall on a weekend day. Benefits-eligible staff employees record “Holiday” on their timesheets for designated Holidays which occur on days on which they would otherwise have been scheduled to work. Most non-exempt, benefits-eligible employees who are required to work on a designated holiday are eligible for Holiday Premium Pay in addition to regular and Holiday pay. (Employees who are not eligible for Holiday pay due to their non-benefits-eligible status may nonetheless be eligible for Holiday Premium Pay if they are required to work on a designated holiday.)

Floating Holiday (FH) – On designated Floating Holidays most administrative and some operational departments are closed, however certain academic areas are open as are departments providing direct support to those academic areas. Area VPs (or their designees) will determine which departments or functions may close in observance of the holiday and which must remain open and be staffed. Employees who do not work on a designated Floating Holiday record time away as “CTO” (note: time is built into CTO accruals to cover these days).  Employees who are required to work on a designated floating holiday earn regular (not premium) pay and do not record CTO.

Now accepting members. Share with any friends looking for a shared workspace. Opening November 1st here in Middlebury, the Stone Mill @Work is a vibrant new co-working space with both general memberships and a few private offices available. A conference room and phone booths are reservable. The space will be filled with freelancers, creatives, remote workers and entrepreneurs who are craving a workplace community with high speed internet and an inviting and inspiring environment.

It will be located in the Stone Mill with Mad Taco, the Stone Mill Public Market and the Rooms at the Stone Mill. More information is at www.communitybarnventures.com/StoneMill or email connect@communitybarnventures.com

Hello –

Welcome to the Back to School issue of The Connection newsletter!

The latest issue of the GMHEC newsletter, has been published! View the full newsletter here. Stay tuned to MiddPoints for future issues of The Connection!

 In this issue, you’ll find articles and updates including:  

• Project Ensemble Update
• Institutional Benefits Update
• Accounts Payable as a Shared Service
• Well-Being Updates
• GMHEC moves to a new space! 
• Welcome to our new Employees!
• GMHEC Newly Created Roles, and Open House

          The GMHEC Team