Activities for such departmental recognition programs are especially encouraged during Employee Recognition Week, held each year in the month of April. The University celebrates employee achievements at multiple events, typically in conjunction with Employee Recognition Week. At the Years of Service Awards event, employees who have contributed ten, fifteen, twenty, etc. years of service receive awards. Employees who have retired over the past year are recognized at the Annual Retirement Awards event. And, the Awards for Excellence event celebrates employees whose achievements have had an exceptional impact on a large portion of the University.
Restrictions apply to some of the awards and are described below.
These restrictions are primarily due to the University being a public employer and the need to ensure compliance with tax regulations. Departments are encouraged to contact Human Resources for assistance in developing departmental recognition programs with awards for classified staff employees and appointed personnel employees. Service Awards Departments may wish to complement University years of service awards with their own awards, such as awards for five years of University service or for years of service in their own department. To ensure fairness of such awards, years of service awards must only include non-taxable awards. Achievement Awards Employees whose exceptional achievements have had an impact primarily at the department level should be nominated for departmental achievement awards rather than University awards for excellence.