Back to Mac: Supervisor Guide to Winter 2022

McMaster is welcoming students, faculty and staff back to campus incrementally this winter. This guide provides supervisors with quick access to information they need to support students, faculty and staff. Thank you for helping welcome more of our community back to McMaster.   

In this guide: 

• Preparing to return to campus
• Safety strategy
• Managing COVID-19 related absences

Preparing to return to campus

Important dates:

• View McMaster’s plan for incremental return to in-person activity, including important dates for returning students, faculty and staff.  

Working on-site and flexible work arrangements 

• Find helpful information about supporting teams who are returning to working in person, including exploring work arrangements, flexible scheduling, ergonomics, space planning, furniture and physical barriers on the Human Resources website.  

Mandatory Training  

• All staff and faculty who have not yet attended work in person during the pandemic are required to complete the mandatory Back to Mac COVID-19 training prior to being on site.  

MacID Badge, Parking, and Commuting 

• Find information about requesting MacID photo access card for staff on the Security Services website.  
• Full-time and part-time parking permits are available during winter term for staff and faculty members in McMaster lots. Check the Parking Services website for updates. 

Safety strategy

Vaccination  

• Information on McMaster’s vaccination mandate is available on our website.The current definition of fully vaccinated is two doses of an approved vaccine, as per provincial guidance.We encourage our community to get a third dose.

MacCheck daily screening 

• All students, staff and faculty are required to use MacCheck before coming on site to complete daily health screening.  A green check mark in MacCheck means you are clear to attend a McMaster site that day.  

Masking 

• Masks are required in all indoor spaces. More information on masking can be found here.

Physical distancing, eating and meeting

• Keeping a physical distance of 2 metres is required in workspaces such as meeting rooms and offices. Physical distancing is not required in designated instructional areas such as classrooms, laboratories, libraries.
• Follow the guidelines for spaces and eating on campus. 
• In alignment with provincial restrictions, events and meeting spaces are closed until January 27. Business meetings should be held virtually wherever possible between now and January 27. When in-person meetings resume, follow guidelines for meetings, including masking and physical distancing. 

Ventilation and Cleaning 

• McMaster takes ventilation seriously and continually looks for ways to update our ventilation plan to adopt industry guidelines and best practices. Learn more on our website.   
• McMaster’s cleaning plan involves disinfecting high touchpoint surfaces on an increased frequency schedule, hand sanitizer and wipes in public areas, disinfecting classrooms nightly and public washrooms twice daily at a minimum. Learn more on our website. 
• For departmental offices or meeting spaces, both hand sanitizer and wipes can be purchased from the Campus Store. 

Managing COVID-19 related absences

Testing and reporting 

• Based on current provincial guidelines, members of the general public are asked not to seek testing with limited exceptions. Eligibility criteria for COVID-19 testing is available on the government’s website.  
• If you are eligible for testing and completed received a positive test outcome, students, staff and faculty members are encouraged to report a positive COVID-19 test (either rapid test or PCR) if they have been on site in the last 14 days using the Mosaic reporting tool.

Isolation and accommodation 

• Find step-by-step guides for addressing when an employee is ill, is required to isolate, or has been exposed to COVID-19 on the Human Resources website (COVID-19 Health Guidelines). 
• Find information about employee accommodation on the Human Resource website (COVID-19 Health Guidelines).  
• Departments are encouraged to use existing methods in place to track absences, such as Mosaic. Connect with your Human Resources partner if you need support.  

Additionally, there are resources available to support employee wellbeing and mental health, including Employee Well-being sessions, Employee and Family Assistance Program and the Mental Health Matters website.