Provostial rules for faculty, librarians and postdoctoral fellows on working remotely outside of BC and Canada.
Faculty members manage their work based on collegial discussions with their Heads, Directors, and Deans, outside of the Hybrid Work Program designed for staff. However, there are some rules in place for working outside of BC and Canada.
Rules for faculty working outside BC or Canada
Faculty, librarians, and postdoctoral fellows must work in BC unless it is a job requirement that the work be done from a remote location outside of BC or Canada.
Why this is important
There are many reasons why it is necessary and important for work to occur in BC, including:
- workplace health and safety (access to benefits, medical coverage and insurance)
- employment and labour laws differ across jurisdictional boundaries
- technology (including cybersecurity and privacy regulations)
- tax laws and regulations
- internal equity and collegiality
Exceptions and special circumstances
Circumstances where remote work outside of BC or Canada may be temporarily required include study leaves, field work, UBC programs abroad, and conference attendance.
Exceptions where remote work outside BC or Canada is not a job requirement but may be permitted include:
- newly hired Canadian/Permanent Resident who needs time to relocate may be provided a short-term transition period of up to 3 months based on personal circumstances (housing, etc.) during which they can work outside of BC but within Canada.
- part-time Canadian/Permanent Resident Sessional Lecturers or Adjuncts whose appointments are less than 0.5 FTE may live and work from a remote location outside BC but within Canada.
- unpaid faculty such as Honorary Appointments and unpaid Adjuncts where there is no employment relationship may live and work from a remote location outside BC and Canada.
In some situations, faculty or postdocs working remotely must be registered with their local provincial bodies (i.e., workers compensation, health care, etc.). For assistance with workers compensation, please contact the WSBC Claims Associate at wcb.info@ubc.ca.
Please consult with Faculty Relations or HR Okanagan regarding any exceptions to the remote work guidelines. Note that any exceptions or modification of these rules requires the approval of both Provosts and the Vice President, Human Resources.