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Centralized PERS Services

​​What is a Status Check?

To ensure that employees are set up correctly in Workday and the Payroll system, all agencies are required to request a “status check" with PERS prior to entering the PERS Class Plan coding in Workday.  PERS is the only entity that has access to an employee's entire work history to determine their PERS Plan and contribution start date (CSD). 

A status check provides the following details needed to determine appropriate Workday and Payroll coding:

o PERS Plan (Tier 1, Tier 2 or OPSRP)

o “Eligible upon hire with CSD" or “needs to serve a new wait time"

o Retired and if retirement was “Normal" or “Early" (This impacts the retiree hour limit)

o If the employee is already enrolled in Voluntary Contributions with another PERS employer. 

 

Status Check Process:

  • Agency HR or Payroll partners must be authorized by DAS CPERS to obtain a status check. Contact CPERS for authorization.
  • CPERS maintains the list of authorized contacts and regularly updates PERS of any changes. 
  • Authorized personnel may request a status check using the following three methods:

1. Phone: Contact PERS Employer Center at 1-888-320-7377 M-F between the hours of 8:30-12:00. 

2. Email: Fill out the Status Check Form and email it to PERS at das.status.checks@pers.oregon.gov

SSN's cannot be sent via email for security reasons.​ If the full SSN is required for PERS to complete the status check, the phone option will need to be used. 

  • Once the status check has been completed use the PERS Class Plan Worksheet to determine appropriate coding for Workday and Payroll.
  • CPERS works as Liaisons between the agency and PERS on any account issues that arise. CPERS may ask the agency for a copy of the status check form if needed.  

 

How this Process has Financial Impact:

  • The coding entered in Workday is sent to PERS via a monthly file from CPERS. This sets up the employee's PERS account and sets the rate PERS will expect to receive each month. If the information sent to PERS is incorrect, inconsistent data will reside in the different systems.
  • The information in Workday interfaces to Payroll and updates the PERS Class Plan coding.
  • The PERS Class Plan coding drives the payroll PERS deduction from the employees pay, and the PERS employer rate.
  • If this process is not completed correctly and timely agencies will be invoiced at the end of the year for additional contributions owed to PERS. 
  • Voluntary Contributions are a monthly deduction the employee has enrolled in through PERS.  Setting the deduction up timely prevents multiple months from being deducted from the employees pay at one time.​


Form TitleForm Description
Status Check Request Form
For agencies to use to request status checks from PERS
Salary and Hour Request Entry Tool
For agencies to respond to salary and hour requests from CPERS
Year-To-Date Correction Form​​​​
For agencies to provide corrected salary information to CPERS​



​All P&F election forms need to be sent to the CPERS team to coordinate approval with PERS. PERS is responsible for determining the deduction amount. 


Once CPERS receives the election form, and works through the approval process with PERS, CPERS will contact the agency regarding setting up the employee deduction. 

Due to the required prior approval process please do not add, change or delete unit deduction entries without first working with CPERS. 
 
Only PERS Tier 1 & Tier 2 P&F employees are eligible to purchase police and fire units. Police and Fire Units are not available for employees of the Oregon Public Service Retirement Plan (OPSRP). 

For questions regarding unit purchases, please conact your CPERS Analyst. 


CPERS LWOP Reporting Process (Updated 2023)

​State agencies are required to report leave without pay to PERS. We do not currently have a way to do this systematically through the monthly CPERS reporting file.

Prior to 2023 CPERS had worked with agencies on a manual quarterly reporting process. With the implementation of Workday payroll, the leave without pay reporting process is currently under revision, and we hope to have something in place in 2024. This will include retroactive reporting of leave without pay for 2023. This process will be communicated to agencies and online resources will be updated.

In the meantime, here are some quick reference facts about leave without pay and PERS: 

  • LWOP is not protected time with PERS even if it qualifies under FMLA/OFLA and/or Paid Leave Oregon. There are two exceptions:
    • LWOP due to USERRA leave is protected time and may qualify for service credit with PERS. Please review the USERRA guide on the CPERS website for more information about USERRA.
    • LWOP covered by Workers Compensation may qualify for PERS service credits. Please contact your CPERS Analyst for more information.
  • LWOP that consists of 11 or more full days in a calendar month needs to be reported to PERS and will impact employee service credit.
  • Tier 1 and Tier 2 employees are unable to purchase Police & Fire Units if on a full month of leave without pay.

Please contact CPERS Central.PERSServicesTeam@DAS.oregon.gov if you have any questions about leave without pay reporting for PERS.

 


​​​​​What is USERRA?

The Uniform Services Employment Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) is a federal reemployment act.  It protects the jobs of employees who are called to service, ensuring that they have employment to return to after military duty.  USERRA also protects employment benefits, such as health insurance and PERS retirement contributions. 

Utilizing USERRA:

  • It is the agency’s responsibility to determine if an employee qualifies for benefits under USERRA.
  • Once the employee returns from service and the agency determines that the employee meets the eligibility requirements for USERRA, the agency will need to complete the PERS USERRA form.
  • The PERS USERRA form provides all the information DAS CPERS needs to apply service credit and contributions to the employees PERS account for the period of their military leave.
  • IMPORTANT: DAS CPERS facilitates the reporting of USERRA wages on behalf of all state agencies. Please email the completed USERRA form directly to CPERS for processing at central.persservices@das.oregon.gov
  • Since USERRA is processed outside the payroll system, agencies will be inv​oiced for any associated contributions and interest. 

The CPERS USERRA Guide provides detailed information about USERRA eligibility for state employees and instructions for completing the USERRA form. 

The USERRA Form may be found here: 

If you need assistance with completing the form, please contact your CPERS Analyst at central.persservicesteam@oregon.gov

More information about USERRA may be found on the PERS website here: https://www.oregon.gov/pers/MEM/Pages/Reemployment-Under-USERRA.aspx​

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​Statewide Centralized PERS Group List (DAS_Centralized_PERS_Services_Team) is used to broadly communicate to all state fiscal employees interested in Centralized PERS related information, updates and instructions. 
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To Subscribe: follow this link http://listsmart.osl.state.or.us/mailman/listinfo/das_centralized_pers_services_team to the Centralized PERS Services Team list and complete the instructions under the heading ‘Subscribing to DAS_Centralized_PERS_Services_Team.