Marine Operations Administrative Assistant

Job Description

As a UW employee, you have a unique opportunity to change lives on our campuses, in our state and around the world. UW employees offer their boundless energy, creative problem-solving skills , and dedication to build stronger minds and a healthier world.

UW faculty and staff also enjoy outstanding benefits, professional growth opportunities and unique resources in an environment noted for diversity, intellectual excitement, artistic pursuits , and natural beauty.

The School of Oceanography has a great opportunity for an administrative assistant (Administrative Assistant 3 (NE S SEIU 925 Non Supv)) to join their team . The employee will perform administrative support functions for two units within the School of Oceanography – Marine Operations and University National Oceanographic Laboratory System (UNOLS). These two groups' activities focus on supporting research. The two units combined consist of nearly forty full-time staff members and around twenty part-time employees which include research support staff, administrative support, technical support, marine technicians, and ship operations personnel. The two units have personnel from many employee types including classified staff, professional staff, interns, student employees; union and non-union employees; and hourly and salaried employees. The Administrative Assistant will provide support to all categories of employees.

This position provides support to the Manager of Marine Operations and the UNOLS Executive Secretary in a combination of functional areas including travel planning, reimbursements, and accounting; invitation travel for attendees to participate in a variety of meetings and conferences; executive secretarial support and Marine Operations administrative support.

Key Responsibilities

Travel Planning and Accounting 50%

• Utilize travel agents and web-based travel systems to make airfare, lodging and transportation arrangements for ship crewmembers, Marine Operations staff, UNOLS staff, UNOLS invited attendees from other institutions and UNOLS Mate-Interns. Consult the research ship's cruise schedules and, with input from the Manager of Marine Operations, Port Captain, and SSSG Manager, determine travel needs to and from worldwide ports of call to meet cruise deadlines.
• Update Ship Ops travel itinerary spreadsheet. Go over travel itineraries with Ship Ops managers.
• Submit reimbursement paperwork according to UW policies and procedures. Troubleshoot errors.
• Reconcile the Ship Ops and UNOLS Centralized Travel Account (CTA) purchases and accounting to ensure proper charges to the correct account. Split accounting when necessary.
• Clarify travel policies and procedures with the UW Travel Office when questions arise and disseminate information to Marine Ops and UNOLS staff and travelers. Update the UNOLS Administrative Manual for changes in travel policies / processing of expense reports as needed. Update the guidance for UNOLS meeting participant travel as needed to reflect changes in UW policies and procedures.
• Support UNOLS Committee member and other participant travel (non-employee reimbursements) including review and processing of their travel expense reports.

Marine Operations Payroll Support 15%

• Coordinate payroll for professional, classified, and non-permanent crewmembers.
• Receive timesheets, review for accuracy and enter crew time into Workday.
• Work closely with ship Captains, Port Captain, and the Manager of Marine Operations to ensure that all payroll hours are recorded correctly.
• Complex pay calculations include collecting information and accurately recording base hours, overtime sea pay, marine premium, automatic overtime, extra overtime, and shore leave.
• Prompt Marine Operations supervisors to approve hours if necessary.
• Involves detailed record keeping due to the complexity of the payroll information.
• Must meet established payroll deadlines.
• Provide timely answers to crewmembers when they have questions about their pay and leave usage.
• Troubleshoot Workday problems with personnel actions and pay transactions.

Conference/Hospitality Coordination 10%

• Backup support for large workshops, meetings and receptions for UNOLS Office both at UW and off-campus sites. This includes tracking the travel expenses on a spreadsheet, assuring that the travel expenses do not exceed the budgeted allowance. Determine food needs and develop a budget for food and catering expenses, contact multiple caterers, place the order with a caterer, and confirm the order with the caterer to assure timely delivery.
• Make meeting room rental reservations, determine audiovisual needs, and confirm room and audiovisual reservations before the workshop/meeting/reception takes place.
• Follow UW policies and procedures regarding all conference, travel and food expenses. Reconcile Procurement Card transactions, including for catering.

Executive Secretarial Support 10%

• Serve as a resource for Marine Operations and UNOLS on University rules and regulations – specifically those related to travel and records retention.
• Prepare documents and spreadsheets for the Marine Operations staff and UNOLS staff as directed.
• Maintain email mailing lists for the crew and UNOLS user groups.
• Coordinate and manage special projects as assigned.
• Maintain database of personal information on crewmembers and science cruise participants aboard each ship as required by USCG and foreign immigration officials.
• Prepare sailing orders - which include a detail crew list and science participant list - for R/V Thomas G. Thompson utilizing information submitted by the Chief Scientist for each cruise.
• Submit sailing orders to the R/V Thompson captain no less than 96 hours prior to departure.

General Office Duties 5%

• Responsible for ordering and maintaining office supplies for Marine Operations and UNOLS teams.
• Troubleshoot photocopy machine problems.
• Provide assistance to staff who have large and/or complex scan / photocopy projects. Instruct others in the use of office equipment and computer software.

Non-Travel Reimbursement 5%

• Submit non-travel reimbursements for Marine Operations personnel following UW policy and procedure. Non-travel reimbursements include: licensing fees, training costs, and safety equipment reimbursements.

Staff Support 5%

• Answer general email inquiries for SoO Marine Operations or UNOLS personnel and assist with answering questions or directing them to the appropriate person/department.
• Answer phone calls and direct callers to appropriate staff or another UW department.
• Deliver messages to appropriate individuals.
• Represent the Manager of Marine Operations and UNOLS Executive Secretary at campus-wide meetings (such as the Travel Meeting) and assess the effects of policy changes and voice concerns to central offices.

Other duties as assigned.

Required Qualifications

To be considered for this opportunity your application must demonstrate you meet both the minimum qualifications and any additional requirements listed below.

Minimum Qualifications

• Requires High School/ GED AND two years of office or administrative support experience.

Equivalent education and/or experience may substitute for minimum qualifications except when there are legal requirements, such as a license, certification, and/or registration.

Additional Qualifications

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Excellent interpersonal and customer service skills and customer-service orientation.
• Experience with computers including standard office programs (Google applications, Microsoft Office 365) email, and spreadsheets.
• Experience with Workday, particularly expense reports.
• Excellent time-management and organizational skills and the ability to manage work priorities across multiple complex projects and meet stringent timelines.
• Strong collaborative skills to work with a large, diverse group.
• Attention to detail and the ability to perform tasks with precision and accuracy in an intense, fast-paced work environment.
• Two to three years of experience in the academic /research environment or other equivalent experience. This would be an excellent opportunity for a recent graduate who wants to use their organizational and people skills in a dynamic, collaborative environment.

Preferred Qualification

• BA or AA degree preferred.

Working Conditions

This is a term appointment with an initial period of one year, but may be extended depending on funding.

Compensation, Benefits and Position Details

Pay Range Minimum:

$47,448.00 annual

Pay Range Maximum:

$63,468.00 annual

Other Compensation:

Benefits:

For information about benefits for this position, visit

Shift:

First Shift (United States of America)

Temporary or Regular?

This is a temporary position

FTE (Full-Time Equivalent):

100.00%

Union/Bargaining Unit:

SEIU Local 925 Nonsupervisory

About the UW

Working at the University of Washington provides a unique opportunity to change lives – on our campuses, in our state and around the world.

UW employees bring their boundless energy, creative problem-solving skills and dedication to building stronger minds and a healthier world. In return, they enjoy outstanding benefits, opportunities for professional growth and the chance to work in an environment known for its diversity, intellectual excitement, artistic pursuits and natural beauty.

Our Commitment

The University of Washington is proud to be an affirmative action and equal opportunity employer . All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, age, protected veteran or disabled status, or genetic information.

To request disability accommodation in the application process, contact the Disability Services Office at or .

Applicants considered for this position will be required to disclose if they are the subject of any substantiated findings or current investigations related to sexual misconduct at their current employment and past employment. Disclosure is required under Washington state law .