1. Creating Inclusive Work/Life Supports for Faculty and Staff
Kate Quinn, PhD
Upper Midwest HERC/MnCUPA-HR
Spring 2013 Conference

2. Overview Examples of flexible policy options
Why flexible policies are needed
Why the devil is in the policy details
Examples of key details
Examining policy details: Internal and external benchmarking
Translating the details into best practices
Resources for creating career flexibility on campus

3. Policies, Programs, Supports: For Anyone
Paid leave for caregiving
Childcare, parent support groups, referral services
Eldercare support groups, resources, and referral services
Other care (spousal, sibling, etc.) support groups, resources, and referral services
Retirement transition supports and resources

4. Policies, Programs, Supports: For Faculty
Tenure Clock Extension
Part-time Tenure
Active Service Modified Duties
Dual Career Hiring
Housing Assistance
Phased Retirement

5. Policies, Programs, Supports: For Staff
Flex-time
Compressed Workweek
Telecommuting
Part-time and Job-share
Shared Leave

6. Why policies are needed

7. Two Studies Tomorrow’s Physician (APSA)
The Work-Life Balance Experiences of Administrators in the Academy (Dr. Wilk)

8. Tomorrow’s Physician American Physician Scientists Association
Explores experiences, perceptions, and predicted experiences in medical training and careers
5 medical schools
1103 responses, 37.8% response rate
Focusing on 845 indicating “education” for career intention

9. Obstacle Pred. Exp. Balancing family and work responsibilities 84.7%
37.4%
Balancing clinical, research, and education
61.7%
25.2%
Not finding position in desired location
44.5%
5.2%
Loan repayment
37.3%
15.6%
Lack of opportunity/funding
29.8%
13.9%
Under-compensation
28.5%
7.0%
Satisfactory professional advancement
26.8%
8.8%
Malpractice/lawsuit
24.0%
0.4%
Discrimination/biases against gender/ethnicity
12.5%
6.2%
Sexual harassment
1.3%
1.1%
Listwise N = 845

10. Top Three Factors in Career Selection
Ability to balance work and personal life
72.3%
Opportunities for patient care
69.4%
Opportunities to teach
36.3%
Financial security
35.2%
Opportunities for research
33.9%
Opportunities for community service
18.7%
Opportunities for international work
14.6%
Autonomy
14.2%
Opportunities for interactions with students
12.3%
Prestige
6.8%
Opportunities for travel
6.6%
Opportunities for national work
2.1%
Opportunities for local work
1.8%
Other
1.2%
Listwise N = 845

11. Work-Life Balance for Administrators in the Academy: Under Ideal Worker Pressure
Dissertation of Kelly E. Wilk (2013)
Qualitative study
Interviews with 32 administrators across one campus
The campus had one work-life benefit: an employee assistance hotline

12. Work-Life Challenges for Staff
Half of all participants reported that they experienced difficulty balancing their personal and professional lives
Student Affairs: most likely to report trouble balancing their work and non-work responsibilities (11 of 14)
“There’s an expectation that you’ll work harder because you don’t have kids or a husband.”

13. Staff Work-Life by Gender
Administrators with Self-Rated Good to Excellent Work-Life Balance
Administrators Under Age 40 with Young Children Who Report Poor Work-Life Balance

14. Staff Policy Desires
94% desired formal work-life balance policies (30 out of 32 interviewed).
Administrators reported difficulty managing work and life commitments and they wanted organizational support to help them do so.
Telecommuting (53%)
Flexible Hours (41%)
On-Campus Childcare (34%)
Eldercare (16%)

15. The Big Picture for Staff
Administrators shared many reasons why they felt such policies were important and several confided that the ability to work flexibly was simply something that they expected from their employer in today’s mobile society. --Kelly E. Wilk, PhD

16. What does this mean for institutions?

17. Flexible Policies Are Needed…
They need to be inclusive of various work-life needs
They need to be inclusive of all employee types
They need to be inclusive across the life- and career- course

18. The Devil Is in the Details
If no one is eligible to use a policy, does it really exist?
If everyone is eligible to use a policy that meets no ones needs, is this any better?
If using a policy might hurt a career more than not using it, how many people will risk using it?
If a policy excludes half your employees and sabotages morale, does it help your campus?

19. Details Who is eligible? Who is excluded?
What circumstances are included/excluded?
Are there limitations to utilization?
Who approves utilization requests?
What impact does policy use have on career outcomes?
Who monitors utilization and impacts?
How is the option funded?

20. Eligibility
“Tenure-line faculty who give birth during their normal 9 month contract after a period of at least 2 years of regular employment ….”

21. Eligibility Details Open to men and women?
Biological parents, or all care-givers?
Early career, mid-career, late-career?
All employees, or select tiers?
Restricted to certain circumstances or flexible?

22. Limitations
“…have 12 months from the birth event to formally request a tenure clock extension. Faculty may request one additional year on the tenure clock per birth event, up to a maximum of two additional years.”

23. Limitation Details Is there a maximum number of occurrences?
Is there a maximum length of occurrence(s)?
Are there restrictions to when or how occurrences can happen?

24. The Request Process
“Within 12 months of the birth, faculty must submit a written request to the department chair, who will submit a request to the dean of the college, who submits a request to Academic HR, with the final decision resting with the Provost.”

25. Details of the Request Process
How intimidating/burdensome is the request process?
How many “gate-keepers” are involved?
Is policy use an entitlement or negotiable?
Does the process make flexibility part of the standard business practice or a special accommodation?

26. Faculty Evaluation
“Faculty who receive tenure clock extensions for childbearing will be evaluated for tenure by the same standards as other faculty, without consideration of the extra year.”

27. Details of Faculty Evaluation
Does changing the clock increase productivity expectations?
Are review committees provided guidelines for how to evaluate faculty who used flexible policy options?
What safeguards exist to ensure that policy use does not hinder faculty careers?

28. Tracking Policy Utilization
Need data to conduct policy analysis, recognize trends, recommend changes, etc.
Do policy users all come from one department/college?
Is utilization increasing?
Are career outcomes different for faculty who use policies and faculty who don’t?
Are resources being efficiently allocated?

29. Funding How are policies funded?
Centrally?
At the college level?
The department level?
Fewer faculty tend to use policies if it will be a hardship on the department
Central funding signals institutional commitment

30. The Details in Action
Internal assessments, with benchmarks for improvement over time
External benchmarking to peers

31. Internal Assessments
Who uses policies, for what reasons, and what are the career outcomes?
Are policies and programs effectively supporting faculty/staff?
Is availability and utilization consistent across campus?
What is the “ROI”?
What improvements are needed?

32. External Comparisons
Are policies and programs competitive with those offered at other schools?
How does utilization compare to other schools?
What improvements are needed?

33. Why Details Are Important
Policy availability ≠ utilization
Wait lists don’t always measure demand
Context matters
“Suites” of policies and programs most effective

34. Two Examples
Flexible Policy Options
Paid Family Leave

35. Flexible Policy Options
Do flexible options exist formally or informally, or are they under development
Who is eligible and under what circumstances
Are there limitations on policy utilization (total number of terms, years, etc.)
How are the options communicated and funded
Is utilization tracked and who has usage statistics
Are there written guidelines for how employees are evaluated after policy use

36. Paid Family Leave Are paid options available or under development
Is paid family leave separate from paid sick leave, even for birth mothers
Who is eligible and under what circumstances
Are there limitations on policy utilization
If paid leave is accrued – at what rate
If paid leave is not accrued – what amount is available
How are the options communicated and funded
Is utilization tracked and who has usage statistics

37. Best Practices Inclusive policies and programs
Support across the life- and career-course
Leadership from the top – visible support
Flexibility is part of the strategic plan
Intentional and consistent communication
Training for chairs/supervisors, committees
Utilization of policies monitored/assessed
Improvements made as needed

38. Resources
Establishing a Family-Friendly Campus: Insights on Success. J. Lester & M. Sallee, Eds. Stylus Publishing (2009)
Tenure-Track Faculty Job Satisfaction Survey© – Collaborative on Academic Careers in Higher Education (COACHE)
College and University Work-Family Association (CUWFA)
National and Regional HERCs

39. Resources (cont.)
Kate Quinn. (2010). Tenure Clock Extension Policies: Who uses them and to what effect? Journal about Women in Higher Education, 3(1),
Kelly E. Wilk, PhD
Seton Hall University
(609)
Flexible Faculty Careers Award – American Council on Education and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation

40. For Additional Information
Kate Quinn, PhD Skype: kate.quinn.phd

41. Questions or Comments?