Editor’s note: this is part one of a three part series on the Family-Friendly Initiative.
A group of UNH staff and faculty have formed a Family-Friendly Initiative for the university which is looking to improve or create policies at UNH that would support a sustainable, familial atmosphere and offer more options for staff and faculty in regards to the workplace. This initiative is being spearheaded by the President’s Commission on the Status of Women.
Amy Culp, direct services coordinator of Sexual Harassment and Rape Prevention Program (SHARPP) and member of the Women’s Commission, has helped to coordinate the project.
“As a group we are asking the question, ‘What is UNH doing to become family-friendly?’” said Culp. “One of our goals is to look at what policies are in place and to improve upon them so the whole campus can benefit.”
To become “family-friendly” encompasses a multitude of things such as providing day care options for families with young children, enabling an employee to visit a sick loved one in a time of emergency, and for new parents to be afforded a more flexible schedule to accommodate their transition back to the workplace, to name a few.
“Currently we are in the ‘buying-in phase,’” said Culp. “We are trying to see what local universities are doing, but at the same time we are not trying to create a lot of added expenses for UNH.”
The group of nine members has created a significant amount of interest in the subject.
“It feels good to know that people across the campus want to be involved and to help make things better,” said Karen Gilbert, assistant to the Vice President for Student & Academic Services.
Members of the group recently met with President Huddleston, the Human Resources Department, and the Affirmative Action and Equity Office to discuss their initial plans for this project. In the presentation, the group discussed the option of applying for a SLOAN award, which recognizes employers, such as a company or university who have family-friendly workplaces, which enables a productive output on the part of their employees. By simply applying for this award, UNH would be able to be evaluated on where it stands from the family-friendly perspective and therefore would know where to improve.
“I’ve been researching this idea of families in the workforce for quite some time and have helped other places statewide, but realized that it would be fortuitous for UNH to have a policy as well,” said Malcolm Smith, Ph D. CFLE, Family Life and Family Policy Specialist of the University of New Hampshire Cooperative Extension. “Universities have strains that other institutions don’t have such as rigorous research requirements and or a need for the work to get done a certain day no matter what.”
The Family-Friendly Initiative members are taking small steps at first, such as analyzing what policies UNH has in place regarding this topic, comparing UNH’s policies to those of other schools, and sending three members to a conference on the topic in May.
The conference will be held by The College and University WorkFamily Association, in Cambridge Mass.runs from May 5 to May 7. Malcolm Smith, Lori Wright, and Karen Gilbert will be in attendance, hoping to learn about possible aspects of a family-friendly workplace that they could eventually implement here at UNH. The funding for these members to attend the conference is provided by the UNH Office of Sustainability, the Affirmative Action and Equity Office, and by Wanda Mitchell of UNH’s Diversity Initiatives.
UNH has the family policy of the federal government in place called the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) which applies when an eligible faculty or staff member takes time off from work for his or her own serious health condition. According to UNH’s Human Resources website, the FMLA provides eligible faculty and staff members with up to 12 weeks of leave in a 12-month period for specific qualifying events. The 12-month period is defined as a “rolling” 12-months measured backward from the date FMLA leave is used.
Some “qualifying events” that are included in this act are the birth and first year care of a child, a serious health condition of the faculty member, the need for a staff member to care for a loved on in serious condition, military requirements, or the placement of a child for adoption or foster care. While these regulations have set somewhat of a foundation for families, they do not necessarily adapt to every circumstance in a university setting.
“Currently UNH has only one class on work and family balance and I feel as though this family-friendly initiative should have a student component to it,” said Smith. “I feel like a lot of students, especially grad students, sacrifice family time for work. We have a lot of committed individuals here at UNH, but I don’t know if the sacrifice of family time necessarily yields the best productivity in the workplace.”
For Smith, the family-friendly initiative would take on multiple meanings.
“It’s not just about family, its about lifestyle,” said Smith. “We know that if an individual is worried about their family, their productivity decreases, or if they are unfulfilled in their life their productivity is also likely to decrease. If an individual has a stressful job or life, those family connections dwindle and therefore their personal and work lives suffer.”
Smith also pointed out that companies that pay attention to their employees’ families see an increase in productivity. Therefore, this type of treatment helps not only the employees, but the company as well.
An idea that could be implemented in this policy is a telecommuting for employees, which could save UNH money on electricity or heating as the individual would be working from home. For certain projects, it is not always necessary for staff and faculty to be on site. Other goals include a daycare service and a more flexible sick-time schedule.
Currently the main objectives of the initiative are to eventually achieve or apply to the SLOAN award in order to be evaluated on the progress of the initiative by professionals, to gain a lot of information by attending the upcoming conference, and to become members of the College and University Work Family Association (CUFWA).
“We claim to be a sustainable university however we can never be sustainable unless the human beings who work here are able to sustain their well-being through familial ties and connections,” said Smith. “It is especially crucial to be evaluating this aspect of UNH at a time when faculty are not happy, and when there is a stalemate financially.”
While the Family-Friendly Initiative members are just beginning the process of change and improvement, they are excited to see what can be done at UNH.
“UNH is committed to creating and maintaining a family friendly workplace,” said Mark Huddleston, President of UNH. “Still, there is always room for improvement. I’m glad that faculty and staff are discussing ways to make UNH even more supportive of families, and look forward to assisting in any way I can.”
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