The pursuit of a better work/life balance is at the root of UC Davis’ programs in flexible hours, child care and family leave, says a top campus administrator.
Dennis Shimek, senior associate vice chancellor for human resources, recently told the Council of UC Staff Assemblies that staying focused at home and at work is the essence of work/life balance — as well as a productive employee force.
“Employees are not only employees but they also have lives,” Shimek told more than 30 staff delegates gathered for the council’s quarterly meeting Sept. 4 in Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts. He outlined planned and current efforts at UC Davis to help insure better work/life balance. “I’m not here to say we’re the perfect model in work/life balance, but it’s clear these programs resonate with our people.
“Good work/life programs are proven to have a positive impact on work productivity and are an important factor in recruiting and retaining the very best faculty and staff.”
Child care certainly resonates with staff, Shimek said, and that’s why the university is planning to build a new center. UC Davis’ third campus child care center would be located west of the Orchard Park family housing complex and east of State Route 113. The project would provide year-round care for about 95 children. Shimek said the campus has already approved funding for the center, set to open in the 2004-05 academic year.
Offering a child care subsidy for staff is another benefit the university is exploring. Shimek said, noting it may take a couple years and a better overall budget for this concept to be fully developed. Currently UC Davis offers a child care subsidy program for student parents.
Other current UC Davis work/life balance benefits mentioned by Shimek included catastrophic leave assistance, family leave, onsite housing for staff and faculty, job placement help for domestic partners, flextime and alternative work schedules.
“We have a number of people telecommuting,” Shimek said. “It’s campus policy to support flexible work schedules and formats. Plus, more than 50 percent of our staff live outside of Davis, so this flexibility is important.”
David Bell, chair of the Council of UC Staff Assemblies and a communications liaison in UC San Francisco’s Work Life Resource Center, said that various UC surveys indicate that employees highly value work-life balance — and UC Davis is setting a good example.
“From what I’ve seen in California and around the nation,” Bell said, “UC Davis’ efforts are among the most comprehensive in the academic setting. The scope and breadth of these programs means that there is something for everyone at UC Davis, which translates into a happy workforce.”
On family leave issues, Shimek said the campus encourages departments to “allow as much leave as possible.”
Another emerging issue in work/life balance is wellness, Shimek said. Toward this, the campus offers brown bag sessions and free group meetings on a range of health and well-being topics.
“Almost any day you can find wellness activities on campus,” he said.
Shimek also noted the student activity and recreation center being constructed north of Recreation Hall will present staff with more opportunities for exercising. Lactation sites also have been made a priority and campus guidelines now state that any new building occupied by employees must include a lactation site.
Shimek said employees can learn to better manage their lives and careers through the Academic and Staff Assistance Program, which offers free, confidential consultation to all employees and their immediate families. Support Groups were recently announced for this fall (see page 5).
Mediation Services helps individuals manage conflicts, whether they are with a supervisor or colleague, he said. In addition, the campus has developed a comprehensive alcohol awareness program that, as Shimek says, is “not talked about too much but is highly important.”
He also touted the Principles of Community and its role in campus dialogue. “It’s been a highly effective guide to civility and behavior on campus, and that’s why so many of us take it seriously. It says, ‘this is who we are and we believe it.’” The annual campus community book project — the selection for 2003 is, Gandhi’s Way: A Handbook of Conflict Resolution, by Mark Juergens-meyer — has brought people together and “transcends the positions and titles we occupy,” Shimek said.
The council meeting involved speakers on a range of topics, including the budget, labor negotiations, the campus’s public and private partnerships, growth and medical center planning. For more on CUCSA, see http://www.ucop.edu/cucsa/.
For more on balance at work, see http://worklifebalance.ucdavis.edu.