Update #4

Meeting date: Monday, 10 July 2017
Bargained Article: 17.7.A
Concerned Party/Article Opened By: UFF
Issues: Parental Leave
CBA Language under review: Section 17.7.A [“Parental leave is unpaid leave unless other paid leave benefits are accessed.”]

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Parental Leave Section 17.7.A

A survey of UFF members prior to this negotiation revealed interest in a paid parental leave option. FGCU does offer unpaid parental leave and the ability to draw on other paid benefits concurrently. Understanding that four other SUS institutions provide a fully paid benefit, and that FGCU tends to attract younger faculty willing to overlook our non-tenure status, led us to believe paid parental leave would be an attractive benefit and good subject for bargaining.

Before beginning a full interest-based negotiation process for this concern (which is really more suited for a full-book session than the current re-opener), it seems necessary for the Bargaining Team to draw more information from human resources, the faculty, and perhaps other SUS institutions. To start, UFF will soon survey its membership specifically on parental leave to more clearly articulate the demand for this specific benefit. Answers to the following questions will be sought:

Is the faculty fully educated about FGCU’s current parental leave options?
How important is this benefit when evaluating potential employers?
How many members would take advantage of this benefit if it were offered?
What limitations do members feel are fair to place on this benefit (once every X number of years, X number of times during employment, only one member of a mated faculty pair can take it at once, etc.)?
Has the lack of this benefit caused hardship that would have been avoidable if a paid option were available?

Results will be shared with our membership and the management team prior to full-book negotiations this upcoming year, along with our analysis of other schools’ policies. At that point, the Bargaining Team will determine whether to engage the matter properly at the table.

Management stands advised of our intentions, and UFF moved to close negotiations on Article 17 until its automatic re-opening this upcoming year.