The Higher Ed Workplace Blog

Each month, CUPA-HR General Counsel Ira Shepard provides an overview of some labor and employment law cases and regulatory actions with implications for the higher ed workplace. Read the latest from Ira.

Transitioning to a new job can be tough for many people, but this transition can be especially difficult for the nearly 300,000 veterans that enter the U.S. workforce each year. According to recent research, nearly half of all veterans leave their first post-military job within a year, and between 60 percent and 80 percent leave before their second work anniversary. As hiring managers, supervisors and HR professionals, we are in a unique position to help ease the transition for veterans joining our workforces, thereby increasing the odds that they’ll stay.

Under the new requirement, institutions that have been awarded grants (nearly 2,000 colleges and universities) must notify NSF within 10 days of any findings or determinations that any NSF-funded principal or co-principal investigator (PI) violated the law or the institution’s policies with respect to harassment, including sexual harassment or assault, or if the institution has taken administrative actions or sanctions against the PI or co-PI because of alleged harassment.

Student affairs has one of the most diverse workforces on college and university campuses today, particularly as it relates to women and African Americans in leadership positions. Student affairs is also exemplary for pay equity compared to the rest of higher education.

Several major news outlets covered the recent kerfuffle of a Frontier Airlines passenger attempting to fly out of Orlando, Florida, with her emotional support squirrel seated with her. These kinds of incidents raise questions about the policies colleges and universities have in place to address service animals and emotional support animals on campus.

A comparison ratio (compa-ratio for short) is one of the most common metrics for pay. Simply stated, a compa-ratio compares an individual employee’s salary to the midpoint of a given salary range. This easy-to-calculate statistic can be used in many ways to guide decisions about compensation on your campus.

Results of a recent survey of college and university presidents conducted by the American Council on Education (ACE) show that half of all presidents surveyed rely on their chief HR officer to weigh in when setting institutional policy related to campus inclusion and free speech. And 30 percent of presidents said they rely on HR when addressing active conflict around inclusion and free speech. Would you know how to react if your president came calling on such matters?

How often does “stuff” ruin your workday? Stuff like people’s propensity to complain about anything and everything; petty squabbling or personality conflicts; miscommunication; misunderstanding; mistakes. How can we tamp down that stuff in our workplaces so that we can focus instead on the work at hand?

One CUPA-HR member institution was recently the subject of a Department of Labor wage and hour investigation. Its experience can serve as a learning opportunity for other colleges and universities.

Each month, CUPA-HR General Counsel Ira Shepard provides an overview of some labor and employment law cases and regulatory actions with implications for the higher ed workplace. Here’s the latest from Ira.