May 18, 2007
The Workplace Flexibility 2010 News Roundup is a compilation of the latest news articles, reports and other materials related to workplace flexibility. The News Roundup appears twice-weekly. If you have questions about any of the items, please contact Jennifer Hedrick at jlh62@law.georgetown.edu.
Articles
New Flexible Work Policy for Faculty Approved
"Faculty members desiring flexible work arrangements for extended periods have a new policy effective Sept. 1 to guide them. The policy, approved by the Academic Council Academic Council and the Board of Trustees this week, puts into writing a previously ad hoc arrangement by which faculty members negotiated with their department chairs or deans a flexible work arrangement. The new policy covers regular-rank faculty, which includes all tenured and tenure-track faculty, professors of the practice, and faculty on Tracks 4 and 5 in the School of Medicine.”
Paid Vacation? U.S. Workers Have No Guarantees
"When it comes to guaranteed paid vacation, U.S. workers don't seem to get a break. While the French get 30 days of paid leave and most other Europeans receive at least 20, the country with the world's biggest economy does not guarantee workers a single day, researchers said on Wednesday. Most U.S. firms do in fact give employees vacations, but the lack of government guarantees means one in four private-sector workers do not get paid leave, said researchers for the Center for Economic and Policy Research, a Washington think tank.”
After Baby, Boss Comes Calling
"Neither the refresher course, nor the ease of finding contract work, existed when [Amy Stepnowski] left the [banking] field five years ago. That is because she ‘opted out’ just as the issue came to a head — a result, I confess, of a magazine piece I wrote for this newspaper — and caused a nasty and noisy debate about whether privileged and educated women were abandoning the workplace, or the workplace was abandoning them. But now it is time for another phrase, ‘opting back in,’ a term that not only describes Ms. Stepnowski’s decision to return, but also reflects the growing acceptance by business of a nonlinear career.” Mentions Families and Work Institute.
A Third Gender in the Workplace
"Motherhood is what the economists call a monopsony, a job for which there is only one employer. And it's a rare child who's saved up to fill mom's piggybank, let alone a 401(k). The real story of the Mother's Day economy is less rosy. This is what to expect when you are expecting -- expecting to be a mom and a paid worker at the same time. You can expect to be mommified. Mothers are still treated as if they were a third gender in the workplace.” Mentions Joan Williams.
U.S. Employees Want Back-Up Child and Elder Care
"More than half of American employees missed three to 10 days of work last year due to a lack of back-up child- or elder-care options, according to a new survey. A national survey of working adults commissioned by employee assistance program provider Workplace Options, found that 59 per cent of employees or their spouses missed at least one day of work in the past year and 56 per cent missed three to ten days of work because their primary care arrangements fell through.”
Letters to the Editor
Flextime Makes Better Workers
“Flextime makes better workers As a father and as someone who studies flextime policies, I believe workplace flexibility is a win-win for businesses and families — not just mothers. USA TODAY's article 'Poll Finds Resentment of Flextime' fails to recognize that workplace flexibility is no longer the sole domain of working mothers.”
To view the article he references, please click here.