The University of Connecticut’s chapter of the American Association of University Professors asked for 16 weeks of paid parental leave at a press conference on Friday from 10:30 to 11:50 a.m.
Currently, UConn’s policy on parental leave varies by college, according to professors at the press conference.
AAUP President Chris Vials said the AAUP’s target is not restricted to union members.
“As the union for faculty, researchers and athletic personnel, we want to ensure that all workers have access to guaranteed leave and not just in our bargaining unit, all workers across campus,” Vials said.
State Sen. Mae Flexer, who represents the 29th district, which includes UConn, attended the press conference along with State Rep. Gregg Haddad and State Rep. Susan Johnson.
“More than a decade ago, I began conversations with my colleagues in the legislature to create our state system of paid family and medical leave. And 10 years ago, it was a challenge,” Flexer said.
She said that six years ago, the state legislature passed a paid family and medical leave program after hearing stories similar to those shared at the press conference.
“I don’t understand, frankly, why this is even a debate. We have a system of paid family and medical leave here in the state of Connecticut and I’m really proud of that fact,” Flexer said. “The people who have been excluded from it are our public employees. And that’s wrong.”
Flexer said that a few years ago when her dad was sick, she had to care for him and was able to take advantage of family and medical leave. The burden of care fell on her because other members of her family were public employees, so they could not receive paid leave in order to care for him.
Human rights professor Sandra Sirota discussed the challenges and surprises for her and her husband’s adoption process such as background checks, the cost, medical screenings, home visits and interviews.
“We were also shocked to learn as a UConn faculty member, I would not get one day of paid parental leave, not one bit,” Sirota said. “When my husband and I adopted our newborn son last April, we travelled to Texas on short notice so we could be there for his birth. We then had to wait with our adorable little baby for an unknown period of time for interstate paperwork to clear until we could bring him home to Connecticut.”
Sirota described their time in Texas, which lasted two weeks, as full of joy, but overwhelming being far from family and friends while caring for a baby.
“During those two weeks, I was also working every day, including teaching class,” Sirota said. “I was able to hold the final two classes online thanks to support from my supervisor. I was also lucky in some ways that it was at the end of the semester, but I run a year-long program with a big summer component, so I continued to work throughout the summer.”
Sirota said that her husband had paid leave, and she didn’t know how her family would’ve managed without it. She wondered if couples where both parents were UConn faculty would be able to adopt, knowing that they would not get any paid leave.
Physics professor Cara Battersby said that she gave birth to her two children while tenure-track at UConn.
“For each child, my department head and dean were supportive and I was given a semester off teaching,” Battersby said. “I say given, because they had full authority to grant or deny my teaching relief request for maternity leave. The official policy states that this is not time off, but rather an option for modified duties — same workload, just redistributed.”
Battersby discussed how it was difficult to manage working as a new parent.
“So rather than teach a class covered in spit-up, I can run important administrative committees that affect student programs covered in spit-up,” Battersby said. “It is crazy to ask new parents to fulfill any kind of full-time duties within days or weeks of a new baby, even on a flexible schedule.”
Ecology and evolutionary biology professor Robert Bagchi discussed his experience having three children while working at UConn. Bagchi said that he was not aware of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (CLAS) policies which would’ve allowed him to switch to administrative work while he had his first child. He said the semester was tough for him, his family and his students. He was on campus when his daughter was five days old.
“To compound the situation, my father became terminally ill that semester and so I spent many hours responding to student emails from his hospital room or in the middle of the night, cradling my daughter, so my wife who was also teaching could get half the night to sleep,” Bagchi said.
Bagchi said that this did not allow him to provide a quality education.
“For my next two children, I was better informed and took advantage of CLAS policy to have a semester off teaching,” Bagchi said. “But that policy was not a legal right, that was offered at the discretion of my department head and it has been watered down since January 2024.”
A previous CLAS website, which has since been taken down, outlines former parental leave policies.
“As a matter of policy, the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences supports 6 weeks of paid leave for faculty members who give birth to a child, or eight weeks in case of a Cesarean delivery,” the old website said. “Department heads in CLAS and the dean will routinely sign requests for paid medical leave under these conditions.”
A newer CLAS policy which became effective Jan. 1, 2024, allows for modified duties.
“Of note, duty modifications do not decrease a faculty member’s responsibilities; instead, modification allows the faculty member, in conjunction with their Department Head and/or Dean, to exchange duties on a short-term basis,” the website said.
Parental leave policies vary by department.
Deputy University Spokesperson Mike Enright did not respond to specific questions or say what current parental leave policies are at UConn, but he provided a general comment.
“The University is committed to our faculty and staff as a basic value of the institution,” Enright said. “We engage in good faith negotiations with the AAUP and other collective bargaining units that represent University employees.”
Vials said that parental leave policies were not a new issue.
“Many people in this room have been advocating for changes for some time now, including a letter circulated from over 200 faculty to the administration that Sarah [Hird] was instrumental in […] and to which they did not respond,” Vials said.
Hird’s letter was co-written with 19 other women and was addressed to UConn President Radenka Maric and Provost Anne D’Alleva. It asked for 12 weeks of paid parental leave following the birth or adoption of a child.
“This change would bring UConn into accordance with Connecticut state law, as the Connecticut Family and Medical LeaveAct and the Connecticut Paid Leave Act stipulate all employees should receive 12 weeks of paid parental leave on the birth or adoption/placement of a child,” the letter said.
The letter also asked for professors to receive a semester off teaching after having a child and for the establishment of a working group.
“Many employees expressed concerns and frustrations that are not addressed by the requests above,” the letter said. “Therefore, we request that the Office of the President and/or the Office of the Provost officially convene a working group of UConn employees from diverse backgrounds that is focused on family leave and is broad in scope.”
Hird said that UConn did not respond to the letter. Enright did not comment on the lack of a response.