The Higher Ed Workplace Blog

Institutions generally provide comprehensive mental health and substance use disorder (MH/SUD) benefits as part of their commitment to creating a safe and nurturing campus. However, the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (MHPAEA) requires that institutions providing MH/SUD benefits ensure parity in coverage between the MH/SUD and medical/surgical benefits. The Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Labor, and the Department of the Treasury recently proposed major changes to the MHPAEA regulations for group health plan sponsors and insurers.

CUPA-HR General Counsel Ira Shepard’s overview this month includes a fired football coach seeking $130 million in damages from Northwestern, the California governor’s veto on a caste discrimination bill, the increase in undergraduate and student-athlete union organizing on campuses across the country, and a ruling that says sovereign immunity does not apply to boards of trustees.

While the ongoing turnover crisis impacts all of higher ed, supervisors are among the hardest hit. In our recent study, The CUPA-HR 2023 Higher Education Employee Retention Survey, supervisors say they’re grappling with overwork and added responsibilities (especially when their staff members take other jobs), while struggling to maintain morale.

While most higher ed employees want flexible work arrangements, they’re often required to work a traditional, on-site schedule. The CUPA-HR 2023 Higher Education Employee Retention Survey shows that expanded opportunities for remote, hybrid and flexible work can be a key factor in retaining top talent.

CUPA-HR General Counsel Ira Shepard’s overview this month includes Court of Appeals decisions on religious discrimination and a Title VII complaint against a policy allowing only male workers to have weekends off. A professor who lost tenure after refusing to comply with COVID-19 rules is allowed to move to discovery, while the University of Pennsylvania wins a dismissal of a sex harassment lawsuit, and more.

The CUPA-HR 2023 Higher Education Employee Retention Survey finds that over half of higher ed employees are at least somewhat likely to look for a new job in the coming year. Pay and a flexible work environment matter, but our survey results reveal a more complex story.

On August 30, the Department of Labor (DOL) announced a new proposed update to the salary threshold for the “white collar” exemptions to the Fair Labor Standards Act’s (FLSA) overtime pay requirements. DOL proposes raising the minimum salary threshold from its current level of $35,568 annually to $55,068 — a nearly 55% increase. It also raises the salary level for the Highly Compensated Exemption (HCE) to $143,988 from its current level of $107,432 (a 34% increase). The proposal does not make any changes to the duties requirements.

On August 7, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued a proposed rule to implement the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA). The proposed rule provides a framework for how the EEOC plans to enforce protections granted to pregnant workers under the PWFA.

Like much of higher ed, collegiate athletics is struggling with a labor crisis due to the post-pandemic “Great Resignation.” Particularly in the area of athletic training, colleges and universities are finding it more and more difficult to attract and retain talent. Given the role and value ATs and their sports medicine departments have in reducing risk for their athletic department and institution, it is critical for leaders to understand and address the current labor crisis. To identify some reasons for this labor challenge, the National Athletic Trainers’ Association (NATA) Intercollegiate Council for Sports Medicine (ICSM) in collaboration with the NATA Compensation Task Force surveyed more than 1,120 collegiate athletic trainers (ATs) across the country.

On August 3, 2023, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published a notice in the Federal Register seeking comments on a potential pilot program to allow employers not enrolled in E-Verify to harness remote examination procedures for the Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification.