 New Benefits Savvy and Just, Faculty Say
The USF Board of Trustees’ vote June 3 to extend university benefits to adults living with unmarried USF faculty members is welcome and just, said many faculty.
“I applaud the university’s actions because it expands healthcare to a very wide range of people,” said Peter Novak, assistant professor of fine and performing arts and a member of the faculty union committee that studied the issue. “It’s a socially just and compassionate response.”
The actual definition of a legally domiciled adult (LDA) — whether it will include live-in partners, siblings, or parents — is up for negotiation with the faculty union. Exactly what the benefits will entail will also be negotiated. If an agreement is reached, the benefits could be extended by 2004.
“The university’s rationale for this extension of benefits, of which health care is a primary component, is its desire to extend health care as broadly as is financially feasible,” wrote USF President Stephen A. Privett, S.J. in a letter to the USF community.
The movement toward extending benefits to unmarried partners of faculty began three years ago when a faculty committee sent a letter to Fr. Privett requesting he look into the matter. Eventually, a presidential task force was formed to study and report on the issue. Of the options it researched, LDA benefits got the committee’s largest endorsement.
“There was gender inequity, in our view, based on a person’s marital status,” said Jack Lendvay, assistant professor of environmental science and co-chair of the task force. “We’re very excited by the approval of LDA. But how we define it is very important. It’s a budget issue and also a holistic view of wanting to cover as many people as possible.”
Novak said the extension, which was endorsed by the University of California system years ago, is a strong determinant in faculty recruitment and retention. “Studies show offering benefits such as these increases morale and has a decided impact on who chooses to come to the university,” he said.
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