President Barbara R. Snyder announced today that the university will provide staff two additional paid days off this winter—specifically, Friday, Dec. 26 and Friday, Jan. 2.
In addition, she said, Case Western Reserve leaders are surveying staff this week to learn more about these employees’ perspectives on the university and steps the university can take to enhance staff experiences. The survey is part of a larger effort to engage campus constituents articulated in the 2013 strategic plan, Think Beyond the Possible.
The president is offering the additional paid days off after recognizing that the two dates represent a relatively unusual aspect of the calendar—specifically, years when a single weekday separates existing paid days off from the weekend. Under existing practice, employees either had to come in for a single day before or just after the weekend, or use vacation time. This year’s last month and 2015’s first one each feature this “gap day,” so it marks the first occasion for the new policy to apply.
“In recent years financial constraints have limited our ability to give many of our employees raises that reflect their contributions to the institution,” President Snyder said. “We are working hard to change these conditions, but meanwhile want to find additional ways to convey our appreciation for their efforts.”
Providing the additional paid time off adjacent to winter holidays carries limited cost applications. The next times the December and January feature gap days are 2019 and 2020, respectively. After those, the next two occur in December, 2024 and January, 2025.
“This is a small step in a comprehensive effort to do more to ensure that our staff feel fully valued for the ways they advance Case Western Reserve’s efforts to discover knowledge and deepen understanding,” President Snyder said. “I look forward to learning directly from them how we best achieve that aim through the survey.”
The survey can be accessed at: www.surveymonkey.com/s/cwrustaff.