Reduced Seasonal Hours - Fran Morris Mandel
Fran Morris Mandel
Director of Development
College of Social Work
On November 30th, 2009, my baby girl was born. After utilizing FMLA for maternity leave and being at home for 3 months, it was time to come back to work here at UK. Arranging child care, coordinating with my husband’s work schedule and managing the emotional turmoil I felt leaving my baby for most of each weekday was all part of the normal transition from stay-at-home mom to working-mom. After a couple of months back on the job and getting back into the swing of things though, I wished for greater balance between my work and family life. Mostly, I missed spending time with my little girl, who was growing and changing every day. I browsed UK’s HR website and then contacted Robynn Pease at UK’s office of Work-Life and spoke with her about the different options for workplace flexibility. Two options seemed feasible for me, participating in the Voluntary Reduced Seasonal Hours Program OR making a case for permanently reducing my work week to 4 days. After considering both options and talking with my supervisor, the Dean, I decided I would participate in the already established reduced seasonal hours program. The summer seasonal program had already started but it was easy to fill out the brief paperwork and pass it on to the Dean for his signature and I began working four days per week in June of 2010. For three glorious months, I enjoyed three-day weekends with my precious Anna. What a difference another day off makes! Mostly I took Mondays off so no longer were Sunday nights sad.
I will admit that going back to working five days a week was a little tough, but having a full paycheck again was a welcome benefit. Also, knowing that I could utilize the reduced hours program again in the early spring of 2011 made it all fine. I am grateful for this program that allows me the opportunity to spend more time at home. It reinforces my belief that UK is one of the best employers in the Bluegrass.
Click here to return to the Work-Life Success Stories main page.
Find out the latest on Facebook
Like us to keep up with the latest in
Work-Life events and news!
