Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Partners of KU faculty and staff members in domestic partnerships do not receive benefits equal to the spouses of KU faculty and staff members who are married. This is not only discrimination, but it is detrimental to the University because it could cause a loss of exceptional professors and staff.
A change needs to be made, and the Faculty Senate’s recent approval of a task force to look into creating benefits for University employees in domestic partnerships should be both commended and supported by the University community.
This new task force has been charged with looking at possibilities and barriers to providing these benefits. Co-chairman Steven Maynard-Moody, professor of public administration, said the task force is moving along rapidly and should have a report out by December.
“Clearly, we have a very strong statement of non-discrimination against sexual orientation,” Maynard-Moody said. “But, we deny very clear benefits to same-sex couples who are engaged in a long-term relationship. We are looking into this area of discrimination.”
The University would not be the first to pass such a measure. The Universities of Texas, Colorado and Iowa, among others, have a policy similar to what is being discussed. An update needs to be made in order to keep up with and compete with these schools.
Lori Messinger, a professor in the School of Social Welfare, and also a member of the task force, said there would be multiple advantages to providing this new policy.
“It would be a very big step at this University,” Messinger said. “We have lost some faculty members to other schools who have these domestic partner benefits. It helps us be more competitive.”
Maynard-Moody said though interest in the task force has begun in earnest, many roadblocks stand in the way of figuring out just how to include the benefits for all faculty members while still appeasing the state government. Figuring out a way around these roadblocks has presented the task force with many challenges.
“The faculty and staff of this University are state employees,” Maynard-Moody said. “The state has passed the Defense of Marriage Act, which defines [marriage] as among different-sex couples, and benefits are provided only through the state. This is one of the issues that we are struggling with a bit.”
While still remaining in the deliberation stages, this task force has undertaken a huge responsibility for the LGBT community. For being progressive in its stance and acknowledging that a change needs to be made, the Faculty Senate should be proud of the steps it is taking to provide domestic partners with equal benefits. For Messinger, the progress being made further solidifies her personal stance with the University.
“I find the University a welcoming place, I feel comfortable here as an out lesbian,” Messinger said. “To be a good school, this is what we need to be doing, and I feel very good about that.”
Along with other benefits, this possible new policy is important to the University’s future. Not only will it help current faculty members, but it will also attract new talent and give them a good reason to stay. The administration and the community should support the task force and this endeavor to end this form of discrimination.
— Mark Salsbury for the Kansan editorial board
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