• Recruitment
• Workforce Trends

• Retention Strategies
• Workplace Law

• Benefits
• Best Employers Program

Cornell University

Winning years:  2007, 2006, 2005
Industry:  Education-Post Secondary
Location:  Ithaca, NY
URL:  www.cornell.edu

Highlights of 2007 Winning Strategies

Cornell retirees may enroll in or audit up to six credits of Cornell coursework per semester at no charge and have special parking privileges. In addition, retirees automatically become members of the Cornell Retirees Association, which provides work and social opportunities, acts as a liaison with the university on important retiree issues, and publishes a newsletter geared towards retirees. Employees over 50 are offered pre-retirement training workshops, such as planning for eldercare, investing, or health and wellness topics.

Additional Policies and Practices:

• Recruiting: Cornell's Recruitment and Employment Center reaches out to retirees through the Cornell Retirees Association.
• Workplace Culture/Continued Opportunities: To full- and part-time employees (working 20+ hours per week), the university offers these learning and development programs: tuition reimbursement, in-house classroom training, on-line training, and certification classes. In the past 12 months, 26% of Cornell employees participated in at least one of these training opportunities with an average of 22 hours spent in training. Cornell offers many instructor-led workshops and on-line courses to employees. In addition, employees with one year of service are offered three programs which defray tuition costs and offer college credit: the Extramural Program (full tuition coverage of any Cornell course, not leading to a degree), Tuition Aid Program (gives tuition assistance to courses taken at another college), and Employee Degree Program (full tuition coverage for staff who complete a Cornell undergraduate or graduate degree program in a job-related or Cornell career-related field). As a result of employee request, long-term care insurance was added as a benefit a few years ago. Cornell has a written disability accommodation policy and procedure, and a religious accommodation policy. Examples include equipment modifications, moving from full- to part-time status, and job duty modification.
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• Benefits/Health: Full- and part-time employees (working 20+ hrs/week) receive individual and family medical coverage, individual and family prescription drug coverage, individual and family vision and dental insurance, individual and family long-term care insurance, and long-term disability. Short-term disability is offered to all employees. Health benefits for retirees pre-65 and 65+ include individual and spouse medical and drug coverage, vision insurance, long-term care insurance, EAP services, and life insurance or other death benefit coverage. New hires are eligible for all these benefits upon retirement. Cornell offers an FSA plan to assist employees with out-of-pocket health care costs.
• Benefits/Financial: Cornell offers a 401(k) as well as a money-purchase defined contribution plan to its full- and part-time employees. Employees may invest in lifecycle funds, and employees 50+ can make catch-up contributions. Employees receive financial planning information from staff members, the firm that administers their 401(k), and external experts not associated with the 401(k). Cornell offers paid time off specifically designated for caregiving, short-term time off without pay, and long-term leaves of absence without pay to allow for caregiving. In addition, a Parental Leave policy offers up to 16 weeks off with 4 weeks at half-pay or 6 weeks at half-pay for adoption assistance. Full- and part-time employees are offered these wellness programs: flu shots, health screenings, health risk appraisals, smoking cessation programs, health club discounts, physical activity/exercise programs, weight loss programs, and stress management training. Thirty-four percent of Cornell employees have utilized at least one of these wellness benefits in the past 12 months. Cornell offers a wellness program with access to five fitness centers on campus, group fitness and nutrition classes, an ice skating rink, and pools. The Retirees Exercise Program allows retirees to participate in a wellness program for $175 per year and provides membership to the Cornell Fitness Centers. The University offers dependent care benefits such as on site childcare and referral services to assist with childcare/care for grandchildren/eldercare to its full- and part-time employees. A Cornell University Child Care Grant for faculty and staff is available to anyone with dependent care expenses for children ages 0-12.
• Benefits/Alternative Work Arrangements: Cornell offers these alternative work arrangements to its full- and part-time employees: flex-time, compressed work schedules, job sharing, telecommuting, and a formal phased retirement program. Full-time employees are eligible to move to part-time work on a permanent and temporary basis.
• Opportunities for Retirees: Cornell currently has 4,214 retirees and has an individual directly responsible for retiree relations. The University stays connected with its retirees by communicating regularly, inviting retirees to organization events/celebrations, providing ongoing access to retirement planning workshops/information, and formally acknowledging them when they retire. Retirees are offered temporary work, consulting/contract work, telecommuting, and full-time and part-time work.
• Age of Workforce: Thirty-eight percent of Cornell employees are 50+. The average tenure of employees age 50+ is 11.7 years.

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Winning Strategies 2006

Cornell’s Office of Workforce Diversity, Equity and Life Quality implemented the following benefits in the past three years:  a Catastrophic Leave Policy which enables employees to donate vacation, sick or paid leave to others in need; the Long-Term Care insurance benefit, which is additionally offered to spouses/same sex partners/parents/in-laws/grandparents/grandparents in-law; and workshops offered on elder care education.  Forty-two percent of the University’s employees are 50+.

Other Benefits:

• Recruiting: Cornell recruits employees, including older workers, through its Cornell Recruitment Partnership, which is an outreach initiative to promote career opportunities at Cornell University through strategic, diverse and communication-focused partnerships between the university and community organizations that assist diverse individuals in finding employment.  In addition, the Cornell Retirees Association keeps retired employees abreast of job opportunities.
• Workplace Culture/Continued Opportunities: The University offers the following learning and development programs to its full and part-time employees:  tuition reimbursement (25% used in past 12 months), in-house classroom training, on-line training (30% used in past 12 months), certification classes, and employee degree programs (2% used in past 12 months).  Employees must work at least 20 hrs/week to be eligible for all of the programs except for the employee degree program which requires at least 35 hrs/week.  Long-service anniversaries are celebrated with announcements, parties, awards and gifts.  Cornell University has an association, The Employee Assembly, which voices the needs of staff via opinion polls.
• Benefits/Health: Full and part-time employees (working at least 20 hrs/week) receive individual and family medical coverage, individual and family prescription drug coverage, and individual and family vision and dental insurance, individual and family long-term care insurance as well as short and long term disability.  22% of employees are enrolled in the individual medical and prescription drug coverage plan, while 41% of employees are enrolled in the employee and family medical and prescription drug coverage plan.  4.3% of employees are enrolled in the individual vision and dental plans while 5.8% of employees are enrolled in the employee and family vision and dental plans.  100% of employees are enrolled in the short and long-term disability plans.  Health benefits for retirees pre-65 and 65+ include individual as well as spouse medical and drug coverage, vision insurance, long-term care insurance, EAP services, as well as individual life insurance or other death benefit coverage. Retiree’s pre-65 also receive individual and spouse dental coverage.  New hires are eligible for all of the above benefits upon retirement. The University offers a health flexible spending account.
• Benefits/Financial: Cornell offers a 401(k) and money purchase defined contribution retirement savings plan to its full and part-time employees.  The University matches 10% of the employee’s pay.  All new hires are automatically enrolled in the 401(k), employees may invest in lifecycle funds, and employees age 50+ can make ‘catch-up’ contributions to their 401(k).  The University offers on-site child care as well as referral services to assist with child care.  The on-site child care facility is available to employees to use for their grandchildren.  Cornell offers child care subsidy grants as well as sliding scale fees for their summer day camp.  The following wellness programs are offered to full and part-time employees:  flu shots, health screenings, health risk appraisals, smoking cessation programs, health club discounts, exercise programs, weight loss programs, and stress management training programs.  12% of employees have utilized at least one of the above benefits in the past 12 months.
• Benefits/Alternative Work Arrangements: Cornell offers the following alternative work arrangements to its full and part-time employees; flex time, compressed work schedules, job sharing, telecommuting, and a formal phased retirement program.  Full-time employees are eligible to move to part-time work on a permanent and temporary basis.  The University’s phased retirement program is informal and employee’s typically request a reduction in hours or a move from full-time to part-time.
• Opportunities for Retirees: The University currently has 4,144 retirees. There is an individual who has a direct responsibility for retiree relations.  The University stays connected with its retirees by communicating on a regular basis with the retiree, inviting retirees to organization events/celebrations, providing retirees with ongoing access to retirement planning workshops, and formally acknowledging retirees on the occasion of their retirement.  The University’s Cornell Association of Professors Emeriti provides a social and professional community for retired faculty. 
  Retirees are offered the following work arrangements:  temporary work assignments, consulting/contract work, telecommuting, as well as full and part-time work.
• Age of Workforce: Forty-two percent of the University’s employees are 50+.  Sixteen percent of the University’s past twelve month new hires are 50+.  The average tenure of employees age 50+ is 12.2 years.

Winning Strategies 2005

Cornell University’s mission is to foster personal development and growth, and to nurture scholarship and creativity in its students and in its staff. Cornell has a number of programs to recruit a broad range of employees, including older workers. Employees have the option of phased retirement; phased retirement occurs on an informal basis for faculty.

Employees can pick from an array of courses on job-specific skills and personal development topics. They can also enroll in Cornell’s Adult University, which offers summer (noncredit) courses and learning vacations.

Retirees are eligible to enroll in, or audit, up to six credits of coursework at Cornell per semester at no charge and have access to wellness programs and the fitness center. Several university organizations have retirees on their committees and boards.

Benefits:

• Full-time and part-time employees (minimum 20 hours/week) pay a 25 percent premium for health insurance and prescription drug coverage.
• The university offers both a defined contribution plan and a money-purchase defined contribution plan in which Cornell contributes on behalf of employees.

Forty percent of Cornell’s employees are 50+, while 18 percent of new hires in the last year are 50+.