University Praised for 'Work-Life Balance,' Earns Governor's Award

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Presenting Ambasssador award: l-r, John Selig, director,of the Department of Human Services; Don Bobbitt, president, University of Arkansas system, Debbie McLoud, interim associate vice chancellor for human resources, University of Arkansas; Joyce Dees, special assistant in the Governor’s Office

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The University of Arkansas has received a Governor’s Work-Life Balance Award in each of the 10 years since the award was created: two Bronze, four Silver, and three Gold awards, earned in the past three consecutive years.

How do you top that?

By earning an Ambassador Award for 2012, which is given for setting the standards for other Arkansas employers.

The Governor’s Work-Life Balance Awards are given to businesses, large and small, profit and non-profit, that use human resource policies and strategies to support a healthy work-life balance for employees. This includes such things as health insurance, retirement plans and other benefits; flexible work time options; career and personal development; employee assistance programs; paid leave for such reasons as holidays, vacations, illnesses and injuries, doctor’s appointments, children’s educational activities, military duty or a death in the family; infant, child and elder care assistance; and a work place culture that promotes a balance between the needs of the work place and the life needs of all employees.

“I am proud that the University of Arkansas recognized the importance of this issue early on, and has been a consistent leader in the state,” said Debbie McLoud, interim associate vice chancellor for human resources. “To earn a Work-Life Balance Gold Award, it isn’t enough to show your business or institution has maintained its level of commitment: You have to show that you have done more than the previous year. The Ambassador Award is a great honor, and great recognition for the work the university has done in the last decade.”

An employer has to earn a Gold Award three times before being eligible for an Ambassador Award, and also must show that it has been sharing its expertise with other employers in the state.

Partners in the Work-Life Balance initiative are Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families, Arkansas Business Publishing Group, Arkansas Child Care Resource and Referral Network, Arkansas Economic Development Commission, Arkansas Department of Health, Arkansas Department of Higher Education, Arkansas Department of Human Services/Division of Child Care and Early Childhood Education, Arkansas Head Start Collaboration Office, DHS/Division of County Operations, Arkansas Department of Career Education, Arkansas Early Childhood Commission, Arkansas Society of Human Resource Managers, Arkansas State Chamber of Commerce/Associated Industries of Arkansas, Arkansas State University, Arkansas Workforce Investment Board and Arkansas Department of Workforce Services.