UC-wide survey raises concerns about employee retention

About 20 percent of the University of California employees who responded to a March survey said they seriously considered leaving the UC system after this academic year.

Rejeana Mathis, chair-elect for the Council of UC Staff Assemblies, discussed this statistic and other issues in an employee engagement survey presentation Friday. The UCLA Staff Assembly hosted the meeting to share results from a study, conducted by the Council of UC Staff Assemblies and the UC Office of the President, to measure employee satisfaction with several aspects of the university. When the respondents were asked whether they seriously considered leaving the University, 22 percent said yes while 19 percent said maybe.

Many audience members expressed concern about the UC retention statistic, prompting Mathis to explain there was no significant change compared to 2012 results, but the figure is still 10 percent lower than the national average.

Mathis added the figure could include those who plan to retire after this year, because age was not a consideration in the survey.

This year’s survey responses showed UCLA employees’ perception of the university’s image and brand was higher than the national average, but respondents showed less faith in the university’s ability to enact large-scale institutional change.

At the meeting, several employees raised concerns about compensation in the UC system.

Marie-Ann Hairston, director of employee relations for UCOP, said 26 percent of those surveyed said they thought pay was an issue because their workload and responsibilities continued to increase while their pay remained flat.

Mathis said she hopes the general results from the UC survey will encourage employee participation in university issues. UCLA does not yet have a faculty survey for campus-specific issues.

Compiled by Shweta Chawla, Bruin contributor.