Inside Higher Ed
July 18th, 2014
Now that gay marriage is recognized in their state, faculty members and other employees within the University of Minnesota system with same-sex partners no longer need access to domestic partner benefits. Right?
The university has a clear answer to the question: Right – and it’s canceling same-sex domestic partner benefits at the end of this year. But some say it may be acting too quickly in eliminating those benefits, and failing to give enough thought to how the policy change will impact diverse families.
As many states have recognized gay marriage in the last year, and as states without gay marriage have started to see court rulings that could change the law there as well, public colleges and universities have been considering a range of questions. Because many public colleges moved to offer partner benefits years before their states recognized gay relationships, some -- in places like Minnesota -- wonder if they need to keep those benefits. And in other parts of the country, including states where any benefits for same-sex partners were decidedly off the table until recently, that is changing.
The University of Minnesota has been offering domestic partner benefits to employees with same-sex partners since 2002, as a way of being equitable to employees without legal access to marriage.