Message to the Duke Community from President Richard Brodhead - April 6, 2016

Dear Members of the Duke Community,

While Duke has been frequently recognized as a leader in employee benefits and satisfaction, the recent student protest is consistent with our own commitment to continually review and improve our workplace culture.  I am writing to inform you that we will be taking the following steps to address issues of respect, civility, wages, and inclusiveness for staff. 

To that end, Duke will:

1.      Engage a recognized, independent expert to review the grievance and complaint procedures for Duke staff in order to assess their fairness and effectiveness.

2.      Review the guidelines for contractors and their employees to ensure they reflect Duke’s core values of civility, fairness and respect.

3.      Raise awareness of processes for the recruitment and review of senior administrators.

4.      Initiate the process to further raise the Duke minimum wage of $12.00/hour.  

This initiative will be led by a steering committee appointed by the president with the advice and counsel of Duke faculty, staff and students.  The recommendations of the steering committee will be made available to the Duke community.

I welcome your comments and appreciate your commitment to Duke.

Richard Brodhead

President, Duke University