This is important because many of us here at Apple have had to take a leave of absence from work for various reasons. The leave process is challenging and draining. Most, if not all of the process is put on the employee. The employees may already be under stress, anxiety, or intense pressure due to their own personal situation. When we were hired, we were guaranteed these benefits but we aren’t all receiving them. This is especially true for those of us suffering with mental health problems which I believe are usually disregarded by the leave company and never seriously considered a disability. The government finds many mental health issues to be disabilities, so, why is it different when dealing with a leave company? Perhaps because the leave company believes the employee just wants to get paid to be out of work and to do whatever they want. However, the reality is that when on a leave for mental health issues, those issues are exacerbated due to the added stresses of being out on a leave, and mental health does not improve. There is no fairness when leave claims are handled between those with physical health leaves and mental health leaves. Physical and mental health do correlate. Personally, I have found Sedgwick to be a one-sided company whose only objective is to save Apple money by not paying their employees while out on a medical leave of absence from work. More specifically, in relation to medical leaves involving mental health. They also do not employ doctors to interview employees or review the documentation to verify their reason for the leave. They employ nurses, who are not qualified to make medical decisions, to make decisions regarding ones claim. Sedgwick is an unfair company with unfair business practices and many complaints regarding this company have been filed in recent years.

Despite rising tuition costs, the majority of faculty continue to be underpaid, underrepresented, and lack any type of job security. At Point Park, we pay between $24,000 and $30,000 a year in tuition. Our adjunct professors on the other hand, receive $2,100 to $2,200 per course with NO benefits and no guarantee of future employment. As students we must ask ourselves where does the money go? If not to those working day-in and day-out to impart us with the necessary skills for our futures then where? 78% of our professors are adjuncts. An increased use of adjuncts lowers graduation rates. This is only because they are not receiving the benefits and compensation they deserve. By giving our adjuncts space on campus, bettering adjunct working conditions, increasing adjunct pay this can be remedied. This would free up adjunct schedules allowing more time for them to focus on a reasonable number of students, and provide the quality education they strive to give. Graduation rates would rise as students would be granted much needed one on one time to work with their professors. In respect to the treatment of our professors the University is not looking out for the students. By withholding from our professors the fair treatment, job security, proper benefits, and proper pay that they deserve not only are our chances of success during college hampered, but our futures as well. They are ignoring student needs and completely disregarding the values in which they espouse. [1] Point Park University. "Tuition." Accessed February 9, 2014. http://www.pointpark.edu/About/TuitionCosts/Tuition. [2] Schackner, Bill. "Colleges are hiring more adjunct professors." Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Last modified April 5, 2013. http://www.post-gazette.com/education/2013/04/05/Colleges-are-hiring-more-adjunct-professors/stories/201304050117#ixzz2l3DZcF9n. [3] Erdley, Debra. "Adjunct teachers prop up higher education, seek rights." TribLIVE.com. Last modified March 31, 2013. http://triblive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/s_789221.html#axzz2kMocQdqO. [4] Kezar, Adrianna, Daniel Maxey, and Lara Badke. "The Imperative for Change." University of Southern California. Last modified 2012. http://imperative.thechangingfaculty.org/.