TOPICS DISCUSSED
- COUNCIL MINUTES
- REORGANIZATION OF CAMPUS
- STRATEGIC PLANNING COMMITTEE
- PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS TO CLASSIFIED
        STAFF
- EMPLOYEE OF THE MONTH
- HUMAN RESOURCES ANNOUNCEMENTS
- QUESTION/ANSWER
- TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT
- ADJOURNMENT/NEXT MEETING

COUNCIL MINUTES
The minutes of the October 19 meeting were read and corrections made in the employee of the month section and also in the council member attendance section. The minutes were approved as amended.

REORGANIZATION OF CAMPUS
Leona Johnson and Dorothy Tenney reported that they have gone over the list of CWU classified staff and divided the staff into units that more closely follow the reorganized lines of reporting. A discussion followed regarding the discrepancies in sizes of units. The council voted to have one delegate for each 50 classified staff in each unit. Some new units will have to elect new delegates. A new list of the classified staff units and their delegates will be forthcoming. A sub committee was selected to review the by-laws of the Employee Council and recommend changes where procedures need to be updated because of the change in delegate areas.

STRATEGIC PLANNING COMMITTEE
Nancy Bradshaw is the Employee Council member on the Strategic Plan Synthesizing Committee. She reported that the committee was well diversified with representatives from all areas of campus and community. President McIntyre has charged the committee to come up with a strategic plan that she can present to the Higher Education Coordinating Board in February.

PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS TO CLASSIFIED STAFF
The President's Address to Classified Staff took place on Thursday, November 16 in the Lombard room. There were two sessions: one from 10:00–11:00 a.m. and the other session from 2:00–3:30 p.m. American Sign Language was available at the afternoon session. Both sessions were telecast to SeaTac and Lynnwood. President Jerilyn McIntyre focused her address on the impact of enrollment shortfall on the university as a whole including faculty, staff, students and administrators. She brought classified staff up-to-date on the outcome of the recently held Presidential Forum on strategic planning. If you missed the President’s Address to Classified Staff, the videotape is available for viewing in the Library: Center for Learning Technologies area, 2nd floor, room 290. Your Employee Council delegate will accept your suggestions about how you can make a difference.

EMPLOYEE OF THE MONTH
Corky Fredricksen in Payroll was selected the Employee of the Month for October 2000. Here are some quotes from her nomination. "Without Corky, I feel there would be a lot of confusion and errors in the payroll system. When PeopleSoft was first implemented, Corky dealt with a lot of problems; more than I am sure anyone is aware of." "Every payroll, Corky goes above and beyond the call of duty by ensuring that the payroll is correct and every person employed by the university is paid."

HUMAN RESOURCES ANNOUNCEMENTS
Medical Open Enrollment ends November 30th. The VEBA vote is underway. Results will be announced in January. At retirement, an employee’s unused sick leave is cashed out at 25% (1 day for every 4 days). Under VEBA, the retiring employee can get this money tax free it is used for medical premiums or expenses. VEBA does not affect the annual sick leave buy-out program, which will continue as is.

QUESTION/ANSWER
We’d like to start our question/answer column again. If you have a question you’d like answered, please send it to your Employee Council delegate. We’ll print questions/answers of general interest in the Council minutes.

Question: I want to change my shift to leave an hour early every day by giving up my lunch hour. Can I? My boss doesn’t care.

Answer: No, but you may be able to negotiate a work schedule adjustment with your supervisor that would allow you to leave a half-hour early by taking only a 30-minute lunch. While hours of work are set by the department head, the health and safety WACs require that employees be given a meal period of at least 30 minutes "which commences no less than two hours nor more than five hours from the beginning of the shift." (Certain employees are paid for their lunch hour, by the way, if they have to remain on duty during it. An example is police officers.)

Question: I’d like to take a two-hour lunch period every day for three months for personal reasons. May I?

Answer: Yes, if your supervisor approves your temporary voluntary schedule change request. You could, for example, request to work from 7:30 to 11:30 and 1:30 to 5:30 p.m. Or, you could request to use one hour of annual leave from 11 to noon every day during the three-month period and combine that with your regular noon lunch hour.

Question: I’d like to use my 15-minute afternoon break to leave work 15 minutes early every day. May I?

Answer: No. The work break or rest period comes out of safety and health law. Its purpose is to allow employees to leave their work station mid work-period for a few minutes to stand up and stretch, go to the bathroom, get a drink of water, and generally just take a quick rest from their job. The work break/rest period is a scheduled part of the workday and so, under wage and hour law, paid time. It is separate from a lunch period which, generally, under wage and hour law, is not paid time because, in most instances, the employee is not considered on duty and can leave the work site. Certainly the work break/rest period’s purpose is not to come to work late or to leave early, to extend one’s lunch hour, nor to bank and use as annual leave or comp time. If not used at the scheduled time for its intended purpose, the break period is lost. (Barring emergencies, of course. For example, during the flooding several years ago, different arrangements were made for rest periods for those combating the floodwaters.) An interesting facet of the health and safety law is that employers do not have to provide a work break/rest period if the nature of the work allows the employee to leave the desk or work station for a few minutes intermittently during each 4-hour period. Washington State personnel law, however, allows all classified employees a ten-minute work break/rest period mid shift.

Question: I am having a hard time at work because of personal problems at home. Is there some place I can get some advice on what I should do?

Answer: Yes. Employee Advisory Service (EAS) is the official, confidential, employee assistance program for state employees and their family members.  EAS professionals provide free assessment and referral services for all types of personal problems. The telephone number of the Spokane office which serves CWU is (509) 482-3686. You can visit their web site at http://www.wa.gov/dop/eas.html to learn more about their services.

TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT
To see what's in the Training Office library, drop by Bouillon 104, or browse our web page at http://www.cwu.edu/~training. To check out materials, a form is available from the web, or call 963-2288, or email hutchinl@cwu.edu.

Training Library Review
"Riding the Wave: Strategies for Change"
A dramatic 20-minute video shows us that when we focus on what we can learn from every single surprise, we are no longer afraid of getting caught off-guard. Then we become more open to everything life deals to us, instead of trying to protect or defend ourselves. You'll learn all the advantages that come your way when you shift from security-seeking behaviors to a mindset that helps you see problems as opportunities for expanding your potential.

Note to managers and supervisors
Organizational development services are available through the training arm of the Department of Personnel (DOP) in Olympia. DOP has master contracts with over 50 firms who are available to assist state agencies and institutions with organizational development issues, including, but not limited to: organizational restructuring, conflict resolution, team issues, and customer service. To learn more about bringing these services to your department, call Lynn Hutchins in the CWU Training Office at 2288, or DOP at (360) 664-1947.

ADJOURNMENT
The meeting adjourned at 3:40 p.m.

NEXT MEETING
The next meeting is scheduled for 2:00 p.m., December 21, 2000, in SUB 209. If you are a delegate and cannot make the meeting, be sure to notify Colleen Rose and to let your alternate know so that he/she will attend.

PRESENT:
Kim Thomas, Business and Administrative Support: Unit A
Nancy Bradshaw, Business and Administrative Support: Unit A
Paula Moffatt, Business and Administrative Support: Unit B
Karol Barker, Dining Services
Marilyn Thompson, Dining Services
Shelly Voshall, Housing & Residential Services
Kari Taylor, Instructional Support: Unit A, Chairperson
Gene Wilson, Instructional Support: Unit A
Leona Johnson, Library Services
Kerry Slaughter, Library Services
Dorothy Tenney Plant and Facilities
Ginger Linnell, Enrollment Management & Marketing, Secretary

ABSENT:
Debbie Nethery, Instructional Support: Unit B
Karen Simmons, Instructional Support: Unit B
Rick Gilson, Plant and Facilities
Al Edler, Plant and Facilities
Celia Johnson, Student Services and SUB: Unit B

ALSO PRESENT:
Colleen Rose
Pamela Zupan