Employee Council Minutes
February 15, 2001

TOPICS DISCUSSED

COUNCIL MINUTES
The minutes of the January 18, 2001, meeting were read and amended to show Dorothy Tenney and Leona Lindvig were not present.  Minutes were approved as amended.

ATTENDANCE OF DELEGATES
As a result of a discussion about the importance of delegates attending the Employee Council meetings, it was suggested that delegates who have missed three meetings in a row should be sent a letter.  Kari Taylor will follow up on attendance.

UNION – EMPLOYEE COUNCIL RELATIONS
Dale Hubbard, current local president of the Washington Federation of State Employees union at CWU, gave a brief history of the relationship between the Union and Employee Council here at CWU.  At a state level, the Union is very much against employee councils because the union believes such groups can infringe upon a union’s representation rights.  At the campus level, however, the Union sees a place for the Employee Council as an information gathering and distributing body.  They also serve the purpose of employee recognition, which we all believe is very important to the morale of the campus. The Union has been working in collaboration with Employee Council this year.

The Union is made up of two units.  Unit 1 is a union shop (i.e., all employees covered by this unit must pay dues to the Union) and covers custodial, police, trades, food service, grounds, and several other areas.  Unit 2 is an open shop (i.e., employees are not required to pay dues) and includes clerical workers, technical support, health center classes and, although has only about 50 dues-paying members, represents about 230 people on campus.  The Union is the sole bargaining representative for all civil service employees covered by BUI and II at CWU.

The Union lobbies the state for better wages, fair labor practices, and represents union members who have a grievance against the state.  Some of the benefits that all classified employees share are a direct result of the Union’s efforts.  They are our personal holidays, shared leave, and tuition waivers for employees.

If you have questions about the Union, you can call the Union Hotline at (800) 562-6001 or (800) 562-6002.  You can also email Dale Hubbard at hubbarddale@hotmail.com

FOLLOW-UP OF SYNTHESIZING COMMITTEE
Dale Hubbard gave a brief up-date on the Synthesizing Committee.  He reported that there has been a good turnout for the sessions.  The actions resulting from the discussions led by this committee could change the face of CWU.  Forty synthesizing groups picked out important points to go forward to the president.

FOLLOW-UP OF REORGANIZATION
The council voted to accept the eleven divisions proposed for Employee Council listed in the December minutes.  Further discussion of this has been tabled for a later date.

EMPLOYEE APPRECIATION AWARDS
The annual Employee Appreciation Awards celebration is scheduled for the afternoon of May 24 in the Sue Lombard Room.

EMPLOYEE OF THE MONTH
Ray Cedeno, a campus policeman, was chosen as Employee of the Month for the month of February.  One CWU employee wrote, "Even outside of the confines or parameters of the campus, Officer Cedeno exemplifies the quality of individuals working at CWU; not just to our campus community, but to regional community.”

Employee of the Month nomination forms are available at: http://www.cwu.edu/~hr/hrforms.html#Other

SHARED LEAVE
CWU employees may donate leave to a fellow employee who is severely ill or injured or has a family member who is severely ill or injured.  “Severely” is defined as serious or extreme and/or life threatening.  Recipients must be off work and have used all their paid leave to be eligible.  Employees who wish to receive shared leave must notify Human Resources and submit a doctor’s certificate.

The following individuals are in need of shared leave: Larry Charles (Facilities Management) and Colleen Hall (Facilities Management).

Individuals interested in donating leave should request a Shared Leave donation form from Human Resources.  Copies may also be downloaded from the HR Forms section of the Human Resources home page: www.cwu.edu/~hr/hrforms.html#Other.  Requests must be approved by your supervisor before forwarding the form to Human Resources.  Donated leave is also subject to approval by your department head and Human Resources.

Annual leave may be donated in eight-hour blocks.  Employees who wish to donate annual leave must retain at least then days (80) hours of vacation leave and cannot donate excess leave (that over 30 days or 240 hours) that he/she would otherwise lose at the beginning of the leave anniversary month.

Sick leave may also be donated in eight-hour blocks.  The donating employee must retain a minimum of 480 hours sick leave balance after the transfer.  No more than six days of sick leave may be transferred during any twelve-month period.  An employee’s personal holiday may also be donated.  Please call Human Resources (963-1202), if you need a shared leave donation form.

TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT

Employee Advisory Services (EAS) is an employee assistance program that can provide assessment and referral services for all types of personal problems, and help access needed services from health care providers.  Problems may include: job, interpersonal, marital, family, emotional, alcohol and/or drugs, financial, physical, or any combination of these.  For additional information, go to http://www.wa.gov/dop/eas.html; or pick up a brochure in the Human Resources reception area (Bouillon 140), or the Training & Development library (Bouillon 104).  You may also contact EAS directly, by calling (509) 482-3686.
 
Attention Managers and Supervisors!  Training opportunity: Dave Smith, from EAS, will be presenting “Simplifying Supervision”, on April 18, at 1:00 p.m.  There are no fees to attend this four-hour workshop.  Register by calling the Training Office at 963-2288, or sending an email to hutchinl@cwu.edu.

ADJOURNMENT
The meeting adjourned at 4:30 p.m.

NEXT MEETING
The next meeting is scheduled for 2:00 p.m., March 15, 2001, 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:
Paula Moffatt, Business and Administrative Support: Unit B
Karol Barker, Dining Services
Marilyn Thompson, Dining Services
Shelly Voshall, Housing & Residential Services
Pedro Garcia, Housing & Residential Services
Kari Taylor, Instructional Support: Unit A, Chairperson
Gene Wilson, Instructional Support: Unit A
Leona Lindvig, Library Services
Kerry Slaughter, Library Services
Dorothy Tenney Plant and Facilities
Ginger Linnell, Enrollment Management, Secretary
Celia Johnson, Student Services and SUB: Unit B

ABSENT:
Kim Thomas, Business and Administrative Support: Unit A
Nancy Bradshaw, Business and Administrative Support Unit A
Debbie Nethery, Instructional Support: Unit B
Karen Simmons, Instructional Support: Unit B
Rick Gilson, Plant and Facilities
Al Edler, Plant and Facilities

ALSO PRESENT:
Ona Youmans
Dale Hubbard