EMPLOYEE COUNCIL MINUTES

April 18, 2002

COUNCIL MINUTES

EMPLOYEE APPRECIATION AWARDS

COLLECTIVE BARGAINING

SELECTION OF EMPLOYEE OF THE MONTH

EMPLOYEE OF THE MONTH PROCEDURES

PUBLICITY FOR EMPLOYEE COUNCIL ELECTIONS

STANDING COMMITTEES

CIVILITY CODES

HUMAN RESOURCES ANNOUNCEMENTS

TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT

ADJOURNMENT/NEXT MEETING

COUNCIL MINUTES

The minutes of the March meeting were approved as written.

EMPLOYEE APPRECIATION AWARDS

Colleen Rose, Secretary in Human Resources, presented an update on the Employee Appreciation Award’s Ceremony. A draft of the program and a list of service award mementos were distributed. Human Resources is still in the process of recruiting mementos. Council members were asked to contact Colleen if any additional mementos were solicited. The event is scheduled for May 1, 2002, 1:30 p.m. in Tunstall Conference Dining Room.

COLLECTIVE BARGAINING

Dennis Defa, Human Resources Consultant, presented an overview of the Personnel System Reform Act of 2002 which was recently passed by the legislature and signed into law by Governor Locke on April 3, 2002. A summary of the bill was provided to council members that listed the key objectives as follows: The classification system will be completely revamped; the scope of collective bargaining has been expanded to include the following mandatory subjects for bargaining: seniority, contracting out, wages, health care benefits, promotional registers, appointments, tests/examinations, affirmative action, training, probationary periods, transfers, sick and vacation leave, discipline/appeals, work hours and layoffs. The governing board of each higher education institution may negotiate its own contract, or may choose to have the Governor’s Office conduct the negotiations on its behalf; contracting out of services “traditionally and historically provided by state employees” is no longer prohibited; the Personnel Appeals Board will be abolished and the role of the Washington Personnel Resources Board (WPRB) will change; the Public Employment Relations Commission (PERC) will administer collective bargaining agreements. Mr. Defa further stated that the timeline for the process to implement changes is in place, but the decision to negotiate locally or have the Governor do it has not yet been made. The bill in its entirety can be found at the following web address: http://www.leg.wa.gov/wsladm/billinfo/dspBillSummary.cfm?billnumber=1268 . A summary is available at : http://hr.dop.wa.gov/civilservice.htm.

SELECTION OF EMPLOYEE OF THE MONTH

John Ebenal, Accounting Supervisor, Grants and Asset Management, was selected the Employee of the Month for April, 2002. The following comments are taken from his nomination forms:

John has a long history of outstanding service to the university. He has consistently devoted himself to excellent service in personalized attention to grant project directors. John has taken on an exceptional task by guiding and following through on the PeopleSoft implementation; in addition he maintains our network, has oversight for Grants and Contracts, Endowment investing, and Fixed Assets. John is a very bright and shining example for all of the employees who know him. He leads by example and is a model of cooperation and good will. He is a great confidant with solutions and empathy. John has been able to work through some challenging situations, bringing out the best in those around him. People trust him with administering their awards--you can count on him. He is always kind, courteous and respectful. John has a really quiet sense of humor that puts a lot of stress factors in better perspective. Somehow he is able to make things seem do-able when they appeared insurmountable.

EMPLOYEE OF THE MONTH PROCEDURES

Council members Dorothy Tenney and Leona Lindvig presented a draft copy of the proposed changes to the employee of the month selection procedures. After discussion and review of the revisions, the consensus of the council was to delay action until the May meeting. Tenney and Lindvig will consider comments made by the council when preparing a draft document for the May meeting.

PUBLICITY FOR EMPLOYEE COUNCIL ELECTIONS

Colleen Rose, Human Resources, informed the council that every year, fewer and fewer nominations are turned in to serve on the Employee Council. In an effort to improve the publicity for serving on the council, Ms. Rose recommended revising the election letters to emphasize the importance of being a delegate or alternate. Council members Laury Berner and Kirsten Garland agreed to recommend changes to the letter for action at the May council meeting.

STANDING COMMITTEES

In accordance with the Central Washington University Policies Manual, section 2-1.0.A - Process for University Committee Appointments, the council began the process of creating a prioritized list of candidates for civil service appointments on university committees. Human Resources distributed a list of volunteers that was the result of soliciting names of individuals interested in serving in open seats appropriate for their classification. After looking at the short list of volunteers for each applicable committee, it was decided to have council members go back and recruit additional volunteers from each unit for the priority list. Chair Kari Taylor will compose one statement to be used by all unit delegates. This issue will be revisited at the May council meeting.

CIVILITY CODES

Council member Dorothy Tenney shared with council members the newly created civility code for the custodial department project crew. She informed the council that civility codes are also being created in other units within facilities management with the assistance of Central’s Ombuds, Donna Kramer. She stressed the fact that the civility code is meant to address the emphasis 6 of the university’s strategic plan and urged other areas to work with Ms. Kramer in developing a civility code for their own area. The code reads as follows: “Civility: Courtesy, politeness, polite action and the art of showing respect for others. Peace and harmony in the workplace is important to the well being of those employed. The Facilities Management Custodial Department Project Crew therefore resolves to: Give input positively; Not spread hurtful gossip or rumors; Reconnect with each other after a misunderstanding or dispute; Take responsibility for re-establishing a relationship; Involve a third party neutral, if needed, to assist with disputes; Learn and practice active listening skills; Respect the authority of each employee’s position; Respect the personal space of others; Encourage and recognize each other’s positive contributions; Practice radio politeness; Refrain from judging others; Realize that standards are difficult to always meet, and not be hard on ourselves, or each other, for mistakes; Respect individual differences; Be willing to apologize.”

HUMAN RESOURCES ANNOUNCEMENTS

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 individual is in need of shared leave: Lynn Linnell (Computer Support Services)

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/forms/hrforms.htm. 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 ten 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

Be on the lookout for "Frontline Employee" and "Frontline Supervisor,” two newsletters published monthly by the Employee Advisory Service. Training & Development receives these newsletters through email and distributes them to all employees on the campus GroupWise system. We ask that departments please post these newsletters where employees without email may easily view them.

"Frontline Employee" for May includes a handy list of phrases you can use with customers, an article about "Brainstorming", pointers on stress, a warning about "Harm Reduction" which is an approach to controlling alcohol consumption, some information about recent studies that have come out on sleep, and more.

If you are looking for low cost training solutions, try the Training and Development library. We have videos, audiocassettes, and books, on such topics as communication, career development, efficiency, human relations, management and supervision, leadership, public speaking, and more. While CWU employees are always encouraged to check out materials for personal use, we want to remind managers and supervisors that we have a number of training sets which are intended to be viewed in groups. How about showing one at a department staff meeting? It could stimulate a good discussion!

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, fill out the form available on the web, call 963-2288, or email hutchinl@cwu.edu.

ADJOURNMENT

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

NEXT MEETING

The next meeting is scheduled for Thursday, May 16, 2002, 2:00 p.m. in Black Hall Room 228-19. If you are a delegate and cannot make the meeting, be sure to notify your alternate so he/she will attend.