Gary Leitnaker reported reallocations and market adjustments are in the system (HRIS) and should be seen on the July 11, 2008 paychecks. The new vacation leave accruals are in HRIS and should be seen on the same paychecks for those employees in the first phase of implementation; 10 or more years of service. Classified Senate is to let Human Resources (HR) know if there were any problems with those numbers. There are 5 candidates for the Manager of Position Administration position. Jennyfer Owensby asked Leitnaker if Classified Senate could meet with the new manager, when hired, since that position is crucial to classified employees and implementation of the new pay plans at K-State. Gary agreed that would be a good idea. The contracted completion date for the parking garage is February 8, 2009. However, Gary thought the contractor will likely request additional days due to wet weather this summer.
As President of Classified Senate, Owensby received two pieces of additional information on the leave enhancement issue after the July meeting:
Owensby reported on the Classified & Support Staff Council (CSSC) meeting at Wichita State University on July 2, 2008. Most likely, the CSSC resolution will request full funding for market adjustments and COLA'a for FY 2010 and to include at least 1 classified employee on the new Pay Plan Commission and/or any internal committee(s) assigned to look at issues affecting the new pay plans. Due to state budget issues, CSSC feels it is best to keep our resolution short and realistic for FY 2010. CSSC also discussed one of two presentations to the Board of Regents this year. Owensby agreed to research the issue to find out what will be expected from CSSC for the presentations.
The new K-State Background Check Policy was discussed. Initially, the policy will include all new hires for full and part-time positions (including GTA's & GRA's). The policy excludes temporary employees, student employees and contractors/vendors. Current employees promoted to new positions within K-State will not be subject to a background check. The hiring supervisor will be able to make an offer of employment which will be contingent upon a successful criminal background check. The goal is to not slow down the hiring process whenever possible.
Owensby was chosen to serve on the President Search Committee to fill President Wefald's position on behalf of Classified Senate. Senators were very pleased that Classified Senate was asked to be included in such an important selection for K-State. The first meeting should be held sometime in August.
Classified Senate was asked by Sue Peterson to give 2 presentations during the NBAF forum on behalf of Classified Senate. If you have strong feelings for or against NBAF in Manhattan, please send your comments to Owensby (jennyfer@ksu.edu) no later than Friday, July 18, 2008.
Due to the ever increasing cost of gas, Classified Senate asked the Campus Affairs Committee to review the possibility of creating a carpool website for K-State employees and students. Many other universities have done this for their community. Campus Affairs agreed to look at this issue and report back to Senate.
Per Richard Brenner's request, the 4-10 hour/day work week option received a lot of discussion. Many senators have received numerous requests from classified employees to seriously pursue that option at K-State due to rising gas prices. Owensby reported meeting with Fred Fairchild, Faculty Senate President, and Lydia Peele, Student Body President, to test the waters with their constituents. The biggest hurdle to overcome is the Board of Regents academic policy on the number of days classes have to meet each semester. That policy would have to change in order for K-State to drop down to a 4 day work week. Unfortunately, no one is willing to pursue that change at this time. Faculty Senate looked at this issue once before and received many concerns from faculty with families regarding daycare issues (most daycares in Manhattan operate on a 7:30am to 5:30pm schedule). Lydia ran the option by some students and their immediate concern was the possibility of losing work hours due to longer class times and losing a day of work per week. They also had daycare concerns and no desire to start classes earlier or end later to accommodate a 10 hour day, which is also a big concern with faculty. Owensby asked the Office of Vice President for Administration & Finance (VPAF) for their thoughts. VPAF does not see enough of a cost savings to go anywhere with it at K-State at this time. A few Senators pointed out that departments have the ability to allow that type of schedule under university flextime as long as they can meet the service demands of their unit(s). However, many departments are not able to offer a 4-10 hour day schedule because K-State operates on a 5-8 hour day schedule. Classified Senate will continue to review this option and keep it open for discussion. However, the options are limited if no other campus group is willing to pursue it. This issue may (or may not) be a good topic to discuss with the new Director of Sustainability, Ben Champion, who will give a presentation to Classified Senate in September.
Barb Nagel reported for the Recognition Ceremony Committee. The 2009 Recognition Ceremony will be held in McCain Auditorium on April 8, 2009. Owensby has appointed Nagel as chair of a new, short-term committee to review the Classified Employee of the Year award process for the ceremony. Departments will still be able to select a Classified Employee of the Year for their unit and give up to $300.00 for that award. However, Classified Senate conducted a survey last year to find out how classified employees felt about the annual Recognition Ceremony and the current Classified Employee of the Year award process. A significant majority of employees indicated they wanted the Employee of the Year to be awarded to a small number of recipients. They also indicated a desire to have the Classified Senate President read the nomination statements for each award recipient. A majority of classified employees felt awarding 35-45 Employees of the Year at the Recognition Ceremony has minimized the importance and prestige of that award. Classified Senate would like to respond to the employees who completed our survey and respect their wishes by limiting the number of employees recognized at the Recognition Ceremony and create a new and unique process for awards given by Classified Senate.
Janel Harder was installed as the Vice President for the 2008-2009 Senate year. New Senators (Bryan Smith, Rick Umscheid, Brittany Green, Wendy Michaels, Annette Hernandez and Terri Wyrick) were installed and stayed after the meeting for the New Senator Orientation PowerPoint presentation. Unfortunately, Bryan Smith submitted his resignation due to accepting another job in a different city. We wish him the best of luck in his new career.
If you have questions or concerns you would like to see Classified Senate address, please contact one of your Senators. Classified Senate is committed to serving the needs of the classified campus community.