        |
|
           
|
Notes on Labor/Management MeetingsFebruary 13, 2007 Present: Darryl Wood, Jim Dix, Beth Kilmarx, Sylvia Hall, Joe Schultz, JoAnn Navarro, Jeff Hadley, Dennis Selzner, Jill Harrington (BU Director of Compliance & Risk Management) • Water damage in buildings . UUP raised concerns about possible recurring mold growth in the Lecture Hall basement, and in a closet in the Fine Arts building that had water damage. Regarding the Lecture Hall basement, Management stated that they had tested that area last November and that the amount of particulate matter (which includes molds) was less than that of outside air. Management expressed surprise that mold was still an issue in the Lecture Hall basement, and stated there had been no complaints from the basement denizens. The Air Quality Committee met January 16. At that meeting, they agreed to stop meeting because they considered their work done. Regarding the closet in the Fine Arts building, Management stated that they were waiting for a down time to repair the damage. UUP reminded Management that the problem has been known since last August. Management stated that they will look into the Fine Arts building issue further. • Space available fees . Management distributed a draft of a procedure to be used to mitigate fees that UUP members have to pay when taking BU courses on a space-available basis (copy attached). UUP stated that they will peruse the draft and get back to Management with suggested changes. Management stated that GSEU had a fee mitigation process: there was a pot of money that the university received based on graduate student headcount. • Open period for promotions and salary increases . Management distributed a draft of a plan to do biannual reviews for promotions and salary increases (copies attached). UUP will peruse the draft and get back to Management with suggested changes. • Problem supervisor . There was an off-the-record discussion about a problem supervisor. • Academic degree requirements for posted positions . UUP stated that there was a need for general guidelines for degree requirements for available jobs on campus. Often, the jobs are re-advertised with these degree requirements changed. Management agreed, but stated that they need some flexibility. For example, there was a recent search for a SL3 position which required a bachelor's degree. The search yielded no results. However, after consultation with the originating department, it was decided that an Associate's degree with 5 years experience would also be an appropriate background for the position. Management indicated that they would explore this issue and consider formulating guidelines on academic degree requirements for posted positions. • Ethics issues related to receiving gifts . Given Governor Spitzer's recent pronouncements on new guidelines for state employees accepting gifts, and given that gift giving is an integral part of interacting with groups from different cultures, UUP inquired as to what BU's gift taking policy is. Management replied that as far as they could determine through BU's ethics officer Michael McGoff, the Governor's guidance (essentially, no gift of greater value than a coffee cup) applied at this time to only to Management Confidential employees and to State Legislators. For others employees, the guidelines allow gifts to be accepted if the gifts are less than $75 in value. For gifts greater than $75, a BU state employee should accept a gift on behalf of the University. UUP requested that Management clarify the guidelines regarding gift acceptance. Management agreed to do so. • Enrollment increase . UUP stated that chairs and program directors in Harpur College had been asked to prepare for an enrollment of 17,000 in four years. UUP requested clarification in light of President DeFleur's statement last month that there would be “slow enrollment growth over the next few years.” Management stated that there had been no final decision yet on enrollment targets, but that there was a Memorandum of Understanding being negotiated with the Chancellor's Office. Management stated that as part of the negotiation, BU is insisting that enrollment growth would occur only with appropriate resources and funds, and that growth would not compromise quality. Once the MOU is signed, Management would make plans to accommodate the increased enrollment. • Class scheduling in downtown campus . UUP inquired as to the process the university followed in deciding to hold 3-hour seminar classes only at the downtown campus. Management replied that the Provost met with the Deans, Vice Presidents, and campus faculty governance before a decision was made. Management stated that the Provost would soon be distributing a memo giving more detail on her decision. [copy of memo attached] SECOND DRAFT – fee abatement for UUP members taking courses on a course-availability basis – February 12, 2007 An issue seems to have arisen at several campuses within SUNY that we believe could be remedied during the upcoming contract negotiation process. The tuition assistance, space available benefit within the UUP Agreement came into existence many years ago as a result of collective bargaining. When it was bargained, the fees associated with a UUP member taking a course were very limited – most likely less than $25. For many reasons, the contemporary SUNY workplace has instituted a variety of fees to be paid by a UUP employee wishing to take a course as a result of this benefit - NOTE – HERE WE MIGHT CONSIDER INDICATING EXACTLY HOW MUCH AN EMPLOYEE NEEDS TO PAY IN FEES FOR ONE COURSE AT BINGHAMTON - I DON'T KNOW WHAT THAT FIGURE IS. UUP members have indicated they are finding it increasingly difficult to take advantage of the benefit because of the high fees associated with the coursework. In addition, some of the fees are not germane in any way to their status; for instance, they are required to pay a fee for health insurance when they already have this on their own through NYS. Clearly, there may be several remedies to solve this problem. One that we suggest that might work would be to fund either partial or full fee reimbursement through the joint labor/management committee structure. The member could register for the course they wanted to take, pay the required fees, and then seek reimbursement through the committee. The funding for this benefit could be allocated to the joint labor management committees, earmarked for this use. Perhaps existing funding within the committee structure could even be redeployed from other initiatives within this program to fund this idea if need be. This would then encourage UUP members to take advantage of coursework which would in turn enhance their value to the University and advance their careers. __________________ ________________________________ Sylvia M. Hall Person to sign for UUP and title Assistant VP for Human Resources DRAFT BINGHAMTON UNIVERSITY Instructions for UUP professional promotion application completion General Information At Binghamton University , there are two windows for professional staff to apply for promotion consideration; namely March 1-31 and November 1-30. Applications must be received by the first level supervisor within those timeframes in order to receive consideration. Applicants are entitled to receive a response from their immediate supervisor regarding their promotion application within 45 days and if they do not, they may appeal their case to the College Review Panel. • Before applying for a promotion, be sure you have performance programs on file that substantiate your promotion case. • It is the employee's responsibility to complete the required form and to advance it to their supervisor for consideration. They must also attach all of the required information as outlined in the promotion form. Promotion requests may be initiated by either the employee or the supervisor. • Applications should be forwarded to immediate supervisors during the timeframes indicated above. Criteria for Promotions The UUP Agreement , Appendix A-28 outline contains information on the criteria for promotion (page 106 of the 03-07 Agreement . As indicated, the criteria for promotion listed and examples contained therein are presented for descriptive and explanatory purposes only and are in no way intended to be all inclusive. Duties and responsibilities as outlined in the official performance program are critical to support promotion applications. Procedure • Go to the human resources homepage – http://humanresources.binghamton.edu and download the UUP professional promotion form. It is listed under HR forms. • Complete the form, create the required attachments and forward the packet to your supervisor. Be sure to keep a copy for your records. • The supervisor should contact the human resources office for guidance as to process and position classification • As per the UUP Agreement , if your application is denied at a level below the College President or you do not receive a response from your immediate supervisor within 45 days, you may appeal the decision to the College Review Panel. You should contact Darryl Wood , local UUP President or Fran Goldman , local UUP Vice President for more information on the appeal process. • The College Review Panel makes their recommendation directly to the President. If the promotion is denied by the College President, and the applicant believes the decision is arbitrary or capricious, an appeal may be filed with the University Review Board in accordance with appropriate provisions of the UUP Agreement . 2/07 DRAFT BINGHAMTON UNIVERSITY UUP professional staff request For a Promotion* At Binghamton University , there are two windows for professional staff to apply for promotion consideration; namely March 1 – 31 and November 1 – 30. Applications must be received by the first level supervisor within those timeframes in order to receive consideration. Name: ________________________________Department______________ (please print) Email address: _________________ Telephone extension_______________ Supervisor's Name and Title______________________________________ Present title and SL level: ________________________________________ Proposed title and SL level: _______________________________________ Required attachments _____ A cover letter detailing your rationale for the promotion request to the title and level indicated _____ Your last two performance programs illustrating the permanent, significant increase in duties _____ A complete job description, including percentages of time spent on major duties, and addressing the following issues: (1) What is the minimum education, training and experience general required for this position (2) what human relations skills are critical to this position (3) what positions do you supervise and what is the nature of the supervision (4) provide examples of decisions you commonly make and how you use problem solving abilities (5) what are the technical abilities required for this position _____ An organizational chart showing your position in relation to others within your department or area (should include staff above you, as peers to you and people you supervise) _______________________________________ _________________ Employee's signature Date _______________________________________ _________________ Supervisor's signature ** Date Signature indicates approval and recommendation to the next level __________________________________ _________________ Reviewer's signature Date (next level of management above the supervisor) __________________________________ _________________ Second reviewer's signature Date (is applicable) ___________________________________ __________________ Vice President Date *Promotion as per the UUP Agreement is defined as an increase in a professional employee's basic annual salary accompanied by movement to a high salary level (SL) with a change in title resulting from a permanent and significant increase in duties/responsibilities as a consequence of a permanent increase in the scope and complexity of function of their position. **Supervisors: The UUP Agreement indicates if an employee makes application for a promotion and does not receive an answer or reply from his or her supervisor within 45 days, they have the right to appeal their application to the College Review Panel. Please contact the Human Resources Office within a week or receiving this application for guidance. You may contact either Jeff Hadley at x74249 ( jhadley@binghamton.edu ) or Joseph Schultz at x72374 ( jschultz@binghamton.edu ) with questions. DRAFT BINGHAMTON UNIVERSITY UUP professional staff request For a Salary Increase* Application and Instructions At Binghamton University , there are two windows during which professional staff can apply for salary increases outlined by this procedure; namely March 1 – 31 and November 1 – 30 each year. Applications must be received by the first level supervisor within those timeframes in order to receive consideration. The UUP Agreement indicates an employee who has been assigned a permanent and significant increase in duties and responsibilities as demonstrated by their performance program may apply for a salary increase via this method. If the request was made to the employee's immediate supervisor and then denied at an organization level below that of the College President or if the employee does not receive an approval or disapproval within 45 days, they have the right to appeal to the College Review Committee. Information on the appeal process can be provided by Darryl Wood , local UUP President or Fran Goldman , local UUP Vice President. Applications for this sort of salary increase must be made on this form and must fall within the parameters outlined in Appendix A-28 of the UUP Agreement. . Name: ________________________________Department______________ (please print) Email address: _________________ Telephone extension_______________ Present salary: ________________________________________ Proposed salary: _______________________________________ Supervisor's Name and Title______________________________ Required attachments _____ A cover letter detailing your rationale for the salary increase _____ Your last two performance programs illustrating the permanent, significant increase in duties (including your current program) _______________________________________ _________________ Employee's signature Date _______________________________________ _________________ Supervisor's signature ** Date (signature indicates support and transmittal to the next level) __________________________________ _________________ Reviewer's signature Date (next level of management above the supervisor) __________________________________ _________________ Second reviewer's signature Date (is applicable) ___________________________________ __________________ Vice President Date **Supervisors: As noted on page one of this application, the UUP Agreement indicates if an employee applies for a salary increase and does not receive an answer or reply from his or her supervisor within 45 days, they have the right to appeal their application to the College Review Panel. Therefore, upon receipt of this application please contact the Human Resources Office for guidance regarding this process. You may contact either Jeff Hadley at x74249 ( jhadley@binghamton.edu ) or Joseph Schultz at x72374 ( jschultz@binghamton.edu ) with questions.Archived LM notes:
|
|
 |
||
|
||