Staff Association Minutes - December 15, 2011

Present:  Lisa Coker (Material Services) – Secretary Jennifer Jones (Capitol Hill) – Chair Jennifer Adkisson (Northwest) – Treasurer Barb Parr (Southern Oaks) Brittany Barber (Service Center) Deborah Austin-Mundin (Village) Jerod Gerfen (Midwest City)

Guest: None

There was a discussion about the recent changes to MLS employee leave when I arrived at 2:05 pm. Jennifer Jones suggested that Hugh Rice be invited to a Staff Association Meeting, and made sure that all executive council members were aware of the Staff Association wiki put together by Kim Edwards. ( http:// mlsstaffassociation.pbworks.com )

Treasurer’s Report: The current balance is $507.10; the Staff Association membership funds are used for the annual meeting and FOCUS.

Cyndi Selinger (Choctaw, Vice-Chair) is leaving system; Staff Association will need a new co-chair Deborah nominated Brittany Barber. Jerod Gerfen seconded the nomination. The nomination was approved. Congratulations, Brittany!

Jennifer Jones attended the November Commission meeting and passed around copies of her notes regarding the proceedings.

Members of the Executive Council shared the staff reactions to the Commission’s approval of the new employee leave policy; there is no more Doctor/Dental leave and sick leave accumulation has been reduced from 10 hours per month to 8 for full-time employees.

Staff at various locations reported feeling that their benefits and compensation were slowly being eroded. Many employees felt misled or misdirected and were upset about the lack of disclosure. There were rumors that November new hires were informed of the benefits changes, although many older employees were not made aware. There was an unconfirmed assertion that the Commission will move away from the current leave system and instead use a set amount of of PTO (Paid Time Off) for library employees .

Staff Association members are encouraged to pay attention to the budget information released in April to monitor any changes for the next fiscal year. The consensus is that with upcoming bond issues current construction projects, and a possible lowering of property taxes, the library system needs to show taxpayers that they are getting the most value for their money.

Staff Association is available to investigate and ask questions. If an executive committee member isn’t able to provide answers to staff questions or concerns, then he or she should forward the information to the Chair.

Staff Association is present to talk to the people it represents, and to listen. Lisa Coker suggested that, for those unwilling to speak up, an anonymous comment form might be put on the Staff Association webpage.

Staff Association is considering lobbying for an extension of the sick leave/AVL bonus policy. Jennifer Jones is hoping to invite Commission member Hugh Rice to the January meeting; if he is unavailable Kellie Delaney may be able to talk about the intranet.

The February guest will be Donna Morris. Traditionally Donna has provided a question and answer session. Evaluation of the questions for several year has indicated the same themes and items are repeatedly addressed.  Therefore it is hoped that in 2012 Donna will instead deliver a “State of the MLS” address.

Future guests may also include Kelley Hoffman (benefits) and Joe McReynolds (Friends of the Library/annual booksale). William Bernhardt was suggested for the annual meeting.

Ralph Ellison hosted a Christmas party Saturday, December 17 from 1-4. Downtown hosted a Holiday Open House with a storybook forest of Christmas trees from many branches and departments. The Village Library has two new library aides, though it lost a circulation clerk to DN. NW is scheduled to open in late March.

The next meeting is January 26 at Ralph Ellison Library.
Meeting adjourned at 4 pm.