MINUTES of May 4, 2005, 10:00 a.m.,
WVNET, Morgantown, WV

ATTENDANCE

Members in attendance:

Excused:

Guests:

WVNET PRESENTATION

Henry Blosser, WVNET Director, gave a PowerPoint presentation briefly covering several aspects of their operations including their history, purpose, funding sources, governance and staffing, services provided and new initiatives.

HONORARY CHAIR

Former ACCE Chair Stephanie Neal has moved to a non-classified position since the ACCE's last meeting and was present at this meeting as an honored guest.
A motion was made by Mrs. Neuman to install Mrs. Neal as Honorary Chair for this meeting. In the event of a vote or other official action, the chairmanship would revert to Mrs. Pitzer. The motion was seconded by Mrs. Shriver.
The motion carried unanimously.

PREVIOUS MINUTES

The minutes of the March 15, 2005 meeting were approved as submitted.

SIGNIFICANT DATES

Mrs. Neal reported on several upcoming meeting dates including:

• the CCTCE meeting today, May 5th, in Charleston,
• the HEPC will meet on Friday, June 10th, at Stonewall Resort,
• the Classified Staff Leadership Conference is scheduled for June 15-17 at Stonewall Resort
• the State EEO conference, co-sponsored by the HEPC, is scheduled for September 26-30 at Mountaineer Race Track and Gaming Resort.

VICE CHANCELLOR'S REPORT

Dennis Taylor, Vice Chancellor for Administration, reported on the 2005 legislative session including:

• SB 603 becomes effective July 1, 2005.
• It gives increased flexibility to WVU and Marshall but not to the CTCs or to WVU Tech.
• It increases flexibility on the operations side (budgeting, leases, capitol projects, tuition up to a 9.5 cap, etc.).
• It does not give the institutions increased flexibility on personnel issues.
• WVU and MU remain accountable to the HEPC for their compacts and master plans and for appropriation requests.
• They were given limited flexibility with regard to check handling related to electronic versus paper processing, but no clear check writing authority.

Mr. Taylor distributed copies of 18B-1B-13 from SB603 calling for a three-year study of issues affecting employees in public higher education. The HEPC, in consultation with the CCTCE, must report their progress to LOCEA every six months beginning October 1, 2005 and must present their final report and recommendations to LOCEA by December 1, 2008. Mr. Taylor is charged with coordinating this study. Mr. Taylor indicated that it is his intention to use the Series 8 Review Committee as the central committee for this personnel issues study. He is also considering options for hiring a full-time person at the central office to coordinate the day-to-day activities associated with the study, or hiring an outside consultant to coordinate it.

A discussion ensued including:

• having a classification and compensation system which is implementable,
• running a series of rules related to Series 8 during the study period, then rolling them all together at the end versus holding off on Series 8 revisions until the study is completed,
• the need for clarity in the finished product without the ambiguities and uncertainties that currently exist in code.

Other issues discussed included:

• the proposed special session anticipated for fall 2005 to address state employee salary issues and the need to be clear in the final language as to whether or not higher ed employees are considered state employees in relation to any possible legislation,
• possible July 1, 2005 salary increases across the various institutions and confusing guidance from the HEPC,
• funding of the zero equity step (It was reported that most institutions with the exception of WVU are planning on funding the equity step.).

Concern was expressed about how the 10% limit of non-classified employees is being calculated. Are faculty included in the "benefits-eligible" population? How are the extra "critical" positions identified and reported? Are Boards approving "critical" positions as required in code?

Mrs. Neal expressed concern about not being able to obtain accurate data from the institutions about outsourcing. Mr. Taylor agreed that it is important for his office to make requests for information from the institutions as specific as possible in order to obtain comparable data.

Mrs. Neuman encouraged the staff councils at institutions who do not yet have adequate pay policies to be proactive by drafting their own policy to submit for consideration by their board.

Mr. Taylor reported that PEIA premium increases were frozen until January 1, 2006 but that the 80/20 rule is still in code. He also reported that the Meet and Confer committee created by Governor Wise’s Executive Order 21-04 has been appointed and is beginning to meet. Chancellor Mullen is on the committee. He noted that the ACCE already has meet and confer authorization.

LIAISON REPORT

Questions were raised about the placement of employees into sectors for representation on the institutional Classified Staff Councils. Mrs. Buttrick reviewed the federal EEO categories and referred those interested in further exploration to the EEO web site and the EEO descriptions of job categories ( http://www.census.gov/hhes/www/eeoindex/eeoindex.html). The campus HR offices should be able to identify EEO job codes as reported in their IPEDS and Fall Board reports.

Mrs. Buttrick reported on progress with the Series 8 Review Committee:

• The committee met via conference call on April 25th.
• A second draft will be published soon and posted on the HEPC web site.
• The rule will be reorganized into logical sections.
• Several parts of the rule can be forwarded to LOCEA before the three-year study is completed.

Items of key concern related to Series 8 and the personnel study raised in discussion included:

• a clear definition of seniority and how it is to be used,
• clarification of how FTE employment is addressed in reduction of force and bumping in light of recent conflicting rulings from WLSC grievances,
• clarification of how grant-funded employees are to be treated in relation to reduction in force, bumping, and bidding on posted jobs,
• clarification on how employees with split funding are to be treated,
• grandfathering in current grant funded or split funded employees.

In regard to current HR surveys being conducted by the HEPC central office, Mrs. Beane raised a question concerning staff development. Mrs. Neal expressed a concern for the quantity and the quality of staff development and training opportunities provided through HR departments.

Concern was also expressed about the quality of services being contracted by CTCs from host institutions.

Mrs. Neal raised a concern about what is being reported and what is not being reported in response to inquiries about outsourcing. Mrs. Pitzer noted that one way to get to the bottom of the outsourcing question is to look at the purchasing audits and simply follow the money trail.

In regard to the personnel study, Mrs. Pitzer noted that the only real problem with the current classification system is that some institutions do not use it properly. Mrs. Buttrick noted that the current system could be upgraded or modified and she noted that several job families need to be reviewed, including the Clerical and Office Support, the Administrative Support, and the Financial Aid job families.

Mrs. Pitzer raised the question of Campus Security Officers being identified as will-and-pleasure employees in 18B-4-4e. Does being designated as will-and-pleasure employees imply that they are non-classified and what employment protections do they have? Mrs. Buttrick agreed to ask HEPC Counsel, Bruce Walker, for an interpretation.

SERIES 8 AND THE PERSONNEL STUDY

Mrs. Pitzer encouraged all ACCE and CSC representatives to be diligent in reviewing the Series 8 drafts as they are published and getting their comments to the committee or the staff representatives on the committee (Zac, Amy, and Terry Nebel). The drafts will be posted as they are developed and can be reviewed on the Series 8 web site, which is linked from the HEPC site: www.hepc.wvnet.edu.

Mrs. Neal likewise encouraged all ACCE and CSC representatives to be involved in the three year personnel study and assist in assuring that accurate data is reported. Mrs. Neal noted that during the recent session, the legislature made a statement that the ACCE is the voice for classified staff, not the labor unions, with the defeat of the Hunter amendment to SB 603. She noted that Classified Staff was a hot issue in the final days of the legislature again, and has been for the past four years.

JULY RETREAT AND ELECTIONS

A motion was made by Mrs. Shriver and seconded by Mrs. Alltop to have Mrs. Neal contact Mr. Perry at Heritage Farm to schedule the July retreat and elections and to check available July dates.
The motion carried unanimously. A final decision on the dates will be made by May 20th.

NEW OFFICERS

With the loss of Mrs. Neal as Chair, elections for a new Chair to complete the unexpired term are required within 30 days. Mr. Taylor agreed to monitor the election.

A quorum having been established, Mr. Taylor conducted the election for a new Chair. Mr. Britton nominated Amy Pitzer to assume the office of Chair. Mr. Martinelli seconded the nomination. There being no further nominations from the floor, Mr. Wycherley
motioned that Mrs. Pitzer be elected by acclamation and Mr. Martinelli seconded the motion.
The motion carried unanimously. Mrs. Pitzer then appointed Mr. Wycherley to the position of Vice Chair and Mr. Long to the position of Secretary.

LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE

Mrs. Neal confirmed that the Classified Employee Leadership Conference would be held June 15-17 at Stonewall Resort. BOG, BOA, and ACCE representatives and CSC chairs elected in April from each institution are encouraged to participate. Governor Manchin has been invited to address the conference. Mr. Taylor and Mrs. Buttrick have agreed to participate. Further details will follow via the listserve. Mrs. Neal agreed to host the conference as planned prior to her move to a non-classified position.

NEW BUSINESS

A brief discussion was held concerning a presentation to the HEPC and the CCTCE during the Fall. No date has been set, but the ACCE will need to be prepared when invited. This issue was tabled until the July retreat.

Mr. Long raised a point of order concerning the Amendment to the ACCE bylaws passed by those present at the December 2004 meeting. The bylaws require that the amendment be forwarded to all ACCE members for their vote. Mr. Long and Mrs. Pitzer agreed to follow up on this matter.

Mrs. Pitzer expressed the ACCE's gratitude to Ken Harbaugh and the staff at Shepherd University for their work on this year's legislative brochure. She also expressed the ACCE's appreciation to Verne Britton and Henry Blosser and the staff at WVNET for their hospitality in hosting this meeting.

Mrs. Pitzer and those present presented Stephanie A. Neal with a resolution honoring her years of dedicated service to the classified employees of West Virginia's higher education systems. In the resolution Mrs. Neal was named the recipient of the first ACCE Distinction of Honor. Ms. Neal gave a heartfelt farewell address which included an appreciation for Vice Chancellor Taylor's accessibility, fairness and willingness to work with classified employees, and a challenge for continued dedication on the part of each and every ACCE member.

ADJOURNMENT

There being no further business, the meeting adjourned at 4:13 p.m.

Respectfully Submitted:

Robert A. "Zac" Wycherley, Secretary

APPROVED 14 July 2005