MINUTES
Exempt Staff Council Meeting
http://esc.tennessee.edu
July 27, 2010
Time: 1:30 pm
Place: 8th Floor Andy Holt Tower Conference Room
Present: Melissa Ashburn Caroline Bowers, Debbie Brown, Tom Cervone, Rob Chance (Guest), Shane Colter, Nissa Dahlin-Brown, John Erdmann, DeAnna Flinchum, Sandra Harbison, Mike Herbstritt, Margy Henry-Wirtz, Ashley Jones (for Carol Raxter), Meredith LeCroy, Jane Pope, Marva Rudolph, Andrew Shafer, Janet Smith, Joel Southern, Suzan Thompson, Cynthia Walker
Absent: Herb Byrd, Linda Hendricks, Arla Jackson, Julie Longmire, April Martin, Jenny Moshak, Richard Powell, Carol Raxter, Margie Russell, Sherry Sims, Laura Trainer, Rebekah Winkler
1. Presidential Search Update – Ron Maples, Controller, provided an update on the presidential search. Mr. Maples encouraged employees to give their input into this search process. You may put your suggestions on the website or e-mail them to Ron Maples at or Meredith LeCroy at . Please view the following link to submit questions on the website http://president.tennessee.edu/search/feedback.html. Every submission is submitted to the search committee and can be submitted anonymously. The Board of Trustees has agreed that a terminal degree is not required, but is preferred for the position. For more information about the presidential search please visit: http://president.tennessee.edu/search/index.html.
2. Insurance – Rob Chance said the open enrollment for insurance will be September 15th – October 15th. If you are not currently on the university’s insurance you may enroll during this time. For more information regarding insurance changes, please visit http://partnersforhealthtn.org/. Please see attachment with insurance information.
3. Peer/Supervisor Evaluations – Joel Southern drafted a proposal for HR to consider regarding peer/supervisor evaluations. The proposal was voted on during the ERC meeting. All were in favor of the proposal. This will not be a requirement, but will be an option in the future as long as HR approves.
4. Exempt Staff Council Survey – Joel Southern began looking into the purpose of the ESC. Mr. Southern wants to send out a survey to all exempt staff asking: Do you know what ESC is? Do you know we are here to support you? What is your biggest issue/problem? Currently, we have 2,446 exempt employees. This survey will not only provide education to the exempt staff, but to the campus as a whole.
5. Fall Festival – Mark your calendars for Friday, October 8th
6. Reporting Time – John Erdmann ask about the policy (or at least guideline) for when an exempt employee must report sick or annual leave time. For example, if an exempt employee leaves early (15 minutes) do they need to submit leave time for 15 minutes? How about if they leave an hour early?
Dr. Herbstritt responded that the policy says that full-time employees must account for 8 hours a day. Below is the link to the university’s policy and also the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).
Annual Leave:
https://my.tennessee.edu/portal/page?_pageid=34,140536&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL&p_policy=HR0305
Sick Leave:
https://my.tennessee.edu/portal/page?_pageid=34,140536&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL&p_policy=HR0380
FLSA:
http://www.dol.gov/whd/flsa/index.htm
7. Smoking Policy – Deanna Flinchum asked who determines the reasonable distance from an entrance for an employee to smoke.
Dr. Herbstritt said the distance is usually 25 feet. Depending on how close a building is to a road this may not work. Employees should contact their building representatives if smokers persist in smoking too close to the building. For a list of building representatives, please visit http://www.pp.utk.edu/buildingreps.htm
8. Handicap Parking Fees – Deanna Flinchum said UT was evaluating the policy that people with handicap stickers don’t have to pay for parking. Has there been an update on this?
Dr. Herbstritt responded that according to Mary Lynn Holloway, the current policy is based on legal interpretation. Based on practices enforced by other state agencies, the university may revisit this.
9. Old Business:
v ESC Committee Updates – Tom Cervone
· Issues Committee – No report
· Nominating Committee – Still have 2 more elections.
· Publicity/Public Relations – No report
· Supervisor Evaluations – No report
· Website – All minutes are available on the website.
v Next meeting - August 24, 2010, 8th floor Andy Holt Tower Conference Room
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