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What's Really Happening - 2003/01/12

Posted On: 1/12/2003


What's Really Happening

Columbus State Education Association Newsletter of January 12, 2004

PAY FOR UNUSED 2003 PERSONAL LEAVE

The pay for unused 2003 personal leave will appear on the January 31 pay voucher.

All faculty with unused personal leave as of December 31, 2003, will receive compensation for up to 16 hours (2 days) of unused personal leave, pursuant to Article 14 of our contract. This pay will be calculated at your current per diem rate.

To determine your own amount and assure its accuracy, take your current 3-QUARTER SALARY-NOT your total income for 2003-and divide by 170 (the number of days in the academic contract year) to get your daily rate. Then divide by 8 to get your hourly rate. Multiple this amount by the number of unused personal leave hours from your December 31 pay stub, up to a maximum of 16 hours. This is the amount that should show up on your January 31 pay stub.

COMMITTEE APPOINTMENTS

Seven members have agreed to serve on the two major committees covered by Letters of Agreement in the contract. These committees are the result of unresolved issues from negotiations that CSEA and the College agreed to discuss during the contract term.

One committee will study and make recommendations on the roles of faculty who serve as program coordinators and lead instructors, including the issues of reassigned time and institutional support to carry out these duties. The committee will include three managers/ administrators appointed by the Provost and three faculty. In accordance with the contract, the committee will submit its recommendations and final report within one year of its initial meeting.

CSEA representatives are Karl Rieppel (Computer Science), Susan Moran (Communication Skills), and Rick Greely (Massage Therapy). Several other faculty will serve as consultants to this committee.

The other committee will study and make recommendations on distance learning/intellectual property, focusing among other issues on faculty rights regarding materials developed for distance education curriculum. The committee will consist of four managers/administrators appointed by the Provost and four faculty. In accordance with the contract, the committee will submit its recommendations and final report within 15 months of its initial meeting.

CSEA representatives to this committee are Amy Brubaker (Human Resources Management), Dr. Karen Muir (Social & Behavioral Sciences), Lisa Schneider (Communication Skills), and Dr. Wendy McCullen-Vermillion (Biological & Physical Sciences). Several other faculty will serve as consultants to this committee.

CURRENT GRIEVANCES

Several grievances are currently moving through the grievance process. The outcomes of each will have significant impact on all faculty.

One involves whether a faculty member can be forced to take on an overload (i.e., teaching duties beyond the 16 contact hours required by the contract). A faculty member was willing to teach four 5-hour courses previously taught within the department, but the department chair insisted that an adjunct faculty member was going to teach one of the sections and that the full-time faculty member would have to teach an additional section of one of the other courses requested. CSEA's position is that, since the contract provides that bargaining unit members have seniority over adjunct faculty to teach courses for which they are qualified, the faculty member should have been allowed to teach the original course selections.

Another involves a conflict-of-interest issue. In this case, a junior faculty member who had cooperated with the College in an investigation of the department chair believed that the chair might conduct a biased annual appraisal, particularly since the chair knew of the faculty member's cooperation in the investigation. Following the investigation, the College took unspecified action against the chair, but administrators still allowed the chair to perform the faculty member's appraisal, which offered undocumented criticisms that had not been raised with the faculty member any time during the preceding academic year. CSEA believes that the College failed to protect the faculty member from a clear conflict of interest.

Another involves the same faculty member. It addresses the right to have an association representative present in any meeting with a manager that might somehow result in disciplinary action. The faculty member, concerned that the annual appraisal might be biased and develop into future negative treatment, requested the presence of an Association representative during the meeting with the chair. The request was refused, and the meeting has cancelled. CSEA's position is that existing labor law dictates that an employee who has grounds to believe that s/he might be disciplined as part of a meeting with a manager has a right to be accompanied by a union representative.

DID YOU KNOW.?

.that our contract assures faculty that they do not have to work without compensation? Full-time faculty can be reimbursed for substituting for other faculty? Prior to the contract, there was inconsistent practice from one department to another. Faculty in some departments were told by their chairs that they were prohibited from substituting, while in one department the chair could require faculty to substitute for colleagues without compensation. Now, faculty can exchange teaching assignments with other faculty on an hour-for-hour basis or file a payroll request for compensation at the hourly adjunct rate.

EMPLOYEE ASSISTANCE PROGRAM

All faculty should have received information about the College's Employee Assistance Program (EAP) by mail at your home address. This program, administered by Matrix Psychological Services, is available to all employees and their families at no cost to deal with short-term personal problems such as family or marital problems, child-rearing, stress, substance abuse, or other concerns. The enhanced program allows for up to 6 sessions with a counselor or therapist. If additional contact is necessary, continued treatment can be handled as part of our health-benefit coverage, including possible deductibles and co-payments. All information about your use of the EAP is confidential.

We encourage you to learn more about this benefit. More information about the EAP is available through Human Resources.


What's Really Happening is produced by the Communications Committee of the Columbus State Education Association. We welcome your comments, news, and insights.

Steve Abbott, President / x5096
Karl Rieppel, Vice President / x2500
Amy Brubaker, Secretary and Association Representative / x5068
Greg Goodhart, Treasurer / x5431
Darrell Minor, Parliamentarian / x5310
Bill Mundy, Association Representative / x5176
Dr. Jane McDowell, Association Representative / x2656 
Dave Busch, Association Representative / x5079
Dr. Charlie Gallucci, Association Representative / x5499
Leslie Smith, Association Representative / x5302
Dr. Wendy McCullen-Vermillion, Association Representative / x2693
Lisa Schneider, Association Representative / x5124


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