IUB Professional Council

Business Meeting Minutes

Kelley School of Business, Room 3055

January 20, 2010

Council Members in Attendance:  Rob Aspy, Margaret Baechtold, Tracy Bee, Jennifer Chaffin, Martin Hadley, Maryanne McDonnell, Patricia Moser, Liz Peck, Suzanne Ryan (UHRS Ex-officio), Patrick Smith, Kelly Thacker, Greg Travis, Ed Vasquez (CWA Ex-officio), Dee Verostko, Beverly Vicker, Doris Wittenburg.

Proxies:  Kelly Thacker for Cindy Curvin Boyd, Kelly Thacker for Tiana Iruoje, Kelly Thacker for Paula Phillips, Shawn Conner for Michael Thompson.

Guests:  Christina Lirot, Astronomy.

Members Not in Attendance:  Craig Dethloff (Faculty Council Ex-officio), Christina Kuzmych, Eric Love, Patricia Reyes-Cooksey (Latino Faculty/Staff Council), Representative from Black Faculty/Staff Council.

Special Guest – Fred Glass

At 3:00, Vice President and Athletics Director, Fred Glass, spoke with the BPC.  VP Glass has just completed his first year with IU.  He reviewed his top four agenda items for his position and actions that been taken during the past year:

1.    Compliance

• Senior staff positions were cut by one third.  Resources were re-allocated within the department to add compliance officers.
• An outside auditor was hired to identify best practices.
• Meetings are held with compliance staff on a weekly basis.

2.     Academic Achievement

• Funds within the department were re-allocated to hire more academic advisors.  IU moved from 9th in the Big Ten to 3rd in this area.
• The athletic academic center is being relocated to the old football office space.  $3 million has been donated to upgrade the facility.  The space will also be made available for general classroom use.

3.     Athletic Excellence

• Coaching – VP Glass has established an open-door policy to enhance engagement with coaches and to encourage dialogue.
• Facilities – While it is true that we don’t have to have the “best” facilities, we do have to be competitive.  We will continue to build on the strong facilities we already have, i.e. track and field.
• Marketing – IU is striving to increase football game attendance.  Students who attend football games will be more likely to support the university as alumni.

4.    Integration with the University

• Kelley School of Business has been asked to take on the Athletics Department as a marketing project.  This will help both departments take advantage of resources readily available on campus.
• VP Glass continues to increase the visibility of the Athletics Department outside the athletic arena.

Question:      What are your thoughts on the 2010 NCAA requirement that associates student athletes’ academic progress rate and player graduation rates with coaches?

Response:    It is good that academic achievements and graduation rates will now be associated with coaches as they move from one school to another.  Although coaches already are concerned about the well-being of their players, this will only increase the level of care.

Question:            Why can’t IU fill its stadium for football?  Is it cultural?

Response:    There are some challenges.  We haven’t had an abundance of winning seasons, and we haven’t really made the investment in football that some other schools have made.  We also seem to be impatient.  It is difficult to develop a good program without continuity – our coaching staff has experienced a lot of turnover in the past.

Question:            What can the BPC do to help?

Response:    Come out to the games.  This year there were be some pricing incentives – 10% discount for faculty and staff, and youth ticket prices will be reduced from $18 to $5.  The Knothole Club will also make a comeback this year.

Meeting Minutes

Please note that in the November, 2009 minutes, under the section in Old Business, “Budgetary Affairs Committee,” a clarification is necessary.  There are some designations in the document (which was originally written in 1998, with an update in 2007) that could be misleading.  The document refers to “Senior Vice Provost” and “SVP (Special Assistant to the President)”.   There is no Senior Vice Provost, and there is no Special Assistant to the President who plays a role in IUB budgetary matters.  Thanks to Provost Hanson for making us aware of this.

A motion to approve the December, 2009 minutes as written was made, seconded and passed.

Old Business

Ad-hoc Committees, Campus Committees, Search & Screen Committees, Review Committees

What follows is a list of various committees BPC members have recently or are currently participating in, in addition to their work with the BPC:

Anti-Sweatshop Advisory Committee – Greg Travis

Budgetary Affairs Committee – Jody Vaught (Volunteer), Margaret Baechtold (Proxy)

Campus Calendar Committee – Cindy Curvin Boyd

Campus Childcare Coalition – Jonathan Bolte (Volunteer)

Campus Sustainability Advisory Board – Patricia Moser

Faculty/Staff Wellness Initiative – Rob Aspy

Fringe Benefits Committee, IUB Faculty Council – Jennifer Chaffin

Grievance Representative – Marty Hadley, Dee Verostko

Healthcare Commission – Rob Aspy, Debby Allmayer (Volunteer)

Parking Appeals – Paula Phillips

Review – Gerardo Gonzalez, School of Education Dean – Eric Love

Review – Bradley Hamm, School of Journalism Dean – Maryanne McDonnell

Review – Dan Smith, Kelley School of Business Dean – Liz Peck

Review – Blaise Cronin, School of Library and Information Science Dean – Rob Aspy

Search & Screen – Vice Provost for Student Affairs and Dean of Students – Margaret Baechtold

Search & Screen – Vice Provost for Faculty & Academic Affairs – Kelly Thacker

Search & Screen – IU Libraries Dean – Marty Hadley

Staff Merit Awards – Marty Hadley, Patricia Moser (Alternate)

Transportation Policy Advisory Committee – Jonathan Bolte (Volunteer)

Tobacco Policy Implementation – Eric Love

Traffic Task Force – Doris Wittenburg

Proposed Changes to Paid-Time Off Policy

A motion was made to send the White Paper to Provost of the Bloomington Campus and Executive Vice President Karen Hanson, Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Neil Theobald, Senior Advisor to the Provost David Zaret, and Associate Vice President of Human Resource Services Dan Rives, with changes as directed during today’s discussion.  Motion was seconded and approved by a unanimous vote.  What follows is the final copy:

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January 20, 2010

White Paper - Bloomington Professional Council On

Proposed Policy Changes to PAE Paid-Time-Off

The Bloomington Professional Council feels, based on the concerns enumerated below, that the proposed change in policy has a significant chance of placing additional administrative burdens on both employees and their supervisors while further eroding staff morale. Moreover we do not feel that the proposed benefits accruing from the change in policy will outweigh the significant liabilities.

Therefore we ask that serious consideration towards abandoning this recommended policy change be made.

Background:

Currently Paid Time Off (PTO) records for exempt (PAE, or salaried) employees are recorded in eight hour increments and are only accrued if an employee is absent for an entire work day – i.e. if an exempt employee works in the morning but is absent in the afternoon, that time absent is not deducted against his or her PTO balance.

A change to the policy has been suggested such that exempt employees record PTO usage incrementally such as by hours, similar to the current requirements for hourly employees. This, in fact, represents a reversion to prior university policy and is being considered, according to University Human Resource Services, for the following reasons:

• Directors and managers across the university requested greater flexibility for recording PTO in less than full days.
• Some PAE Staff themselves openly acknowledge not following the current policy by maintaining shadow time off records.

Such a change in policy would require that employees and their managers track time off at a much finer level of granularity than is presently the case. For example, it is likely that incidental trips out of the office would now need to be recorded and deducted against the employee’s PTO balance.

Concerns:

The Bloomington Professional Council has several concerns regarding the proposed policy change. They are:

                           Conflict with the distinction between hourly and exempt compensation

The policy change appears, on the surface, to blur the distinction between hourly employees, whose pay is metered on the number of hours worked by physical presence, and exempt employees whose pay is metered on work completed.

Exempt positions were created to allow employers the flexibility of requesting additional labor, when needed, at a zero marginal cost. In return, exempt employees have generally understood that their work schedule is a flexible one in which they are allowed the freedom to arrange conflicts between their employment responsibilities and outside responsibilities without penalty.

                            Uniformity of application

The policy changes as currently presented are vague as to which types of absences would require PTO record keeping and which would not (for example, medical appointments). Furthermore, there is some suggestion that the determination of whether an absence would require a PTO deduction could be left up to the individual employee’s manager. This leads to questions regarding both the uniformity of the policy’s application across the university as well as what policies and penalties, if any, would exist directing how supervisors are to apply the policy.

                            Increased administrative burden on employees and managers

The nature of exempt employment implies a flexible work schedule. Many exempt employees are in positions of responsibility and authority which require work in the evenings, on weekends, over holidays, etc. In order to provide fairness and equity the policy change would require an exempt employee to potentially record his or her hours worked outside the normal week day so that those hours could be balanced by his or her manager against potential PTO deductions arising out of absences during the work week. Not only would such practices contribute to the blurring of the distinction between hourly and exempt employees, but they place a significant additional recordkeeping burden both on the employee and the employee’s supervisor.

                            Possibility of non-compliance

As mentioned above, exempt employees often have duties which require they work well outside the normal 8am-5pm work week. However the policy, as currently formulated, recognizes only absences from the work place during the normal 8am-5pm work week. It does not recognize presence (physical or virtual) in the work place during times outside the normal work week (and to do so would require the effort outlined above).

Thus there is a significant opportunity for non-compliance, deliberate or inadvertent, in the breaking of the traditional understanding of exempt employment as one that gives the employer the benefit of calling for extra work, with no marginal cost, and the employee the benefit of a flexible work schedule. In particular, the employer can now continue to expect no

marginal cost to additional labor, but it is unclear if the employee’s benefit of a flexible work schedule remains.

                           Supervisory responsibility

Ultimately, the determination of whether or not an employee is performing his or her job completely and satisfactorily is a determination that only the employee’s supervisor can make. For exempt employees this determination is generally made based on mutually-understood duties, responsibilities, and expectations of the employee and the employee is evaluated by his or her supervisor against those expectations and outcomes, not against time on station.

Supervisors should be allowed the flexibility to determine through their own observation and with feedback to the employee (such as during employee evaluation) if the employee is meeting the requirements of the position. For exempt employees, mere presence in the workplace is not reasonable criteria to hold supervisors accountable.

                           Employee morale

The economic challenges facing our nation and the state are obvious and have been felt by all university employees in the form of budget cuts, elimination of employee raises, and uncertainty about what the future will bring. Employees have responded with supportive understanding that, in an environment of privation, sacrifices are necessary.

The change in policy represents an additional sacrifice by employees, particularly the loss of their power to schedule their work without penalty. As the necessity of the policy change is, at this time, unclear at best we feel it represents an unnecessary challenge to the morale level of a workforce that continues to make significant sacrifices.

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New Business

Update on Recent Campus Announcements

The following items from a recent budget statement could be of particular interest to professional staff:

• Consolidating campus purchasing offices into a single university-wide office that will serve all seven campuses.
• Requiring sponsored research grants to fully cover retirement costs for grant-funded faculty and professional staff.  Previously, these costs were subsidized from campus budgets.
• Requiring new faculty and staff hires to meet a five-year vesting requirement to retain employer contributions to the IU retirement plan. 
• Changing the formula for calculating overtime pay for non-exempt staff so that non-work time (e.g., sick leave) is no longer included.

Suzanne Ryan noted that the new five-year vesting requirement will affect new hires, beginning September 1, 2010.

Although some concern was expressed over the new formula for calculating overtime pay for non-exempt staff, several Council members were quick to mention that this is a standard practice in the corporate world.

Margaret Baechtold expressed some concern as to the dissemination of information on campus.  Again, the Herald Times received and published some information before it was distributed to employees. 

Outreach and Advocacy Committee

Beverly Vickers asked that the BPC approve a book drive for 2010.  A motion was made to select Head Start as this year’s Book Drive recipient.  The motion was seconded and passed.  The book drive will take place in March.  Beverly will provide further details as final arrangements are made.

Beverly also asked the BPC to consider a program for future events.

Committee Reports

Executive Committee – 1/11/10

The Executive Committee met in the IMU, University Club Library.  In attendance were:  Rob Aspy, Margaret Baechtold, Jennifer Chaffin, Patrick Smith, and Teresa Spiegel.  The following items were discussed:

• President McRobbie’s message to the university, delivered Friday, January 8.
• There is nothing new to report on the White Paper being prepared by BPC member, Greg Travis.
• An agenda was formed for the January meeting.  Athletics Director Fred Glass will speak from 3:00-4:00, and the business meeting will run from 4:00-5:00 p.m.

Ad-hoc and Campus Committees

Bloomington Faculty Council – Jennifer Chaffin

Jennifer attended the BFC meeting on January 19.  The following resolution was passed:

RESOLUTION ON SHARED GOVERNANCE

WHEREAS, Indiana University’s history of shared governance has been an essential element in building Indiana University into the fine institution it is today with a strong sense of camaraderie and shared purpose among faculty and administrators;

WHEREAS, the Bloomington Faculty Council firmly believes that good decision‐making by University officials requires continual consultation with faculty and the BFC, which serves as the elective body representing faculty;

WHEREAS, the faculty of Indiana University is eager to help university administrators make good decisions and develop responses to challenges that are appropriate and effective;

WHEREAS, the current economic environment will likely provoke profound changes at Indiana University and require important decisions with long‐term consequences to all parts of Indiana University;

WHEREAS, the current economic environment will also provide opportunities for positive change and innovation;

WHEREAS, in recent years, University officials often fail to consult substantively with faculty when making decisions that affect the pedagogical and academic environment;

WHEREAS, too often leaders within the Bloomington Faculty Council and its committees are notified of administrative decisions after the fact and provided information through the local media rather than through direct university channels;

WHEREAS, the present approach used by the administration is not providing opportunity to the faculty or the BFC to be consulted in time to have an impact;

BE IT RESOLVED, that the Bloomington Faculty Council endorses the following principles and calls on university administrators to endorse and to act on these principles in order to re‐build an atmosphere of shared governance based on trust and common purpose among all citizens of Indiana University:

Consultation: faculty should be included in substantive discussions of university and campus issues in time to influence administrative decisions;

Notification: announcements of administrative decisions should be made to faculty before being released to the press;

Transparency: faculty should be informed of the process that led to a particular decision;

BE IT ALSO RESOLVED, that the Bloomington Faculty Council understands that truly substantive consultation with faculty requires discretion and responsiveness on the part of the faculty and its leaders and pledges to act quickly on requests for consultation and to work constructively with our administrative partners.

Announcements

Due to re-structuring at the Cyclotron, Marty Hadley will be leaving the university in February.  In accordance with the IUBPC Bylaws, Christina Lirot, the Unit 6 runner-up in last year’s election, will complete Marty’s term.  We wish Marty all the best in his future endeavors.

The February business meeting will be held in Kelley School of Business, Room 3055, Wednesday, February 17, from 3:00-5:00 p.m.

The Executive Committee has invited Christi Jones and Alita Hornick, this year’s staff merit award winners, to a luncheon on Wednesday, January 27, at the Tudor Room.  All BPC members are welcome to attend. 

The 2010 visit to the Statehouse will be Tuesday, February 2.  BPC members are urged to attend.  Registration is available through the Hoosiers for Higher Education website at:  http://gov.indiana.edu/hhe/statehouse/index.shtml.

Nominations for our 2010 election will open on February 19.

Meeting was adjourned at 5:04 p.m.

Meeting minutes respectfully submitted by Teresa Spiegel.