Wright State University Staff Council Minutes
Wednesday, November 10, 2004
Present: Council Members: Mendy Beverly, Mary Healea, Joyce Howes, Patti Manning, Jennifer Rice, Daisy Stieger, and Susan Wehmeyer
Others : Allan Boggs, Rich Johnson, Tamara Jones, Bill Rickert, Ken Selm, and
Robert Sweeney
The WSU Staff Council met on Wednesday, November 10, 2004 , at 2:30 p.m. , in Room 267 University Hall.
1. Staff Development Day
Robert Sweeney, Director of the WSU Kettering Center for Continuing Education, talked about the Staff Development Day to be held on December 20, 2004 . This training day will be a combined event for the classified and unclassified staff. There will be a morning session and an afternoon session each of which will include the three topics of 1) Change, 2) Communication, and 3) Customer Service. Staff members can attend two of the topics in the session they register for.
There will be a one and one-half hour lunch held between the two sessions at
12:00 noon . Boxed lunches will be served. Dr. David Hopkins, Provost, will attend the lunch and will be answering questions. Registration materials will be sent out in early December.
Bill Rickert said that staff who are denied the opportunity to attend should be brought to his attention.
2. Web-based Performance Management System
Allan Boggs, Assistant Vice President for Human Resources, and Tamara Jones, Assistant Director for Employment Services, Human Resources, gave an overview of this system. The pilot program, using Performance Impact Software, started in July, 2004 and included several departments and about 10% of the workforce (190 staff members). Using this software helps managers go through the three-step process of performance management:
1. Set Goals. Supervisors and their staff can set strategic, departmental, and individual goals for the year, and staff can add progress updates on these goals through the period.
2. Log Events. Staff can log their training and results of that training, etc. throughout the year.
3. Performance Review. Staff can write self-evaluations and submit them to their supervisor for review.
The Performance Impact Software:
• allows for multiple raters' input
• sends reminders by email to alert to timing of evaluations
• gives developmental suggestions for raising your rating
• will do a formal survey for feedback from all participants
• is a secure system that can be accessed from home
• encourages on-going communication between supervisor and staff
• assists step 3, preparing the evaluation, by cutting and pasting from steps # 1 and 2.
Tamara distributed a Training Quick Guide for the Performance Impact Software to look over and ask her questions later. Feedback from the pilot program will be presented at Cabinet and Council of Deans meetings, and a decision whether to use the system should be made in January or February 2005. Once a system is approved, a program will be developed to train supervisors and staff to begin using the system for the following year's performance.
3. Health Care Benefits
Ken Selm, Assistant Director of Compensation and Benefits, Human Resources, gave a presentation on the rising costs of health care and its impact on WSU. Health care costs for WSU are expected to go up 14% for 2004.
Ken also said that the rumor going around campus about a 20% reduction in force due to these increases is untrue.
Rich Johnson, Employee Benefits Manager, Human Resources, distributed a handout about the cost share scenarios for health care funding over the next few years.
Other universities in Ohio are doing several things to deal with the problem of rising health costs:
• redefining and Increasing employee contributions
• removing spouses who have their own health care plan
• eliminating zero-premium benefit plans
• considering Health Spending Accounts that carryover to the next year and into retirement
• giving employee incentives for maintaining or improving their health
There will be no change in the current benefits or plan designs for medical, dental, and vision for 2005. Employees currently pay 7% of the premium cost. Since health care benefits and pay increases come from the same pot, employees will have to share more of the health care costs in 2005.
Effective on January 1, 2005 :
Open enrollment information will be sent out to all employees in the middle of November. Open enrollment seminars will be held in several sessions so more people can attend.
Recommendations from the Council were:
• to show the percentage of an employee's salary going to health care
• to provide information on the status of the Premier Health Partners and Anthem negotiations.
• to better inform employees about the increases in health care costs to help them become better medical consumers.
The meeting was adjourned at 4:05 p.m.
The next meeting of the WSU Staff Council will be held on Wednesday, January 12, 2005 , at 2:30-4:00 pm , in Room 267 University Hall.