Staff Senate Minutes
January 13, 2011
Members
Lance Alexis
Mike Burnett
Mike Corelli
Keith Corzine
William Frady
Sheila Frizzell
Tammy Frizzell
Homer Harris
April Karby
Jason Lavigne
Eric Margiotta
David Porter
Kathleen Prindiville
Laura Simons
Scott Swartzentruber
Jeff Tatham
Walter Turner
Dianne Lynch (Ex-Officio Member)
Kathy Wong (Ex-Officio Member)
Erin McNelis (Faculty Chair)
Present
X
Excused
Unexcused
Comments
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
I.
Western Carolina University Staff Senate did not achieve quorum. The approval of the December, 2010
minutes and the January, 2011 agenda will be deferred to the February, 2011 meeting.
II.
Human Resources (Kathy Wong, ex-officio member)
a. Budget Cuts – The minutes from the last meeting (December, 2010) indicated that the UNC System
would only be facing a 5% or 10% cut. That is no longer true. The UNC System is now planning for a
15% scenario. The 15% cut means that jobs will be lost. We are sharing this information to empower,
not to frighten. The cuts will most likely take effect July 1, 2011. However, the cuts may come earlier
depending on several factors; the new legislature, the prioritization that is taking place here at WCU, the
persons within the positions, etc. The Governor will submit a budget, and the NC House and Senate will
work together to produce a budget.
b. Western Carolina University Shutdown – The University was officially closed from 12:00 pm on Monday,
January 10th until 10:00 am on Tuesday, January 11th due to inclement weather (significant snowfall).
Kathy Wong (Human Resources) is currently working on an email to address this. Employees will not
have to take leave to cover the time during which the University was officially closed.
1. All other time taken by employees is covered by University Policy 41 (Leave during
Adverse Weather Conditions). http://www.wcu.edu/25301.asp
c. Hiring Freeze – There is a soft hiring freeze in place. All open positions will be placed before the
Executive Council on a monthly basis. If a position is to be filled, it must be deemed critical, and the
institution must report to the State Budget Office, the Office of State Personnel and General
Administration explaining the criticality of the position.
1
Staff Senate Minutes
January 13, 2011
III.
d. Restrictions on Salary Increases – Raises will only be given if an employee receives a true promotion to
a higher position or a job is reclassified due to the elimination of another position.
e. W-2s – Employees will receive 2 W-2 forms this year. The first will come from Central Payroll and the
second will be issued by Western Carolina University. The forms will be distributed at the end of
January with paychecks.
f. Increased Vacation Accrual – There has been a slight increase for employees with less than 5 years of
service.
g. Change in FICA Withholding – For one year only the percentage held out for Social Security will drop
from 6.4% to 4.2%. This is for employees only. Employers will continue to contribute at the 6.4% rate.
h. Furloughs - The President of the UNC System has the authority to furlough until June 30, 2011.
President Tom Ross will ask that the authority to furlough be extended. Furloughs are a great way to
generate one-time reversion money, but will not likely offset permanent cuts.
i. Please send any comments or concerns you have regarding the budget to Kathy Wong at
wong@email.wcu.edu.
j. People are frustrated and fearful. Being thankful you have a job is one thing, but morale is another. Let
people know that you as a Staff Senate Representative are ready to listen and truly hear them. WCU is
not comparable salary-wise to many other institutions. However, the people that work here are drawn
by other incentives; alumnus, aesthetics, activities, community, etc. We as a Staff Senate need to talk
more about creating a positive WCU Buzz.
New Business
a. Chancellor Search Committee (William Frady) – The search committee is coming of out of its quiet
phase. The search firm has found 34 candidates. The committee feels that 22 of those candidates are
viable. The search committee will be meeting soon to formulate the 12-15 questions that they will be
asking the candidates.
b. Voting – This discussion has been tabled for the next meeting. The Staff Senate will then discuss the
election of new Staff Senate members for 2011-2013.
c. Employee Emergency Assistance Fund (Tammy Frizzell) – Please review the document between this
meeting and the next meeting (February 10, 2011). The Staff Senate will vote on the measure in
February. If the motion passes, the process of setting up the Development Fund will go forward.
d. Treasurer Position – The Staff Senate Executive Committee hopes to have a draft of the position duties
ready at the next meeting of the Senate.
e. The next Staff Senate meeting (February 10, 2011) will be extended by 30 minutes to allow for voting
and discussion.
f. Scholarship Committee - (Tammy Frizzell)
1. The Staff Senate Scholarship application is now available on the web.
(http://www.wcu.edu/12665.asp) Paper copies of the application will be available at
the One Stop Counter in Killian Annex. All applications are due at the end of February.
The Scholarship Committee will make a decision by the end of March.
2. Jeff Tatham will add information on 2010’s winners to the website.
3. The Yard Sale is set for April 9, 2011. Elizabeth Frazier has kindly agreed to donate the
booth fees for the Staff Senate. She has done so for many years. Thank you Elizabeth!
2