Employee Relations Advisory Board Meeting

The University of Tennessee Employee Relations’ Advisory Board Meeting March 21, 2012 (10 a.m.-1 p.m.) Eastern

Attendees: Ellie Amador Linda Francisco Carla McMillan Tom Anderson Kelly Griffin Janet Miles Priscilla Bright Kim Harmon Jane Moser Tom Cervone Debbie Hunter Sherry Sims Rob Chance Dennis Jones Dianne Trent Jean Dake Courtney Maricle Karen Weatherly Joe DiPietro Jackie McClarin Judy Wilhite

Minutes

Dr. Linda Francisco welcomed the ERAB members to the meeting and introduced the new members:

Courtney Maricle, UT Space Institute, and Dianne Trent, Institute of Agriculture.

Dr. Joe DiPietro opened the meeting with an update from the legislature. This year has been one of the best years in recent history for funding from the State. At this time, it appears a 2 ½ percent across-the- board salary increase will be approved and funded. If so, UT campuses and institutes will have the flexibility to add to a salary pool and the flexibility to determine how this additional funding will be used. The President is working with the Chancellors on merit, market, and cost of living and emphasized again that salary increases are a top priority for the University. He also said that he expects capital projects to be approved faster than before.

Questions posed by ERAB members are listed below:

1. Veterans Day Employees have requested Veterans Day as a holiday. They know this idea has been suggested in the past and would like to know, given the recent increased focus on veterans’ issues (student, staff, and faculty), if it is something that could happen now; and if not, why? (Tom Anderson, UTK) According to Ms. Priscilla Bright, the University already provides two more days than required by Tennessee Code Annotated (TCA) and provided by the State. Although the University and the Tennessee Board of Regents provide the same total number of holidays and scheduled administrative closings, the selected days vary. Since the University already provides a generous holiday and scheduled administrative closing benefits, it will focus its efforts on other areas of concern. The approximate cost of an additional holiday for all regular, full-time employees is in excess of $2.7million. Employees can request annual leave if they wish to be off on Veterans Day. According to the UT Market Assessment conducted by Sibson Market Consultants, “UT’s combined vacation, holiday, and personal leave provide staff with more time off than the

1 comparison market and the general industry. Faculty are provided with longer educational leave than comparison market.”

STATE OF TN BOARD UNIVERSITY OF OF TCA TENNESSEE REGENTS TENNESSEE WHO 82.05% or more 82.05% or more RFT/RPT RFT/RPT

WHEN ELIGIBLE? Immediate Immediate Immediate Immediate HOLIDAYS New Years’ Day Yes Yes Yes Yes MLK Day Yes Yes Yes Yes Presidents Day Yes Yes No No Good Friday Yes Yes No Yes Memorial Day Yes Yes Yes Yes 4th of July Yes Yes Yes Yes Labor Day Yes Yes Yes Yes Columbus Day Yes Yes No No Veterans Day Yes Yes No No Thanksgiving Yes Yes Yes Yes Christmas Yes Yes Yes Yes OTHER Scheduled Administrative Closing Days 0 0 6 Days 5 Days TOTAL 11 11 13 13

2. Support for Volunteer Benevolent Fund Employees are interested in creating a voluntary benevolent fund for UT employees, similar to the Sick Leave Bank. What are the possibilities? (Janet Miles, UTK) Mr. Rob Chance discussed a UT employee who needs kidney dialysis; because she is going to miss so much work, she is soon going to be on leave without pay and will lose her insurance benefits. The Kidney Association has agreed to pay for her premiums, but they will not pay the part for her family. She can’t cancel the family plan because the State says it is not a qualifying event. The Insurance Office sees this situation often and suggests a benevolent fund that employees could voluntarily contribute to and would assist on a temporary basis. The Insurance Office envisions its being administered similar to the sick bank, and it would involve only money. The fund could be campus specific so that employees would be more likely to contribute. If 10,000 employees gave $1 a month, UT would have $120,000 a year for this purpose. This will be forwarded to the Benefits Advisory Group for review.

3. Annual Leave Employees have expressed their opinions about one benefit in particular they feel is unfair. It is regarding annual leave for non-exempt who must work 20 years before they receive two days of annual leave. Exempt receive two days of annual leave right away. How can the policy change to be more equitable? Even though the issue was on the agenda for the ERC meeting in January, constituents would like this issue addressed again. (Janet Miles, UTK)

2 The University and the Tennessee Board of Regents follow the same policies for annual leave accrual.

TENNESSEE UNIVERSITY ANNUAL LEAVE CODE STATE OF TN BOARD OF ANNOTATED TENNESSEE OF REGENTS TENNESSEE HOW MUCH ACCRUED Hire to 5 yrs 1 day/mo 1 day/mo 1 day/mo 1 day/mo 6 through 10 yrs 1 1/2 days/mo 1 1/2 days/mo 1 1/2 days/mo 1 1/2 days/mo 11 through 20 yrs 1 3/4 days/mo 1 3/4 days/mo 1 3/4 days/mo 1 3/4 days/mo Over 20 yrs 2 days/mo 2 days/mo 2 days/mo 2 days/mo Faculty/Exempt 2 days/mo 2 days/mo University of Tennessee regular, non-exempt employees also receive personal leave each year – eight hours for full time and pro-rated for part time. Faculty and staff are ineligible, and this benefit is not offered by the State or TBR. When added to their annual leave accruals, regular, full-time, non-exempts are receiving:

UNIV OF TENN ANNUAL LEAVE PERSONAL LEAVE TOTAL Regular, Non-exempt ONLY DAYS PER YEAR DAYS PER YEAR DAYS PER YEAR Hire to 5 yrs 12 days per year 1 day per year 13 days per year 6 through 10 yrs 18 days per year 1 day per year 19 days per year 11 through 20 yrs 21 days per year 1 day per year 22 days per year Over 20 yrs 24 days per year 1 day per year 25 days per year Faculty/Exempt 24 days per year INELIGIBLE 24 days per year

4. USA: Computer Professionals Update Act Does UT have a position on the “USA: Computer Professionals Update Act”? This act would essentially convert many IT administrators from non-exempt to exempt under Federal law. See http://www.standalone-sysadmin.com/blog/2011/11/usa-computer-professionals-update-act/ and http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd? bill=s112-1747. (Janet Miles, UTK)

Dr. DiPietro researched this bill, and it is still in the legislative process. If passed, the bill would amend the Fair Labor Standards Act to modify and expand the definition of workers who do not qualify for overtime pay to include a broad class of IT workers. UT will continue to monitor the bill and update the board. The University will continue to comply with changes to any laws related to this topic.

5. Career Paths What is the status of career paths for non-exempt employees? (Courtney Maricle, UTSI) Ms. Bright pointed out that numerous career paths for employees are in existence, both non- exempt and exempt. These existing career paths are generally in specific functional areas and may or may not exist at every campus, e.g., Facilities Services, the College of Veterinary Medicine, etc. There are other functional areas, both non-exempt and exempt, that are university-wide and will be considered as a whole, such as accounting and financial and administrative support. This university-wide effort will be established and is targeted to begin this year. The time to be completed will be dependent upon the availability of statewide staff necessary to work on this effort. Questions regarding campus- or institute-specific career paths should be directed to the local Human Resources office. 3 6. Group Health Insurance Employee Relations groups are concerned about health insurance. The health counseling provided to employees is proving burdensome. The counselors call employees at work and home and take several minutes to discuss health issues even with employees who have no major medical issues. Also, they suggest changing medicine. What can be done? (Jane Moser, UTK) Mr. Chance made the following comments: In February, the Insurance Committee approved ending the contract with APS Healthcare, the wellness vendor, three years early. The contract will be rewritten to expand the services required from the vendor with performance metrics clearly defined. The bid will be placed in April. Currently, ParTNers for Health Wellness staff will decide if a member should work with a health coach. They will look at any medical conditions or behaviors that might negatively affect the member’s health or cause long-term health issues. Health condition and behavioral information are based on medical and pharmacy claims and the results from your health questionnaire and health screening. There are two types of health coaching programs. Lifestyle Management programs help members form better health habits. Coaches can help with high blood pressure, high cholesterol, weight management, and tobacco. Disease Management programs are for people with chronic health conditions, such as asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), coronary artery disease (CAD), congestive heart failure (CHF), depression, diabetes, obesity, and musculoskeletal conditions like low back pain and arthritis. The doctor’s advice always takes priority over the guidance from the ParTNers for Health Wellness Program. The member may select either email or phone for the primary contact method. The phone number can be the home phone, a cell phone, or a work phone. This selection can be done by visiting www.partnersforhealthtn.org or by calling 1-800-253-9981. A schedule can be then be worked out with the health coach. If the health coach cannot reach the member after four tries, a letter will be sent to the member’s home. Then, it is up to the member to contact the health coach within 30 days. If a contact is not made, the member and spouse (if any) will not be eligible for the Partnership PPO in 2013. These rules are set out by the Office of Benefits Administration at the State of Tennessee, and UT employees must abide by them.

7. Policy Questions What is the review process for policy recommendations made by UT employee representatives’ organizations? The Knoxville-area Exempt Staff Council (ESC) recently submitted two recommendations to revise the funeral and bereavement policy to include leave time for domestic partners and parents of domestic partners as well as aunts and uncles. There was miscommunication regarding the roles of the Benefits Advisory Group (BAG), Compensation Advisory Board (CAB), and HR Policy Advisory Group (PAG). What committees review such recommendations and in what sequence? What is their charge/membership, and what criteria are used in their evaluations? (Tom Cervone, UTK) Ms. Bright discussed the question in detail: The review process for recommendations from a campus or institute commission, committee or council should go to the senior leader on that campus or institute. Please note all of these groups are advisory groups; they have no authority to effect changes. They do make recommendations for further consideration by the administration. BENEFITS ADVISORY GROUP (BAG) – This group has been in place for almost 30 years and is the only approval body of the three groups mentioned. This group is tasked with researching 4 and analyzing benefits program, policies, and plans. The criteria for consideration are federal and state law, University policies, best practices, research on impact, and cost/benefit analysis for the University. When this group is in agreement that it is in the best interest of the University, they forward recommendations and the supporting documentation to the President for consideration. If this group does not support the recommendation, there is no further action. Members of BAG currently are Butch Peccolo, Ron Maples, Mark Paganelli, Les Mathews, Judy Burns, Rob Chance, Mary Jinks, Katie Colocotronis (Legal), Priscilla Bright, and Jon Gushen.

COMPENSATION ADVISORY BOARD (CAB) – This board was recommended as a part of HR’s strategic plan and was implemented by Interim President Jan Simek in March 2010. CAB reviews and identifies best practices in total compensation; reviews UT’s compensation policies and programs and makes recommendations for improvement; is developing a multi-year compensation strategy addressing such issues as market, equity, incentive, and retention; is identifying long-term strategies and practices for improvements and identifying quick wins and successes for employees during a difficult economic period. CAB has been instrumental in the University’s development of a compensation plan, the Employer-of-Choice model, rewriting the University’s compensation policy, and instituting the minimum starting pay rate of $8.50 per hour for regular employees. The board includes staff, faculty, and administrators from every campus and institute. Members of CAB currently are Richard Brown, Verbie Prevost, Tony Ferrara, Tim Hottel, Tim Cross, Mary Jinks, Susan Martin, Toby Boulet, Margie Russell, Nancy Yarbrough, Jenna Wright, Scott Rabenold, Butch Peccolo, Linda Hendricks, and Priscilla Bright. HUMAN RESOURCES POLICY ADVISORY GROUP (PAG) – This group was also recommended as a part of HR’s strategic plan. This group writes new policies and modifies existing policies. HR Policies are reviewed by Human Resources Officers, Chief Business Officers, and Legal Counsel. This is an iterative process, and some policies may require additional reviews by these groups. After all reviews have been conducted and final recommendations are prepared, the proposed policies are sent to the President’s staff for review and disposition. Members of PAG currently are Judy Burns, Amy Caponetti, Chris Cimino, Kim Harmon, Mike Herbstritt, Janice Hodge, Nancy Yarbrough, Kristy Brown, Brian Lapps, Pam Quick, John Rich, Pam Vaughn, Dan Webb, Linda Hendricks, and Priscilla Bright.

8. Flexible Time Several exempt employees have expressed concern to the Knoxville area Exempt Staff Council about being required to work additional hours at night and on weekends with increasing frequency. Some have managers who permit them to “flex” out this time by scaling back their hours during a subsequent work week but feel they may be doing so against policy. Other managers do not allow this at all. (Tom Cervone, UTK) Ms. Bright answered these questions: a. Does UT have any sort of policy or procedure regarding such “flexible” time for exempt employees? The University does not have such a policy. Regular, full-time exempt employees are expected to fulfill a minimum of a 40-hour work week and such additional time as is required to accomplish their responsibilities.

5 b. Does HR conduct exit interviews with exempt employees to determine why they voluntarily leave? If so, is such increased work schedule expectations a reason that is often cited? Exit interviews vary by campus and institute. However, work is underway university-wide to institute a mechanism to record why employees leave the University so that these reasons can be evaluated for possible further action.

9. Flex Benefits With the Flexible Benefits Medical and Dependent Care reimbursement program, employees submit receipts of eligible expenses to the local campus HR Department to be submitted to the System payroll by the 15th of the month if paid monthly; or if paid biweekly, claims are due on the Monday the week before payday. Often the employee is waiting several weeks for the reimbursement. Please explore a debit card option as is done at TVA and Board of Regents. (Jean Dake, UTC) In response to suggestions from employees, Mark Paganelli, Ron Tredway, and Rob Chance have talked with several vendors about outsourcing the Flexible Benefits Reimbursement program so UT can provide a debit card solution. UT was impressed with their presentations and is issuing a RFP in April for a Flexible Benefits solution that includes a debit card reimbursement and several other methods. This change should be in place in time for the enrollment period for the 2013 plan year. Although it will cost an extra $50,000 per year, UT hopes to make up some of that through additional participation.

10. Payroll Deposits With today’s electronic deposits of payroll, why does the University continue to pay the December paycheck on the last day that we work versus the last day of the month? (Tom Cervone, UTK) Below are several reasons that the University continues to pay the December paycheck on the last day of work before the December holidays, according to Mr. Chance. 1. The University does not schedule paydays on holidays or days of administrative closing. The payroll staff needs to be available to answer questions from employees or solve any problems that arise on that day. 2. First Tennessee Bank, our ACH processor, prefers to receive direct deposit files two business days before payday. They do not like to receive them earlier. Depending on the calendar, the two-day rule would require Payroll Office staff to work over the holidays in years when UT is not already running a biweekly payroll during the break. Creating and sending the direct deposit file takes preparation time. 3. Not all UT employees are on direct deposit. Employees hired before April 1, 2000, are not required to be on direct deposit, and new employees need to have time to set up their bank accounts. To keep direct deposit and check payments in sync, Payroll staff and Mail Services would be required to work over the holidays to sort and distribute checks. 4. Many UT employees view payment before the holidays as a benefit. The University has been paying on this schedule for many, many years.

6 Update on Employee Engagement Survey: Linda Francisco

Thanks in part to the Employee Relations Board and committee members, the Employee Engagement Survey reached a record high of 61 percent. The survey, as promised, remains confidential, and open forums to give employees feedback from the survey are in progress throughout the state. Among the top statements are (1) My job makes good use of my skills and abilities; (2) I am proud to be part of this institution; and (3) This institution has clear and effective procedures for dealing with discrimination. Areas for improvement include collaboration, compensation, and communication.

Next Meeting: Videoconference, June 13, 9:30-11:30, eastern.