Image provided by: SEIU Local 503; Salem, OR
About The Oregon public employe. (Salem, Oregon) 1981-???? | View Entire Issue (Jan. 1, 1994)
— --------------------- ì Teams control budgets; decide by consensus CONTINUED FROM PAGE 12 cess. The teams have nothing to do with discipline and discharge. How ever, they participate in the hiring process of a new employee who will become part of their team up to the point of signing off on the personnel action. The teams build and control their own budgets. Decisions are made by consensus. The self-directed team en ables the people to take initiative,” said Mary Gustafik, a Mental Health Associate 2 in Friendship House. The number of teams has grown from five to 24. When a team is formed, the workers are required to take some training; additional training may be requested. Problems that arise within the teams, the formation of a new team, and issues involving more than one team come under the authority of the Self-Directed Teams Plan ning Committee, made up of equal numbers of Union and management people. “It is really, really impor tant to have the Union involved,” said Reese. “It’s important so that we on the teams know the Union is with us.” The Self-Directed Team Planning Committee in the Health Department is a refinement of the labor-management committees that have existed throughout Marion County for a number of years. The performance self directed teams will be reviewed an nually by the Health Department administrator and OPEU Local 294 President Chris Lord. The self-directed teams are recognition that workers on the front lines know what is needed to do the work and are most adaptable to change within the organization. They are in a position to more quickly recognize and respond to the changes necessary to meet the changing needs of clients or the public. “From the workers’ per spective, the self-directed teams are the opportunity of a generation to take control of our work lives and to gain the respect to which we have always been entitled,” said Schneider. A joint OPEU, Department project Employment mediation training will tacfcte workplace grievances and relationships In an effort to get a resolu tion to nettlesome problems that may not be covered by the contract, and to resolve workplace issues before they become difficult problems, the Employment Department and OPEU Local 471 have recently sponsored training on mediation. “This is some of the best training I’ve had,” said Margaret Neill, a Union activist in the Em ployment Department’s Beaverton office. “I’m on the labor-manage ment committee in the local office; this will make me more effective there.” Mediation gives people a way to get at problems that may be disruptive to the workplace, but may not be contract violations. And, since private mediators are expen sive, the Union'and the employer decided to conduct training in-house and develop a cadre of workers and supervisors who would be trained in its techniques. In 1992, during interest based bargaining, the Union and the Employment Department agreed to train a number of employees, both Union and management, in media tion skills. The Union and the De partment jointly chose the trainer and jointly chose the participants. One of the criteria established for this program was to have partici pants who genuinely wanted to make the workplace better. Eventually, 26 participants were chosen; about 80% came from the bargaining unit. Soon, they will be credentialed as mediators by the trainers. “The four-day training was like living in a pressure cooker,” said OPEU Local 471 Secretary Dave Cleveland, also of the Beaverton of fice. “But, I worked hard to get myself chosen for the training. “This training gave me the techniques and the tools, die questions to ask, that can be used outside the mediation process,” Cleveland said. “The mediation training was in keeping with the idea of problem solving and the parties’ interest to communicate more effectively,” said OPEU/SEIU Local 503 Organizer Helen Moss. “Die key is, the me diation won’t work unless people are willing to try it.” “I learned how to resolve disputes and improve the relations,” said OPEU member Bob Clark, of Employment’s Klamath Falls office. “Mediation will help problems get resolved before they escalate ihto grievances,” said Neill. “It will also give line work ers more control. We’ll be more like a partner.” Neill also thought the skills she has learned will be useful to her when she volunteers in the family court. There are some important rules that pertain to the mediation process and grievable issues: • All discussions in media tion are confidential. In other words, information gleaned in mediation cannot later be used in the grievance procedure; you can’t go through me diation and use information gath ered there against either of the par ties in the grievance process. • If the mediation doesn’t work out, you start al! over at the beginning of the grievance procedure. OPEU Water Resources president’s new job makes her first in the field “My Union work late January and early Febru has afforded me the opportu ary) can become a regulatory nity to hone my leadership hell for people in the field,” skills that I might not have she said. gotten anywhere else,” said Previously, in her OPEU Local 690 President two years with the Water Re Bernadette Williams. sources Department, Will Those leadership iams has worked with the skills have now helped Will Bernadette Department’s water use re Williams iams become the first and only porting and pump test pro woman Water Resources employee grams, resource management plan regulating water in the field. She is ning, surface water availability continuing to strengthen her leader group, and most recently volunteered ship skills as a Member Organizing her time and energy to work on a water Committee (MOC) member first as rights backlog. signed to the Secretary of State orga “It’s important to know how nizing drive. much water there is in the streams Working with watermaster throughout the state,” said Williams. and OPEU/SEIU Local 503 steward “We need certain levels to protect the Vern Church from a base in Baker fish, certain levels for recreation, as City, Williams will be regulating wa well as enough for irrigation, live ter distribution, enforcing water laws, stock, and domestic uses. We must administrative rules and agency policy, assure that there is maximum benefi settling water rights disputes, re-map cial use of that water.” ping irrigation districts, and conduct “I’ve worked hard atmy job,” ing dam safety inspections. Williams said, “but my Union activi “Water is a big issue in ties made my work more visible and Oregon’s future,” Williams said. didn’t detract from my opportunities “Sometimes overlooked on a rainy within the agency. Working with day in western Oregon is that the state management as a Union president and is in the midst of a multiyear drought.” steward has given me the chance to “All of this great sunshine (in show my leadership skills.” Page 13
