Library Employees Get Additional Week’s Pay
November 15, 2016 at 7:51 p.m.
By David [email protected]
Renee Sweeny, WCPL business manager, said, “If the funds are available and if the appropriation is left in line one, I basically look at the funds and see if it’s possible to do a one-time salary adjustment. The last time we did this was in December 2014.”
Looking at the finances and the appropriations, she said she did some figuring and it looked like the library could do a one-time salary adjustment for the staff this year. The board could decide to make the adjustment equivalent to one week, one and a half or two weeks pay for active employees, payable before Nov. 25.
“So it’s possible. Again, it’s up to you as a board to decide if you’d like to do this for the staff, and the most would be two weeks,” Sweeny said.
If the board decided to give the staff no salary adjustment, she said that would be the end of it.
Board member Rick Paczkowski suggested that in the future, any money remaining in the appropriations be split equally among all employees, regardless if the employee swept floors or was the top person.
“Because everybody was doing their job to make this happen. I feel that everybody just getting their week – I feel you’re getting paid for your job. This is excess,” he said.
Sweeny said she’s thought of that before.
“I will tell you where the appropriation came from was the medical insurance,” she said. “Because I always figure high, so that’s where it came from. It’s your decision. If that’s what you want me to do, I can (do that).”
Paczkowski said he was just wondering if it was ever thought about because that’s what he does for his employees.
In response to another question from Paczkowski, Sweeny said they can’t call it a bonus. “Your salary doesn’t change. It’s an extra (pay),” she said.
Paczkowski recommended a one-week salary for the employees. Board member Paulette Sauders made a motion to make it one week, and it was approved 6-0.
If the board didn’t approve any extra pay for the library employees, Sweeny said it would just roll over into 2017.
Another item the board approved affecting library employees was regarding holiday leave and library closings.
Library Director Ann Zydek said these were brought to the board on a yearly basis.
For 2017, eligible staff will be paid for 12 holidays, including New Year’s Day, observed on Jan. 2; Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Jan. 16; Presidents Day, Feb. 20; Memorial Day, May 29; Independence Day, July 4; Labor Day, Sept. 4; Columbus Day, Oct. 9; Veterans Day, observed on Nov. 10; Thanksgiving, Nov. 23 and 24; and Christmas, Dec. 25 and 26.
Sweeny said the library had been granting employees two floating holidays instead of Martin Luther King Jr. and Columbus Days. She recommended that they go back to giving employees those two days off instead of floating holidays because it would be easier to have set days off instead of tracking which employees had which days off.
On the following days, the library will be closing early or closed to the public, but staff will not get paid time off: March 23, staff development day; Sept. 21, staff development day; Nov. 11, library closed; Nov. 22, closes at 5 p.m.; and Nov. 25 and Dec. 23, library closed.
The board unanimously approved the holiday leave and closings.
The Materiality Threshold and Reporting Policy pursuant to Indiana Code also was approved.
Board President Barbara Beck said it was a new policy that the board had to approve in order to be compliant with the state.
Sweeny told the board, “A week or so ago, I did a webinar with the State Board of Accounts and this was part of it. There was a directive that came from the state examiner. Basically, what this is doing, we do some of this already, but if someone steals from us or there is shortage ... it has to be reported to us.”
There’s a form that has to be filled out, and it must be reported to the police department if appropriate, she said.
If the library doesn’t have the policy and the policy doesn’t state a dollar amount, then even a dime would have to be reported to the state, Sweeny explained.
The library’s policy states that “cash in excess of $500 per occurrence” and “non-cash items in excess of $2,000 per occurrence based on estimated market value” have to be reported to the State Board of Accounts.
Before it approved the WCPL Internet Acceptable Use Policy during its regular meeting, the board had to have a special public hearing to review. No members of the public attended.
Assistant Director Joni Brookins said nothing in the policy has changed, but the public hearing had to be held anyway in case someone from the public wants to comment on it.
“We’ve not made any changes in two to three years, and we’ve not had any problems with it,” she said.
The board approved the policy during its regular meeting.
Later, Brookins reported the library has started looking into replacing or upgrading its self-checkout units as they are “dying.” The downstairs unit won’t take payments for fines, and the upstairs might go anytime, she said.
They won’t be updated or replaced for at least a year, however, because there’s no money built into next year’s budget.
As for the library’s 3D printer, Brookins reported, “We’re in the process of ordering our 3D printer.”
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Renee Sweeny, WCPL business manager, said, “If the funds are available and if the appropriation is left in line one, I basically look at the funds and see if it’s possible to do a one-time salary adjustment. The last time we did this was in December 2014.”
Looking at the finances and the appropriations, she said she did some figuring and it looked like the library could do a one-time salary adjustment for the staff this year. The board could decide to make the adjustment equivalent to one week, one and a half or two weeks pay for active employees, payable before Nov. 25.
“So it’s possible. Again, it’s up to you as a board to decide if you’d like to do this for the staff, and the most would be two weeks,” Sweeny said.
If the board decided to give the staff no salary adjustment, she said that would be the end of it.
Board member Rick Paczkowski suggested that in the future, any money remaining in the appropriations be split equally among all employees, regardless if the employee swept floors or was the top person.
“Because everybody was doing their job to make this happen. I feel that everybody just getting their week – I feel you’re getting paid for your job. This is excess,” he said.
Sweeny said she’s thought of that before.
“I will tell you where the appropriation came from was the medical insurance,” she said. “Because I always figure high, so that’s where it came from. It’s your decision. If that’s what you want me to do, I can (do that).”
Paczkowski said he was just wondering if it was ever thought about because that’s what he does for his employees.
In response to another question from Paczkowski, Sweeny said they can’t call it a bonus. “Your salary doesn’t change. It’s an extra (pay),” she said.
Paczkowski recommended a one-week salary for the employees. Board member Paulette Sauders made a motion to make it one week, and it was approved 6-0.
If the board didn’t approve any extra pay for the library employees, Sweeny said it would just roll over into 2017.
Another item the board approved affecting library employees was regarding holiday leave and library closings.
Library Director Ann Zydek said these were brought to the board on a yearly basis.
For 2017, eligible staff will be paid for 12 holidays, including New Year’s Day, observed on Jan. 2; Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Jan. 16; Presidents Day, Feb. 20; Memorial Day, May 29; Independence Day, July 4; Labor Day, Sept. 4; Columbus Day, Oct. 9; Veterans Day, observed on Nov. 10; Thanksgiving, Nov. 23 and 24; and Christmas, Dec. 25 and 26.
Sweeny said the library had been granting employees two floating holidays instead of Martin Luther King Jr. and Columbus Days. She recommended that they go back to giving employees those two days off instead of floating holidays because it would be easier to have set days off instead of tracking which employees had which days off.
On the following days, the library will be closing early or closed to the public, but staff will not get paid time off: March 23, staff development day; Sept. 21, staff development day; Nov. 11, library closed; Nov. 22, closes at 5 p.m.; and Nov. 25 and Dec. 23, library closed.
The board unanimously approved the holiday leave and closings.
The Materiality Threshold and Reporting Policy pursuant to Indiana Code also was approved.
Board President Barbara Beck said it was a new policy that the board had to approve in order to be compliant with the state.
Sweeny told the board, “A week or so ago, I did a webinar with the State Board of Accounts and this was part of it. There was a directive that came from the state examiner. Basically, what this is doing, we do some of this already, but if someone steals from us or there is shortage ... it has to be reported to us.”
There’s a form that has to be filled out, and it must be reported to the police department if appropriate, she said.
If the library doesn’t have the policy and the policy doesn’t state a dollar amount, then even a dime would have to be reported to the state, Sweeny explained.
The library’s policy states that “cash in excess of $500 per occurrence” and “non-cash items in excess of $2,000 per occurrence based on estimated market value” have to be reported to the State Board of Accounts.
Before it approved the WCPL Internet Acceptable Use Policy during its regular meeting, the board had to have a special public hearing to review. No members of the public attended.
Assistant Director Joni Brookins said nothing in the policy has changed, but the public hearing had to be held anyway in case someone from the public wants to comment on it.
“We’ve not made any changes in two to three years, and we’ve not had any problems with it,” she said.
The board approved the policy during its regular meeting.
Later, Brookins reported the library has started looking into replacing or upgrading its self-checkout units as they are “dying.” The downstairs unit won’t take payments for fines, and the upstairs might go anytime, she said.
They won’t be updated or replaced for at least a year, however, because there’s no money built into next year’s budget.
As for the library’s 3D printer, Brookins reported, “We’re in the process of ordering our 3D printer.”
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