MEETING MINUTES - January 9, 2002

Minutes of the Regular Meeting of the Association held on Wednesday, January 9, 2002, at he Best Western on Smokey Park Highway. Should you have any questions, comments or corrections,  please contact Bridget Downey, PHR, our Chapter Secretary.

BUSINESS MEETING:  Meeting opened by President Terry Clark, SPHR

Guests and New Members:  Guests and new members were welcomed.

Announcements: 
Terry Clark expressed the chapter’s appreciation to Frank Pomeroy for his efforts in re-activating the Preferred Vendor Program. The proceeds of this program go to the Scholarship Program.  

The Preferred Vendor for this month’s meeting is Spectrum Office Supplies. They specialize in remanufactured copiers, saving customers 50% - 75% off retail prices. Their products are backed up by a 1-year free replacement warranty. Leroy Palmer, the Service Manager, and Harold White, the Sales Manager demonstrated their products and answered questions for the members. 

Business Discussions: 

Reminder:  The 2002 meetings will be held the 2nd Wednesday of each month at the Best Western located at 275 Smokey Park Hwy, Asheville, NC.  The one exception to this schedule is the December meeting, which will be held at the Deerpark Restaurant on the Biltmore Estate. The standard deadline to RSVP is the Friday before each meeting.

Luncheon costs are $16 for members and $20 for non-members.

2002 Dues statements have been mailed out. Members are asked to help us minimize costs by sending in their dues by the end of January. 

Terry Clark recognized Rick Cupp for his outstanding service to the chapter in 2001. Rick submitted the chapter for a SHRM Superior Merit Award.

Terry announced his goals for the year.  The goals include continuing President Ex-Officio Rick Cupp’s work and getting more membership participation in committees and activities.

Lorraine Poe, President-elect is working to have the September Conference set up by the end of July.

The April meeting will feature Dr. James Kirk and Dr. Carey Coghill of Western Carolina University’s Human Resources Masters Program. They will be announcing some fundamental changes to make the program more relevant for students.

Member contributions for our Chapter Newsletter are enormously appreciated. Contributions may be submitted to Lisa Claxton, JD, SPHR, our Chapter Legislative Representative or to Carol Rovello. This summer our Chapter will be sponsoring a booth at the 2002 Bele Chere. This will help us raise money for our scholarship fund and other projects, but support from every possible member is needed to make this work. Please plan on spending part of your Bele Chere weekend with the WNC Human Resources Association.

Program Highlights:

Terry Clark introduced the participants in our Roundtable discussion, Kris McVey and John Yarbrough of Edwards Ballard, and Susan Thompson of Wilsonart. The members enjoyed an update on legal issues affecting Human Resource professionals followed by a question and answer session.

Topics discussed included :

New court decisions on the Americans with Disabilities Act 
Clarifications on the Family Medical Leave Act 
Upcoming revisions to the rules governing exemptions from overtime 
State employee rights to sue the state in South Carolina 
Employer layoff responsibilities 
Ensuring that severance complies with the Older Workers Protection Act 

With no further business, the meeting was adjourned.