MINUTES – April 13, 2005

Minutes of the Regular Meeting of the Association held on Wed., April 13, 2005, at the Renaissance Hotel in downtown Asheville.  Should you have any questions, comments or corrections, please contact Bridget Downey PHR.

Business Meeting:

Carolyn Worthington, chapter president, welcomed everyone to the meeting and asked members and guests to introduce themselves.  She thanked Karen Ballard and Rachel Bemis for presenting the New Member Orientation.

Diane Bailey-Brooks introduced this month’s featured vendor, Phil Monk, program director of the Mountain Area Workforce Development Board.  This group is a collaboration of area business leaders that was begun in 1998 to help facilitate workforce education, training and development.  They serve four counties; Buncombe, Henderson, Madison, and Transylvania.  They partner with the Joblink Career Centers, the Employment Security Commission, Vocational Rehab, the Department of Social Services Work First, the NC Services for the Blind, and the community colleges.   They assist job seekers in career development services, and provide extra assistance for workers dislocated due to foreign trade, long-term unemployed, and the underemployed.  This includes tuition assistance for up to two years.  A new program being developed is the implementation of the Work Keys assessments.  They help evaluate skills in nine different areas.  Career readiness certification provides tests of applicant skill levels and other pre-employment tests.

There will be a manufacturing breakfast at the Holiday Inn Sunspree on April 27, 2005 to help determine workforce needs in manufacturing in our area. 

Door prizes were won by Susan Russell, Sally Allison, Donna Cator, Bridget Downey, and Don Koppenheimer.

Announcements:

The May meeting of the WNCHRA will feature a 2 ½ hour program on HR Legal Updates and Trends.  Registration begins at 9:45 am and the workshop starts at 10:00 am.  The lunch on that date will be from 12:30 pm – 1:15 pm.  The panel will include George May, Penny Wofford, Lisa Claxton, and Jonathan Yarborough.  Members can take advantage of the entire event and luncheon for the regular meeting fee of $16.00.  This program qualifies for HRCI recertification credits.

Our June meeting will spotlight the benefits of humor in the workplace and will feature George Fleming, a graduate of the Hyena Comedy Institute in California.

Carolyn reminded members that they get out of the organization what they put into it, and encouraged members to become involved with one of our committees.

If anyone is not receiving e-mail notifications of each month’s programs, please contact Mike Neely or Carolyn Worthington.

The national SHRM has school funds available to pay for the certification tests and study guides.  They also have scholarships available for undergraduate and graduate students.

We currently have a number of job openings posted on our web site.  Anyone looking for a position is encouraged to visit the site.

Program Highlights:

Carol Rovello introduced Johnny Lee of Peace @ Work.  Johnny was a former victim services coordinator and is a specialist in the area of workplace violence.  His recent study has been published as a book, “Addressing Domestic Violence in the Workplace”.

Businesses lose an estimated $727.8 million in productivity annually because of intimate partner violence.  When a victim leaves an abusive partner, the workplace may be the only place the assailant can locate and harm the victim.  This puts the entire workforce at risk.  In North Carolina, 75% of all female occupational homicides (non-robbery) are committed by ex-partners.

Johnny Lee’s handout included a model policy and an implementation plan that can be adapted to our businesses.  His presentation focused on crime and violence prevention, and described ways to recognize early signs of problems, security measures to take, preventive measures, and a long list of resources. The Peace @ Work web site is a wealth of informtion for employers to help develop action plans that could prevent serious incidents.

Johnny noted that, although employers seldom see overt signs of violence, some of the early warning signs include veiled threats to supervisors.  Often the same individuals who make these veiled threats also make overt threats to other employees.  Employers must make it clear to the entire workforce that they can do something to help prevent violence, but they have to know about it first. 

General assembly of North Carolina Session Law 2004-165 is an An act to establish civil no-contact orders for the protection of employees from workplace violence.  Employers must file for these restraining orders, violation of which carry civil charges.  The victim must be told you are getting the restraining order, and if he/she refuses, you will not be able to proceed.  Employees must be given time off from work to get a restraining order, and are eligible for unemployment benefits if they are unable to work.

Johnny Lee recommended a book by Gavin Debecker, The Gift of Fear.  In this book the author notes that a restraining order often creates a bond with the victim, and builds a relationship, reinforcing the unwanted behavior.

Another helpful resource recommended was http://www.ncsavan.org/ the NC Statewide Automated Victim Assistance and Notification unit.  You can contact them by phone by calling:  1-877-NC-SAVAN.  SAVAN is a free, anonymous, computer-based telephone program that provides victims of crime with information and notification.

With no further business, the meeting was adjourned.