1800 - Bylaws of the Staff Council

CONTENTS

A. Name
B. Purpose
C. Membership
D. Elections
E. Officers
F. Annual Reports
G. Staff Council Meetings
H. Subcommittees
I. Finances
J. Parliamentary Authority
K. Amendments

A. NAME. The name of the organization is Staff Council.

B. PURPOSE.

B-1. General. The purpose of Staff Council is to represent and advocate for board-appointed staff at the University of Idaho.

B-2. Specific. Specific purposes of Staff Council are:

a. To form or participate on committees, as needed, to study issues, problems, welfare, and working conditions of staff;

b. To advise university administration on issues affecting staff, including the submission of recommendations on behalf of staff;

c. To serve as a communication link between university administration and staff; and

d. To participate in shared governance, in partnership with Faculty Senate and/or university administration, to develop or revise university policies, practices or standards, and to advise in other matters where staff are directly affected.

C. MEMBERSHIP.

C-1. Eligibility. All full-time, board-appointed employees at the University of Idaho who do not have faculty status are eligible to serve on Staff Council. Staff Council members shall be released from normal work duties for the purpose of attending Staff Council meetings and performing related Staff Council responsibilities. This release time shall not be charged against their accrued leave.

C-2. Representation.

a. Constituencies. For the purpose of selecting Staff Council members, staff are divided into two constituency groups: Exempt and Classified.

b. Representation. Each constituency group is represented on Staff Council by one council member for every 50 group members or fraction thereof Efforts will be made to ensure state-wide representation.

c. Advisory Group. Representatives from administrative groups on campus may serve on staff council in an advisory capacity, without vote. This group may include, but is not limited to, staff from Human Resources, Division of Finance and Administration, and Faculty Senate representatives. Staff Council shall approve any advisory members by majority vote.

C-3. Term. The term of office for members of Staff Council is three years, beginning at the opening date of the new academic year. No member may be elected to more than two consecutive terms. Staff wishing to serve for additional terms can be re-elected after an absence of at least one year.

C-4. Attendance. Staff Council members are expected to participate in Staff Council meetings and committees. See the Staff Council operations manual for complete list of membership expectations.

C-5. Vacancies. Vacant Staff Council positions will be filled as quickly as possible. See Section D and the operations manual for vacancy and election details.

C-6. Change of Constituency. A Staff Council member who changes job classifications, resulting in a change of constituency, may finish the remaining portion of his or her term. Efforts will be made to balance the representation of constituencies in the following election.

D. ELECTION OF MEMBERS.

D-1. Election Date. Elections of Staff Council members are conducted electronically (or by paper when required) and results are presented to Staff Council in the spring. Elections may also be held on an ongoing basis to fill vacant positions as they appear. Those elected out of cycle will fill the position for the remainder of the year and start their three-year term at the next spring election. They will not need to be elected in the spring election.

D-2. Application. All prospective Staff Council members will go through the application process. See the Staff Council operations manual for additional application details.

D-3. Seating of Members. Those elected by a majority vote are seated as Staff Council members at the first Staff Council meeting of the new academic year.

E. OFFICERS.

E-1. Election and Appointment of Officers. Only members of staff council are eligible for officer positions. Staff council members must have been seated for at least one year to be eligible for chair and vice chair positions.

At the May regular meeting, Staff Council will hear comments from chair and vice chair candidates. Following the meeting, an electronic ballot will be sent to all council members. The chair and vice chair candidate with the most votes will begin their terms at the following June meeting. The new chair appoints officers to serve the same term. Officer terms are one year in duration.

E-2. Officers Committee. The Officers Committee is made up of the officers listed below. Detailed officer responsibilities and expectations can be found in the Staff Council operations manual.

a. Chair.

1. Calls and conducts Staff Council meetings.

2. Appoints officers and leads the Officers Committee.

3. Coordinates and collaborates with the president or president’s designee, Faculty Senate, and staff.

4. Conducts goal setting and execution of priority initiatives for Staff Council.

5. The person in this position receives a stipend.

b. Vice Chair.

1. Assumes the duties and responsibilities of the chair in the absence of the chair.

2. Works closely with and attends Staff Council-related meetings with the chair; prepares reports of recommendations on policy actions for presentation to the president.

3. Serves as the chair of committees, convening meetings of ad hoc committees, assuring procedures are followed and that specific charges of each committee are carried out.

4. The person in this position receives a stipend.

c. Past Chair.

1. Facilitates the transfer of leadership responsibilities within Staff Council.

2. Is considered an ex officio member of Staff Council with vote.

3. The most recent chair serves in this capacity whether or not their term has expired.

d. Secretary.

1. Maintains an accurate record of all meetings of Staff Council.

2. Conducts meeting attendance and maintains an accurate roster.

3. Collaborates with Communications Officer.

4. Maintains the Staff Council electronic records.

5. Sends annual report and minutes of meetings to the UI library for official archiving.

e. Treasurer. Maintains an accurate record of all the budgets and monetary transactions of Staff Council.

f. Communications Officer.

1. Collaborates with University Communications and Marketing to maintain Staff Council website.

2. Collaborates with the secretary and officers to create communications for staff and Staff Council.

3. Coordinates the compilation of the annual report.

g. Operations Officer.

1. Coordinates and operates technology for Staff Council meetings.

2. Supports staff in the use of meeting technology.

3. Maintains the Staff Council operations manual and ensures processes and operations are being carried out accordingly.

h. Elections Officer.

1. Contacts Human Resources to ensure accurate proportion of exempt and classified staff is represented on Staff Council.

2. Recruits staff to apply for vacant Staff Council positions and confirms applicants’ eligibility.

3. Administers election ballot and reports results to elected staff member, Staff Council and Committee on Committees.

i. Off-campus Officer.

1. Ensures off-site locations are considered during officer meetings.

2. Supports Elections officer in recruiting to fill off-site vacancies.

3. Helps coordinate staff-related events in off-site locations.

4. Serves as a conduit for off-site questions and concerns.

E-3. Filling Officer Vacancies.

a. If the position of chair is vacated, the vice chair shall become the acting chair for the remainder of the term.

b. If any other officer position is vacated, the chair will appoint a Staff Council member to become acting officer in that position for the remainder of the term.

F. ANNUAL REPORTS.

F-1. Annual Reports. Staff Council Communications Officer will compile an annual report. A preliminary report is to be presented at the June meeting of every year. The final copy of the Annual Report shall be submitted to the membership at the September meeting. Copies of the report will be sent to the UI library archives.

F-2. Contributors. The report will be composed of year-end summaries from each of the officers and committee chairs.

F-3. The Official Record. The annual report will constitute the official record for the year for Staff Council. The final copy will be kept in the yearly Official Record Notebook maintained by the secretary.

G. STAFF COUNCIL MEETINGS.

G-1. Regular Meetings. Staff Council will hold at least six regular meetings each calendar year. Staff Council designates the time and place for regular meetings. Meetings may be held using remote meeting technology.

a. Quorum. A quorum of Staff Council consists of half of the elected voting members.

b. Agenda. The chair is responsible for the preparation of the agenda and distributes it to the members of Staff Council at least one week before each regular meeting.

c. Record of Attendance. The minutes of each meeting will show the names of the members present and of those absent.

G-2. Emergency Meetings. Emergency meetings may be called when an issue pertinent to staff at the University of Idaho arises and requires an immediate Staff Council response.

a. Quorum. A quorum of Staff Council consists of half of the voting members of Staff Council.

b. Call of Meetings. Emergency meetings may be called on 24 hours’ notice by the chair or vice chair.

G-3. All-Staff Meetings. A meeting of the UI staff will be called when topics arise that impact all staff or general information is to be shared. The chair, vice chair, president or the president's designee may call a meeting at any time. The chair of Staff Council presides at meetings of the staff.

H. SUBCOMMITTEES.

H-1. Ad Hoc Subcommittees. Ad hoc committees will be appointed as needed. The Staff Council chair will appoint a chair of each ad hoc subcommittee.

H-2. University-wide Committees. Staff Council facilitates the nomination of staff for University-wide committees. The committee directory in FSH 1640 contains the statements of the function and structure of each university-level standing committee. Procedures are outlined in the operations manual.

I. FINANCES. Staff Council finances will align with university budget standards and structures. Annual budgets will be managed and coordinated through the university’s designee and Staff Council’s treasurer.

J. PARLIAMENTARY AUTHORITY. The rules contained in the most recent edition of Robert's Rules of Order shall govern Staff Council in all cases to which they are applicable and in which they are not inconsistent with these bylaws and any special rules of order Staff Council may adopt.

K. AMENDMENTS. These bylaws may be amended by a majority vote of the members of the Staff Council. These bylaws and amendments thereto are subject to approval by the president of the university or the president’s designee. RGP I.S.3.

Version History

Amended August 2020. Revised general purpose statement and specific purposes; removed specific procedures to a procedures manual; removed references to Staff Affairs; clarified officer roles, elections, representation and committees.

Amended July 2016. Staff Affairs changed its name to Staff Council.

Amended January 2010. Membership and subcommittees were revised under Articles III and IX.

Amended July 2008. Staff Affairs Committee removed the SAC acronym, changes were made to reflect current employment classification, and off-campus staff were given permanent representation on Staff Affairs.

Amended January 2007. The bylaws were amended substantially to reflect some of the procedures, committee structure, etc., changes since 2002.

Amended September 2002. Art. I and Art. II Section 1 were amended, and some minor editorial changes were made.

Adopted 1971.