Minutes: September 2019

MINUTES

CLERMONT COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY

BOARD OF TRUSTEES

SEPTEMBER 16, 2019

OWENSVILLE BRANCH

 

 

Present: Tony Cardinal, Judith Kocica, Joe Braun, Tricia Lyons, Adam Bird

Absent:  Mary Jo Waite

Staff:  Chris Wick, Maura Gray, Leslie Jacobs, Theresa Herron, Melanie Smithey, Tracey McCullough, Andrea Brofft, Amy Buskey, Lynn Baird, Amy Vogel, Karen Kimmerly, Jessica Bell, Marcia Troknya, Lisa Breithaupt, Susan Geiss, Emily Wichman, Chris Rich, Kim Bowman, Stacy Books

Guests:  Patricia Pryor, Jeannette Nichols

Mr. Cardinal called the meeting to order at 6:01 p.m.

ROLL CALL:

Roll Call: Tony Cardinal, here; Judith Kocica, here; Joe Braun, here; Tricia Lyons, here; Adam Bird, here;

Mr. Cardinal asked everyone to please stand and recite the Pledge of Allegiance.

AUGUST 19, 2019 MINUTES:

Mr. Cardinal asked for amendments, corrections or additions to the August 19, 2019 minutes.  Ms. Kocica submitted revisions.

Mr. Bird made a motion to approve the August 19, 2019 minutes, as revised.  Ms. Lyons seconded the motion.  All present were in favor.  The motion was adopted, and the minutes were approved.

PUBLIC DISCUSSION:

On behalf of the entire board, Mr. Cardinal congratulated Ms. Vogel on her upcoming retirement after 38 years of service to the library.

Mr. Cardinal invited any public matters to be brought forth to the board.  The following members of the public addressed the board:

Martin Marx, asked follow up questions from the August 19, 2019 meeting regarding:

-the cost to taxpayers to retain Ms. Pryor as legal counsel.

-the cost to train staff on circulation software to fulfill his January records request.

-the payments made to Lead Clermont while Bob Pautke was a board member.

-the action administration is taking to address staff salaries.

Mr. Cardinal read the following statement:

In light of recent union organizing activity, the Board and the Administrative team would like to publicly offer our insight and opinion on the issue:

We strongly believe that having a union is not in the best interest of our employees, the library, or the communities we serve.  We have researched other libraries of similar size in our area and we are comparable in what we offer in terms of pay and benefits.  We have also researched the union and the results it has obtained at other libraries.  Our employees do far better without a union than the employees at the other libraries who have this same union, particularly when you factor in the dues that they want taken out of employees’ paychecks.  Most of the union contracts that we have seen have only 1% or 2% raises.  When you consider that the union also takes 2% of an employee’s wages as dues, we believe a union would be a disservice to the employees.

In addition, we believe that a union contributes to an “Us” versus “Them” environment that inevitably leads to disputes and conflicts.  The presence of the union is already causing discord among the employees.  Having a union can often slow down or prevent resolving problems, creating further separation between the staff and managers, which we do not believe is good for anyone.

No job is perfect and we recognize that improvements in some areas are needed.  However, we believe the best way to make positive change and progress is to work together in an atmosphere of cooperation, teamwork and transparency without a third party in the middle.

We believe that we can work on issues and concerns together.  The discussions over the last few weeks have been informative and constructive.  We may not all agree on everything, but we are all interested in creating a great library for both the public and our employees.  We don’t believe that employees need to pay a third-party union a portion of their wages to be heard.  We are listening.  We are engaged.  We are ready to work with you.

FISCAL OFFICER’S REPORT:

Ms. Gray submitted the August financial report which consisted of: the bank reconciliation; the check register; the MTD and YTD Fund Reports; the MTD and YTD Bank Reports; the System Balancing Report; and the PLF Report.

Ms. Gray submitted Resolution R-2019-19:  Acceptance of gifts to the Library, and Resolution R-2019-20: Disposal of unneeded or obsolete inventory.

Ms. Kocica made a motion to approve the August financial report.  Mr. Braun seconded the motion.  All present were in favor, none opposed. The motion was adopted.

Ms. Kocica made a motion to approve the August bills, as listed.  Mr. Bird seconded the motion.  All present were in favor, none opposed. The motion was adopted.

DIRECTOR’S REPORT:

Ms. Wick discussed the Director’s report.

Ms. Wick recognized Dianna Sissel, Lead Library Assistant at the Miami Township branch, for her upcoming retirement after 30 years of service.

 

Ms. Wick shared a copy of the new receipt format that the library will be rolling out soon.  It will include the value of the items being checked out in terms of how much the patron is saving by using the library.

 

The board was invited to attend Goshen’s 30th anniversary open house on October 1, 2019 from 6-8 p.m.

OLD BUSINESS:

Discussion occurred regarding the August 2019 fine report.  The report details outstanding fines, materials and circulation totals from 1996 to 2019.  The ten-year average of outstanding fines is $79,982.  The ten-year average of outstanding materials is $80,264.  The average annual recuperation of fines older than five years is $5,500.  The library will continue to track trends on a monthly basis.

NEW BUSINESS:

With regard to Dr. Steele-Pierce’s resignation from the board, Mr. Braun stated that he and the rest of the board appreciate her six years of service to the Board and the Library.

Ms. Kocica made a motion to approve Resolution R-2019-19: Acceptance of gifts to the library: donations as listed.  Ms. Lyons seconded the motion.  All present were in favor, none opposed. The resolution was adopted.

Mr. Braun made a motion to approve Resolution R-2019-20: Disposal of unneeded or obsolete library material July.  Mr. Bird seconded the motion.  Roll call vote: Mr. Cardinal, aye; Ms. Kocica, aye; Mr. Bird, aye; Mr. Braun, aye; Ms. Lyons, aye.   All present were in favor, none opposed. The resolution was adopted.

Mr. Braun left at 6:32 p.m.

Discussion occurred regarding the by-laws and the replacement of officers when there is a vacancy.  A draft of the revisions will be circulated to the board for review by Mr. Braun.  The board anticipates voting on the revisions at the October 2019 meeting.

The board finalized the dates for the 2020 Board of Trustees meetings.

EXECUTIVE SESSION:
Mr. Cardinal entertained a motion to go into executive session to consider preparing for negotiations or bargaining sessions with public employees concerning their compensation or other terms and conditions of employment per the terms and conditions of ORC 121.22 (G) (4).  Ms. Kocica made a motion to go into executive session; Mr. Bird seconded the motion.  Roll call vote: Mr. Cardinal, aye; Ms. Kocica, aye; Mr. Bird, aye; Ms. Lyons, aye. The board went into executive session at 6:35 p.m.

The board came out of executive session at 8:14 p.m.

Mr. Cardinal stated that the board will hold a listening session for staff on October 3, 2019 at the Union Township branch.

Mr. Bird made a motion to adjourn.  Ms. Lyons seconded the motion. All present were in favor, none opposed. The meeting adjourned at 8:15 p.m.

____________________________________                        _______________________________________

Board President                                                                            Board Secretary

 

Date_____________________________

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