Employee forum committee discusses COVID-19 investigation and city hall

The executive committee of the UNC employee forum held its monthly meeting on Tuesday to discuss updates to the COVID-19 employee experience survey, a future city hall and changes to the budget of the forum.
Who is on the committee?
- The executive committee is made up of representatives from each of the nine employee divisions.
- The Executive Committee sets the agenda for the entire Employee Forum, which aims to connect employees and the administration of the University, advocate for all employees, and celebrate employee accomplishments.
What’s new?
- The executive committee discussed the implications of a survey sent to employees in late August to assess the impact of COVID-19 on their well-being. The report will be shared with the administration by the end of this week, forum chair Shayna Hill said.
- “I think people really want to hear about the stocks, especially because things came out in the report – people are still unsure, they’re worried, they’re stressed,” said Arlene Medder, the community garden liaison at Carolina.
- The committee plans a public meeting with the administration to discuss the report and assess the needs of all employees, especially staff.
- “What really stands out from the report, and from reading so many survey responses, is that staff feel ignored in both communication and decisions and that the University is focused on faculty. and students, âsaid Stephanie Forman, co-chair of personnel matters.
- The Employee Forum trust fund has been cut, program director Matt Banks said.
- âOur expenses are extremely limited and we are still continuing to spend on certain items: blood drive, professional development grants, a few other smaller items that have been listed,â said Ayla Ocasio, treasurer of the forum.
And after?
- A conversational town hall to discuss the COVID-19 investigation report among University employees, community members and administration will likely take place before Thanksgiving, Hill said.
- Discussions about the spring semester are underway, but without knowing how many students will be returning to campus, the committee is unsure how to advise.
- About 1,000 students currently live on campus, including some student employees. If the University decides to redensify the campus by filling single occupancy rooms, the executive committee will make recommendations to employees to adapt accordingly.
- âWe’re kind of dancing around the question, ‘Are more students being brought back to campus? âSaid Hill. âWe have to talk about it openly. “
- The Campus and Community Advisory Committee, which makes recommendations on how to get students to campus safely, met on Tuesday afternoon following the Employee Forum executive committee meeting.
- The committee meets on the third Tuesday of each month.
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