An e-newsletter of the San Antonio Alliance of Teachers and Support Personnel 

April 17, 2009

Come give us your input!

Tues., Apr. 28

On Tues., April 28, the Alliance is holding a meeting for Police Department staff on several issues under discussion in Consultation.  In order to best represent you in Consultation, we need your input.  All staff below the rank of Assistant Chief are invited to attend whether you are an Alliance member or not. The general meeting will be at 4:15 p.m. at the Alliance Office, 120 Adams St.  If you cannot make this meeting, due to your patrol shift, we will be available from 12:30-3:00, for those who notify us of their interest and the time that they can participate.  Please RSVP to 225-7174 or to sharonc@sanantonioalliance.org.  Topics on the agenda will include:

• Proposed 2009-10 staffing and organizational chart
• Summer schedules
• District policy on use of leave days
• Salaries

Staffing/organizational chart

At the April 7 Consultation meeting, Chief Ward shared the proposed organizational chart for the department.  The proposal would establish “flex positions” as well as a “power shift.”  The Alliance team has raised the need to have a system or procedure in place that insures coverage for campuses when a campus officer is out due to injury or other reasons. The "flex positions" may meet this need.  The Alliance would like input on the proposal at the April 28 Alliance meeting to which Police Department staff are invited. 

Summer vacation request process

At the April Consultation meeting, the Alliance team asked for an explanation of the vacation request process for the summer.  Chief Ward gave an explanation and said he was trying out the process with the sergeants to see how it works.  Ward said that non-duty days would have to be used before comp time can be used.  Toni Thompson from Human Resources said that HR is telling department heads and employees the opposite – that comp time must be used before non-duty days – because comp time has to be used within the school year.  She said comp time should be used by August 31 each year, and non-duty days should be used by the end of October.  SAISD Board Policy states that employees cannot bank more than 60 hours of comp time.  Ms. Thompson will review the leave balances with Chief Ward and will notify Alliance president Shelley Potter as to whether officers need to use non-duty days or comp time first.

Salaries

At the last two Consultation meeting, an item of discussion has been the need to have more competitive salaries in order to attract and retain officers.  Since we do not yet know whether there will be a general salary increase for all district employees, discussion has centered on how to adjust salaries working within the same budget the department currently has.  This issue will be a topic of discussion at the April 28 Alliance meeting.  Come prepared with your ideas on this issue!