The MRSA Executive Board has been meeting regularly (remotely) to carry on the core business of the Association. It has been very challenging, but we want to assure the membership that we are doing everything we can to move ahead keeping the best interests of the community at the forefront of operations during these challenging times.
With this in mind, and after consulting with a variety of staff across different areas of the campus, it has been decided to move ahead with planned Elections scheduled for this month. The rationale is the concern that delaying this process until staff are back on campus may delay Elections past the MRSA Constitution deadline. The President position is up for election this year and this role is financially tied to a specific department. Any additional release time (beyond June 30) would require notification and approval from that department and HR. We feel the need to move ahead with Elections with this key point in mind as the President position is a full time role and requires working over the summer.
A reminder that the roles of one (1) Vice President, the Treasurer and four (4) Directors at Large will also be finished June 30. These roles need to be filled prior to July 1 in order to have quorum to conduct business over the summer. Without these roles being filled, we cannot complete work as Association representatives.
We need your input in this very important process. Challenging times are ahead and we need strong voices and representation at the Executive Board table. There will be much work to do over this next year and you are encouraged to consider running for a position or nominating a candidate that would be a strong addition to the MRSA Executive Board team.
Please watch for information on how to submit nominations in the April 7 newsletter.
On April 2, MRSA President, Baset Zarrug and Mark Friesen, Director, HR and Employee Relations, met to discuss the Collective Bargaining Process. Due to the COVID-19 situation, it was mutually agreed to pause negotiations for now and meet mid-May to evaluate our readiness to proceed at that time.
We look forward to continuing to support and represent our membership in the year ahead.