Chair Hagerty called the meeting to order at 9:30 a.m.
Minutes It was moved by Rod Olson, seconded by Petra Hulm, to approve the August 29, 2011,
minutes.The motion carried unanimously.
Comments to the Proposed Emergency and Disaster Service Leave Policy The proposed changes to the Emergency and Disaster Service Leave policy were sent out to
employees for comment. One comment was received stating the person was satisfied with the
policy.
It was moved by Petra Hulm, seconded by Kari Landsem, to forward the policy to the
Supreme Court for consideration. The motion carried unanimously.
Proposed Changes to Code of Conduct Policy At the August 2011 meeting, the Board determined that section 2 of SB 2233 should be included
in the Code of Conduct policy. The language was drafted and inserted as subsection F.7.a under
Duty to Report.
Chair Hagerty indicated that Justice Kapsner sent her an email expressing concern about the
placement of the language. Instead of having a single subsection under 7a, she suggested
creating a new section 8. She said the statutory language does appear to impose the duty on all
persons but in context of our code of conduct, it seems the noun should be employee. She
suggested language for section 8 read as follows:
“Statutory Duty to Report Computer Use. An employee who has knowledge of or reasonable
cause to suspect that a child is abused or neglected, based on images of sexual conduct by a child
discovered on a workplace computer, shall report the circumstances to the Department of Human
Services or its designee.”
It was moved by Rod Olson, seconded by Ross Munns, to approve the changes to the policy
as well as the additional change proposed by Justice Kapsner. The policy will be sent out
to employees for comment. The motion carried unanimously.
Proposed Changes to PERS Benefits Policy Chair Hagerty said the policy has been updated to reflect the changes to the PERS benefits. The
policy is for informational purposes only.
It was moved by Kari Landsem, seconded by Judge McEvers, to adopt the proposed
changes to the policy. The policy will not be sent out for comment because the policy is for
informational purposes only. The motion carried unanimously.
Proposed Changes to Work Schedule Policy Amy Klein explained the proposed changes provide benefits for nursing mothers.
Ross Munns indicated one of the court administrators was concerned with the proposed language
indicating that the location must be a place other than a bathroom that is shielded from view and
free from intrusion from coworkers and the public. The fear they have is the issue of counties
being expected to provide more space that is already in demand and not available in all cases. It
was suggested that any concerns could be addressed during the comment period.
Chair Hagerty suggested that because it is a federal law, the counties would be required to
provide the same kind of space to their own employees so it would not be requiring them to do
something that they would not otherwise have to do.
Petra Hulm stated she is in favor of the policy, however she wanted to point out that federal law
only covers people who are non-exempt under the Fair Labor Standards Act.
It was moved by Rod Olson, seconded by Ross Munns, to send the policy out for comment
as is.
Chair Hagerty suggested Ms. Klein inform employees that the Board believes that in the county
courthouses, the space would be the same space as the counties provide for their employees.
It was the consensus of the Board to make a clerical correction under section D.1.
The motion carried unanimously.
Request to Eliminate Deputy Clerk I and Secretary I Positions Chair Hagerty recalled at the last meeting, the Board had tabled the discussion concerning the
elimination of the deputy clerk of district court I, secretary I, law library assistant I, and deputy
supreme court I classifications.
Rod Olson stated that after discussing the issue at length with Sally Holewa, the court
administrators have decided to withdraw the request. Ross Munns explained that part of the
reason they came to this conclusion is the philosophical understanding of the process the court
has adopted for hiring within the judiciary for these positions is to hire and then train. He said
that was the element that they were not considering.
The consensus of the Board to table the matter indefinitely.
Bailiff Compensation Chair Hagerty stated the Board has received a request to increase bailiff compensation from
$2.00 to $4.00 over the minimum wage. Some of the reasons stated in the request were the
infrequency of the work, long hours, and great responsibility at low pay makes it difficult to
obtain and retain good bailiffs.
Ms. Holewa indicated the fiscal impact of increasing the wages would be $27,000. She believes
the $4 raise is appropriate to make the wage more attractive to keep the bailiffs. However, these
types of requests should be made during the budget planning process instead of three months into
the biennium. She suggested the raise be delayed toward the end of the biennium.
Chair Hagerty said the raise could be delayed until July, however, the recruitment problem is
occurring now. It is not uncommon to send bailiffs from Bismarck to other counties because
they are not able to recruit.
It was moved by Kari Landsem, seconded by Ted Smith, to recommend to the Supreme
Court that the salary for bailiffs should be $4 over minimum wage.The motion carried
unanimously.
Expiration of Board Terms Sally Holewa said Chief Justice VandeWalle reappointed Ted Smith and Rod Olson to their
positions. Kari Landsem’s position will be elected by district court employees later this month.
It was suggested when possible, the Board meetings start at 8:30 a.m., rather than 10:00 a.m.