Staff Infection in the Black Hole

STATEMENT OF PURPOSE: The implementation of Total Quality Management is a time of change at Syracuse University. To know how we will be affected, we as the secretarial and clerical staff of this university have to know who we are. We know already that as non-exempt hourly employees we number approximately 850, with 90% of us female who are earning barely enough to keep minimum wage from nipping at our heels. There is much more that we do not know. We hope this survey will provide us with the information necessary to generate awareness and render us visible, serving as a catalyst for productive dialogue and leading, ultimately, to a better understanding of our value to the institution. Perhaps this knowledge will enable us to see ourselves as an active political body on campus deserving of a voice; perhaps we will learn there is no interest in organizing. We need to know.

The information you provide is anonymous and confidential and will be used by us (non-exempt staff like you) to prepare a profile on who we think we are. The profile will be shared among us in order to educate ourselves about ourselves. Our survey is obviously non-scientific; please feel free to write more in whatever form you need to express yourself. Finally, should you want to pursue some of these issues further, don’t hesitate to contact us.

Please fax your survey to 452-5399 or mail in care of the Alternative Orange, 126 Schine.

PERSONAL DATA:

Age

Marital Status(M/S)

No. of Dependents

Their Ages

Your Title

Grade

How long have you been employed at SU?

How long have you been in your current position?

How many positions have you held at SU?

Do you or your spouse use your remitted tuition benefit? Are you matriculated in a degree program?

Do your dependents use your dependent tuition benefit? Are they full- or part-time students?

Are they at SU or at a reciprocal exchange school?

WORK ENVIRONMENT: Does your work area have: windows?(do they work?) adequate ventilation? adequate heat and a/c? sufficient privacy? adequate equipment? easy access to rest rooms? food facilities? break area? copy machine and/or printer? cloak room?

Is your office adequately staffed?

WORK SATISFACTION: How many supervisors do you answer to in performing your job?

Do you feel that the job performance evaluations are accurate and fair?

Are you evaluated by the person you actually work for?

How many faculty and administrators look to you as their primary source of clerical support?

Do you perform academic advising duties?

Are you responsible for the typing of grant proposals? Are you paid extra for these services if grants are awarded?

Has the university’s raise system taught you fractions you never knew existed?

Would you recommend SU as an employer? Why or why not?

Do you feel that your present position provides adequate opportunity for advancement?

Do you feel that you are adequately compensated for your work?

SU offers one of the best retirement programs in existence (no, this isn’t largesse on SU’s part, folks; the law requires it), but how do you feel about the health programs?

Are you able to support yourself on your salary and benefits?

Do you feel a sense of community with your immediate co-workers? with co-workers in your dept? college? across campus?

Total Quality Management: Do you feel comfortable in your position as the university continues restructuring?

How well do you understand the chancellor’s mandate to the university community?

Do you want to know more about TQM?

ORGANIZING: Would you like to see the secretarial and clerical staff organized? If so, how?

Do you see a union as a viable option for us at SU? If so, would you consider an alliance with the existing union on campus (Local 200A)?

Would you like to meet with stewards from Local 200A to learn more?

Aside from the obvious reprisal (like job loss), what are your greatest fears in organizing as a visible body on campus?

Do you have an idea of what percentage of the country’s workforce is unionized?

Do you think more people are unionized today than 5 years ago? than 10 years ago?

For the same job, do you think unionized workers earn more than non-unionized workers?