March 2015 Staff Meeting Notes

Meetings Notes

Kashmere/Lakewood NL Grouping

March 30, 2015

In attendance:

Melissa Ryans (Manager)

Jose Santoyo (Assistant Manager)

Dionne McLaughlin (Senior Library Service Specialist)

Juan Lopez (Senior Customer Service Clerk)

Twanna Wade (Senior Customer Service Clerk)

Latoya Chase (Customer Service Clerk)

Ann Perry (Customer Service Clerk)

Karl Beck (Library Assistant)

Dee Hunter (Library Assistant)

Pedro Fonseca (Senior Manager)

Not in attendance:

Cristal Nino (Customer Service Clerk, Part-time)

Topics of Interest:

• Staffing Changes
• Staff/CSD Discussion
• Notes from Managers Meeting
• Open Discussion

First Discussion: New Staff

• Jennita Thomas (part-time CSC) was promoted to a full-time CSC and has transitioned to Scenic Woods. The group will be gaining a new part-time CSC, Ana Santana, on April 13, 2015. She used to be a sub for the library and has already worked with a few of the staff in the grouping.

Second Topic: Staff/CSD Discussion

• Registration Policy: Everyone should follow HPL policy and remember that customers must present a valid/current government ID. We can accept the receipts given by the DMV. Both forms of ID cannot be expired. Staff should not accept photocopies of an ID or the DMV receipt. To verify address, customer must present address verification documents if address on ID does not match what is on the application. Address verification can be done with official government mail or a utility bill (both must be postmarked/active within 30 days of the date on the letter/bill). Customers can use an auto insurance card or a voter's registration card (must be unexpired). Staff should not accept any junk mail or self-addressed letters.
• An ID/DL that has been cut in the corner means that the ID/DL card is not valid. Staff can be a bit more lenient with computer cards but customers must still present some form of ID.
• Customers can place a P.O. Box on application but they must present address verification. Place P.O. Box address in mailing address and physical address on the second address line.
• Out-of-state students can use home address as physical address but need to present a document from the university to show residency to get a library card. Staff would use the temporary resident template in Sirsi. Card would be good for only three months and they would have to come in to renew after the card has expired.
• Staff is expected to know HPL's policy registration policy regarding library cards and follow procedure. Use downtime at the desk to review the policy or ask a supervisor for assistance if you are unsure about registering someone for a library card.
• Programs: In April, Community Engagement will be conducting ESL classes at Kashmere on Thursdays from 1PM-3PM. COH Health and Human Services are also providing ACA Navigators to do ACA enrollment for the public on Wednesdays from 12PM-3PM. Staff involvement is not required other than opening the meeting room and assisting with setting up/taking down for programs. Both programs have been added to the monthly schedule.
• Processing Damaged Items: Daniel Pillow and Fred Schumacher (along with COMS) created a process for processing damaged items returned by customers (Link). Patrons must pay for damaged items (e.g., written on, wet, chewed on, etc.) returned at the desk or through bookdrop. Check acquisition date and total number of check outs if unsure of whether or not to give customer the benefit of the doubt. Document decisions made in extended notes field.
• Remember that these materials belong to HPL, so if you do not charge a customer you should have a good reason not to.
• Staff should use their judgement, follow the instructions posted on the blog (Link), and refer to a supervisor if he or she is unsure of whether to charge a customer.
• Items on the Fly: Items brought to the desk for checkout that are not in the system are considered on-the-fly and should have a temporary bibliographic record attached to it so that they can circulate. Items on-the-fly are more than likely due to items that were placed as MISSING in Sirsi and never found, so they were removed from the system.
• Do not let an item "walk" out of the library with a customer. Process the item using the proper procedure (Link). The book must then be sent back to Inventory Control for processing up return to the library. Please do not send books that are in poor condition. If the item is in poor condition, discard it.
• Open Job Lab Training: Julia Bradley from Collier will be at Kashmere on Friday to conduct an Open Job Lab training. M. Ryans is working with J. Lopez and T. Wade to create an in-house training focusing on skills needed by staff to successfully conduct an Open Job Lab. M. Ryans will update staff with a date and time for training.
• Schedule: Remember that the schedule is a living, breathing document and is often adjusted based on staffing, programs, etc. If more time is needed to complete job duties, ask a supervisor if the schedule can be adjusted. If a task is missing from the schedule, please let supervisor know. Be aware that the expectation is that staff is using the requested additional time to complete the task. Sometimes the issue is not lack of time but poor time management.
• Kronos: It is your responsibility to monitor your timecard and inform supervisors of any corrections that need to be made. Please try to send emails regarding late/early/missing punches the same day the incorrect punch happened. If you are out one day, please send email the following day. Remember that no one should be accumulating compensatory time during the lunch break unless it is for a specific reason (e.g., supervisor calls you in for a meeting, incident happened on floor, etc.). If you are unsure of what time you punched out, view your timecard before punching back in from lunch.
• Reconsideration & Comment Forms: Reconsideration forms should be used when a customer wants to request that a book be removed from the system. This form can be found on the Intranet. Patrons should not be submitting reconsideration suggestions on the comment forms or positive/negative comments on the reconsideration forms.
• Comment Form: Link
• Reconsideration Form: Link
• Open Enrollment: April 15, 2015, is the deadline to re-enroll in your benefits. Staff is encouraged to update, change, or continue with their current selections. Benefit enrollment is ACTIVE. If staff does not make a selection, COH enrolls you in the default selections. Staff will be scheduled to review selections and enroll. Review posting on blog for dates and times for enrollment meetings across city and let supervisors know if you wish to attend.
• P. Fonseca pointed out that the COH default selections are the highest ones, so he strongly encouraged staff to make their selections before the deadline.
• Deposit Procedure: At Kashmere, the register has been over twice. Staff should be mindful of handling money. Do not leave money on the counter or drawer to be added to the register at a later time. All monies taken from customers MUST be entered into SmartMoney and placed in register drawer.
• Remember that three (3) merchandise category reports and two (2) cash drawer reports are printed each night. 2 Merchandise category and 1 cash drawer reports are sent to Financial Services.
• If there are no fines/fees collected the reports are still printed and sent to Financial Services. If no monies are taken, the collected reports can go in one envelope, which is placed in the delivery bin.
• Staff scheduled for deposit at closing should be assisting one another with deposit procedures.
• Payments can be taken over the phone but those calls should be routed to Central.
• All staff should review and know this procedure. It has been posted on the blog. (Link).
• Summer Food Program: Kashmere NL will once again be hosting the Summer Food Program. Several staff will be attending training for the program so that proper coverage can be provided.
• Branch Statistics: Recording statistics accurately and timely is part of your job duties. All questions count even if the same patron asks them. Staff should also be documenting all programs on the forms on the blog. Phone transactions (questions) should also be counted.
• HEAR Forms: All HEAR forms from JAN-MAR will be opened so that staff can make sure all trainings, programs, etc. have been documented. Forms will close on Friday.
• Breaks: Remember that breaks cannot be combined with lunches. Take a break before lunch and the other after lunch. Make sure that your break is only 15 minutes.
• Remember that you should be taking breaks when you are not scheduled for CSD or GREET/ROVE.
• Let supervisors know that you need to take a break if scheduled for consecutive hours on the floor.
• At Lakewood on Mondays and Thursdays, breaks should be taken before we open at 11AM.
• Breaks should last for 15 minutes. If someone is relieving you for your break, be sure that you return to the desk/floor once your 15 minutes are over.

Second Topic: Notes from Managers Meeting

• Staff Development Day: It is mandatory that all staff attend. Staff normal scheduled to be off or work an abbreviated shift will have their schedules adjusted. Will be held on Friday, May 1, 2015, from 8AM-5PM. Of course, there are exceptions (e.g., illness), but unless it is an extenuating circumstance, vacation requests will not be approved for that day.
• P. Fonseca stated that managers should email him if staff will not be able to attend
• P. Fonseca stated that staff that takes off due to illness will be required to provide a doctor's note upon their return to work.
• P. Fonseca stated that training hours will be given to staff the amount of hours is unknown at this time.
• .LMS Reorganization: LMS is undergoing a major reorganization. Fred Schumacher is now head of LMS. Esther Reyes is over Circulation Administration. Felicia Brisco is managing Frank and Meyer.
• GSD Updates: Josh Norris is no longer with GSD, so he should now be treated as an external customer with limited access (e.g., he is not allowed in the workroom or other staff areas).
• MY Link Stories: HPL is soliciting stories from customers for MY Link campaign. Staff and customers can use online form to submit stories. Staff should encourage customers to do so through the link on the website. Staff can fill out form for customers but please get their information so that it can be entered onto the form on the website.
• Incident Reports: Reports should be submitted that same day, so if there is an incident, please let supervisors know ASAP so report can be recorded and submitted. Please submit reports to me first for review – submit to Jose in my absence – but staff should know that if you are submitting the report you will be emailing the report.
• Will try to schedule training in April.
• If staff retrieve information (e.g., name) from a source such as Sirsi, the reservation system, or another customer, please document in the incident report.
• Do not chase customers out of the building. If customer leaves before police arrives, do not follow or attempt to detain them. Just document in the report that the customer left before the police arrived.
• Do not continue engaging a customer once he or she has been told to leave. Remain present, vigilant, and visible to maintain control of the situation, but if a customer is mumbling under his or her breath, cussing you out, or walking away, cease engaging the customer and allow the customer to leave. Continuing to engage the customer, especially if they have ceased listening to you, only angers them and gives them a reason to continue the harassment/disturbance. Document in the incident what was said and done (if anything). Do not escalate situations.
• Service Animals: Review blog posting and in-post links. Only dogs and miniature horses are considered service animals. Service animals must be harnessed, tethered, or leashed.
• Do not under any circumstances ask about a customer's disability.
• Staff can only ask TWO questions: 1) Is the animal required due to a disability and 2) What work/task has the dog/horse been trained to perform?
• Err on the side of caution and take a patron's word for it. It is not our job to determine if an animal is truly a service animal or not. It is not our job to determine if that person truly has a disability or not.
• Staff cannot ask a customer to remove a service animal from the building unless the animal is being disruptive or is not housebroken. In that case, staff may ask that the animal be removed from the building but must allow the customer back into the building.

Third Topic: Open Discussion

• New Statistics Forms Feedback: Staff has not been consistently recording statistics. Most staff forgot to enter the statistics on new forms, especially during the first week of its implementation. Everyone is getting used to them and feel like they still need an adjustment period. But so far, no one has stated that they wish to cease using the new forms.
• HERO and Discrimination: The Americans with Disabilities Act protest individuals from discrimination based on disabilities. It is not staff responsibility to monitor restrooms any particular customer chooses to use. If a customer complains about a transman or transwoman using the restroom, staff should speak with the complaining customer, not the customer using the restroom of his or her gender. If a customer is being hostile or harassing another customer regarding this issue, staff should intervene.
• Staff Alone in Building: Consensus seems to be no more than 15-30 minutes prior to start of shift. No one should be left alone in the building at closing. No staff should be on the public floor alone at opening and closing of building.
• J. Lopez asked if customers could have knives in the building (e.g., using to eat food). P. Fonseca stated that knives are weapons and should not be anywhere on property.
• J. Lopez asked about allowing someone to eat in the computer lab (e.g., diabetic). Consensus was that no one is allowed to eat in the computer lab, but if a diabetic needs to eat something to regulate insulin levels, he or she should be allowed to eat/drink on the public floor.
• K. Beck asked if we report incidents that happen off library property. M. Ryans stated that if an incident does not happen on HPL property, we do not need to do an incident report for it, but we should still call the firefighters or police to get assistance for those involved.