Operating Staff, 1931+ | Northern Illinois University

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Collection Overview

Title: Operating Staff, 1931+

Predominant Dates:1951-2008

ID: RHC/UA/07/

Extent: 8.25 Linear Feet

Date Acquired: 00/00/1970. More info below under Accruals.

Scope and Contents of the Materials

This series documents the activities of the Operating Staff and the organizations that represent civil service employees. In addition to Operating Staff Council records, the record group contains material from the Illinois State University Civil Service System (SUCSS), the Clerical Union Organizing Committee, the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), and the NIU Credit Union. In 1961 the Non-Academic Staff Council began composing and distributing a monthly newsletter called The Civil Word. In 1970 it was succeeded by People, a joint effort of the newly-christened Operating Staff Council and the NIU Personnel Office. In January 1995 this newsletter became the Northern Staff News. Issues of Northern Staff News and Operating Staff Council meeting minutes are regularly added to the record group. Researchers may also consult the records of the President's Office for further information on the operating staff.

Collection Historical Note

Beginning in 1905, the nonacademic staff positions of Northern Illinois University were regulated by the Illinois Civil Service Law. The State's basic personnel agency was the Illinois Civil Service Commission. This Commission supervised about half of the employees of state operated institutions. Exceptions were the employees of the Division of Highways, the Department of Public Works, and the offices headed by elected officials. Difficulties arose in the areas of standardization of job classifications, maintenance of job eligibility registers, fair rates of pay, and assignment of benefits as the number of state employees under the Commission grew from several thousand to twenty-two thousand by 1950. To address this situation, the State University Civil Service System of Illinois (SUCSS) was formed in 1952 by the state teachers colleges of Illinois and the University of Illinois. This system separated the nonacademic staff of the colleges and universities from the state civil service system as a whole. The new SUCSS was governed by a small Merit Board consisting of represen-tatives from the governing boards of the major universities. The purpose of this Merit Board was to establish and maintain classification systems and salary ranges for jobs. The Board also regulated civil service testing and assigned benefits. The SUCSS Advisory Committee was also established consisting of representatives from all the member institutions. Between 1952 and 1964 the director of the State University Civil Service System was a dual position held by the director of nonacademic personnel at the University of Illinois. In 1952 the SUCSS administered 5,956 positions in 593 classifications at U of I and the teachers colleges. However, by 1964 the SUCSS was responsible for 11,099 positions in 832 classifications at institutions all over the state of Illinois. In light of these increasing responsibilities, the directorship of the SUCSS was established as a separate full-time position in 1965. In 1957 the NIU Business Affairs Office created the position of Personnel Officer to take charge of all clerical and civil service matters on campus, as well as administer the State University Retirement System to academic as well as nonacademic personnel. The position's title was changed in 1965 to Director of Nonacademic Personnel, and again in 1969 when the Board of Regents changed the term Nonacademic Personnel to Operating Staff. Shortly after NIU established the position of Personnel Officer, a group of civil servants was elected by their peers to serve as the Non-Academic Council, with the Personnel Officer acting in an advisory capacity. The purpose of the council was to facilitate communication between the staff and the university administration and act as an advisory body to the administration on matters affecting the civil service staff. In 1972 the twelve-member NIU Operating Staff Council (OSC) was formally recognized by the Board of Regents in their "Green Book" which outlines the governance of the regency system. This recognition entitled representatives of the OSC to hold permanent voting seats on various university boards and committees. The OSC also serves as an advisory body to NIU's representative on the SUCSS Advisory Committee. The advisory committee makes recommendations to the SUCSS Merit Board on matters of policy, rules, and benefits affecting university civil service employees statewide. Unionization of civil service employees at NIU began in 1974 when the Clerical Union Organizing Committee started campaigning to establish a chapter of the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) on campus. AFSCME's ties to NIU civil service employees were not new. The union had supported workers during a two week strike in 1969. In 1976 the Clerical Union Organizing Committee succeeded in establishing AFSCME as the official bargaining unit for the workers. However, it lost this position a year later by the decision of a special election of workers. At present, AFSCME represents only a portion of the civil service classifications at NIU. The NIU Credit Union was created in 1958 for the benefit of all university employees. Originally, it was a state-chartered institution, but in 1969 it received a federal charter.

Administrative Information

Repository: Northern Illinois University

Accruals: Material from the Operating Staff came to the archives in several installments during the 1970's, 1980's and 1990's. Additions will be incorporated into the record group as they are received by the archives.

Access Restrictions: There are no restrictions on access to these records.

Box and Folder Listing

Browse by Box:

[Box 1],
[Subject Files 1: Non-Academic Council (1961-1969); Operating Staff Council (1969- )],
[Subject Files 2: State University Retirement System (SURS)],
[Subject Files 3: State Universities Civil Service System of Illinois],
[Subject Files 4: Credit Union],
[Subject Files 5: Clerical Union Organizing Committee],
[Subject Files 6: American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME)],
[Subject Files 7: American Association of University Professors (AAUP)],
[Addendum 1],
[All]

Box 1

Folder 1: Operating Staff History, 1931, 1957, 1972, 1996, 1998, 2000
Folder 2: Policies and Regulations, 1950-1970
Folder 3: Job Classifications, 1965-1978
Folder 4: Staff Handbooks, 1968-1978, 1981, 1984, 2000

Subject Files 1: Non-Academic Council (1961-1969); Operating Staff Council (1969- )

Box 1

Folder 5: Constitution, 1973-1983, 1989, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1998, 2002
Folder 6-9: Minutes, 1961-1978

Box 2A

Folder 1-9: Minutes, 1979-2001

Box 2B

Folder 1-3: Minutes and Attachments, 2002-2005

Box 3-5B: Correspondence, 1965-2000, 2003-2004

Box 6

Folder 1: Operating Staff Council (OSC) Photos; and photo of group which includes OSC President Andy Small, and Northern Illinois University (NIU) President John La Tourette, 1990-2005; circa 1999
Folder 2: Lists of Officers, 1965-1974
Folder 3: Membership Lists, 1988-1994, 1997-2000
Folder 4: Operating Staff Elections, 1977-1989, 1999
Folder 5: Operating Staff Council Election, 1994
Folder 6: Financial Reports, 1965-1998
Folder 7: Operating Staff Fund, Proposal, circa 1994
Folder 8: Civil Service Salary Administration, Report to the Board of Regents (B.O.R.), 1969
Folder 9: University Governing Policy Revisions, 1971-1972
Folder 10: Staff Compensation Plan, 1969
Folder 11: 37 1/2 Hour Week, 1977-1978
Folder 12: 4-Day Week, Survey & Correspondence; Correspondence, 1986; 1988
Folder 13: Holidays, 1976-1978, 1984-1988, 1992-1996
Folder 14: Civil Service Examinations, 1986-1987
Folder 15: Employee Performance Evaluation Forms, 1981-1985
Folder 16: Staff Development, 1979-1981, 1986
Folder 17: Racial Discrimination on Campus (Northern Illinois Unversity- NIU); Affirmative Action Statements, 1988; 1989, 1998
Folder 18: Outstanding Service Award, 1984-1986
Folder 19: Holiday Parties, 1966-1972
Folder 20-27: Operating Staff Picnic, 1979 - 1997
Folder 28: Staff Appreciation Event, Questionnaire Results, 1999

Box 7

Folder 1: Sick Leave Policy, 1983-1985, 1999
Folder 2: Smoking Policies, 1987-1988, 1991, 1997-1998
Folder 3: Salaries, 1976-1990, 1997-1999
Folder 4: Bookstore Evaluation, 1988
Folder 5: Holmes Student Center Food Service, 1986
Folder 6: Northern Star, 1981, 1986-1987
Folder 7: Ad Hoc Committee for Salary Justice, 1980-1981
Folder 8: Artist Series Report, 1976
Folder 9: Benefits Committee, Correspondence, 1992-1993, 1997-1998
Folder 10: Building Naming Committee, 1983, 1987
Folder 11: Task Force on Discrimination, 1987-1988
Folder 12: Employee Advisory Committee, 1985-1988
Folder 13: Employee Rights Committee, 1984-1987
Folder 14: Joint University Advisory Committee (JUAC), 1979-1985, 1992
Folder 15: Management Improvement Task Force Committee, 1981-1982

Box 8

Folder 1-2: Campus Parking Committee: Minutes, Correspondence & Related Material, 1969-2009
Folder 3: Campus Parking Committee: Huskie Bus Line Clippings, 1980
Folder 4: Campus Parking Committee: Parking/Shuttle Bus Survey, Summer 1992
Folder 5: Presidential Commission on the Status of Women, 1981
Folder 6: Sexual Assault Task Force, 1986-1987
Folder 7: University Resources Advisory Committee, February 25, 1986
Folder 8: Committee Reports, 1979-1986
Folder 9: Search Committees: Affirmative Action, 1986-1988
Folder 10: Search Committees: Ombudsman Review, 1979-1980, 1982
Folder 11: Search Committees: Ombudsman, 1985-1987
Folder 12: Search Committees: Presidential, 1978, 1984-1985
Folder 13: Wingfield - Presidential Inauguration Committee, 1985-1986
Folder 14-15: Open Forums, 1977-1986
Folder 16: Open Forum, Cassette Tapes, April 6, 1983; April 4, 1984; May 20, 1985; April 28, 1986

Box 9

Folder 1-10: Committee Appointments, Correspondence, 1975-1995, 1997-2000

Box 10

Folder 1: Civil Word Committee, 1961, 1966
Folder 2-3: Civil Word (Newsletter), 1961-1969
Folder 4-6: People (Newsletter), 1970-1994
Folder 7: Northern Staff News, 1995-

Subject Files 2: State University Retirement System (SURS)

Box 11

Folder 1-2: Correspondence and Related Material, 1967-1985, 1991-1998

Subject Files 3: State Universities Civil Service System of Illinois

Box 11

Folder 3: Operating Staff Council (OSC) visit to State Universities Civil Service System office; (Includes SUCSS Annual Report 1989-1990), October 30, 1990
Folder 4: Illinois Universities Civil Service Council, 1978-1984
Folder 5: Organization and Policies, 1951-1953, 1971, 1974-1975, 1997
Folder 6: Statute and Rules, 1973-1996
Folder 7: Merit Board, 1953-1955, 1964-1965, 1981-1982
Folder 8: Advisory Committee, 1976-2000
Folder 9: Handbooks, 1961-1971

Subject Files 4: Credit Union

Box 12

Folder 1: Annual Meeting Minutes and Reports, 1961, 1968-1976
Folder 2: Scope (Newsletter), 1963-1969
Folder 3: Change (Newsletter), 1972-1973
Folder 4: Bulletin, 1970-1979
Folder 5: Expansion Plans, and Operating Staff Council (OSC) Survey; brochure, 1988

Subject Files 5: Clerical Union Organizing Committee

Box 12

Folder 6: Organization and Minutes, June-October 1974
Folder 7: Handbills, Announcements, 1974-1977
Folder 8: Clerical Clout (Newsletter), 1974-1977
Folder 9: Clerical Viewpoint (Newsletter), September 1986

Subject Files 6: American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME)

Box 12

Folder 10: University Strike Memos, September 11-24, 1969
Folder 11: Union Strike Handbills, September-October 1969, April 1971
Folder 12: Organizing Committee, 1970
Folder 13: Bargaining Unit, 1976, 1977

Subject Files 7: American Association of University Professors (AAUP)

Box 12

Folder 14: Faculty Senate Proposal, October 12, 1987

Addendum 1

Subject Files 1: Operating Staff Council (1969-)

Box 13

Folder 1: Human Resources Survey, NIU, August 1994
Folder 2: Office of Internal Training and Development, Capability Statement, 1997
Folder 3: Convocation Center Issues, 1999
Folder 4: Printing Services Report to Operating Staff Council (OSC), 1999
Folder 5-7: Outstanding Service Award, 1987-1997, 1999, 2004, 2006, 2010
Folder 8: Operating Staff Dependent Award, 1999-2000, 2004
Folder 9: Staff Fest (includes photographs), August 2001, 2003, and 2004
Folder 10: Operating Staff Council Member Handbook, April 2005
Folder 11: Illinois Education Association (IEA) Union Organizing Activities, 2003-2004
Folder 12: Speech by Jay Monteiro at Outstanding Service Awards Banquet, May 8, 2008