P&S Annual General Meeting for 2009
January 21, 2010, 11:00: Main Auditorium
Stu Austen introduced the outgoing PSRC members and thanked them for their contribution. He noted that the existing committee would be dissolved and a new one elected as dictated by the constitution. Two members had participated in two other Human Resources initiatives during the past year and each spoke of the work done by the respective committees. John Drozdoff continued to sit as a member of the Succession Planning Committee that had a short term goal of identifying individuals who performed functions critical to TRIUMF’s operation and who might be leaving within two years. This was ongoing work to be performed regularly and was probably best tied to the annual PPR process. The problems created by these individuals leaving were often difficult to resolve, compounded by the fact that many workers themselves did not know their plans with more than a year’s horizon. Colin Morton then spoke of his work with a TRIUMF Mentoring Program in which volunteers provided career and professional support to matched candidates. A pilot program for this program will probably begin soon.
Stu opened the floor to any members who had questions or issues to raise, noting he had deliberately chosen not to have a guest speaker for the meeting so as to allow more time for this type of discussion. He felt that the coming year would offer more challenges than the past one as the Five Year Plan and its associated funding levels would be known soon. Questions were raised about changes in vacation policy as well as site requirements to become a Nuclear Energy Worker. It was recognized that both these matters were under review but details were not known.
In response to a question about step increases he noted they were never automatic, despite what some people might have thought.
The minutes of the previous year’s AGM were approved.
An earlier call for new PSRC members to replace the dissolved 2009 Committee had resulted in two names, Doug Preddy and Jennifer Kaban, who accepted their nominations. Other previous members agreed to participate in their earlier roles.
Stu also noted that TRIUMF is a more challenging place to work than ever before. Multiple projects compete for resources, both technical and administrative, and schedules slip and slide for a wide variety of reasons. He urged the membership to keep perspective, for their work contributes greatly to the success of the lab.
The meeting adjourned at 11:30.