To: Personnel Policy Committee

From: Nan Kern and David Trumbull

Date: March 31, 1998

Re: Personnel Policy Committee Meeting March 11, 1998

The Northern Textile Association Personnel Policy Committee met on March 11 1998 at the Best Western Lord Wakefield Hotel, Wakefield, MA. In attendance were: Tara Schultz and Mike Schwotzer, BF Goodrich Company; Mike Butler, Carleton Woolen Mills, Inc.; Alexis K. Paskevich and Irene Niemi, Dorr Woolen Company; Bill Caron and Jack Ryley, Engineered Yarns Company; Tami Boyd and Bill Noble, Intermark Fabric Corporation; Theresa Pepin and Debbie Bernier, International Woolen Co., Inc.; Cindy A. Letourneau, Key Polymer Corporation; Dan Brown, L.W. Packard & Co., Inc.; David Trumbull and Nan Kern, Northern Textile Association.

Worker Education and Recruitment

UMass Profiles ’98 was distributed to the group.

Department of Labor

A letter from the Dept. of Labor on the Fair Labor Standards Act—Textile Industry was handed out.

The OSHA “Cooperative Compliance Program” was temporarily blocked by the court. The notice appeared in the Wall Street Journal, February 18, 1998.

Information from the Bureau of Labor Statistics regarding employment statistics was also distributed.

Respirator Facts and Highlights, from OSHA, was discussed briefly and passed around.

Trade Update

David Trumbull updated participants on the Sub-Saharan trade bill that Congress will vote on soon.
[The bill passed in the House later that day. It has yet to be voted on in the Senate. NTA urges members to contact their senators in opposition of Bill S-778.]

Industry News

Nan Kern announced the NTA/AATCC Spring Technical Seminar to be held in Portland, ME June 4-7, 1998.

Interface, Inc. (Guilford of Maine) was cited by Fortune magazine as one of the 100 best companies to work for in the nation.

Next Meeting

The next meeting of NTA’s Personnel Policy Committee will be Wednesday, May 13 at the Best Western Lord Wakefield Hotel in Wakefield, MA. They expressed interest in having a legal expert tie the FMLA, ADA, Workers Comp and Title 7 together and speak on the legal pitfalls for Human Resource Departments. NTA will arrange for a speaker on one of these topics for the May meeting.

Americans with Disabilities Act

Devika Dubey, Senior Investigator/Attorney and Benjamin Nidus, Senior Investigator, both with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission were the featured speakers. There was much discussion during the working lunch.

Notes from talk given by Devika Dubey and Benjamin Nidus

· The EEOC enforces four laws, including the ADA. Guideline for mental impairment came out in April 1997.

· Disabilities can be either mental or physical.

· Temporary injuries like broken limbs do not fall under ADA and employers are not obligated to make accommodations for temporary injuries..

· Disabled person should not be treated differently than non-disabled one, except for the accommodation for his/her disability. The employee must tell his employer he has a disability. The burden then shifts to the employer to provide accommodation for the employee, i.e. machinery to assist him in lifting, etc.

· Workers Comp. injuries do not necessarily fall under ADA guidelines.

· If it is determined that an employee is disabled, the employer must make reasonable accommodation for employee. If the accommodation proves prohibitively expensive, the employer may claim “undue hardship” and will not be forced accommodate.

· Employer does not have to create a position in the company for disabled person. If an accommodating position in the company exists at a lower pay rate than employee’s previous position, he can be required to take that position.

· The speakers offered guidelines for employers during the hiring process in the areas of “pre-offer”,” pre-employment—post-offer,” and “post-offer.”

· Call 800-669-3362 for information on ADA.
Web site: www.eeoc.gov (always being revised).