NEL 215

May 19th, 2016

Present:

Committee Members:Don Clothier Vincent Leseney Debbie Copp Jannie Porter

Glen Pinkston Erika Perez Will Wayne Kevin Farmer Gordon Shaw Karen Rupp-Serrano Joel Burcham Jeff Berry

Others:Angela Hawpe Lindsay Mitchell Dron Silas Breion RollinsJulius Hilburn Jessica Cadotte Erika Perez

Approval of Minutes

(Clothier) Minutes approved.

Changes to HR

(Hawpe) Effective June 1st, I will be moving into the HR Director roll on the Health Sciences Center Campus and Breion Rollins will be moving into the Assistant Director for Benefits for the University.

Consulting

(Hilburn) There were four consulting firms evaluated to replace Segal as OU’s Fringe Benefits Consultants. An evaluation committee was used to consider proposals submitted and presentations made by the interested firms. A recommendation was made by the evaluation committee regarding the firm whose proposals represented the best value to OU. The company that was recommended is currently finalizing an agreement with payroll, so no announcement will be made until the contract is finalized.

Once the contract is finalized, the new consulting firm will begin immediately evaluating medical plan options for active and retired employees as well as pharmacy benefit options.

(Copp) How many years will the contract be?

(Hilburn) Contracts with consulting firms are generally set up for 1 year with the ability to renew for 3 years. However, as the contract isn’t final yet I cannot say with certainty that it will be set up that way.

University Budget

(Hilburn) Higher Education has experienced a 15.92% decrease in funding from the state compared to FY16. The Norman Campus anticipates an impact of around $23 million decrease in funding. Administration is looking at all areas such as tuition costs, position replacement, Voluntary Retirement Incentive Programs etc. to help alleviate the shortfall.

The Health Sciences Center is anticipating about a $15 million shortfall and has also begun considering options to fill in the budget gap.

OU spends around $37 million on each campus towards employee medical. It also spends around $28 million on the Norman Campus toward employee’s DCP and $26 million at HSC toward employee’s DCP.

There is a proposal being considered to introduce a 1 year waiting period for new employees to become eligible to receive University contributions to their Defined Contribution Plans. This change would provide substantial savings to both campuses and could be effective as early as July 1 st, 2016. The University would continue to encourage employees to take advantage of OU’s voluntary saving plan options and save on their own as well. OU will also be looking at areas for potential savings for FY17 within the medical plan.

(Pinkston) Has the possibility of raising the $9000 reduction limit in the contribution been considered?

(Hilburn) OU has looked at several changes for existing employees, but is focusing first on changes that can be implemented now and impact future employees.

(Leseney) Do you think there are enough employees that would consider a 1% voluntary decrease in salary?

(Hilburn) Furloughs and pay cuts have been discussed in past University budget shortfalls. However, the goal currently is to move towards reducing costs related to what OU pays in fringe benefits.

(Porter) What about the new Fair Labor Standards Act regulations set by the Department of Labor to update the federal overtime rules? Employees that are affected by this change will seem as though they a receiving a reduction in pay.

(Copp)Has OU considered a matching retirement option to reduce the DCP?

(Hilburn) Several things have been considered. The clear preference at OU is to focus on changes that impact future employees before focusing on changes that impact current employees.

(Burcham) Do you know if this is an acute situation and something that will get better or is this a permanent budget change?

(Hilburn) The prospects of the state budget returning to 2015 levels is bleak. I would expect this to be long term and think that there will be similar conversations next year around budget concerns. When I discuss the possible savings changes as temporary, it is with the understanding that after a year they are revisited and reevaluated.

(Wayne) A tuition increase should move the needle some shouldn’t it?

(Hilburn) The tuition increase in Norman is being discussed in a possible range of 0% - 6%.

Wellness Update

(Mitchell) The discussion on the possible Wellness Portal is currently being considered through Magellan. The program that they have is called Café Well. Enhancements to the portal are currently being looked at. The tobacco credit will be starting in 2017. The Eat Right for Life nutrition challenge is finishing up and we are still receiving feedback for that. Full Plate enrollment will start June 9 th for the “Eat Down Your Blood Sugar” online course. We are also looking at doing another round of standing desk applications this summer.

Retirement Update

(Rollins) The majority of retirement work has been focused around the budget challenges that Julius expressed previously. We are also looking into how the new FLSA overtime rules will apply to OTRS members.

New Business

(Clothier) Meeting Adjourned at 2:43pm