IRRA General Membership Meeting
January 4, 2004
Pacific D, Holiday Inn on the Bay, San Diego, CA

     Call to Order--Paula Voos called the meeting to order and welcomed new members. Saul Rubinstein invited all those in attendance to attend the industry sessions to be held Monday, January 5, to be followed by a luncheon with Sen. Jon Corzine of New Jersey as speaker.

      Report of the Nominating Committee --Voos announced that the Board had approved the nominee of the IRRA Nominating Committee for president elect in 2005 and that the nominee was David Lipsky, Cornell University. Lipsky's name will be placed on the ballot in the spring of 2004.

      Report of the Finance and Membership Committee --Pete Feuille reported that membership was slightly up for this year and stated that the organization needed to continue to work towards increasing membership. He reported that membership dues would be $95 for 2004 and 2005 for regular members. Contributing membership dues increased to $200, but most other dues categories remained the same. He reminded the group of the last year's deficits, and reported that a substantial grant was to be received from the Sloan Foundation and would reduce the association's deficit.

      Industry Councils Initiative and announcement of new IRRA committees --Paula Voos explained the new industries councils initiative to be developed over the next three years with the Sloan Grant. She also announced the creation of three new ad hoc committees based on the recommendation of the Special Strategic Membership Committee: Development, chaired by David Lipsky; Foundations Relations, chaired by Joel Cutcher-Gershenfeld; and Sections and Councils Coordinating, chaired by Hoyt Wheeler.

      Best Dissertation Awards Presentation --John Burton, chair of the Best Dissertation Awards Committee presented the Best Dissertation Award and honorable mention certificates to the 2003 honorees. The winner of the Best Dissertation Award for 2003 was Anthony Zumbolo. Honorable mention was given to Elizabeth Craig, Lydia Fraile, and Haejin Kim.

      Excellence in Education Awards --Rachel Hendrickson, chair of the Excellence in Education Awards Committee, presented an award for 2003 to Kenneth Dau Schmidt. Also receiving an award but not in attendance was Stephen Ashby.

      Outstanding Young Scholar & Practitioner Awards --Paula Voos reported that the Executive Board was considering naming an Outstanding Young Scholar-Practitioner Award in the name of the late Susan Eaton, or possibly naming another award or honor in her name. Harry Katz, chair of the IRRA Awards Committee described and presented the 2003 awards. He presented the 2003 Young Scholar Award to Frits Pil, in the international category; individual Outstanding Young Scholar awards to Alexander Colvin and John Logan in the domestic categories; and the 2003 Outstanding Young Practitioner Award to John Amman for his contributions to the industrial relations profession.

      IRRA Chapter Awards --Lavonne Ritter, Chair of the NCAC, described the purpose of the chapter awards and presented the Chapter Star Award to the Alabama Chapter. She then presented Outstanding Chapter Awards to the Chicago, Orange County, and Washington D.C. Chapters. She acknowledged those chapters who had won Chapter Merit Awards in 2003, including: Arizona, Gateway (St. Louis), Hawaii, Hudson Valley NY, New Brunswick, San Diego, TERRA (Tennessee), West Central FL (Tampa) and Wisconsin. These were presented earlier in the day at the Chapter Representatives Meeting. She thanked all of the chapters for their continued efforts.

      Lifetime Achievement Award --Paula Voos announced that the late Clark Kerr, IRRA President, 1954, was named as the IRRA Lifetime Achievement Award winner for 2003, and presented the award posthumously.

      National Policy Forum --The next IRRA National Policy Forum will be held in conjunction with the FMCS National Labor-Management Conference at the Hyatt Regency in Downtown Chicago, June 2-4, 2004, with focus on industries councils and featuring an IRRA-sponsored breakfast on June 3, 2004.

      IRRA 57th Annual Meeting --The next Annual Meeting would be held in Philadelphia, PA, January 6-9, 2005. Session proposals would be due January 10, 2004.

      Old Business --Regarding the name change, Paula Voos announced the impending vote by mail on the proposed new name for the association, to changed from IRRA to LERA, or Labor and Employment Relations Association. John Burton described the background regarding the name change, including declining membership. The association had introduced the Perspectives on Work magazine and National Policy Forum in the attempt to attract practitioners to the association, and that the introduction of the industry councils to the association and the idea of the name change were just a part of the process to rejuvenate the association. He described the wide scope of interests of the association and that many people associate the term industrial relations with the manufacturing industry, and the limitations that term created for the association. He stated that a written ballot would be sent to IRRA members for a vote on the name change in the spring of 2004 and asked for comments from the floor. Lavonne Ritter, chair of NCAC added that the local chapters would not be required to change Chapter names.

      Request for New Business or comments from the floor --Paula Voos requested new business from the floor. Joel Cutcher-Gershenfeld described the industry councils to be developed with the support, via funding, from the Sloan Foundation. He reported that the grant totaled $387K.

      Adjournment --Paula Voos announced that Marlene Heyser would serve as the IRRA President for 2004 and welcomed her to the office by turning over the gavel. Heyser thanked her and the group and expressed her excitement in taking over the position. Heyser adjourned the meeting at 7:05 pm. The next IRRA General Membership meeting will be held January 8, 2005, at the Wyndham Hotel at Franklin Plaza in Philadelphia, PA.