Scope - April, 2010

•  Become more knowledgeable about the school. Have an answer to any question---bus schedules, attendance reports, grade files and school programs. Memorize where each classroom is located, and who teaches in each.
•  Maintain a rigid organizational system. Memorandums, files, reports, messages, financial transactions and transcription notes can quickly clutter a desk. Find an efficient system using folders, shelves, dividers, labels and anything else that will help the office stay clean and categorized.
•  Keep staff and administrators informed. Consistently update them with types of calls received, parents' concerns and problems encountered. This keeps an open line of communication that increases the likelihood of getting effective feedback and proactive solutions to problems.
•  Practice patience. Be a good listener. When parents call or visit, have a helpful attitude and put yourself in their shoes. There's no benefit to being rude---it can aggravate the problem and extend communication time with them.

• Check for injuries and administer first aid, if possible.
• Call the appropriate office immediately.
• When you call, give the following information:
  Your name, vehicle number, number of passengers, injuries, location of the accident (including street names and boundary markers), and description of the accident.
• Keep yourself passengers calm.
• Keep passengers in the vehicle, except in cases where fire or smoke is present.
• Do not move the vehicle, unless ordered to do so by police.
•  Do not admit responsibility for the accident, as this could prove liable in a lawsuit. Do not discuss the accident with the press.
• Do not leave the accident scene until told to do so by the police or school transportation officials.
• If you are charged (given a traffic ticket) or found "at fault" on the police accident report, immediately advise your supervisor.

•        Knowledgeable and adequately trained food-service staff can prevent food borne illness outbreaks from originating in the cafeteria.
•       By following established guidelines on food purchasing, storage, preparation, handling, and service, food-service staff can greatly reduce the risk of students becoming seriously, or even fatally, ill with a food borne illness.
•        Safe food handling and preparation can reduce the risk of foodborne illness, even if food is contaminated before it comes into the school.

•         Using key food safety practices, food-service staff can protect your school from damaging lawsuits and loss of reputation.

  Source: http://www.foodsafeschools.org/foodservice.php

When is overtime pay due?

For covered, non-exempt employees, the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) requires overtime pay at a rate of not less than one and one-half times an employee's regular rate of pay after 40 hours of work in a workweek. Some exceptions to the 40 hours per week standard apply under special circumstances to police officers and firefighters employed by public agencies and to employees of hospitals and nursing homes.

Some states also have enacted overtime laws. Where an employee is subject to both the state and federal overtime laws, the employee is entitled to overtime according to the higher standard (i.e., the standard that will provide the higher rate of pay).

Get Involved in your Union:

• 4 large skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
• 3 tablespoon olive oil
• ¼ cup orange juice
• 1 tablespoon ground black pepper
• ¾ cups balsamic vinegar
• 1 bunch green onions (chopped)

• Heat 2 tbsp. olive oil in a skillet over medium heat.
• Place chicken breast sprinkle black pepper sear the chicken one side (about 3 mins.), turn sprinkle black pepper to the other side and sear (about 3 mins.)
• Remove chicken and add 1 tbsp. olive oil. Add the shallots to the pan and saute for 30 seconds. Add the ½ cup of the balsamic vinegar and ¼ cup orange juice and then place the chicken breasts back into the pan , cover with lid and let cook in medium heat for 12 mins.
• Turn chicken and then add remaining ¼ cup balsamic vinegar and let cook for another 12 mins. Checking occasionally to make sure it does not burn (add additional balsamic vinegar if needed)  
• Serve over couscous or rice with the balsamic sauce.