Workers' Collective Minutes

3-20-12

Collin Rodgers and Movement Couriers

Collin Rodgers, a volunteer who does the co-op’s weekend brunch deliveries to the Public House, founded a small collective courier business. He would like to work with the Riverwest Co-op for both grocery and store delivery. Here is how the operation works:Movement Couriers does not do formal contracts with clients. They act as an all-purpose bicycle delivery service for businesses and private individuals.

They receive orders by phone from their customers and then call those orders into us. They then come and collect the order and pay for it up front—essentially paying on behalf of their customer. They deliver the food to the customer who pays them for the products plus a $4 delivery charge.

• In cases where the customer fails to pay, Movement Couriers absorbs the loss. They have already paid us and will not seek remuneration.
• For grocery items, the normal $4 charge remains unless the total purchases exceeds $25, in which case the charge is $8. Again, Movement Couriers handles all charges on their end.
• Movement Couriers does not do advertising because it doesn’t have contracts with exclusive clients and acts as a general delivery service.
• Movement Couriers is currently in operation and ready to do business.

The Workers Collective came to consensus that we would like to work with Movement Couriers. As they are acting as third-party purchasers there is really no difference on the Co-ops’ end when it comes to café items.

For store items we will need to work out a system for MC’s access to inventory. The limitations of our KOPOS system prevent this from happening now.

One future complication: we had previously agreed to work with Flavor Cycle. In the case of FC, who only do café delivery, the co-op would receive the call and then call in the order to the FC couriers. MC also proposed a similar system.

Finding a solution to this complication was tabled for a future meeting.

Numbers

March 13-March 19  2012            compared to last week                      last year

Total:  2933.13                                  +57.76                                  2564.07    +369.07

Café:    891.37                                   -11.09                                    829.77    +61.61

Store: 2014.61                                 +65.99                                    1704.01    +310.60

Checking balance: $2,911.70

Savings balance: $25,257.85

Local Fridays

Our new sale day will go into effect on Friday, April 1^st (and will not be a joke). It’s called “Local Fridays.” Here is how it works: On Fridays, products from one local vender will be discounted 10%. We will offer samples of those products on Fridays. Vendors will rotate monthly. April’s local vender discount will be RP’s Pasta out of Madison.Thanks to Glenda for making an awesome advertisement!

Serviceberry Fundraiser

The serviceberry tree fundraiser begins now! We have flyers near the register. Customers and members may purchase serviceberry trees in advance and pick them up between April 15^th and April 30^th.

Meet the Farmer

Leo Pfennig, our local beekeeper and honeyman, will be doing a presentation at the Riverwest Co-op on Friday, April first. He’ll be selling bulk honey to people who bring their own containers. The event is for children and adults.

HR Update

WC discussed amendments to HR policy re: negative hours banking. This is the policy we decided upon (not the official wording, which can be rewritten):

Hour Banking was created to accommodate and remunerate the many hours OVER salaried workers had been doing. It was not created to accommodate a negative hours balance.

Should a salaried staff member dip into the negative, they can choose to (A) use PTO or Vacation days to cover it or (B) have that portion of their salary deducted from their next check.

In the case of a chronic negative hours bank (three or more consecutive months negative), that employee’s job description / responsibilities may be reevaluated or, in the case of absenteeism, that employee may face punitive actions.

In special cases such as sickness / injury were a negative dip in the hours bank occurs, untypical of an employee's record, an ad hoc decision can be made to allow that employee to retain the same rate of pay during the absent period and to bring their hours back into the positive following the period of absence.

Groupon

The groupon sale has not expired as anticipated but has only reduced in value to have of the original redemption, now $7.

UPDATE: our accountant has determined that the state laws which extended the coupon past the anticipated expiration date are not effective in Wisconsin. The groupon sale is complete.

Volunteer of the Week

VOW recognition will now be Monday to Monday. We will choose a new volunteer of the week next week. This week it is Kevin Cross.

Milwaukee Day

Nichali recommends that the Riverwest Co-op should participate in Milwaukee Day on April 14^th. It’s a brand new, decentralized holiday that pretty much involves doing what we want can calling it a Milwaukee Day celebration. Ideas for how to participate are to be discussed at the next WCM.

Doors

The were propped open this weekend. This is a health code violation. The doors must be shut at all times.

Café / Store Health Code Violations update

Leonard, our health inspector, made a return to the Riverwest Co-op last week. He gave the co-op a flawless inspection grade verbally. We have not yet received written documentation of his inspection.