CLEVELAND, February 3 — Space is still available for members interested in attending the Education & Training Department’s Secretary- Treasurer Workshop in Jacksonville, Florida from March 6-9.
Upon successful completion of the course, everyone will qualify for a $91 per day stipend from the North American Railway Foundation (NARF). The stipends will be paid directly to the Secretary-Treasurer of the respective divisions.
This is the last opportunity for STs to attend a workshop prior to the March 31 deadline for filing Department of Labor reports.
During the three-day sessions, members will learn proper record keeping techniques, computer applications, and minute-taking. They will also learn methods for filing various Department of Labor and Railroad Retirement reports, as well as Federal tax returns. A representative from the Department of Labor will be on hand to answer Secretary-Treasurer questions and have tips regarding the preparation of LM reports.
Course planners have added a new section to the workshop regarding the 2006 division elections. Next year is an election year for all of Divisions and the new segment — titled “Election Requirements” — was added to help ST’s run their division election properly.
As most STs already know, there are many changes to the filing of the reports each year, and all these changes will be addressed in these classes. A major change came when the BLET National Division implemented a new dues reporting and collection internet-based system on January 1, 2005. There will be an online demonstration on this new system to help everyone in class become familiar with it.
Presenters will include Bill Walpert, BLET National Secretary-Treasurer; Bob Broka, Director of Records; Dr. Elaine Reese, Director of Compliance; Walt Schmidt, Webmaster; and Ken Kroeger, BLET Special Rep & Coordinator of the Education & Training Department.
The BLET National Division pays the costs of books, equipment, and tuition, while Secretary-Treasurers who attend are responsible for their transportation costs as well as their room and board. Upon successful completion of the course, attendees will qualify for a $91 per day stipend from the NARF. The stipends will be paid directly to the Secretary-Treasurer of the respective divisions.
Secretary-Treasurers can register for the 2006 workshops online through the BLET website at: http://www.ble.org/st.
The workshop takes place March 6-9 at the Hilton Jacksonville Riverfront Hotel.
Members are responsible for making their own reservations at the meeting in Jacksonville and will be given the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen group rate code when they register for the workshop.
Registration for the 2006 workshops is on a first come, first served basis with class size limited to the first 25 who register through the BLET website. For more information, please contact Ken Kroeger of the BLET Education & Training Dept. at (216) 272-0986 or kroeger@ble-t.org.