Contents
-
Labor Descriptions
- DARKSIDE BATHROOM AND HALLWAY
- DARKSIDE TV ROOM
- BRIGHTSIDE HALLWAY AND GARDEN OF EDEN
- LAUNDRY BATHROOM
- BRIGHTSIDE LIVING ROOM
- PETSIDE BATHROOM
- DINNER COOK (WEEKDAY)
- DINNER COOK (SUNDAY)
- BRUNCH COOK (SATURDAY)
- DINNER BUDDY
- DISHES
- MOP/COUNTER
- SHOPPER BUDDY
- BULK PREP
- DINING ROOM
- HALF BATHROOM AND HALLWAY
- GROUNDS CREW
- MAINTENANCE CREW
- STEWARD
- MEMBERSHIP COORDINATOR
- TREASURER
- BOOKKEEPER
- CHEA BOARD MEMBER
- MAINTENANCE COORDINATOR
- GROUNDS COORDINATOR
- LABOR CZARISTA / CZAR
- KITCHEN KAISER
- FOOD SHOPPER
- NASCO PROPERTIES BOARD REP
- MEETING CHAIR
- MINUTES TAKER
- ARCHIVIST
- MAIL SORTER
- MEDIATOR
- SASONAGRAM EDITOR
- CULTURE COORDINATOR
- HEALTH OFFICER
- MASTADON OVERBLOWER
Labor Descriptions
This is a list of all of the labor positions at Sasona Co-op. Scroll down the page, or click on one of the positions listed below to jump to its entry.
Darkside: Darkside Bathroom and Hallway, Darkside TV Room
The Darkside of the house is the area to the right when you enter through the front door.
Brightside: Brightside Hallway, Laundry Bathroom, Petside Bathroom, Brightside Livingroom
The Brightside is the area of the house to the left when you enter through the front door. Once you pass through the kitchen you are in the Brightside. This is the side of the house where pets are allowed and therefore is sometimes referred to as the Petside.
Kitchen Labor: Dinner Cook (Weekday), Dinner Cook (Sunday), Brunch Cook (Saturday), Dinner Buddy, Dishes, Mop/Counter, Shopper Buddy, Bulk Prep
Other: Dining Room, Half Bathroom and Hallway, Mail Sorter
Labor Crews: Maintenance Crew, Grounds Crew
House Officers: Steward (Enchanting Wizard of Rhythm), Treasurer, Bookkeeper, CHEA Board Member, Labor Czar, Membership Coordinator, Maintenance Coordinator, Grounds Coordinator, Kitchen Kaiser, Food Shopper, NASCO Properties Board Representative, Meeting Chair, Minutes Taker, Archivist, Mediator, Sasonagram Editor, Health Officer, Mastodon Overblower
DARKSIDE BATHROOM AND HALLWAY
Weekday vs. weekend: At times the bathroom is cleaned twice a week. Weekday is considered Tuesday-Thursday and weekend is Saturday or Sunday.
Darkside Bathroom:
- Get rid of clutter. Throw out empty bottles, dead soap, old razors or anything else you see sitting in the exact same spot for weeks on end. If worried it belongs to somebody, leave a note. Toss it the next week.
- Fill up the hand soap dispenser with Dr. Bronner's soap concentrate found on the bottom shelf of the pantry (1:10 with water).
- Replace the hand towel and bath mat with a fresh one. Fresh mats are in the laundry room in a marked basket. Take the dirty towel and bath mat to the kitchen and put it in the bin for rags needing to be washed. If the house is using paper towels instead of hand towels, replace the paper towel roll if needed. Extra paper towels are on top of the personal fridge or on the top shelf of the maintenance closet.
Clean:
- Note: Using disinfectant, super hot water, and baking soda for better scrubbing power leads to a much better cleaning.
- Shower: Spray all walls and surfaces of shower with Simple Green Pro D. Pour baking soda on the bottom of shower and add a little bit of water to make a paste. Scrub (with cleaning brush or green scour pad) ledges, floor, sides, drain, walls, and soap holder. Rinse thoroughly. The first week of each month, weekday cleaner should wash shower curtains in the washing machine. Remove hair that has gotten clogged in the drain. (Motion on 3/12/17).
- Sink: Spray ledges, bowl, faucet with disinfectant (Simple Green Pro D). Let sit for 2 minutes. Wipe dry with rag.
- Mirror: Spray with windex or vinegar water solution and wipe with paper towel or microfiber towel (on top of freezer in kitchen).
- Toilet: Spray base, outside bowl, seat, lid, tank, and tank lid with disinfectant (Simple Green Pro D). Let sit for 2 minutes. Wipe dry with rag. Cover all sides of the inside of the toilet bowl with toilet bowl cleaner. Scrub bowl with toilet brush. Let sit for 5 minutes. Flush.
- Basically if it’s a flat surface, remove whatever is sitting on it. Squirt some Simple Green Pro D on it. Let it sit for a few minutes. Wipe it dry with rag. Put back the stuff that was there.
- Spray all door knobs, light switches, and handles with disinfectant. Let sit for 2 minutes. Wipe dry.
- Sweep floor then mop the floor with Simple Green Pro D. To mop: Get mop pole from mail monolith and mop head from basket by GUFF freezer. Press mop head on Velcro bottom of the mop pole. Spray a section of the floor with Simple Green Pro D. Allow 2 minutes to sit. Scrub floor with mop, trying to remove as much dirt as possible. Spray another section and repeat until you’ve done the whole floor from wall to wall.
- If needed, bring in extra rolls of toilet paper from the laundry room under the wooden table.
- Take out trash and replace it with a new trash bag.
Darkside Hallway:
- Vacuum the rugs in the hallway that runs the length of the dark side, connecting the entrance way and the TV room and remove them.
- Sweep and mop the floors with Simple Green Pro D. To mop: Get mop pole from mail monolith and mop head from basket by GUFF freezer. Press mop head on Velcro bottom of the mop pole. Spray a section of the floor with Simple Green Pro D. Allow 2 minutes to sit. Scrub floor with mop, trying to remove as much dirt as possible. Spray another section and repeat until you’ve done the whole floor from wall to wall.
- Return the rugs.
- Tidy up the shelves right outside the bathroom door. Throw away trash, put miscellaneous items back where they belong, and make things look organized.
- Spray all door knobs, light switches, and handles with disinfectant. Let sit for 2 minutes. Wipe dry.
DARKSIDE TV ROOM
- Get rid of clutter, trash, old cups, plates, whatever. Bring dishes to the kitchen.
- Straighten-up desk areas. Put away TV and any associated items like games, movies, wires. Organize the shelves under the TV.
- Arrange furniture. Fix up cushions, pillows, and GUFF blankets. Straighten it in general. On the first week of the month, wash the blankets in the washing machine. Do not wash them with the kitchen rags or bathroom rugs.
- Get a microfiber cloth from on top of the GUFF freezer and get it damp. With that damp cloth, dust every surface in this giant room, including TV and tables. Then, disinfect flat surfaces with Simple Green Pro D. Spray the surface with Simple Green Pro D, let sit for 2 minutes, wipe dry with regular rag.
- Clean couches by removing cushions and vacuuming underneath thoroughly. Tilt couches back to vacuum under the couches and wipe the legs of couches with a wet rag.
- Sweep and mop the room floor. To mop: Get mop pole from mail monolith and mop head from basket by GUFF freezer. Press mop head on Velcro bottom of the mop pole. Spray a section of the floor with Simple Green Pro D. Allow 2 minutes to sit. Scrub floor with mop, trying to remove as much dirt as possible. Spray another section and repeat until you’ve done the whole floor from wall to wall.
- Grab the vacuum from the laundry room and vacuum any large rugs.
- Take out the trash, replace it with a new trash bag.
- Spray large mirror with windex or vinegar water solution and wipe with paper towel or microfiber towel (on top of freezer in kitchen).
- Disinfect all door knobs and light switches with Simple Green Pro D. Spray, let sit for 2 minutes, wipe dry.
- Check the water level of all the plants in the room. Water as needed.
Sign white board with your name and the date you cleaned the space.
BRIGHTSIDE HALLWAY AND GARDEN OF EDEN
Brightside Hallway labor includes the Brightside hallway (also known as the Garden of Eden), mail monolith, laundry room, and deck porch.
Mail Monolith and Hallway:
- Get rid of clutter and throw out trash. If worried it belongs to somebody, leave a note. Toss it the next week. Spruce up the desk area so that it’s a usable space.
- Arrange furniture. Straighten up in general.
- Get a microfiber cloth from on top of the GUFF freezer and get it damp. With that damp cloth, dust all flat surfaces including railings, desk, shelves, and cabinets. Then, disinfect flat surfaces with Simple Green Pro D. Spray the surface with Simple Green Pro D, let sit for 2 minutes, wipe dry with regular rag.
- Sweep the hallway floor. This includes the mail monolith floor and Garden of Eden floor. Basically, all the blue painted wood floors.
- Mop the floor with Simple Green Pro D. To mop: Get mop pole from mail monolith and mop head from basket by GUFF freezer. Press mop head on Velcro bottom of the mop pole. Spray a section of the floor with Simple Green Pro D. Allow 2 minutes to sit. Scrub floor with mop, trying to remove as much dirt as possible. Spray another section and repeat until you’ve done the whole floor from wall to wall.
- Organize the cleaning supplies (brooms, dustpans, spray bottles) so that they’re out of the way.
- If there is accumulated crap in the ramp area, straighten it up and move it out of the way of foot traffic.
- Remind pet owners as needed to keep the litter box and surrounding area clean and smelling fresh.
- Disinfect all door knobs with Simple Green Pro D. Spray disinfectant, let sit for 2 minutes, wipe dry.
- Water hallway plants as needed (you are responsible for their moisture level and health, do not over or under water).
Laundry Room:
- Take out the trash, replace it with a new trash bag.
- Wipe the rubber inner rim of the washing machine. (Passed 11-0-0 on 6/26/2016)
- If there are a lot of bags of clean laundry in the laundry room, send an email reminder to the house business list or communicate it to the house through SLACK to tell people to pick their clothes up.
- Straighten up and organize the shelves. Throw away empty detergent bottles or boxes.
- Clean up and organize under the wooden shelf.
- Spray the shelves above the washer/dryer, wooden folding shelf, and tops of the washer/dryer with Simple Green Pro D, let sit for 2 minutes, wipe dry.
- Sweep then mop the floor. To mop: Get mop pole from mail monolith and mop head from basket by GUFF freezer. Press mop head on Velcro bottom of the mop pole. Spray a section of the floor with Simple Green Pro D. Allow 2 minutes to sit. Scrub floor with mop, trying to remove as much dirt as possible. Spray another section and repeat until you’ve done the whole floor from wall to wall.
- First week of the month: Empty contents of the Lonely Laundry bucket into the free pile, preferably after sending an email reminder to the house business list/communicating to the house through SLACK.
Deck Porch: This is the porch right outside the mail monolith as you’re walking into the backyard.
- Sweep the porch. (Note: wooden patios must be free of leaves or they accumulate moisture and greatly lessen the life-cycle of the wood.) Use the leaf blower from the front breezeway or use an outdoor broom located in the mail monolith.
- Empty the ashtrays. Take bottles and cans to the recycling bins. Pick up any trash and dispose of it properly. Empty any trash cans.
- Prevent the accumulation of "stuff." Bring personal items back inside.
- Straighten up furniture and wipe off the table tops with Simple Green Pro D. Spray, let sit for 2 minutes, wipe dry.
- Wipe off window sills with wet rag.
- Disinfect all door knobs with Simple Green Pro D. Spray, let sit for 2 minutes, wipe dry.
Sign white board with your name and the date you cleaned the space.
LAUNDRY BATHROOM
Weekday vs. weekend: At times the bathroom is cleaned twice a week. Weekday is considered Tuesday-Thursday and weekend is Saturday or Sunday.
- Get rid of clutter. Throw out empty bottles, dead soap, old razors or anything else you see sitting in the exact same spot for weeks on end. If worried it belongs to somebody, leave a note. Toss it the next week. Spruce up the cubbies and throw away anything worth throwing away (empty/gross/expired) from the GUFF cubby.
- Fill up the hand soap dispenser with Dr. Bronner's soap concentrate found on the bottom shelf of the pantry (1:10 with water).
- Replace the hand towel and bath mat with a fresh one. Fresh mats are in the laundry room in a marked basket. Take the dirty towel and bath mat to the kitchen and put it in the bin for rags needing to be washed. If the house is using paper towels instead of hand towels, replace the paper towel roll if needed. Extra paper towels are on top of the personal fridge or on the top shelf of the maintenance closet.
Clean:
- Note: Using disinfectant, super hot water, and baking soda for better scrubbing power leads to a much better cleaning.
- Shower: Spray all walls and surfaces of shower with Simple Green Pro D. Pour baking soda on the bottom of shower and add a little bit of water to make a paste. Scrub (with cleaning brush or green scour pad) ledges, floor, sides, drain, walls, and soap holder. Rinse thoroughly. The first week of each month, weekday cleaner should wash shower curtains in the washing machine. Remove hair that has gotten clogged in the drain.
- Sink: Spray ledges, bowl, faucet with disinfectant (Simple Green Pro D). Let sit for 2 minutes. Wipe dry with rag.
- Mirror: Spray with windex or vinegar water solution and wipe with paper towel or microfiber towel (on top of freezer in kitchen).
- Toilet: Spray base, outside bowl, seat, lid, tank, and tank lid with disinfectant (Simple Green Pro D). Let sit for 2 minutes. Wipe dry with rag. Cover all sides of the inside of the toilet bowl with toilet bowl cleaner. Scrub bowl with toilet brush. Let sit for 5 minutes. Flush.
- Basically if it’s a flat surface, remove whatever is sitting on it. Squirt some Simple Green Pro D on it. Let it sit for a few minutes. Wipe it dry with rag. Put back the stuff that was there.
- Spray all door knobs, light switches, and handles with disinfectant. Let sit for 2 minutes. Wipe dry.
- Sweep floor then mop the floor with Simple Green Pro D. To mop: Get mop pole from mail monolith and mop head from basket by GUFF freezer. Press mop head on Velcro bottom of the mop pole. Spray a section of the floor with Simple Green Pro D. Allow 2 minutes to sit. Scrub floor with mop, trying to remove as much dirt as possible. Spray another section and repeat until you’ve done the whole floor from wall to wall.
- If needed, bring in extra rolls of toilet paper from the laundry room under the wooden table.
- Take out trash and replace it with a new trash bag.
BRIGHTSIDE LIVING ROOM
Brightside Living Room labor includes the Brightside living room, bamboo floor hallways, the courtyard porch, and the courtyard steps.
Living Room and Bamboo Floor Hallways: This is the big room directly off the courtyard area.
- Get rid of clutter, trash, old cups, plates, whatever. Bring dishes to the kitchen and toss trash.
- Straighten-up desk area and shelves. Straighten up. Arrange furniture. Fix up cushions, pillows, and blankets. Straighten it in general.
- On the first week of the month, wash the blankets in the washing machine.
- Get a microfiber cloth from on top of the GUFF freezer and get it damp. With that damp cloth, dust every flat surface including shelves and tables. Then, disinfect flat surfaces with Simple Green Pro D. Spray the surface with Simple Green Pro D, let sit for 2 minutes, wipe dry with regular rag.
- Grab the vacuum from the laundry room and vacuum the large rug.
- Clean couches/chairs by removing cushions and vacuuming underneath thoroughly. Tilt couches back to vacuum under the couches and wipe the legs of couches with a wet rag.
- Disinfect all door knobs and light switches with Simple Green Pro D. Spray, let sit for 2 minutes, wipe dry.
- Sweep or vacuum with pet vacuum the living room floor including the two hallways that come off the living room. Then mop the floor using hardwood floor cleaner. How to mop: Grab a mop pole (mail monolith), mop head (kitchen by GUFF freezer) and Bona wood floor cleaner (mail monolith). Spritz the flooring with wood-cleaning fluid and damp-mop it with the other mophead. Put the mophead in the dirty rags basket in the kitchen for the Mop/Counter's loving attention. Return the wood-cleaning fluid to the mail monolith. If we are running low on this cleaning fluid, please inform the Maintenance Coordinator so we can buy more. Never, ever, ever use soap and water on the bamboo flooring!
- Check the water level of all the plants in the room. Water as needed.
Courtyard Porch and Courtyard Steps: The courtyard porch is located off the mail monolith as you’re walking into the courtyard by the bikes. The courtyard steps are the steps right next to the bikes as you’re walking into the brightside living room.
- Sweep the porch and steps. (Note: wooden patios must be free of leaves or they accumulate moisture and greatly lessen the life-cycle of the wood.) Use the leaf blower from the front breezeway or use an outdoor broom located in the mail monolith.
- Empty the ashtrays. Take bottles and cans to the recycling bins. Pick up any trash and dispose of it properly. Empty any trash cans.
- Prevent the accumulation of "stuff." Bring personal items back inside.
- Straighten up furniture and wipe off the table tops with Simple Green Pro D. Spray, let sit for 2 minutes, wipe dry.
- The first week of each month, wash the rug on the courtyard steps in the washing machine. Wash it by itself, not with bathroom rugs or kitchen rags.Wipe off window sills with wet rag.
- Wipe off window sills with wet rag.
- Disinfect all door knobs with Simple Green Pro D. Spray, let sit for 2 minutes, wipe dry.
Sign white board with your name and the date you cleaned the space.
PETSIDE BATHROOM
Weekday vs. weekend: At times the bathroom is cleaned twice a week. Weekday is considered Tuesday-Thursday and weekend is Saturday or Sunday.
- Get rid of clutter on the counter and wooden shelves. Throw out empty bottles, dead soap, old razors or anything else you see sitting in the exact same spot for weeks on end. If worried it belongs to somebody, leave a note. Toss it the next week.
- Fill up the hand soap dispenser with Dr. Bronner's soap concentrate found on the bottom shelf of the pantry (1:10 with water).
- Replace the hand towel and bath mat with a fresh one. Fresh mats are in the laundry room in a marked basket. Take the dirty towel and bath mat to the kitchen and put it in the bin for rags needing to be washed. If the house is using paper towels instead of hand towels, replace the paper towel roll if needed. Extra paper towels are on top of the personal fridge or on the top shelf of the maintenance closet.
Clean:
- Note: Using disinfectant, super hot water, and baking soda for better scrubbing power leads to a much better cleaning.
- Bathtub: Spray all walls and surfaces of shower with Simple Green Pro D. Pour baking soda on the bottom of shower and add a little bit of water to make a paste. Scrub (with cleaning brush or green scour pad) ledges, floor, sides, drain, walls, and soap holder. Rinse thoroughly. The first week of each month, weekday cleaner should wash shower curtains in the washing machine. Remove hair that has gotten clogged in the drain cover.
- Sink: Spray counter, behind faucet, faucet with disinfectant (Simple Green Pro D). Let sit for 2 minutes. Wipe dry with rag.
- Mirror: Spray with windex or vinegar water solution and wipe with paper towel or microfiber towel (on top of freezer in kitchen).
- Toilet: Spray base, outside bowl, seat, lid, tank, and tank lid with disinfectant (Simple Green Pro D). Let sit for 2 minutes. Wipe dry with rag. Cover all sides of the inside of the toilet with toilet bowl cleaner. Scrub bowl with toilet brush. Let sit for 5 minutes. Flush.
- Windows: Wipe off the blinds with a wet rag. Wipe down the window sills with Simple Green Pro D.
- Basically if it’s a flat surface, remove whatever is sitting on it. Squirt some Simple Green Pro D on it. Let it sit for a few minutes. Wipe it dry with rag. Put back the stuff that was there.
- Spray all door knobs, light switches, and handles with disinfectant. Let sit for 2 minutes. Wipe dry.
- Sweep floor then mop the floor with Simple Green Pro D. To mop: Get mop pole from mail monolith and mop head from basket by GUFF freezer. Press mop head on Velcro bottom of the mop pole. Spray a section of the floor with Simple Green Pro D. Allow 2 minutes to sit. Scrub floor with mop, trying to remove as much dirt as possible. Spray another section and repeat until you’ve done the whole floor from wall to wall.
- If needed, bring in extra rolls of toilet paper from the laundry room under the wooden table.
- Take out trash and replace it with a new trash bag.
DINNER COOK (WEEKDAY)
Normally two members are assigned to this job. Cooks can either work together or separately to create the meal, which should always include protein, starch, and greens. Serve dinner by 8pm on weeknights.
- Prepare vegetarian (meatless) dinner.
- Provide a main dish option that is appropriate for members who are gluten-free, vegan, or both when such members exist.
- Practice "first in, first out." Try to use older ingredients, or items from cans that are already opened, first. You can also request special menu items ahead of time from the Food Shopper.
- Place masking tape labels on the counter in front of each dish with description and date. For example: “Baked Oatmeal 6/27.” Use abbreviations to indicate whether the ingredients are suitable for folks with special diets: Ⓥ (vegan), GF (gluten-free), MEAT (animal flesh), SPICY! (for the hot stuff), and +S for sugar added (Keto).
- Make sure all of the dishes have appropriate serving utensils available.
- Ring the bell throughout the house and grounds to let everybody know dinner’s ready!
- Scrub all dishes that were cooked with.
- Clean up any messes you created while cooking.
- Put the food into containers ready for the fridge, and make sure the lid is next to it. (If the food has lots of water or oil, e.g. soup or deep-fried foods, it will take a long time to cool. Put still-hot items into the heat-safe containers ONLY.)
- Divide responsibilities between the two cooks to make sure all of these tasks are completed, from cooking different dishes to cleaning all implements used in cooking.
- You have the option to refuse cooking with dumpstered food.
- Turn off the oven.
DINNER COOK (SUNDAY)
Normally two members are assigned to this job. Cooks can either work together or separately to create the meal, which should always include protein, starch, and greens. Serve dinner by 7pm on Sunday.
- Prepare vegetarian (meatless) dinner.
- Provide a main dish option that is appropriate for members who are gluten-free, vegan, or both when such members exist.
- Practice "first in, first out." Try to use older ingredients, or items from cans that are already opened, first. You can also request special menu items ahead of time from the Food Shopper.
- Place masking tape labels on the counter in front of each dish with description and date. For example: “Baked Oatmeal 6/27.” Use abbreviations to indicate whether the ingredients are suitable for folks with special diets: Ⓥ (vegan), GF (gluten-free), MEAT (animal flesh), SPICY! (for the hot stuff), and +S for sugar added (Keto).
- Make sure all of the dishes have appropriate serving utensils available.
- Ring the bell throughout the house and grounds to let everybody know dinner’s ready!
- Scrub all dishes that were cooked with.
- Clean up any messes you created while cooking.
- Put the food into containers ready for the fridge, and make sure the lid is next to it. (If the food has lots of water or oil, e.g. soup or deep-fried foods, it will take a long time to cool. Put still-hot items into the heat-safe containers ONLY.)
- Divide responsibilities between the two cooks to make sure all of these tasks are completed, from cooking different dishes to cleaning all implements used in cooking.
- You have the option to refuse cooking with dumpstered food.
- Turn off the oven.
BRUNCH COOK (SATURDAY)
Normally two members are assigned to this job. Cooks can either work together or separately to create the meal, which should always include protein, starch, and greens. Serve brunch between 12noon and 2pm.
- Prepare vegetarian (meatless) brunch.
- Provide a main dish option that is appropriate for members who are gluten-free, vegan, or both when such members exist.
- Practice "first in, first out." Try to use older ingredients, or items from cans that are already opened, first. You can also request special menu items ahead of time from the Food Shopper.
- Place masking tape labels on the counter in front of each dish with description and date. For example: “Baked Oatmeal 6/27.” Use abbreviations to indicate whether the ingredients are suitable for folks with special diets: Ⓥ (vegan), GF (gluten-free), MEAT (animal flesh), SPICY! (for the hot stuff), and +S for sugar added (Keto).
- Make sure all of the dishes have appropriate serving utensils available.
- Ring the bell throughout the house and grounds to let everybody know brunch is ready!
- Scrub all dishes that were cooked with.
- Clean up any messes you created while cooking.
- Put the food into containers ready for the fridge, and make sure the lid is next to it. (If the food has lots of water or oil, e.g. soup or deep-fried foods, it will take a long time to cool. Put still-hot items into the heat-safe containers ONLY.)
- Divide responsibilities between the two cooks to make sure all of these tasks are completed, from cooking different dishes to cleaning all implements used in cooking.
- You have the option to refuse cooking with dumpstered food.
- Turn off the oven.
DINNER BUDDY
Some definitions:
Deep clean: Follow the deep clean sign off sheet in descending order. See deep clean definitions for proper cleaning. Put your name and the date you cleaned it.-
GUFF fridge/freezer: Go through the GUFF fridge and freezer.Organize and pick out expired stuff (+4 days old in house tupperware or past the expiration date on jars/bottles) and toss it. Rinse the Tupperware and put it in the dirty dishes tubs.
Pantry: Go through the pantry, and do a bit of cleaning/ organizing. Throw out expired stuff, make sure bins are properly closed, line up cans and boxes, fill jars if there is backup of that food item on the shelf, disinfect the liner of the oils bucket with Simple Green Pro D. Spray, let sit for 2 minutes, wipe dry.. Items below the refill line should be added to the shopping list. Spray the shelves with Simple Green Pro D, let stand for 2 minutes, wipe dry.
Personal fridges and freezer: Go through the personal fridges and freezer, toss nasty expired stuff out, organize. - For items in the fridge: Items that are spoiled (moldy, rotten, smelly) or older than 7 days in house tupperware should be tossed and tupperware cleaned. Collect all the unlabeled/undated food items in a brown paper grocery bag and label the bag with “Whose is this? Will be thrown out on (date). Please label with your name and date.” Use the date 7 days from the day you’re cleaning. If you see food that is set to be thrown out, throw it away. For items in jars and bottles, check the expiration date. If expired, add to the brown paper bag. If it’s moldy already, throw it out. - For items in the freezer: Make sure things are organized and try to encourage labeling items as much as possible. If possible, write “Whose is this?” on the item to ask people to keep their items labeled.
House and city compost: The house compost is emptied in the compost piles in the backyard. We rotate which pile to add to and which are currently resting so be sure to keep an eye out on that. The city compost is taken out to the green bins next to the trash and recycling.
Duties:
Monday
- Put away dinner no more than 2 hours after the dinner bell.
- Empty house compost.
- Empty city compost.
- GUFF fridge/freezer (clean, organize, get rid of food older than 4 days)
Tuesday
- Put away dinner no more than 2 hours after the dinner bell.
- Empty house compost.
- Empty city compost.
- Deep clean (Do next task on the deep clean sign off sheet in descending order and sign name and date)
Wednesday
- Put away dinner no more than 2 hours after the dinner bell.
- Empty house compost.
- Empty city compost.
- Clean pantry.
- Fill all cleaning spray bottles in the kitchen (using the proportion on the side of the spray bottle).
Thursday
- Put away dinner no more than 2 hours after the dinner bell.
- Empty house compost.
- Empty city compost.
- GUFF fridge/freezer (clean, organize, get rid of older food)
Friday
- Put away dinner no more than 2 hours after the dinner bell.
- Empty house compost.
- Empty city compost.
- Deep clean (Do next task on the deep clean sign off sheet in descending order and sign name and date)
Saturday
- Put away brunch no more than 2 hours after the brunch bell.
- Empty house compost.
- Empty city compost.
- Take both city compost and house compost buckets outside to clean. Rinse with the hose to get off as much gunk as possible. Then scrub the inside and outside surfaces with Bon ami or baking soda/dish soap paste using a brush or rag. The baking soda is in the pantry and the Bon ami is on the shelf in the mail monolith. Rinse off with the hose again and dry with a fresh rag.
- Check all fruits, compost rotten fruit. Wipe down baskets and hooks using Simple Green Pro D. Spray, let sit for 2 minutes, wipe clean. Clean off any grime.
Sunday
- Put away dinner no more than 2 hours after the dinner bell.
- Empty house compost.
- Empty city compost.
- Personal fridges and freezer (clean, organize, get rid of food older than 7 days)
Deep clean rotation (complete in descending order):
- GUFF fridge
- GUFF freezer
- Personal fridge (large stainless steel)
- Personal fridge/freezer (small black one)
- Coffee shelf, spice rack, hot sauce shelf
- Microwave shelves
- Mop sink, sanitizer, hot containers shelf
- Trash/recycling, above dish washing sink
- Stove/oven
- Stainless steel tables
- Drawers
- Dish shelves
Deep clean definitions:
GUFF fridge: Remove all food items from the fridge and put them out on the counter. Get Simple Green Pro D and spray all wire shelves, walls of the fridge, and doors. Let sit for 2 minutes. Wipe away with a clean rag. Scrub away all grime on the inside of the fridge including the buildup on the fans at the top. Do the same with the front of the fridge and the grate at the bottom. Before putting the food back in the fridge, disinfect all crates and trays with Simple Green Pro D. Spray, let sit for 2 minutes, wipe away. Wipe off bottles or other food containers that might be dirty. For anything sticky or oily, use a fresh rag and hot water. Put food items back in an organized way and throw away anything that looks worth throwing away that other dinner buddies might have missed.
GUFF freezer: This freezer cleaning includes the bottom two shelves, even if they are personal shelves. Consider this cleaning to be the entire freezer. Remove all food items from the freezer and put them in the GUFF fridge or personal fridge so they don’t thaw too much. Get Simple Green Pro D and spray all wire shelves, walls of the freezer, top (by the fan), and doors. Let sit for 2 minutes. Wipe away with a clean rag. Scrub away all grime on the inside of the freezer. Do the same with the front of the freezer and the grate at the bottom. Before putting the food back in the freezer, disinfect crates with Simple Green Pro D. Spray, let sit for 2 minutes, wipe away. Wipe off any food containers that might be dirty. For anything sticky or oily, use a fresh rag and hot water. Put food items back in an organized way and throw away anything that looks worth throwing away that other dinner buddies might have missed.
Personal fridge (large stainless steel): Remove all food items from the fridge and put them out on the counter. Get Simple Green Pro D and spray all wire shelves, walls of the fridge, and doors. Let sit for 2 minutes. Wipe away with a clean rag. Scrub away all grime on the inside of the fridge. Do the same with the front of the fridge and handles. Before putting the food back in the fridge, disinfect all crates and containers with Simple Green Pro D. Spray, let sit for 2 minutes, wipe away. For anything sticky or oily, use a fresh rag and hot water. Put food items back in an organized way and throw away anything that looks worth throwing away that other dinner buddies might have missed. Personal fridge/freezer (small black one): Remove all food items from the fridge/freezer and put them out on the counter. Put freezer items in the GUFF or personal fridge so they don’t thaw too much. Get Simple Green Pro D and spray all flat shelves, door shelves, walls of the fridge/freezer, and doors. Let sit for 2 minutes. Wipe away with a clean rag. Scrub away all grime on the inside of the fridge. Do the same with the front of the fridge. For anything sticky or oily, use a fresh rag and hot water. Put food items back in an organized way and throw away anything that looks worth throwing away that other dinner buddies might have missed.
Coffee shelf: This shelf includes the entire wire stainless steel shelf where the coffee is located. Use the small hand vacuum that is located on the hot containers shelf to vacuum up the coffee grounds on the tray. Remove all items from the shelf including coffee cups and pot lids. Spray the shelf down with Simple Green Pro D, let sit for 2 minutes, wipe dry. Scrub away any grime or buildup on the shelf. Spray the coffee tray with Simple Green Pro D, let sit for 2 minutes, wipe dry. Wipe down all items on the coffee tray including the coffee bean grinder machine (including the edges and top), kettle, and other bottles. Return all items to the shelf in a more organized way than you found them. Generally organize and straighten up the office supplies bucket on the top of the coffee shelf.
Spice rack: Remove all the spices from the shelves. Spray down the shelves and walls of the shelves with Simple Green Pro D, let sit for 2 minutes, wipe dry. Scrub off any built up grime on the shelves. When returning the spices to the shelf wipe them off to get off any grime. Return the spices in an organized way so they’re easy to see and access.
Hot sauce shelf: Remove all items from the hot sauce shelf, including the shelf liner. Spray the shelf and the walls of the shelf with Simple Green Pro D, let sit for 2 minutes, wipe dry. Do the same with the shelf liner and return to the shelf. Before returning the hot sauces, wipe off the lids/spouts with a clean rag and hot water, wipe off the outside of the bottles, and consolidate any hot sauces that are the same. Return everything in an organized way.
Microwave shelves: These are all 7 shelves near where the microwave is. Remove all items from the shelves. Spray down the shelves and walls of shelves with Simple Green Pro D. Be sure to spray the front edges/frame of the shelves as well. Let sit for 2 minutes, wipe dry. Scrub away any grimy build up on the shelves. Return items to the shelf in a more organized way than you found them. If there is anything on the shelf that does not belong there, put it back where it belongs in the kitchen. For the cooking items (butter, salt, oil, pepper, etc) as well as the kitchen bell, wipe off the grime on all sides with Simple Green Pro D before returning. Disinfect the shelf liners with Simple Green Pro D, let sit for 2 minutes, wipe away. Organize the oven mitts and throw any into the dirty rags bin that look like they need to be washed.
Trash/recycling: Pro tip: Do this one earlier in the day. It sucks to do when it's dark and cold outside. First, take out the trash and recycling. Take both the trash can and recycling can outside to clean. Rinse with the hose to get off as much gunk as possible. Then scrub the inside and outside surfaces with Bon ami or baking soda/dish soap paste using a brush or rag. The baking soda is in the pantry and the Bon ami is on the shelf in the mail monolith. Rinse off with the hose again and dry with a fresh rag. Scrub the walls and baseboards of the inside of the area where the trash/recycling live using Simple Green Pro D and a fresh rag. Scrub away the grime.
Above dish washing sink: This is the window sill and metal bar above the dishwashing sink next to the sanitizer. Remove all cleaning tools and spray bottles from the metal pole. Spray down the area with Simple Green Pro D, let sit for 2 minutes, wipe clean. Scrub areas with particular grime. Wipe down the hooks and bottles so that they are free of grime. Wipe window with windex or vinegar water solution and with paper towel or microfiber towel. Return all items on the metal rod in an organized way.
Hot containers shelf: This is the shelf next to the GUFF freezer that has the large heat-safe containers on top and the towel bins on the bottom. Remove all items from the shelf. Spray the shelf down with Simple Green Pro D, let sit for 2 minutes, wipe dry. Scrub away any grime or buildup on the shelf. Return the items to the shelf in a more organized way than you found them. Fold the towels in the bin if they’re falling out and fold the plastic and reusable bags on the shelves so that they’re neat.
Mop sink: This is the large sink next to the pantry before you walk into the mail monolith. Scrub the inside and outside surfaces with Bon ami or baking soda/dish soap paste using a brush or rag. The baking soda is in the pantry and the Bon ami is on the shelf in the mail monolith. Rinse clean. Spray the shelf down with Simple Green Pro D, let sit for 2 minutes, wipe dry. Clean out the debris in the drain cover.
Stove/oven: Pull out the crumbs tray of the oven located between the knobs and the oven door and throw away the old aluminum foil and replace it with a new sheet of aluminum foil. First, remove the iron stovetop burner covers and brush off with a dry brush to remove caked on food. For tougher messes, use steel wool. Spray down the outside of the oven, the iron stovetop burner covers, the back of the stove, and the stove shelf under the cast iron pans with Simple Green Pro D. Remove the cast iron pans from the top shelf and spray shelf with Simple Green Pro D. Let sit for 2 minutes, wipe dry. Scrub any built up grime on the stainless steel with baking soda and water paste. Put the iron stovetop burners back on the oven. Make sure the iron is dry when you’re finished.
Sanitizer: This is for the sanitizer machine that sanitizes the dishes. Spray the outside and handles of the sanitizer machine with Simple Green Pro D, let sit for 2 minutes, wipe dry. Clean out the strainer of the sanitizer by pulling up the drain plug and spraying the basket until it’s clean.
Stainless steel tables: These are the three stainless steel tables (one has two shelves, one has one shelf, and one that has the dirty dishes buckets on top). Remove all items from the shelves. Spray the shelves, sides, and metal poles with Simple Green Pro D, let sit for 2 minutes, wipe dry. Scrub away any grime or buildup on the shelves. Spray baking sheet stands and all bins including the bins that hold the parts of the food processor and dirty rags with Simple Green Pro D, let sit for 2 minutes, and wipe dry. Scrub away any grime build up on the bins. Return the items in a more organized way than you found them, trying to save as much space on the shelf as possible. Make sure all bowls, pans, and colanders are face down so food doesn’t fall into them when cooking.
Drawers: These are all 12 of the main drawers in the kitchen under the tile counters. Go drawer by drawer. Remove all items from the drawer. Use the vacuum from the hot containers shelf to vacuum out all food debris. Spray the inside (bottom and walls) and front of the drawer (including the handles) with Simple Green Pro D. Let sit for 2 minutes, wipe dry. Return the items to the draw in a more organized way than you found them. If there are any items that do not belong in that drawer, return it to the place where it belongs. Repeat this process with each drawer.
Dish shelves: These are all three shelves where the main dishes are stored (plates, bowls, cups, etc.) Remove all dishes from the shelves including the top shelf. Spray the shelf and the walls of the shelf with Simple Green Pro D, let sit for 2 minutes, wipe dry. Do the same with the shelf liners and return them to the shelf. Be sure to spray the front edges/frame of the shelves. Return the dishes in a more organized way than you found them. Stack things functionally. Before returning the items on the top shelf, wipe down the bins with Simple Green Pro D. Organize the boxes on the top shelf with the smaller items.
DISHES
Dishwashers are responsible for all dishes, even if the previous washer is a no-show. Dishes should be completed:
- Saturday specifically: Between 1pm and 7pm, after brunch is served.
- Evenings: After dinner is served, before 6am the following morning.
Duties:
- Remove masking tape from containers before washing.
- Scrub dishes of any remaining food not scrubbed off. It is the responsibility of each individual to scrub their dish before putting their dish in the dish bin for washing.
- Run dishes and pots through sanitizer. (Make sure the water temperature is at least 120 degrees F — light green on the temp gauge. Dark green is best. Occasionally refill water to maintain high temp. Keep the sanitizer closed between runs to keep the heat in.)
- Dry all the dishes and put them away. Using the overhead vent helps dishes air dry faster.
- Stack large bowls/pans/colanders upside down and neatly under prep tables.
- Run scrubby brushes through the sanitizer with the utensils.
- Put the dirty sponges in the dirty rags bin. Run scrubby brushes through the sanitizer with the utensils.
- Clean the sink spotless. Put the drain screen back over the drain on the left (the one without the disposal) — we don’t want any food clogging the drain.
- Run the dirty dish bin that is labeled with the day you are cleaning dishes through the sanitizer.
- With the empty dirty dish bins removed from the stainless steel counter, spray the counter with Simple Green Pro D, let sit for 2 minutes, wipe away.
- Refill the dish soap solution in the bottle using 1 cup of dish soap and fill with water. Use the handwashing sink to fill with water.
- Drain all the water from the sanitizer when you’re done.
- Minimize the amount of water on the floor. Mop up excess with a towel and throw towel in the dirty rags bin when you’re done.
MOP/COUNTER
- Take out the trash. Put in a new trash bag in the trash can.
- Dump the recycling receptacles into the recycling cans outside. Rinse out the recycling receptacles and put them back where they go.
- Take rags to the laundry room and put them in the washer on the "Sanitary" cycle.
- Look for clean rags in the laundry room and bring them back to the rag drawer. Separate large rags from small rags and place them in designated drawer/area. Large rags (towels) go in the bins on the hot containers shelf by the GUFF freezer. Smaller rags go in the drawer. Return the plastic bag used to carry them to the dispenser box in the laundry room.
- Refill the soap by the hand washing sink with Dr. Bronner's soap concentrate found on the bottom shelf of the pantry (1:10 with water).
- Clear away kitchen appliances and clutter.
- Disinfect and clean all surfaces (counters, the stove top including the shelf above the stove, shelves,, the mop sink, the dining room table, and the small wooden table in the kitchen) with Simple Green Pro D. Spray, let sit for 2 minutes, wipe clean.
- Clean the microwave inside and outside using Simple Green Pro D. Spray, let sit for 2 minutes, wipe dry.
- Disinfect and wipe down the handwashing sink using Simple Green Pro D. Clean out the drain cover so that the sink doesn’t get clogged up.
- Basically if it’s a horizontal surface, spray it with Simple Green Pro D. Let it sit for 2 minutes. Wipe clean.
- Sanitize all door knobs, fridge handles, handles, and light switches with Simple Green Pro D. Spray, let sit for 2 minutes, wipe dry.
- Sweep and mop floor — including under the stainless steel shelves, as far as you can reach under the fridges/freezers, in the pantry, and behind the trash can and recycling bins. To mop: Get mop pole from mail monolith and mop head from basket by GUFF freezer. Press mop head on Velcro bottom of the mop pole. Spray a section of the floor with Simple Green Pro D. Allow 2 minutes to sit. Scrub floor with mop, trying to remove as much dirt as possible. Spray another section and repeat until you’ve done the whole floor from wall to wall.
- Finish all of this by 4am.
- Check to make sure the oven is off. If it is on, turn it off, unless it is currently being used. (house vote of 11-1-0 on 3/13/16)
SHOPPER BUDDY
Make certain that the co-op does not run out of staples. [See: KitchenFoodStaplesList]
- Supply the cooks/chefs with any food items they request for the coming week, as the food budget allows.
- Use house money from a monthly food budget determined by the Treasurer and Bookkeeper.
- When possible, buy in bulk to get better prices.
- Put everything away in proper labeled containers.
- You are the steward of our food and are responsible for its condition from the time it is purchased until it is prepared.
- Reimburse Shopper Buddy for mileage $10 per month flat payment (Reimbursements must be sought within 3 months of the mileage being accrued). (motion altered on 4/10/16 by 12-0-3)
BULK PREP
- Make up some tasty dressing/snack/dip/baked good for all to enjoy. Feel free to do smaller portions a couple times a week or do one big batch.
- As much as possible, use readily available bulk staple items.
- Plan bulk recipes around staple items as well.
- Special requests should be made to the shopper before s/he does the week's shopping -- and bulk food prepper must be open to adjustments if requested ingredients could not be procured for budgetary/availability reasons.
- Label and date said tasty treat.
- Leave a note/email saying where and what it is.
- Baker -- Be kneady. Rise to the occasion. Toast your success. Ok. I’ll stop.
- Refill bread mix container for bread machine. (voted 4-11-10)
DINING ROOM
Dining Room labor includes the dining room, front entranceway, and front porch. This labor is to be done once per week.
Dining Room: This is the big room directly off the kitchen including the mini-hallway leading into the kitchen from the dining room (where the chalkboard is).
- Flip benches of the dining table on top of the table and move smaller items out of the room to sweep the Dining Room floor all the way up to the baseboard thoroughly.
- Mop using a mop pole from the mail monolith and a mophead from the basket next to the GUFF freezer. Stick the mophead to the Velcro on the mop pole. Hardwood floor cleaner is in the mail monolith.
- Spritz the flooring with hardwood floor cleaner (Bona) and mop the floor, scrubbing to get as much dirt off as possible.
- Place these mop heads in the dirty rags basket in the kitchen for the Mop/Counter's loving attention.
- Return the hardwood floor cleaner fluid to the mail monolith. If we are running low on this cleaning fluid, please inform the Maintenance Coordinator so we can buy more.
- Get rid of clutter, trash, old cups, plates, whatever. Toss it. Bring dishes to the kitchen.
- Straighten up the shelves (including the games shelf) and declutter window sill.
- Arrange furniture. Fix up cushions, pillows, and blankets. Straighten it in general.
- On the first week of the month, wash the blankets in the washing machine.
- Clean couches/chairs by removing cushions and vacuuming underneath thoroughly. Tilt couches back to vacuum under the couches and wipe the legs of couches with a wet rag.
- Get a microfiber cloth from on top of the GUFF freezer and get it damp. With that damp cloth, dust flat surfaces of table, bookcases, shelves, and windowsill. Then, disinfect flat surfaces with Simple Green Pro D. Spray the surface with Simple Green Pro D, let sit for 2 minutes, wipe dry with regular rag.
- Disinfect all door knobs and light switches with Simple Green Pro D. Spray, let sit for 2 minutes, wipe dry.
Entranceway: This is the little foyer area just inside the front door.
- Organize the shelves and get rid of clutter. Throw out empty boxes, trash, bottles, or anything else you see sitting in the exact same spot for weeks on end. If worried it belongs to somebody, leave a note. Toss it the next week.
- Sweep and clear out unnecessary items on the floor. Spritz the flooring with hardwood floor cleaner and mop the floor, scrubbing to get as much dirt off as possible.
Front Porch (also known as breezeway):
- Sweep the front porch with the outdoor broom (located in mail monolith) or with the leaf blower from the breezeway.
- Properly dispose of all trash, empty ashtrays, and bring personal items back inside.
- Straighten up patio furniture including the potting table.
- Disinfect all door knobs with Simple Green Pro D. Let sit for 2 minutes. Wipe dry.
Sign white board with your name and the date you cleaned the space.
HALF BATHROOM AND HALLWAY
Half Bathroom: Weekday vs. weekend: At times the bathroom is cleaned twice a week. Weekday is considered Tuesday-Thursday and weekend is Saturday or Sunday.
- Get rid of clutter. Throw out anything you see sitting around for weeks on end. If worried it belongs to somebody, leave a note. Toss it the next week.
- Replace the hand towel. Take the dirty towel to the kitchen and put it in the bin for rags needing to be washed. If the house is using paper towels instead of hand towels, replace the paper towel roll if needed. Extra paper towels are on top of the personal fridge or on the top shelf of the maintenance closet.
- Fill up the hand soap dispenser with Dr. Bronner's soap concentrate found on the bottom shelf of the pantry (1:10 with water). Clean:
- Note: Using disinfectant, super hot water, and baking soda for better scrubbing power leads to a much better cleaning.
- Sink: Spray counter, behind faucet, faucet with disinfectant (Simple Green Pro D). Let sit for 2 minutes. Wipe dry with rag.
- Mirror: Spray with windex or vinegar water solution and wipe with paper towel or microfiber towel (on top of freezer in kitchen).
- Toilet: Spray base, outside bowl, seat, lid, tank, and tank lid with disinfectant (Simple Green Pro D). Let sit for 2 minutes. Wipe dry with rag. Cover all sides of the inside of the toilet with toilet bowl cleaner. Scrub bowl with toilet brush. Let sit for 5 minutes. Flush.
- Windows: Wipe down the window sills with Simple Green Pro D.
- Basically if it’s a flat surface, remove whatever is sitting on it. Squirt some Simple Green Pro D on it. Let it sit for a few minutes. Wipe it dry with rag. Put back the stuff that was there.
- Spray all door knobs, light switches, and handles with disinfectant. Let sit for 2 minutes. Wipe dry.
- Sweep floor then mop the floor with Simple Green Pro D. To mop: Get mop pole from mail monolith and mop head from basket by GUFF freezer. Press mop head on Velcro bottom of the mop pole. Spray a section of the floor with Simple Green Pro D. Allow 2 minutes to sit. Scrub floor with mop, trying to remove as much dirt as possible. Spray another section and repeat until you’ve done the whole floor from wall to wall.
- If needed, bring in extra rolls of toilet paper from the laundry room under the wooden table.
- Take out trash and replace it with a new trash bag.
Half Bathroom Hallway:
- Sweep the hallway that links the kitchen, the bathroom, and the dining room.
- Spritz the flooring with wood-cleaning fluid (Bona Hardwood Floor Cleaner) and mop the floor.
- Donate items to Goodwill monthly, with one-week notice given to the house sending an email reminder to the house business list/communicating to the house through SLACK. (Voted 6/4/17 by 7-0-1)
- Spray all door knobs, light switches, and handles with disinfectant. Let sit for 2 minutes. Wipe dry. (Voted 4/17/2011)
- Clean window sills by spraying with Simple Green Pro D, letting sit for 2 minutes and wiping with a rag.
GROUNDS CREW
The following grounds maintenance is done weekly.
Parking Lot:
- Sweep leaves accumulating next to the street and curb.
- Transfer swept leaves to the landscape as mulch and/or add to compost pile. (Note: it is very useful to use a large tarp and two people to carry large amounts of leaves at one time.)
House:
- Keep the gutters clear of leaves and maintain their functionality. (Note: this is especially important in areas where the leakage will accumulate on wood and rot areas of the house.)
Yard:
- Maintain the fire wood in a neat, dry, accessible place.
- Maintain scrap building materials in a well-organized and sheltered space. It should be easy to see what we have available and to retrieve these materials for building projects. Screws, nails, and other sharp and potentially dangerous objects should be removed from building materials before being stored.
- Keep clutter in yard to a minimum. (Note: If something is potentially useful, it needs to have a place where it will neither be ruined by weather nor be an eyesore.)
Other projects:
The Grounds Coordinator maintains a running list of projects that should be worked on when regular grounds work is done.
Looking for grounds labor to do? Here are some things that often need to be done. The beautiful thing about grounds labor is that most of it is not time-sensitive. Most of the things on this list are seasonal and need more or less attention at different times of the year. Please record on the clipboard the date, what you did, and how long it took you. If you are on the grounds crew, the time will be added to your balance. If you are doing make-up labor, grounds coordinator will report your hours to the Labor Czar.
- Blow/sweep parking lot and brick walkways.
- Clean gutters.
- Clean outside walls.
- Create and maintain flower and herb gardens.
- Haul away large trash items (if you have a place to legally dispose of them).
- Organize corral, art shed, and other outdoor areas.
- Maintain walking trail around house.
- Move firewood away from fence.
- Pick up trash.
- Pull weeds coming through pavement and brick walkways (by hand or with trimmer).
- Pull invasive species (ask if you are not sure).
- Rake leaves.
- Remove tree stumps.
- Repair treehouse (talk to maintenance coordinator about buying materials).
- Rinse out trash receptacles.
- Spray AC units.
- Sweep parking lot.
- Trim tree branches.
- Water lemon tree and flower beds. Record when you do it to prevent over-watering.
- Weed paths around garden plots. DO NOT whack plants inside plots.
MAINTENANCE CREW
- If you are assigned to maintenance, it is probably best to talk to the Maintenance Coordinator as generally you will need tools, maybe some guidance on strange projects, and to know what projects need to be done.
- HOWEVER, little things count here too. Please take some initiative. Little things you could and would fix on your own if you lived alone… get on it. Fix a clogged drain, install little sink drain strainers so you aren’t always fixing clogged drains… especially in the mop sink. Stop a leaky faucet, fix a running toilet, paint things that need to be painted.
STEWARD
Read all house documents -- the TheContract, the House Rules, the House Bylaws, the CHEA Articles of Incorporation, the house budget, and the labor descriptions -- and be familiar with all of them.
- Be a source of information -- educate members about house policies. Work to make all policies and important house documents easily accessible to all members.
- Carry out evictions on behalf of the house membership and/or CHEA Board of Directors (Section 4.3 of the House Rules).
- Oversee Membership Reviews. Ensure that house policies regarding eviction meetings are followed (Section 4.7 of House Rules). Inform the membership and the member being reviewed of all relevant policies.
As Pet Kaiser, communicate and enforce the house PetPolicy. Keep track of members' compliance with the Pet Policy. Ensure that the house pet limit is not exceeded.
- Fill in when important officer positions are temporarily vacant, and assure smooth transitions of officer positions from one member to another. If an officer position is known to be unfilled or not performed for the next week, the Steward should be assigned those lumps in the following week’s labor schedule. (Voted on 4-2-2023.)
- Carry out elections in the absence of the Labor Czar.
Pay attention to ensure Membership Coordinator duties are being completed. Check to ensure that the Membership Coordinator is posting ads on craigslist roughly once a week (whether we have any vacancies or not). Have read-only access to the MemCo email account. Check to ensure that the Membership Coordinator is answering emails in a reasonable amount of time. Check to ensure that the Membership Coordinator is adding accepted prospective members to the email list. (Voted 10-23-11.)
Pay attention to ensure Labor Czar duties are being completed. Communicate with the Labor Czar every month to ensure that make-up labor and labor fines are being assessed in a timely manner and emailed to the house (see LaborPolicies). Ensure that the Labor Czar is maintaining a publicly available format of each house member's no-shows, make-up labor hours owed, make-up labor hours completed, and labor fines owed. If these jobs are not being completed, no-show the Labor Czar. (Voted 1-27-13.)
- Keep an eye on the books to ensure that they are updated. Ensure that the Treasurer gets members on payment plans when applicable. When necessary, deliver the Elliot Blanton Memorial Eviction notice.
Ensure that taxes are filed on time. Be familiar with tax filing procedures. (See: TaxFilingInformation.)
- Work to find solutions to problems that don't fall in the jurisdiction of any other house officers or members.
Serve as a house mediator to assist in solving conflicts and mediating disputes. (See: MediationInfo)
- Encourage and maintain a spirit of cooperation and democratic participation in the house.
- Steward must be a resident member of the house (not an associate) passed 5/29/16 by 8-0-1
Make a report at every business meeting. Reporting can be done in-person OR by email to " business@sasona.org ". (Emails will be read aloud by MinutesTaker at the meeting.) Reports have a 2-minute time limit, and saying "nothing to report" is totally acceptable. [passed 2020-12-6]
MEMBERSHIP COORDINATOR
- Keep the house as close to full occupancy as humanly possible.
- Advertise! Update our ads on Craigslist every week — EVEN WHEN THE HOUSE IS FULL. Never stop advertising. (Tip: It's a good idea to post flyers at all of the campus coops once a semester. At the very least, all of the campus coops and ICC and College Houses offices should be heavily flyered every May, when students are about to graduate and move on. Flyers at 21st Street Coop should explain that Sasona was founded by four 21st St Motherfuckers.)
- Answer emails/questions from prospective members, and give them tours on Sundays before the meeting. Learn to recognize scam emails (bad grammar/punctuation, usually from a foreign country, says "advert," claims to be a model or working for some altruistic cause, attaches a picture of a beautiful girl, weird email addresses, obviously didn't read the ad, immediately starts asking about how much rent and deposit to pay, etc). Don't be a sucker. If you aren't sure if an email is a scam, send it to the house for advice.
- Keep the Sasona FAQ updated. Email it out to all prospective members -- it will save you a lot of time answering questions.
- Keep copies of all of the signed contracts. Make note of when people switch rooms so the Treasurer can figure out their prorated rent.
Keep the Member Rents and Dates updated on the wiki. Be aware of whose contract is ending soon, and make sure they renew their contract. If, 6 weeks before their contract ends, they will not guarantee that they will renew their contract, start advertising that their room will open up soon. They can renew their contract at any time then, but if someone signs a contract for the room before they do, then they must either move out, or, if other rooms are available, switch rooms. If their contract is not renewed a month before the end of the contract period, then advertise their room and let someone else sign for their room (after first giving them a chance). (See: ContractSigningPolicies)
- Jack's Law: Make sure that new members pay their deposit when they sign their contract. If they do not pay their deposit, then they cannot sign a contract. DO NOT let people move in if they haven't paid their deposit.
- Make sure that people with no money and no job don't move in. It is easier to stop them from moving in than it is to evict them once they're here. People without jobs should pay both the deposit and first month's rent before moving in. If they cannot do so, then that is firsthand knowledge of a reason that they would be evicted -- and therefore a good reason to deny them membership.
- Keep track of who attended two meetings and when. Keep the Waiting List on the wiki updated. After a prospective member has been accepted, add them to the waiting list. Keep track of what prospective members have pets, and ensure that the house pet limit is not exceeded.
- If several people are interested in the same room, decide who gets it. Be very familiar with the Member Acceptance Policy, and follow it faithfully. Update the Member Acceptance Policy, with the house's help, if you encounter situations that the policy does not adequately handle.
- Keep extra copies of all of the room keys. Keep them organized. With the maintenance coordinator's help, make sure that everyone has a key and a functional lock on their door.
Find hostelers to fill vacant rooms until a long-term member can be found. Ask prospective hostelers for more information about themselves (such as a Facebook page) and ask them to explain why they would be a good fit for the house. Accept or reject potential hostelers based on who can take the room when it is available, who will stay the longest (in order to bring in the most money with the least turnover), and who will be the best fit for the house. Do not accept hostelers who won't be a good fit for the house. If there is any question whether someone will be a good fit for the house, contact the house and ask the house's opinion. Hostelers should be civil, friendly, able to pay in advance, and able to move out when their hosteling stay is completed. (House vote, 12-6-09.) (See: HostelingPolicies.)
Determine how much a member's deposit will be charged upon move-out. (See: DepositReturnPolicies.)
Act as House Mediator to try to solve conflicts. Encourage everyone to play nice. (See: MediationInfo)
Maintain the info@sasona.org email address. Answer emails in a timely manner. Ensure that the Steward knows the password and has access to info@sasona.org .
- When people sign contracts for the first time they need to sign the harassment policy, income disclosure, new member orientation, scavenger hunt, pay deposit and first month’s rent.
- Memco has to send any new income disclosure forms to CHEA operations manager within the month.
- You have to keep an updated list of potential members on the google sheet
- Make people aware of the associate membership scholarship (passed 8/25/20)
- When someone moves in they need to be added to the email and Slack, and a welcome email sent to the house
Make a report at every business meeting. Reporting can be done in-person OR by email to " business@sasona.org ". (Emails will be read aloud by MinutesTaker at the meeting.) Reports have a 2-minute time limit, and saying "nothing to report" is totally acceptable. [passed 2020-12-6]
(For membership coordinator transitions, it might be helpful to read this list: MembershipCoordinatorTrainingChecklist)
TREASURER
Take a leading role in helping the house create an annual budget. Seek and encourage input from the membership. Create at least three options to propose to the house, by changing the amounts of the food budget, reserve fund, rent, or other variables as needed to provide some options to choose from. The budget should be based on comparisons of actual income and spending compared to the previous budget, and on the coop's income relative to the price of comparable housing. (See: TheBudget.)
- Ensure the house follows that budget by keeping records of what spending occurs in what budget categories, and comparing the actual spending with the budgeted amounts at least twice a year.
- Keep track of deposits, credits, money owed to us, and money we owe.
- Ensure that deposits are made in time to pay all bills.
- Pay all our rent and bills in full and on time.
- Collect maintenance receipts from the Maintenance Coordinator. Send receipts to NASCO Properties as needed to ensure we have enough money in our accounts.
- Maintain an efficient and convenient bank account for the house. Ensure that the account is as resistant to embezzlement as possible.
- Answer financial questions from the membership. Encourage input from the membership and work with Food Shopper to report weekly purchases and budget adherence.
- Provide a public place for the filing of house financial documents. Ensure that all deposit slips and bank statements are filed in a public place within the house on at least a monthly basis.
- Along with the Bookkeeper, maintain the lockbox for rent payments, receipts, and other documents that need to be secured.
When handing out checks, ensure that the person responsible for the check is named in the memo slot for accountability. Any checks that are lost or stolen can therefore be the responsibility of the person to whom the check was issued, so make sure that the carriers of checks are aware of this and take care of the checks they are issued. Ensure that the house Spending Policies are followed (See: SpendingPolicies).
Maintain needed publicly accessible calendars of financial deadlines. These should include a monthly calendar for the benefit of the members showing the incoming and outgoing house funds (rent due dates, and due dates of bills). These should also contain a yearly calendar containing information on IRS filing deadlines, the start and end of our Fiscal Year, annual reports due to lenders, the NASCO Properties Fiscal Year (and therefore maintenance expense deadlines) and any other annual information. (See: FinancialCalendar.)
- Cash is never, ever to be accepted from any members. Ever. Cash has no paper trail and is far too easy to steal. Accept only checks and money orders.
- Ensure that the Bookkeeper sends out Bookkeeper reports twice a month.
- Get a copy of the books from the Bookkeeper every two weeks (shortly after the 3rd and 7th of the month) to ensure that everyone is up to date on their rent payments and payment plans. Examine the books to ensure that they are accurate and complete, checking accuracy of account balances and assuring that late fees and labor fines were assessed, before returning them to the Bookkeeper.
If someone owes more than $100 after the 7th of the month, put them on a payment plan. Work with the member so that they have a workable payment plan that fits their budget. Follow the Payment Plan Policies. (See: PaymentPlans.) Email approved payment plans to the house.
- As soon as someone falls off their payment plan—if their rent is late, or their payment plan installment is late—alert the Steward. The Steward will then deliver the Elliot Blanton Memorial Eviction Notice.
Ensure that taxes are filed accurately and on time. Be familiar with tax filing procedures. (See: TaxFilingInformation.)
Uphold the Open Books Policy. (See: OpenBooksPolicy.) Upon request, show any current member the bookkeeping records, bank account statements, deposit slips, and any other financial information that is requested, including how money is spent and what members owe money, who is facing eviction, who is on a payment plan, etc. (House vote, 8-15-10.)
- Report monthly on utilities expenses, including comparisons with previous year and with budgeted amount.
Ensure that NASCO membership dues are paid on time. (See: NascoMemberDues.)
Write deposit return checks to members who are moving out, after being informed of the amount by the Membership Coordinator. (See: DepositReturnPolicies.)
Communicate with the Labor Czar every month to ensure that labor fines are being assessed in a timely manner (see LaborPolicies). If this job is not being completed, no-show the Labor Czar.
- Make use of CHEA Staff to ask/answer questions about Quickbooks and Bookkeeping/Financial procedures and consult with paid bookkeeper if necessary.
If a new Bookkeeper is elected during your term, help to train them. (See: BookkeeperTrainingChecklist.)
When stepping down from the position, train the new Treasurer. (See: TreasurerTrainingChecklist.) Do whatever needs to be done to assist in removing yourself as a signor on the bank account. If you are moving out, your deposit will not be returned until you have removed yourself as a signor.
- You are not allowed to be bookkeeper while you are treasurer (house vote, 4-21-2013).
For Quickbooks help, check out La Reunion's financial policy La Reunion's Official Financial Procedures (Current Quickbooks Reference)
Make a report at every business meeting. Reporting can be done in-person OR by email to " business@sasona.org ". (Emails will be read aloud by MinutesTaker at the meeting.) Reports have a 2-minute time limit, and saying "nothing to report" is totally acceptable. [passed 2020-12-6]
BOOKKEEPER
Maintain Accounts Receivable for Sasona members in the electronic bookkeeping system, Quickbooks, tracking all balances. (See: QuickbooksQuickGuides)
- Carefully enter and track all entries for members to ensure paid bookkeeper and Treasurer are able to access accurate information on member balances.
- If requested, provide a hard-copy or e-mail receipt to members and hostellers for payments.
- Together with the Treasurer, maintain the lockbox in which members place their payments, receipts, and other such documents. Help ensure the security and integrity of the lockbox.
- Send out a rent due reminder one week before rent is due and on the day that rent is due.
- Collect rent checks from the lock box on the 4th of the month, communicate with members who have not paid rent.
Record late fees, set up payment plans, as needed. (See: PaymentPlans.)
- Communicate member balances to the house. We have an open records policy requiring all balances be open to all members. Must send out the list of people who have not paid rent on the 4th of the month, and send another updated list on the 11th of each month. [Amended 2022-7-24]
- Deposit checks and keep record of all rent checks for Sasona.
- File copies of all checks, original deposit slips, balance sheets and payment plans.
Maintain member balances in Quickbooks, including rent payments, late fees, and labor charges – noting the date and reason for charge. (See: QuickbooksQuickGuides)
- Communicate with the Labor Czar every month to ensure that labor fines are being assessed in a timely manner.
If this labor reports are not being completed, no-show the Labor Czar. (see LaborPolicies)
Update online accounting system, Quickbooks, as changes occur within the house. (See: QuickbooksQuickGuides)
Process pro-rated rent, payment plans and vacation credit through the bookkeeping system. (See: PaymentPlans.)
- Process deposits in Quickbooks when a member moves in and refund it when a member moves out.
- Contact Treasurer and Membership Coordinator when deposit is approved for processing.
- Close out member account and recurring rent payment in Quickbooks.
- Create accounts for new house members and touch base with them about rent payments, late fees, labor charges and the eviction process.
Send out reminder e-mails to the house, as accounts are updated, about twice a month, after rent has been paid. (See: OpenBooksPolicy).
Provide members financial data regarding balance, upon request. (see: OpenBooksPolicy).
- Ensure that all member-requested information and reports are presented in a timely fashion.
- Work closely with CHEA’s professional bookkeeper to ensure member data is being maintained in the online system appropriately.
- Maintain updated accounts so that the CHEA Board may access financial data, when necessary.
- Meet with CHEA’s professional bookkeeper once a quarter to close out books and answer questions about house accounts.
- Notify Treasurer when deposits are taken to the bank and batched in Quickbooks.
Assist in tax preparation in any way needed by the Board and the Treasurer. (See: TaxFilingInformation.)
When stepping down from the position, train the new Bookkeeper. (See: TreasurerTrainingChecklist)
- You are not allowed to be Treasurer while you are Bookkeeper (house vote, 4-21-2013).
- Currently set at 3 lumps/week (house vote 1/7/18)
For Quickbooks help, check out La Reunion's financial policy La Reunion's Official Financial Procedures (Current Quickbooks Reference)
Make a report at every business meeting. Reporting can be done in-person OR by email to " business@sasona.org ". (Emails will be read aloud by MinutesTaker at the meeting.) Reports have a 2-minute time limit, and saying "nothing to report" is totally acceptable. [passed 2020-12-6]
CHEA BOARD MEMBER
- Attend all CHEA Board meetings.
Represent the house on the CHEA Board of Directors. Report back to the house on Board issues.
Read all house documents -- the TheContract, the House Rules, the House Bylaws, the CHEA Articles of Incorporation, the house budget, and the labor descriptions -- and be familiar with all of them.
Ensure that taxes are filed on time. Be familiar with tax filing procedures. (See: TaxFilingInformation.)
- A Sasona CHEA rep will take the CHEA mail to the board meetings, every meeting. The house's CHEA reps will coordinate this task between themselves.
- CHEA Board Members representing Sasona are eligible for a mileage reimbursement for CHEA business related trips at the maximum federal mileage reimbursement rate. Passed 8/4/16 by 7-2-0
Make a report at every business meeting. Reporting can be done in-person OR by email to " business@sasona.org ". (Emails will be read aloud by MinutesTaker at the meeting.) Reports have a 2-minute time limit, and saying "nothing to report" is totally acceptable. [passed 2020-12-6]
MAINTENANCE COORDINATOR
- Keep a running maintenance request list clearly posted.
- Work with people on maintenance team to keep house in running order.
- Record a "no-show" for any maintenance crew member who accumulates more than 4 overdue lumps. Crew members receive a no-show for each week that their accumulated lumps are greater than 4. [Passed 2022-7-24]
- Teach people how to fix basic problems themselves... like clogged faucet, running toilet, etc.
Communicate with treasurer and bookkeeper when larger projects requiring significant funds are being planned. Keep track of how much money is left in the maintenance fund, and budget accordingly. Spend money frugally so that there will be some Minor Maintenance money left near the end of the fiscal year. Be aware of and follow NASCO Properties' policies on spending Major Maintenance money; communicate with NASCO Properties before spending Major Maintenance money. (See: MaintenanceBudget.)
Turn in receipts to the Treasurer within 24 hours of making a purchase. Use the CHEA Tax ID number to make tax-exempt purchases. (See: SpendingPolicies.)
- Communicate with house to ensure that the maintenance projects being performed are both wanted and needed. Request house-level input (e.g. emailing the entire house, discussing it at a meeting, or calling an informal meeting for discussion) for non-routine and/or aesthetic decisions. Request and encourage house input, and work to facilitate the needs and interests of the members.
- Report weekly to the house on what the maintenance crew is doing.
- Work with Labor Czar and Grounds Coordinator to plan effective and efficient labor holidays. Communicate with the house to determine what the house wants to accomplish on the labor holiday.
- Maintain whole-house water filtration system.
- Ensure that AC filters are changed when needed. (House vote, 2-20-11.)
- Clear lint from dryer exhaust pipe no less than once per year on the second week of April. House vote, 4-24-11)
Make a report at every business meeting. Reporting can be done in-person OR by email to " business@sasona.org ". (Emails will be read aloud by MinutesTaker at the meeting.) Reports have a 2-minute time limit, and saying "nothing to report" is totally acceptable. [passed 2020-12-6]
GROUNDS COORDINATOR
- Work with and coordinate grounds crew in weekly grounds maintenance work days.
- Record a "no-show" for any grounds crew member who accumulates more than 4 overdue lumps. Crew members receive a no-show for each week that their accumulated lumps are greater than 4. [Passed 2022-7-24]
- On Grounds Dry Erase Board and Grounds Binder (or equivalents) keep regular maintenance and project/improvement to-do lists up to date and available to house members.
- Field suggestion for projects/improvements from house members and add them to running list.
- Plan and manage landscape improvement projects.
- Communicate with house to ensure that the grounds projects being performed are both wanted and needed. Request house-level input (e.g. emailing the entire house, discussing it at a meeting, or calling an informal meeting for discussion) for non-routine and/or aesthetic decisions. Routine tasks include maintaining the compost pile, raking leaves, cutting firewood, picking up trash, and keeping clutter in the yard to a minimum. (Note: If something is potentially useful, it needs to have a place where it will neither be ruined by weather nor be an eyesore.) Examples of non-routine and/or aesthetic decisions include, but are not limited to, the removal and/or disassembly of existing structures and the assembly of new structures. Request and encourage house input, and work to facilitate the needs and interests of the members.
- Work with Labor Czar and Maintenance Coordinator to plan effective and efficient labor holidays.Communicate with the house to determine what the house wants to accomplish on the labor holiday.
- Report weekly to house on what grounds crew is doing.
- Remove sources of standing water -- fight mosquitoes! (House vote, 2-20-11.)
Make a report at every business meeting. Reporting can be done in-person OR by email to " business@sasona.org ". (Emails will be read aloud by MinutesTaker at the meeting.) Reports have a 2-minute time limit, and saying "nothing to report" is totally acceptable. [passed 2020-12-6]
LABOR CZARISTA / CZAR
- Plan and post the labor schedule for each week. Maintain running no-show sheet with who was no-showed, what for, no-show-er, and action taken to resolve the situation.
Maintain a running tally of each individual house members number of no-shows and make-up hours owed. Penalize no-shows according to The Machine (see LaborPolicies). Maintain a publicly available format of each house member's no-shows, make-up labor hours owed, make-up labor hours completed, and labor fines owed; update this spreadsheet every month when make-up labor is assessed and labor fines are assessed. Follow the Labor Fine Policy (see LaborPolicies). When assessing make-up labor hours, email them to the house. When assessing labor fines, email them to the house, the Treasurer, and the Bookkeeper. When a member exceeds the evictable limit for no-shows, inform the Steward. (house vote, 1/27/13)
- Ensure that Archivist is appraised of changes in labor descriptions and that changes are made accordingly. (House vote, 6/18/17 10-0-1)
- Mediate between no-show-ers and the no-showed when possible. Communicate with house via meetings when no-shower/no-showed can’t come to a solution.
- Work with maintenance coordinator and grounds crew coordinator to plan labor holidays.
- Run house elections (house vote, 4-22-07). When running elections ensure that Sasona bookkeeper and Sasona treasurer are not the same member (house vote, 4-21-2013).
Update the HouseOfficers wiki page within a week of any change in officers. For each position, list the name of the person holding the position, the date of their first election, the date of their most recent election, the date of the next election, and any other relevant information. (House vote, 10-28-12.)
Make a report at every business meeting. Reporting can be done in-person OR by email to " business@sasona.org ". (Emails will be read aloud by MinutesTaker at the meeting.) Reports have a 2-minute time limit, and saying "nothing to report" is totally acceptable. [passed 2020-12-6]
KITCHEN KAISER
- Make sure the kitchen is in compliance with Health Code. Prepare the kitchen for the inevitable health inspection.
- Maintain detailed and updated kitchen labor descriptions. Keep them posted in a conspicuous place in the kitchen.
- Keep an eye on the kitchen to make sure that all of the labor is being done. No-show or nag people when labor is not completed. Go find people when they are late for labor.
- Make sure you know what is required of each kitchen labor position.
- Find kitchen-related projects for people who owe make-up labor.
- Delegate responsibility and help out to make sure that kitchen repairs and improvements are completed as soon as possible.
- Periodically check levels of chemicals for dish washing machine, replace jugs when empty, keep spare jugs of detergent and sanitizer ready so they can be quickly replaced
- Make sure that food does not sit out for any longer than two hours. If it sits out for four hours, make sure it is thrown away.
- Make sure that old food in the refrigerator and pantry is thrown away.
- Make sure that compost and dirty recycling cans/bottles do not sit in the kitchen more than a day.
- Keep an eye on unrefrigerated fruits and vegetables to make sure they're not rotting. If they are rotting, throw them in the compost.
- Do your best to get rid of pests — flies, fruit fries, roaches, etc.
- Bottom line — the state of the kitchen.
Make a report at every business meeting. Reporting can be done in-person OR by email to " business@sasona.org ". (Emails will be read aloud by MinutesTaker at the meeting.) Reports have a 2-minute time limit, and saying "nothing to report" is totally acceptable. [passed 2020-12-6]
- See also: The Kitchenomicon.
FOOD SHOPPER
Make certain that the co-op does not run out of staples. [See: KitchenFoodStaplesList]
- Supply the cooks/chefs with any food items they request for the coming week, as the food budget allows.
- Use house money from a monthly food budget determined by the Treasurer and Bookkeeper.
- When possible, buy in bulk to get better prices.
- If there is enough money after staples and meal menu requests are purchased, the Food Shopper should buy other cool stuff for the house, using their best judgement.
- Put everything away in proper labeled containers.
- Give receipts to treasurer/bookkeeper.
- Work with treasurer to inform the house of each shopping trip, including at least how much food money was spent and how much is remaining in the monthly food budget. Listing the items purchased would be cool, but is not required.
- You are the steward of our food and are responsible for its condition from the time it is purchased until it is prepared.
You can find useful tips and wisdom from past and current shoppers on the ShoppingTips page.
- Reimburse Food Shopper for mileage $10 per month flat payment, $20 if Food Shopper does not have a Buddy and is making 2 or more trips/week (Reimbursements must be sought within 3 months of the mileage being accrued). (motion altered on 4/10/16 by 12-0-3)
Make a report at every business meeting. Reporting can be done in-person OR by email to " business@sasona.org ". (Emails will be read aloud by MinutesTaker at the meeting.) Reports have a 2-minute time limit, and saying "nothing to report" is totally acceptable. [passed 2020-12-6]
NASCO PROPERTIES BOARD REP
- Faithfully attend all three NP board meetings each year, and all monthly teleconferences.
- Make reports to NP on the state of CHEA (membership, community, finance, and maintenance) and reports to CHEA on the state of NP (budgeting, events, organization, membership of coop groups).
- Work as a bridge between the boards of CHEA and NP, to make sure that CHEA, as a member group, does not take a direction which would be harmful to either CHEA or NP, and that the two groups goals remain compatible.
- In addition to providing feedback both ways in the relationship between CHEA and NP, you should solicit reports, emails, or information from the CHEA board in order to remain aware of developing issues. This is needed because the NP Rep sits on the NP board, but not on the CHEA board.
Make a report at every business meeting. Reporting can be done in-person OR by email to " business@sasona.org ". (Emails will be read aloud by MinutesTaker at the meeting.) Reports have a 2-minute time limit, and saying "nothing to report" is totally acceptable. [passed 2020-12-6]
[Note: The NP Board Rep can get reimbursements for paying others to do their labor while away at meetings. The NP Reps get travel costs to NASCO Institute paid for, but they still have to pay for Institute fees.]
MEETING CHAIR
- Start the meeting at some point between 7:30pm and 8pm on Sunday. Wait until most people have finished eating dinner, and give prospective members time to show up. Walk around the house announcing that the meeting is about to start.
- In the absence of the Minutes Taker, make sure that someone takes minutes and emails them to the house.
- Give prospective members a chance to ask questions while everyone’s eating dinner. Call up prospective members who want to attend meetings by speakerphone. Ask each prospective member these questions:
"Do you have any pets?" If so, the pets must also be accepted by the house. “Why do you want to live in this co-op?” (motion passed 8/11/13). “The cooperative nature of our house requires that we do our share of the labor without being told. Will you agree to be responsible for five lumps of labor every week?” (motion passed 2/1/15)
- Ensure that policies regarding agenda items, quorum, and passing motions are followed. Be familiar with all meeting policies, and inform members about the policies.
- If a lot of people want to speak, they should raise their hand to get on the stack. Write their names down in the order that they raised their hands and call on them to speak. Let each person hold the floor until they are done speaking. (Tip: You can also do a Round, by going around the meeting in a circle and calling on each person. That is a good way to quickly get everyone’s point of view.)
- If "off stack" communications becomes a problem, it may be helpful to assign someone the task of immediately signaling (by ringing a bell, sounding a clicker, banging a gavel, etc.) whenever “off stack” communication has just been made.
- Don’t allow anyone to interrupt someone else. Encourage an environment of constructive discussion.
- Be familiar with the Member Acceptance Policies, and ensure that they are followed.
- Post agenda sheet on the bulletin board.
- Assign nags weekly to those not present for the week's meeting (even heart meetings)
Be familiar with the MeetingProcedures.
- Each January, perform a survey (online or on paper) of members including associate members on their schedule availability for business meetings. Once the Meeting Chair has made a good faith effort to collect as many responses as possible, the Meeting Chair is to bring the results of the survey to the house by sharing it during their officer report at the next business meeting. [passed 2021-3-28]
MINUTES TAKER
This officer position receives 2 lumps credit and can be treated as buddy labor for two members to share the responsibilities. (passed 10-0-0 on 11/2/14)
- Ensure that the minutes are sent to the house and posted in Google Docs linked in the wiki.
When new potential members are accepted, a copy of that meeting's minutes should be emailed to info@sasona.org (mem. coord. email) as well.
- Follow the template below:
Sasona House Meeting Minutes Template (voted 5/26/13) meeting minutes: [month name] [day number], [year number, [time meeting begins] (e.g. february 24, 4242, 7:35 PM CT) Times of any pauses and reconvening of meeting (for example due to a late dinner)
PRESENT
- Current Members who were present for any part of the meeting (assist Meeting Chair in assessing Nags {One missed meeting = one nag})
- First and last name of each prospective present, whether or not it’s their 1st or 2nd meeting, if they have any pets, if they were accepted, not accepted, or further action must be taken to accept
OFFICER REPORTS [officer title] ([officer name])
- Title of officer position (ie Steward), name of member holding position (Suzy Lynn)
- Basic info reported
- Any action items from report, who will do them, and by when they agreed to have them done
AGENDA (please note that you are not required to capture every point, reason, concern or other words during discussion)
- The main topic or idea of the agenda item
- The three members who officially called for discussion of the item (unless dispute of Labor Czar ruling)
- The final correct wording of any motion(s) made (if need be, interrupt the meeting to ensure wording is correct) o Name of member making motion o Name of member who seconds motion o Outcome of agenda item
- Vote
- Vote count
- Passed or not passed
- Tabled
- Any to do items, who will do them, and by when they agreed to have them done
NEW BUSINESS ITEMS
- Topic and info of item (if event date, time, place and contact person for questions)
- Member who brought up the item
- Any vote called to continue or end the meeting due to time constraints
- Persons who make and second any motions (such as to adjourn or Round Robin)
ROUND ROBIN (do not take minutes of Round Robins)
ARCHIVIST
Job Description Approved by vote of 11-1-1 on 3/13/16
- Update Wiki weekly in accordance with motions passed at the previous house meeting
- Correct or Remove outdated/irrelevant information in the wiki
- Organize materials within wiki so that relevant information can easily be found
- In the absence of a motion to correct a wiki section bring concrete proposals to the house for a vote before severely altering the wiki
- Bring inconsistencies to the house for clarification as needed
- Present weekly changes to the wiki in officer report to be ratified by the membership
- If Archivist will not be present at house meeting, changes must be emailed or posted to the house by the house meeting agenda-item-inclusion deadline so that the meeting chair can present them during officer reports
- Changes will be considered ratified when changes are presented and no objections are voiced (no house vote required)
- Correct previous changes as dictated by the membership when objections are present, not frivolous, and do not oppose a house motion that the change was intended to address
- Be a house authority on internal house rules and regulations answering questions from the membership as they arise
Make a report at every business meeting. Reporting can be done in-person OR by email to " business@sasona.org ". (Emails will be read aloud by MinutesTaker at the meeting.) Reports have a 2-minute time limit, and saying "nothing to report" is totally acceptable. [passed 2020-12-6]
MAIL SORTER
During the COVID19 period, the mail sorter must wash and disinfect their hands prior to and after handling the mail.
Current Members
- Bring people’s mail to their box throughout the week.
- Person should bring packages to people’s doors
- Put sasona house mail in CHEA mail box.
Former Members
- Return to sender on important mail, anything official. barcode must be crossed out with black sharpie, letters must be stamped “return to sender and clipped on clothespin on mailbox
- The house will keep a box for former members for 6 months following the end of their contract. Upon end of contract, mail sorter will put a sticker with a date 6 months away on the nameplate. At the end of the 6 months, remaining mail will be returned to sender and box will be decommissioned.
MEDIATOR
[Two labor of love (zero lump), elected Mediator positions; by house vote 7/18/10.]
Be available to members who want to talk about a problem they might be having with some aspect of the house. Keep discussions confidential unless given permission to share with someone else (for example, with another mediator, or to ask the other party in the dispute their side of the story). (See: MediationInfo)
SASONAGRAM EDITOR
(0 lump; 3 month term) (house vote 1-29-12)
- Post ads in the house, and send out emails weekly requesting submissions for the Sasonagram. Seek out submissions from all members. SUBMIT! SUBMIT!
- Maintain the sasonagram@gmail address, and pass along the password to future editors.
Put out a final product before the end of your term. Print up at least 10 hard copies of the finished Sasonagram, and distribute them through the house living rooms & bathrooms. Email the completed PDF to the house. (If you have not been able to produce an issue before the end of your term, you can show the Steward how many pages you've completed and tell the house to try to make a case for your re-election.)
- Use the Sasonagram to educate people about cooperative issues, to build community, and to entertain people while they're on the crapper.
- Maintain the archive of PDFs of past Sasonagrams, and make them available to the house.
Tips: You can pass the hat to get money to cover the costs of printing. Good stuff to include in the issue: pictures of house events, notes from NASCO Institute, co-oper quotes, educational info about co-ops, writing and artwork etc by Sasoonies, or anything else that people submit. Don't include anything that would make Sasona look bad if it got into the wrong hands. Don't put any classified info into the hands of Nickel City. Loose lips sink ships.
CULTURE COORDINATOR
(2 lumps, 6 month term)
- Proactively coordinate with mediators to address house conflicts and support the healthy communication between all members. Ensure that mediators have access to training for conflict resolution techniques.
- Organize two cultural meetings per year, including sending out availability, curating content, and surveying current state of members. (Ex. Do you feel your needs are being met? Do you feel comfortable approaching people in conflict/using the current mediation policies of the house? Do we serve diverse communities? Do you feel that you are developing healthy connections in the co-op?). Culture meetings are to be in place of business meetings twice per year. Use culture meetings to develop and reassess the house-determined community agreements.
- Make a good faith effort to have a one-on-one conversation with each housemate that is interested within the officer's term with the intention of understanding their unique needs and perspectives. Ensure that voices of people in commonly marginalized populations are heard and that needs are being met.
- The culture coordinator coordinates new member orientation and ensures a new member from the start of their contract date receives the orientation material and completes the material in a timely fashion. [passed 2023-8-13]
- Connect and proactively seek out trainings/resources for the house around needed topics such as nonviolent communication, mediation, diversity/equity/inclusion and cultural proficiency. Be responsive to the current needs and interests of membership. Look first at what is offered within NASCO, then look to grants and CHEA/NASCO for funding/sponsorship for outside trainings.
- Push towards the house coming into a stronger relationship and understanding of each other through a variety of ways: community skill shares, book clubs, circling, game nights, etc.
- Update policies that no longer reflect house values and propose policies to reinforce house values.
- Support and motivate other electee roles in noticing and addressing values-related issues. (Examples: Communicating to Labor Czar if a member's accessibility needs are not being met, helping Memco with member outreach into a more diverse set of communities, encouraging ways for more active participation in democratic processes to Meeting Chair or Steward)
Make a report at every business meeting. Reporting can be done in-person OR by email to " business@sasona.org ". (Emails will be read aloud by MinutesTaker at the meeting.) Reports have a 2-minute time limit, and saying "nothing to report" is totally acceptable. [passed 2020-12-6]
- Generally guide us in the direction of our community agreements and promote healthy house culture.
HEALTH OFFICER
- Inform House of public health threats; research best practices for protection and mitigation and bring to the House for consideration.
- Coordinate with other House officers (Kitchen Kaiser, Labor Czar, Food Shopper, Maintenance Coordinator, Meeting Chair, etc) to promote health of housemates.
- Coordinate with house officers to complete health-related projects on Labor Holiday.
- Develop outline for public health preparedness plan and bring to house.
- Along with Steward, coordinate with local and state public health authorities as needed.
- Inform House of public health resources for vaccination, etc.
- Check in with Sanitizer-in-Chief, dishes and other sanitation-related roles to ensure consistency and best practices.
- Compassionately call out members that are not following agreed-upon practices.
- Pro-actively bring up for house discussion potential adaptations to public health preparedness plans and house rules and policies as needed.
MASTADON OVERBLOWER
- The Mastodon Overblower deals with computer and network stuff.
- Internets! Maintain and improve house network, both wired and wireless, that best delivers high-speed internet access to all members harmoniously.
- Support members in their use of shared house network resources.
- Educate members in the best uses of house network.
- Maintain a wiki or wiki-like (member-editable) system for building and sharing house knowledge, rules, and information.
- Support the house and its members in the harmonious use of new network-related technologies. (computers, phones, wifi devices, smart lamps, computers, filesharing tools, social media, video, etc)
- Seek out and obtain the name “Sasona” on social media sites. Hold these in reserve for future house use.
- Security: Keep an eye on our networking resources, and maintain whatever security features are reasonable for an organization of our size and complexity.
- Oversee (maintain and make sure bills get paid on): ISP (Google Fiber), sasona.org web hosting, sasona.org domain registration on slack.com account (if any), Google Apps for Nonprofits account (free) rent payment processor service (if any)
- When applicable, support CHEA board and staff in maintaining the chea.coop domain and website(s).
- Extras:
- Watch out for new internet-enabled services that the house could benefit from
- Support systems with an abundance mindset rather than a restrictive one. Find creative solutions.
- Be mindful of our nonprofit status and make sure our networking vendors are aware of it/have it on file.
- Report regularly to the house about current projects, how much time and effort gets put in, and other relevant info.
Make a report at every business meeting. Reporting can be done in-person OR by email to " business@sasona.org ". (Emails will be read aloud by MinutesTaker at the meeting.) Reports have a 2-minute time limit, and saying "nothing to report" is totally acceptable. [passed 2020-12-6]