The Employee Relations Advisory Committee (ERAC) was first formed in 1974 to function in an advisory capacity to the President. Their charge was to educate and involve non-exempt staff on campus and report to the administration on issues affecting that community. Some of the early issues ERAC focused on were: uniformity of job levels and descriptions, fair pay standards based on local market surveys, improved sick leave, vacation leave and holiday schedules, and more. This initial committee was made up of appointed members with no chair-person. ERAC was then reconfigured in 1978 to be more involved in defining and solving problems. Members were elected by the staff community, and represented the full range of staff divisions on campus.
Today, ERAC continues to be committed to proactively advising the President, through the Vice President for Finance and Administration, on matters pertaining to employee relations. Membership is made up of exempt and non-exempt staff, and the committee focuses on enhancing the work environment for employees, fostering staff involvement and strengthening the mission of Lehigh University.
The current ERAC logo is made up of brown and gold to represent the Lehigh tradition of success and achievement. The shape represents ERAC’s core values: it’s a heart, showing that ERAC cares about our staff and campus community; it’s a paperclip to represent office life on campus; and it’s made of two chain links, to show the strong bond we have as staff across the University.