[media-credit name=’JAKE NAUGHTON/Herald photo’ align=’alignright’ width=’336′][/media-credit]

Wisconsin Union workers, volunteers, faculty and staff celebrated the achievements of the past year regarding employee relations and the new Union South in the Main Lounge of the Memorial Union Wednesday evening.

Union Director Mark Guthier spoke briefly during the reception to extend “thank-yous” and acknowledge the Wisconsin Union is nothing without student employees and volunteers.

Besides recognizing Union workers, Guthier took a few minutes during his speech to acknowledge the concerns some raised earlier this year.

“There were a lot of concerns expressed earlier in the semester about changes made in work schedules and work procedures,” Guthier said in an interview.

In response, Union management organized four forums that served as listening sessions for different employee groups to have their voices heard. There were many concrete suggestions given, Guthier said, and they were taken to heart and have already started to be implemented.

“This semester was a great wake-up call,” Union President John Barnhardt said.

In another effort to improve communication between student workers and management, Barnhardt said next year they plan on having a student advisory group, which will be a formal process that provides workers with more opportunities to talk directly with management.

Barnhardt also said in the past student workers and volunteers haven’t been recognized as much as they should be.

“It really can’t be stressed enough how important they are,” he added.

In his speech, Guthier also discussed the new Union South project, tentatively scheduled to be completed in the summer of 2011.

“This has been a great year for the Union in many ways,” Guthier said. “One of the ways is the progress we have made on the project.”

Guthier said the new Union South will be 200,000 square feet in size and will include food services, a coffee shop, an art gallery, a rock-climbing wall, a recreation center, a bowling alley and meeting rooms, among other things.

He also said the plans for it have largely stemmed from student feedback, based on survey responses and direct requests. Project managers are planning on undergoing the same feedback process for the upcoming Memorial Union renovations.

Guthier said he was particularly pleased about the response the project survey received. Almost 10,000 people completed the survey.

“We have never seen that high of a return rate before,” he said.

Potential floor plans for the new Union were being projected onto a screen throughout the reception for guests to observe, but Guthier said not to be deceived by the apparent finality of the project’s plans. He added student feedback is still needed and greatly appreciated.

Looking back over the past year, Guthier said the Union is in good shape, having had a lot of opportunities to reconnect with students, faculty and staff. He also said this has been a great year in regard to programs and events, adding, “We have a great lineup for the Terrace this summer.”