The Professional and Scientific Council voted to create an ombudsman position at its meeting Wednesday afternoon.

The ombudsman will hear grievances between staff members and direct them to the right places to solve problems.

Rex Heer, president of the P&S Council and graphic designer in the Instructional Technology Center, said he would like problems solved before there are complications.

Many times complaints get automatically sent to higher officials where lawyers may become involved, he said. He would like the ombudsman to “head things off before they get to a higher level” and look at all ways to resolve grievances.

The council debated the ombudsman’s role, including whether the position would advocate for P&S staff or act as a mediator between parties involved in disputes.

Max Wortman, Faculty Senate president and distinguished professor of management, said the Faculty Senate’s proposed Ombuds’ Office would neither serve as a mediator nor an advocate.

The ombudsman is someone who knows the university’s grievance policies, knows where to send people to get answers, and will help solve problems when there is no grievance procedure, he said.

Many council members are unsure of what to do when a problem arises.

“A lot of things are not brought forward because people don’t know what to do or where to go. Maybe people are afraid to go to their supervisor,” said Dan Woodin, information systems leader for Administrative Data Processing.

Brenda Van Beek, chair of the council’s peer advisory committee, said the ombudsman position is a good idea.

“It would be really nice to have someone well-qualified to answer some of the questions I’ve received,” she said.

The motion will be sent to the provost’s and president’s offices for review.

Heer said he wants to move forward with the motion.

“It’s not something we expect to happen in the near future, until the budget situation improves, but we want to have it on the table,” Heer said. “As the budget picture improves, we’ll push further for an implementation procedure.”