I am thinking of organizing a symposium/workshop at the SEAC/Midwest combined
archeological conference in Lexington, Kentucky in November.  The workshop
would be for owners and officers of cultural resource consulting firms who
might be interested in discussing problems of mutual concern.
 
The object would be to explore the possibility of starting a trade
association of cultural resource consulting firms for the purpose of
promoting high quality contract archeology; instituting good business
practices; exploring areas of mutual concern such as worker's compensation,
group health and professional liability insurance, pension plans, the legal
aspects of contracts, labor law, and other legal issues; improving the public
image of archeological consulting firms; striving for decent salaries and
economic stability; and presenting a united face to our clients, government
agencies, and the public.
 
The meeting would be restricted to business owners and officers who can make
decisions.  This is not to exclude anyone, but it is important that the
attendees be able to make committments then and there, if anything useful is
to come of the meeting.
 
The meeting might entail a few speakers on topics of interest to consulting
firms, but from outside cultural resources.  Talks would be short, with time
scheduled for Q&A.  Speakers might include a lawyer on labor law, contract
law, or liability; an insurance expert on worker's comp, health or
professional liability insurance or how to band together to get lower rates;
or a small business adminstration officer about small business problems; or a
banker on the ins and outs of lines of credit, SBA loans, or credit ratings.
 These speakers would also provide practical and useful ideas that the
attendees can immediately put into action.
 
The remainder of the meeting could cover a set agenda of topics, perhaps no
more than three or four.  The final topic should be- do we want to organize a
trade organization to promote our interests.  If we do, we will need to set
up a committee to begin exploring the legalities, write a charter, set up the
next meeting, and follow through on publicity and communications.
 
Here are some suggested topics:
 
-Defining more standard terms for job categories.
-Determining appropriate salary ranges for techs, new M.A.'s, etc. (Is it
legal?)
-Using contract labor.
-What are appropriate levels of effort for recon, intensive survey, testing,
etc?
-The purpose of CRM.
-How to figure overhead.
-How will the national healthcare program affect us?
-Should the winning bidder's proposal/contract be made public?
 
If this is of interest to you, please suggest other topics and send me your
snail mail address for future mailings.
 
Tom Wheaton
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