LOCAL COMMITTEES
There are several reasons why even the most dedicated, hard working member cannot substitute for a functioning committee. A committee brings more “people power” to the job. Through the collective efforts of many, a greater range of opinions, ideas, solutions and experiences are made available. When a committee consists of informed and concerned union members, it becomes a channel through which ambitious projects can be undertaken.
There are also advantages for the individual committee members. Serving on committees is good leadership training. It enables members to learn about community and union problems and services while improving problem-solving and communication skills. It also provides opportunities for members to have a say in the affairs of their union.
Locals can have a variety of committees, including a:
. Collective Bargaining Committee,
. Education Committee,
. Health and Safety Committee,
. Human Rights/Equity Committee,
. Labour-Management Consultation Committee,
. Political Action Committee,
. Stewards' Committee,
. Strike Committee,
. Women's Committee.
Other committees may become important as issues from the membership emerge, including everything from international solidarity to rights in the workplace.
There are a number of Committees Locals are required to set up, by necessity and sometimes by law, to help represent members. These include the Collective Bargaining Committee, the Stewards’ Committee or the Health and Safety Committee.
Other committees are optional, but could be very helpful. For example, a Membership Committee can maintain an up-to-date record of all employees within the Local's jurisdiction and contact new employees to sign their membership cards and invite them to play a role in their union!
Committees can vary in size. Some may operate best with a small number of people while in others the more the merrier.
An effective Committee will have:
· A mandate that is well-defined;
· A goal that can be achieved better by a committee than by any
one member or existing organization;
· An experienced member to chair the committee;
· A group of members who are interested in the job and the
issues the committee has to deal with;
· Procedures which are informal, democratic, inclusive and effective;
· Discussions involving all members of the committee and resulting in decisions and/or recommendations acceptable to or at least accepted by every member;
· Regular meetings which are organized in advance as to the time and place, which are convenient and accessible to all members
· A secretary with prepared agendas and who will keep appropriate records of the results of the committee's work;
· An evaluation from time to time to see how the committee is getting on with its job, to give recognition for jobs well done, to redefine jurisdiction and priorities, to recruit new members to help and to redistribute workload.
· Regular meetings which are organized in advance as to the time and place, which are convenient and accessible to all members
· A secretary with prepared agendas and who will keep appropriate records of the results of the committee's work;
· An evaluation from time to time to see how the committee is getting on with its job, to give recognition for jobs well done, to redefine jurisdiction and priorities, to recruit new members to help and to redistribute workload.
Committee Reports
Committee reports should always be written or delivered in the third person (i.e., “The committee discussed X and decided to take the following action.”).
Important reports should be signed by all committee members; otherwise they can be signed by the presiding officer;
Committee reports are basically recommendations. When a report is verbally delivered at a meeting, the spokesperson should conclude with the remarks "On behalf of the committee, I move adoption of the report".
Minority reports may be submitted after the committee's report has been read and a motion to adopt has been made. They can begin: "The undersigned, a minority of the committee, desire to express their views on the matter". A minority report is presented for information only and it cannot be acted upon unless a motion is made to substitute it for the report of the majority.
Collective Bargaining Committee
PSAC Regulation 15 of the Constitution governs the process of collective bargaining in the PSAC. This regulation stipulates that Locals shall establish a Standing Bargaining Proposal Committee. The objective of the committee is to ensure members are able to provide input into the bargaining process and that they are kept aware of activities in this regard. In order to meet this objective, the Local Bargaining Committee may engage in the following activities.
. Prepare bargaining proposals based on a review of membership experience under their collective agreement. A good way to do this is to keep a contract clause book. This book is a record of all the clauses in the collective agreement which have been the source of problems, i.e., complaints, grievances, arbitration/adjudication cases. It allows the committee to quickly identify which clauses are problematic, how they should be modified and why. It will also help the delegates on the bargaining committees at the Local, Component and the PSAC level argue in favour of the change.
. Request and receive bargaining proposals from members.
. Submit bargaining proposals to the Component, the Regional Executive Vice-President or to the Negotiating Committee.
. Keep informed and share information with members about the status of the bargaining process and key issues/priorities. The sources of information available to the Collective Bargaining Committee include delegates at the respective bargaining committees and on negotiating teams, the PSAC Regional Office, the Component Service Officer and the PSAC website.
Both the PSAC and the Component publish up-dates (newsletters and on the web) on the status of negotiations for all the groups who are in negotiations.
Know who is where and to what bargaining unit they belong (the Treasurer has this information). When a tentative agreement is reached and it is time for ratification, the committee will need to distribute the ratification kits and ensure that all the members in good standing are able to exercise their right to vote on the tentative agreement.
The committee should keep a copy of the appropriate legislation and PSAC Regulation 15 which explains in detail the internal bargaining process.
Once a new collective agreement is signed, committee members should become familiar with any changes.
Education Committee
The PSAC offers a wide range of union courses through the Regional Office, from basic introductory courses, through weekend courses for stewards to advanced courses offered in a residential setting on such topics as union leadership, political action, women’s issues and human rights.
The Education Committee plays an important role in advertising these courses to the membership and matching interested members with the course that best suit their needs. Another important role is to identify the learning needs of the Local membership for educational seminars in the workplace or for new weekend courses.
Alliance Facilitators (AFs).
Alliance Facilitators are PSAC activists whose primary role is the development and delivery of union education to other union members. Interested members who are committed to delivering union education receive training through the PSAC Facilitators Training Program. These education activities can vary in length from one hour to one or more days, depending on the subject matter and the needs of the Local members.
Health and Safety Committee
Locals can establish a Health and Safety Committee for members who are interested in participating in workplace health and safety issues. These committees can also play a role in ensuring health and safety matters are assessed from a union perspective.
As well, under section 134.1 of the Canada Labour Code, Part II, every employer who normally directly employs 300 workers or more is required to establish a Joint Health and Safety Committee with the union. The purpose of the committee is to ensure that health and safety issues are addressed by the employer. These committees can be very powerful since their decisions and actions could have a considerable impact in their respective workplaces.
The Joint Health and Safety Committee has a number of duties, including the following:
- to participate in the development of health and safety policies and programs;
- to consider and expeditiously dispose of matters concerning health and safety raised by members or referred to it by a workplace committee or a health and safety representative;
- to participate in the development and monitoring of a prevention program that also provides for the education of workers in health and safety matters;
- to monitor data on work accidents, injuries and health hazards, and
- to participate in the planning and implementation of changes that might affect occupational health and safety.
The Committee also has certain powers, such as requesting from an employer any information it considers necessary to identify existing or potential hazards with respect to materials, processes, equipment or activities in any of the employer’s workplaces and having full access to all government and employer reports, studies and tests relating to the health and safety of workers in the workplace.
The PSAC Regional Office and/or the Component should be contacted for advice and help in setting up and keeping the Health and Safety Committee operating effectively. For more information on these Committees, go to the PSAC website (www.psac-afpc.com).
Human Rights Committees
The objective of these committees is to address discrimination of any kind, to educate members on human rights issues and to promote and seek the implementation of employment equity measures in their workplaces and at the Local level. This latter objective can be carried out within the Local, as well as through the process of negotiation and consultation with management. Many workplaces may be subject to the requirements of employment equity legislation which may set out a role for unions.
Many have not always seen the labour movement as an historic ally in the struggle for human rights and equity. Many unions, including the PSAC, have undergone immense change as its membership mobilized around issues of gender, race, disability and sexual orientation. As a Local Officer, you can support human rights work.
Locals may have one human rights committee, or members may choose to create committees for each of the equity groups.
Human Rights Committees often collaborate with other organizations such as the Provincial Federations of Labour, the Canadian Labour Congress and community organizations.
Human Rights committees should be encouraged to provide input to and possibly representatives on other Local committees, such as the Collective Bargaining Committee, the Labour-Management Consultation Committee and Joint Employment Equity Committees.
Labour-Management Consultation Committee
Labour-Management or Union-Management Consultation Committees provide an opportunity for union and management representatives to engage in free, frank and meaningful dialogue on issues that confront or may confront either one or both parties.
These Committees can discuss any matters except those which would lead to altering or changing the intent of a collective agreement. Typical subjects include: scheduling of annual leave, internal communications, rescheduling of shifts, working conditions, training programs, change in employer policies and programs, recreational programs, parking and flexible hours.
Local Officers are required to attend these meetings and provide facts relating to particular problems or subjects which affect all the membership of the Local. When a problem affects the membership in a specific work area, the steward assigned to this area should be included and attend the meeting as a resource person or as the union representative of the membership concerned. The steward in the area is usually the best resource person to draw on in such cases.
Familiarize yourself with the internal operation of Labour-Management Consultation Committees at all levels: Local, regional and national.
The importance of informing the membership about the issues discussed at these meetings and their outcome cannot be over-emphasized. This will enhance the credibility of the union and the effectiveness of the Local.
Some Local Officers may be involved in setting up a Labour-Management Consultation Committee or resurrecting one. Assistance and training can be requested from the Component or the PSAC Regional Office.
Political Action Committee
Political Action Committees have become very important as union members experience the harmful impact of government reorganization and policies. These policies have rolled back negotiated pay settlements; caused major job loss; undermined job security through downsizing, contracting out and privatization and undermined the public service. Whether or not members work for the Federal Public Service, all stand to be affected by decisions made about important public services such as employment insurance, immigration, environmental protection and international trade. Political Action Committees allow the union to work toward improving these policies and to work with others in the community who are concerned about and/or affected by these changes.
Stewards’ Committee/Network
The objective of this committee is to provide stewards with an opportunity to discuss grievances and problems that have arisen over the interpretation of collective agreements.
Stewards' Committee meetings also provide an excellent educational forum to understand union policies, discuss how to implement PSAC Campaigns, and the impact of labour legislation and recent adjudication/arbitration decisions. Committee members are also in a good position to prepare a report for the Local negotiation committee on needed contract improvements.
Having an effective Stewards' Committee can prove invaluable to the Local, in the organization of the Local, in providing services to the membership and in planning strategies and actions to counteract management's tactics. This Committee can also assist the Local in responding to the obligations flowing from PSAC Anti-Harassment Policy 23A: in the Workplace.
As a Local Officer, you should provide this Committee with all the necessary material resources the Local can afford, as well as the human and moral support any committee needs to function effectively. Supporting the stewards and their activities gives them the prestige and motivation to do a good job and this in turn establishes the credibility of the union at the workplace.
Strike Committee
The right to strike can be part of the collective bargaining process for all units under the conciliation route. While the Local Strike Captain is responsible for conducting a strike at the Local, Local Officers provide both leadership and moral support in the organizing committees necessary to ensure the success of the strike.
One of these committees is the Local Strike Headquarters Committee. This committee will usually be composed of the Local Executive and the Chairpersons of the strike committees. The main function of the Strike Headquarters Committee is to keep the Local members informed and unified in the strike action.
Other committees can also be set up to help the members on strike in your Local. The PSAC publishes a strike manual which outlines the PSAC strike administration policy, the strike program, strike committees, as well as the PSAC Regulation 6 on emergency funds.
As Local Officers you should be familiar with the contents of this manual and you are also urged to attend all special strike courses and seminars.
Women's Committees
These Committees provide a forum to ensure that workplaces and Locals are inclusive and responsive to the needs of working women.
Women’s Committees often collaborate with other organizations such as the Provincial/Territorial Federations of Labour, the Canadian Labour Congress and community organizations.
These Committees can provide critical to other Local committees, such as the Collective Bargaining Committee and the Labour-Management Consultation Committee.
Women comprise over half the PSAC membership. Creating and supporting structures that provide a forum for women members in PSAC Locals to collectively frame and organize around their issues recognizes the importance for the labour movement to respond to the needs of all of its members.
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