Transcript STEWARDS TRAINING I APRIL 2004

STEWARDS TRAINING 1
Making a Difference
in Your Workplace
WELCOME
The Union is every member’s job
James Starr, Chair UPE Board of Directors
Challenges in our changing workplaces
Sandra Poole, Executive Director, UPE
How did you get here?
A tale of two unions UPE and PEU
Strength in Unity – The 005 unit
Courts move out and up
Newest members- Court Professional Unit
Independent
and Proud of it!
What does it mean to members for
UPE to be “Independent”?
Local Control
Dues money spent here
More representation
No Article XX ‘protection’
Union Structure
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Members
Ultimate authority and responsibility
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Bargaining Units Divided in Chapters
Board members elected by members in chapters
Chapters designed to be democratic, representational
Each unit divided into chapters
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Boards
Elected
Policy makers
Negotiators
Number of seats proportionate to members
County Bargaining Units
005
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Office Technical
2 Chapters
11 seats
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Chapter 1
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Welfare Non Supervisory
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 10 Seats
 Eligibility Chapter
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OAs and SOA
Six on Governing Board
Chapter 2
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008
All other classifications
Five on Governing Board
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All classes related to
eligibility determination
Six on Board of Directors
Services Chapter
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Classes related to direct
services
4 on Board of Directors
Court Bargaining Units
Court Office Technical
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4 Chapters
11 seats
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Courtroom Clerks
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Mediators
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Two on Governing Board
Deputy Clerks
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2 Chapters
4 seats
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Court Reporters
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Two on Governing Board
Court Professional
5 on Governing Board
Specialized Classes
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2 seats
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Three on Governing Board
Probate Investigators
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One on Governing Board
Joint Committees
Meet and Confers/Negotiations
Stewards Council
Political Action Committee
Workload Policy
Labor/ Management
Health and Welfare Coalition
Structure Overview
How is policy set?
Who can attend Board meetings?
How do you get on a Board?
How do you get on a Committee?
Why is it important for members to
attend Board meetings?
BASIC RIGHTS OF
PUBLIC EMPLOYEES
“Rights unexercised
are essentially lost”
Basic Representation Rights
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Weingarten – the right to be represented
“Skelly” – the right to due process in discipline
MMB – The right for County employees to
participate in union/ negotiate
TCEPGA The right for Court employees to
participate in union/ negotiate
Right of union to represent members
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Laws
Contracts
Members Have Rights
Under Protective Laws
Stewards learn about protective
laws through Stewards Council
They include: FLSA, FLMA,
ERISA, ADA, EEOA, CFRA, Title
Workers Compensation,
Rights Overview
What rights do you have as a public
employee?
What rights do unions have?
How do you exercise those rights?
What obligations do stewards have?
Making a Difference
in Your Workplace
Who would you go to if you had
a problem at work?
What would you expect from
him or her?
What is a Steward?
Organizer
Advocate
Resource person
Information
Record keeper
Investigator
A few DOs and DON’Ts
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Do listen
Don’t make promises
Do Investigate
Don’t gossip
Do keep the grievant informed
Don’t ‘blow off’ someone’s concerns
Do keep accurate records
Don’t meet with management alone
Steward Overview
What kind of Steward do you
think you’d be?
Can you make a difference in
your workplace?
How do you get coworkers to
trust you?
Political Action and
the Union
Electing your Bosses!
Negotiated salaries and benefits
are often impacted by legislation
Labor Laws made or changed
UPE Political
Action Committee
Policy
Structure
Decision Making
Employment related Criteria
CIPELC
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The California Independent Public Employees Legislative
Council is an organization of independent public
employee labor unions in California. CIPELC is
comprised of independent public employee labor unions
representing over 65,000 public employees.
CIPELC has provided both large and small independent
unions with the resources to grow and thrive as
representatives of public employees. The commitment
on the part of CIPELC unions to the independent
movement is firmly embodied in our leaders continued
willingness to help each other. CIPELC affiliates remain
ready to provide any level of mutual aid to assure
independent unions a strong future.
Learn more about our legislative program at
www.cipelc.com
Problem Solving
Most issues that come up can be
handled by the Steward
Most issues can be resolved
Problem Solving in
the Work place
Identify problem
Investigate
Research
Determine action and remedy
ACT!
Record / Report
Follow through
Identify the Problem
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You may learn about an issue from
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Your own experiences
A co-worker reports it
A manager or supervisor announces it
New policy or procedure
Rumor mill
Questions you might ask
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What happened?
What is the impact
What was violated? Policy? Contract? Law?
Investigate
Find out what really happened
Was any thing put in writing? Get copies!
Were there any witnesses? Interview them!
Why was this done? Ask the source.
Take notes, take photos.
Research
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Never assume you know – Check it out!
Read the contract
Read the policy
Ask other Stewards or Chief
Stewards
Ask ‘old timers’
Ask Business Agents
Review past related grievances or
arbitrations
Make a Determination
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What is the appropriate
action and remedy?
What recourses are available?
What can be done?
What is the process?
What does the member want done?
Are there others involved to consider?
Do you file a grievance, an unfair, a complaint?
What do you ask for as a remedy?
ACT!
Once you’ve determined the
proper course of action: DO IT!
And do it TIMELY
RECORD AND REPORT
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Keep accurate records and notes of all your
meetings
Keep the name and contact information for grievant
Keep contact information of potential witnesses
KEEP TRACK OF DEADLINES
Make sure the UPE office receives copies of all
grievances
Inform your Business Agent when you file a
grievance, it may be part of a pattern of violations.
Follow Through
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Make sure that you get back to the member
with the results of your investigation and your
determination of whether or not there is a
grievable issue.
Keep the member informed each step of the
way and provide him/her with copies of
documents.
Don’t drop the ball on a grievance
Let your fellow Stewards and members know
the outcome!
Overview Solving Problems
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Is it okay to solve issues informally?
Are there times when you need to put it in
writing?
What remedies are hardest to get?
What if it’s a ‘member to member’ problem
Can you just wait for problems to come to you?
Remember each situation is unique. Don’t take
a ‘cookie cutter’ approach.
Members lose confidence if you don’t
communicate with them.
Grievances
What is a grievance?
What is a complaint?
What if its not a grievance?
What about problems between
members?
Grievance Steps
and Time frames
You must follow the steps in the contract
You must use the form provided
You must act quickly
Grievance is denied if late
Each Contract sets time frames
COUNTY OF SACRAMENTO
Please respond to UPE, Local #1
STEP I FORMAL GRIEVANCE APPEAL
A.
This section to be completed by Employee or Union Representative
TO:
___________________________________________________________
Person designated as first level of appeal, and title
_ Employee
Informal Discussion Yes__ No __
If Yes, Complete the following
________________________
Date of Informal Discussion
__________________________________
Name of Supervisor
Employee Organization
FROM: ____________________________________________________
Employee's Name & Job Classification
_ __________________________________________________
Employee's Department, Division, Section
c/o UPE, Local #1
2411 Alhambra Blvd. #110
Sacramento, CA 95817 (916-736-9503________________________________________
Work Address & Phone Number
__________________________________
Date of Decision or Response
_ _________________________________
Employee Representative, if any
UPE, Local #1
2411 Alhambra Blvd. #110
Sacramento, CA 95817
(916) 736-9503______________________________________
Work Address & Phone Number
SECTION(S) OF AGREEMENT ALLEGEDLY VIOLATED: (Identify Specific Subsections)
STATEMENT OF GRIEVANCE: (Specify dates, places, names of witness and circumstances)
PROPOSED SOLUTION:
Employee's Signature:
B.
STEP 1 DECISION: To be Completed by the County
Date: ______________________
Date of Receipt:
Grievance #:
First Step Designee's Signature:
Distribution: Personnel Management; Department Head; First Level of Appeal; Employee; Union
FORM: CR 1A 4/80
7545-4090-8
Date of Response:
Grievance Overview
What kinds of problems might you
solve with a grievance?
What can you tell a member when
their issue isn’t grievable?
What other actions might you take to
solve a workplace problem?
GRIEVANCE
PRACTICE
Each group is to evaluate each scenario
Use the form to follow the steps to determine
what action you would take
Research the Contract sections
Report back to the group what you decided
and why
Practice- Scenario 1
Your coworker, Bob, just came to you and is fuming
mad at his supervisor. Four workers in his unit were
authorized to work overtime for Saturday due to high
workloads. His supervisor, Nancy told Bob that he
couldn’t work overtime because the union contract
said he couldn’t work overtime because in a week
he was on vacation.
Bob knows this is wrong, and he feels the supervisor
always singles him out. He feels the only solution is
to have the Supervisor fired, or at the very least
moved. And of course he wants to be paid the OT
since he WOULD have worked if his supervisor
hadn’t been such a jerk.
Scenario 2
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Al promoted to a Senior Office Assistant two years
and a half years ago. He just realized that his pay
has been wrong all this time and they owe him
money. He talked to someone in payroll and they
said they were “Sorry” but that all happened when
they were having so many problems with Compass.
He wants all of his money plus interest. He thinks
they should have to pay his late fees on his bills too,
since he could have paid on time if his employer had
paid him correctly. “I pay dues” says Al. “I demand
you do something now! I want my money today!”
Overview of Training
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And Most of all…..
THANK YOU!
Thank you for using your precious
time to learn more about the union,
your rights, and how to protect
yourself and your coworkers.