Governance,
Advisory and Action Bodies
For IFPTE Local 17, King County Information Technology Professionals
5 Election Guidelines for Policy
Committee Members and Shop Stewards
5.2. Ongoing (recurring) elections
6.4. Roles and Responsibilities
7 Other Working/Advisory Committees
7.4. Roles and Responsibilities
The purpose of this document is to clarify the definitions, roles, and responsibilities of the Policy Committee, Shop Stewards, Bargaining Committee and other entities of governance within King County Information Technology Professionals IFPTE Local 17.
Policy Committee – see Section 3, below
Pro-tem Policy Committee – The pro-tem Policy Committee is defined as that loose and unofficial body that currently functions as a Policy Committee. It will be considered defunct after formal Policy Committee elections.
Shop Steward – see Section 4, below
Pro-tem Shop Steward – a person who has taken Local 17 Shop Steward training, and is acting in the capacity of Shop Steward for their Functional Unit until formal Shop Steward elections can be held.
Bargaining Unit – The body of membership of King County Information Technology Professionals IFPTE Local 17.
Functional
Unit – A defined group of approximately
20 (or a multiple of 20) Bargaining Unit members who directly elect shop
stewards and PC members allotted to the group. Each Functional Unit will be as
closely related organizationally and geographically as practical.
Bargaining Committee – see Section 6, below
The Policy Committee is a representative, elected
body that functions as an, action-oriented executive of the rank-and-file. The
Policy Committee stands between the rank-and-file and the Bargaining Committee,
serving to educate and activate the rank-and-file, and to provide guidance and
feedback to the Bargaining Committee.
The Policy Committee is formed with the approval and authority of the members of the Bargaining Unit, subject to the auspices of union practices and regulations. The Policy Committee is an advisory group and, as such, this document and the policies enumerated within do not bind Local 17, and shall not supersede the constitution and policies of Local 17.
The Policy Committee:
· Exists to activate and educate the rank-and-file over bargaining issues, and to provide a visible and active mechanism for bringing management over to our point of view;
· Elects and provides direction, guidance, and feedback to the Bargaining Committee;
· Will elect a communication director to be responsible for taking and publishing meeting minutes in a timely manner;
· Will issue regular reports to the Bargaining Unit rank-and-file on the process of bargaining.
The ratio of elected, voting Policy Committee members to the Bargaining Unit membership shall be 1:10 (rounded); that is, there shall be as close to one voting Policy Committee member for every ten members of the Bargaining Unit as possible, while ensuring that all Bargaining Unit members are represented.
The Policy Committee shall consist of elected members in good standing of the Bargaining Unit.
Policy Committee members may also simultaneously serve as Shop Stewards.
Functional Units may at their discretion elect Policy Committee members from outside their own ranks.
There are currently 208 members of the Bargaining Unit; therefore, there shall be 21 members of the Policy Committee. Distribution of Policy Committee seats shall be as follows:
|
PC |
Shop |
Functional Unit |
|
1 |
1 |
|
|
2 |
1 |
DCHS (19) |
|
2 |
1 |
DDES (10) + |
|
1 |
1 |
|
|
10 |
6 |
|
|
1 |
1 |
|
|
1 |
0 |
DJA (3)** |
|
3 |
3 |
DNRP (30) +
DNRP-Parks (1)+ DNRP-Solid Waste (6) + DNRP-WTD (1) |
|
21 |
14 |
201 |
Distribution of Shop Stewards and PC Members*
* Numbers current as of
** The DJAD/
***Floor 23, with 53 employees, elects 3 SS and 5 PC
members; Floors 59, 18, and 24, with 52
employees, also elects 3 SS and 5 PC members.
Elections shall be held one year prior to the
expiration of the current contract. The length of time between the expiration
of one contract and the expiration of the next may vary; thus, the term of
office for the Policy Committee may vary.
If a Policy Committee member resigns or otherwise
leaves prior to the end of the term of office, the Functional Unit that elected
the member shall hold a reelection to fill the open seat.
The pro-tem Policy Committee will cease to exist after conducting initial elections.
A petition of 66% of the Bargaining Unit requesting recall of the Policy Committee will result in an immediate recall election for all elected Policy Committee members at any time. Similarly, a petition of 66% of a Functional Unit requesting recall of any one of that Functional Unit's members of the PC will result in an immediate recall election of that member.
The Policy Committee shall be internally governed by informal but democratic parliamentary or consensus-building procedures as interpreted by an elected Chairperson or Chairpersons. A quorum of 50% must be present to establish policy.
Meeting times shall be set to allow the greatest number of committee members to attend, and to share the burden of transportation and attendance equally. Standing meeting times shall be determined at the beginning of each Policy Committee term.
Shop Stewards shall be elected by Functional Units within the Bargaining Unit. While it is expected that the union will give great consideration to stewards elected by the members, the union representative may remove any steward, whether elected or appointed, as provided for in the union Constitution.
Similarly, the union representative has the authority to appoint a shop steward when the representative deems necessary.
Shop Stewards are the union's front-line representatives both to the membership and to management, per union constitution.
The Steward's role includes advocating for members, communicating with members about current issues and policies, participating in labor-management meetings, enforcing the contract, investigating and presenting grievances, and acting as a representative in a meeting which may result in discipline (i.e., a Weingarten interview).
Shop Stewards are agents of the union and must comply with the duties, responsibilities, and obligations of that role as defined in the union constitution and union policies.
Shop Stewards are encouraged to attend Policy Committee meetings, and are not prohibited from holding a Policy Committee seat if elected.
By contract, there shall be at least one shop steward for each 20 members.
Given the number and geographic dispersion of Functional Units within the greater Bargaining Unit (i.e., the fact that there are more small units than the contractually allowed number of shop stewards), it should be realized that there may be units whose shop steward does not reside within that Functional Unit. In such cases, every effort will be made to ensure that the Functional Unit's shop steward is as close functionally and/or geographically as possible, and that shop steward takes it upon him/herself to be aware of members and their issues in all shops that he/she represents.
Initial elections will have the same guidelines as those for ongoing, except that the pro-tem Policy Committee shall define the Functional Unit list, and the pro-tem Shop Stewards shall be responsible for implementation of the election.
Elections for Shop Stewards and Policy Committee members shall take place one year prior to the end of the current contract. This will allow the incoming Policy Committee to get up to speed on issues and form a coherent and effective Bargaining Committee.
The Policy Committee is responsible for defining (or updating) and distributing the list of the Functional Units and their Bargaining Unit members prior to the election. This list will determine distribution of Shop Stewards and representation of the Policy Committee.
There will be cases in which a given organizational unit is too small to warrant its own shop steward; the Policy Committee will make every effort to group organizational units into Functional Units equitably with regard to geography, function, and similarities of issues.
Each Functional Unit's designated Shop Steward(s) will moderate and execute elections for that Functional Unit.
Shop Stewards are responsible for carrying out the election of both Shop Stewards and the Policy Committee.
Each Functional Unit will elect its own Shop Steward(s) and Policy Committee member(s). While it is highly recommended, functional units are not required to nominate or elect PC members from their own ranks.
1) The Policy Committee will make a Bargaining Unit-wide announcement of the pending elections, and the relevant dates and deadlines.
At this point, Functional Units may elect their Shop Stewards and Policy Committee members as they see fit. The below are recommended guidelines.
2) Shop Stewards will collect nominations for Shop Steward and Policy Committee members. Where possible, Shop Steward nominations should be persons in the Functional Unit in which they reside; Policy Committee nominations are not limited to Functional Unit.
3) Shop Stewards will notify nominees of their status. Nominees will have the opportunity to decline.
4) Shop Stewards will conduct the elections. The union representative will take part in an advisory/oversight/assistance capacity. The counting of votes will take place publicly.
5) Bargaining Unit members will be notified of the results in a timely manner.
Local 17 is the legally certified bargaining representative for County employees within its jurisdiction. The Bargaining Committee is the advisory body formed to insure that members are actively involved in the bargaining process.
Bargaining Committee members act as agents of Local 17. Accordingly, Committee members are charged with representing the interests of all Local 17 members while making sure that the unique perspectives of members in individual departments/work units are considered. Overall, the members are charged with doing what is best for the majority rather than what is best for the individual Committee member, or a small group of union members. Members may be asked to sign a consent form agreeing to terms and conditions of Committee membership.
While it is expected that the union representative will give great consideration to the Policy Committee’s selection, the representative shall have the authority to appoint as well as remove members from the Bargaining Committee. It is expected that the union representative will submit decisions regarding Bargaining Committee membership to the Policy Committee for advisory approval.
The Bargaining Committee reports to the Policy Committee, and represents the interests of the Bargaining Unit as indicated by their representatives on the Policy Committee.
The Policy Committee provides guidance and feedback on issues to the Bargaining Committee, but does not dictate how bargaining shall take place.
Members of the Bargaining Committee are selected from the membership of the Policy Committee and report to them. They provide feedback, and suggestions on bargaining issues to the Policy Committee, answer questions from the Policy Committee, and attempt to carry out the policy of the Policy Committee in negotiations.
The Policy Committee shall issue regular reports on the process of bargaining to the Bargaining Unit rank-and-file.
Other committees may be formed/dissolved for specific purposes at the direction of the Policy Committee. They are to be considered temporary, non-representative committees (non-representative in the sense that they do not represent any body associated with the union or the Bargaining Unit), whose function is primarily to perform work tasks (such as research), or advise another body.
Authority of working/advisory committees is limited to the specific purpose or task of that committee, and is bestowed by the Policy Committee. This authority may be revoked by the Policy Committee at any time.
Membership on a working/advisory committee is not limited to members of the Policy Committee, but members must be members in good standing in the Bargaining Unit.
Working/advisory committee roles and responsibilities shall be determined at the time of their formation.
Procedural amendments to this document must be proposed to the Policy Committee, discussed and voted upon by regular parliamentary procedure that is in place at the time. Amendments must be passed by a 66% vote of all Policy Committee members.