Getting Ready for a Contract Fight
The union executive board at ABC Hospital is a little worried. Their contract negotiations begin in just 3 months. In the three years since their last contract there have been lots of changes in the workplace. Departments that once were the strength of the union now are half their size. New departments with a lot of new workers make up a large part of the shop. Overall the union membership is good, about 90% of the workers belong to the union but with all the new hires, the e-board is still worried.
The Executive Board decides to call a meeting of all the officers and stewards. “We need a plan,” announces the Local President Anne Hutchinson, “We need to get ready now.”
Mapping out the Workplace: Getting the Stewards & Steward’s Helpers in Place
The heart of rank-and-file democratic unionism is the steward structure. The more stewards the better. Stewards have the most contact with workers in their department and can therefore provide union leaders with the best idea of how everyone is thinking.
Mapping out the workplace is a way to make sure that there is a union steward or a steward helper and therefore a union connection, in every part of the workplace. Oftentimes the expanded steward system is referred to as a “Contract Action Committee (CAT Team).” During organizing campaigns it is called the “organizing committee.” Whatever you call it, the basic philosophy remains the same—in times of trouble a union needs a well-placed network of union activists.
Start with an actual map of the workplace – there may be one hanging on bulletin boards to show the fire exits. Use one that shows not only the departments but all the hidden away areas, or work areas that workers are tied to and don’t leave for regular breaks or lunches.A good steward structure doesn’t just have one union steward for each foreman but a steward for each area that needs one. Many times departments are too big or too spread out for one steward to be effective.
Remember, in times of negotiations, or during other battles, the union not only needs to know what the members are thinking, but needs an efficient system for getting the word back to the membership. If one steward has to get the word out to 75 workers in a hurry, it will most likely be hard to do.
Looking at a map of the workplace may show that the stewards need helpers, especially during contract negotiations. It is easier for the union steward to deliver a message to 5 or 10 people who in turn each tell 5-10 more people, than having the steward responsible for talking to 75 workers.
So who should a helper be? Similar to a steward, they should be someone who wants to be active in the union. They must be level-headed and someone who will put out the union message, even if they might disagree with it sometimes. They need to be the type of person who not only can talk to other workers but LISTEN to them as well.
With a steward structure in place along with helpers if they are needed, the union is then ready to tackle other problems.
How to Get New Stewards and Helpers
There is no better way to get new union stewards or recruit helpers than talking to people. Systematically ask the workers in a given area- “Who would be a good union steward?” or “Who in this area do the other workers trust?” and finally, “Has anyone been a union steward before?”
The union can also talk directly to people who might fit the bill. Talk to members that once were stewards but dropped out for personal reasons. During a time of crisis they may be willing to step forward and help out. Check the sign-in sheets for union meetings; members who regularly attend might be willing to take a bigger role in the union. Don’t simply ask the department loudmouth, oftentimes they aren’t respected by the other members. Find out what the other workers think about them first.
When talking to members about becoming a steward, don’t take it for granted that they understand what it means to be a steward. Assure them that they won’t be left on their own to fight the employer. Be sure to explain to them what the union will need them to do during the upcoming negotiations or a possible fight with the employer.
Talking With the Membership
Notice that this section is called “talking with the membership” not “talking to (or at) the membership.” There is a big difference. Talking with the membership means several things:
- Actual talking must take place, and
- It is a two-way conversation, not a one-way conversation.
This is important. In times of crisis or contract fights the union leadership not only has to let the membership know what it is thinking, BUT has to listen to the members, for in the end it is the members that run the union and make the big decisions. Do the members agree with the leaders’ analysis of the problem? Is the membership ready to take action? Over what issues? Does the membership have a different take on the problem and what should be done?
In a recent contract fight, waged by a different union, the union called for a strike over health insurance and the fact that most workers had none. This of course gathered the union much-needed publicity and public support. The problem was that for most of the workers health insurance was not the big issue; wage rates were the key issue. As a result, most of the workers did not go out on strike. The strike, while a valiant effort, was not as successful as it could have been. The union had a plan, but it would have been a better and more successful plan if the union had talked with and not talked at the workers.
The materials on this page were adapted from the United Electrical, Radio & Machine Workers of America, who ask that we share a link to this notice in exchange for recirculating this information.
