FEDSMILL TAKES ON A NEW ROLE
When we started back in 2011 we decided to focus on passing labor relations and EEO information to union reps in all federal sector unions. But the longer we look at how unions operate, the more we are convinced that it is time to add a third area of emphasis, i.e., union democracy. Over time ALL organizations develop a bureaucracy and if bureaucracies do one thing it is that they tend to give the top leadership tier of an organization more power at the expense of others’ influence. That is generally not good. So, in the future, you can expect to see more stories about dues systems scams, union committee manipulation, election tricks, convention games, finance schemes, and the lack of checks and balances on union presidents’ power. This is not a decision we reached lightly. We could have taken this on anytime in the last 12 years we have been publishing, but it was only recently that saw how pervasive leadership oppression and/or control has become. As always, we will welcome your ideas about issues we should target.
Democracy is power. Empowering workers is what Unions are all about. Democracy makes corruption and backroom dealing harder. It makes labor fakers, those selfish Beltway Boys and Girls, harder to hide. Sunlight in the form of rank-and-file democracy is the best disinfectant.
Another problem about big unions is steward training. Trainers often are insiders in the upper echelons, have years of experience, and talk over the heads of new steward trainees. I’ve attended trainings for 20 years and finally put together a 250+ page steward notebook for our local’s stewards because we usually come from training with a handful of PowerPoint notes and no way to look up topics not covered in the current training. Our notebook has chapters on disability accommodations (askJAN.org), officer-in-charge (from a regional office), the actual statute listing union rights, the Hatch Act, directions for Lunch and Learns, dealing with investigations from the Inspector General’s office, office safety, and other topics never covered in training. This isn’t a matter of dishonesty or democracy, but a much-overlooked part of union functions.
Yes! You are a Union rock star, Suzanne! Cohesive training is one (big) key, experience another and contacts a third.