Aim of the Committee

The Stewards Committee works to maintain the professional welfare of the Local’s members by facilitating the exchange of information on workplace conditions, responding to members’ complaints and grievances, and providing assistance in the administration and enforcement of the Collective Agreement once signed. The mandate of the Committee is to maintain and improve the professional rights and working conditions of all members.

Specific Tasks

Monitor and report on workplace conditions to ensure they are compliant with the collective agreement and are in support of good morale;
Develop campaigns that engage, educate and build solidarity amongst the members;
Develop a knowledge base that can be used for resolving grievances and provide requirements to the Bargaining Team for the negotiation of the first collective agreement.

The Committee will pursue grievances as per the IDRC collective agreement. Its stewards will represent the interests of members in their work location by:

Acting as advocates on behalf of members;
Observing and reporting on current work conditions and morale;
Processing complaints;
Sending copies of complaint forms to the Chief Steward for inclusion in the computerized and/or printed files;
Developing and implementing campaigns;

Volunteers Needed

No limit to the number of stewards during the formative phase of the Committee but ideally with representatives from all branches of the Centre and each of the regional offices.
Stewards will be required to take training courses on grievance handling (classroom based or on-line) as part of their membership in the Committee.

Experience: Complaint and grievance review; handling sensitive topics and information; planning and execution of campaigns; creation and delivery of orientation workshops are assets but not requirements.

Time Commitment: The Committee will meet as required but no less than once each month to fulfill its responsibilities. Members of the Committee should expect to spend 2-3 hours each week on activities.

Equity & Representation

The committee will consist of the Chief Steward, Local President (ex-officio), and stewards. The Committee will aim to achieve equity in representation with respect to gender, official language and from the different branches of the Centre. All members of this Committee must be members in good standing of the Local 76000.

Confidentiality

Due to the potentially sensitive nature of complaints all Committee members must maintain confidentiality on all matters unless agreed by the Local’s Executive to divulge specific information. No materials or documents prepared by a steward or under the Committee shall be disclosed unless informed consent is given by the complainant.

If interested to join: Please send a short e-mail to contact@local76000.ca and indicate in the message heading the name of the committee you wish to join.