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Delegates Will Take Up Call for Triennial Conventions: Rank-and-File Committee Seeks to Conserve Uni
A proposal to change CWA's convention schedule from yearly to every three years will be one of the major issues for delegates gathering at this year's convention on Aug. 30-31 in Anaheim, Calif.
A special rank-and-file Committee on the Frequency of Conventions is recommending triennial conventions in order to save CWA millions of dollars that can be used to bolster member representation and also address other needs of today's more diverse CWA, the committee stated. The report has been circulated to local union officers and reviewed at district meetings and other CWA gatherings in recent months.
To preserve CWA's democratic processes and local authority each year over member appeals and union finances, the recommendation calls for holding national Leadership Conferences in the non-convention years. The Appeals, Finance and Defense Fund Oversight Committees would meet and make their reports just as they do at regular conventions.
Leadership Conferences would be held in conjunction with the CWA Legislative-Political Conference in Washington, D.C., cutting costs substantially, and each local would be represented only by the local president, or his or her designee, instead of a full convention delegation. Locals would still have the same voting strength as at convention.
CWA's Women's and Equity Committees would continue to meet annually and their reports would be distributed at Leadership Conferences in the off years.
Cost of a Convention: $5 Million
The Convention Frequency Committee, which was formed at the recommendation of last year's rank-and-file Finance Committee, conducted a detailed analysis of convention costs and concluded that each non-election-year convention costs CWA $5 million.
More than half of that total, or $2.88 million, is spent directly by local unions. The committee noted that locals could make greater use of these resources in ways that directly benefit members - in daily representation, organizing, education and training, community and political action of members, union building - through the programs and goals of the CWA Triangle.
Part of its recommendation calls for establishing "a national meeting of a new Communications sector incorporating all telecommunications and cable locals."
The report points out that Bell Regional company members currently are the one major segment of the union that does not have an annual meeting. The Communica-tions sector meeting would replace the existing annual meeting for AT&T and Lucent local leaders and bring everyone in communications together to deal with industry-wide issues as well as those specific to individual employers.
Convention Attendance Declines
The committee reported that local delegate attendance at annual conventions has declined sharply over the years (see chart), and stated: "This can only be attributed to the financial burden of sending delegations every year, coupled with the growing number of other CWA meetings where locals want to be represented."
While 20 years ago - the last time that CWA reviewed the costs and frequency of conventions - annual conventions were the chief opportunity for local leaders to get together, the committee cited a proliferation of CWA sector and employer group meetings now held every year, a result of CWA's growing diversity.
The committee pointed to a major shift in CWA's makeup over the past two decades (see chart), noting that whereas 87 percent of CWA members worked in telecommunications in 1984, that figure is only 48 percent today.
The committee noted that the AT&T breakup of 1984 "unleashed tremendous forces of change upon the industry, our members and our union. Realizing that the days of steady job and membership growth in a stable industry were over, CWA began expanding its organizing efforts into new industries and reaching out to potential merger partners."
Today, more than half the union membership works in such varied fields as journalism, manufacturing, public service, health care, education, printing and publishing, airlines, broadcasting and cable TV, and law enforcement.
All the major sectors hold their own national and regional meetings for local leaders and activists each year, and there are also meetings for major bargaining groups at employers such as GE, ABC and NBC networks, the big newspaper chains, major airlines, and others.
Maintaining 3-Year Election Cycle
Committee members said one reason they are recommending triennial rather than biennial conventions is to preserve CWA's 3-year election cycle, rather than cutting officer terms to two years or extending them to four years.
The committee members stressed that their intent is to make available several millions of additional dollars in the off years for CWA's "Triangle" programs - bargaining/daily representation, political/community action, and organizing.
Prompting creation of the Convention Frequency Committee was the decline in CWA membership in every sector due to the bad economy in recent years. Over the last budget year, CWA saw a $7 million shortfall in projected income, which was mitigated by continued belt-tightening, not filling staff vacancies and use of cash reserves.
CWA right now is the only one of the 20 major AFL-CIO unions with at least 100,000 members to hold annual conventions; for the rest, convention frequency ranges from two to five years.
Changes to Be Phased In
If the report is implemented, CWA will continue to hold conventions in 2005, 2006 and 2008, because of existing commitments to the cities of Chicago, Las Vegas and Toronto respectively.
The first Leadership Conference in Washington, D.C. would be held in 2007. Following the 2008 convention there would be Leadership Conferences in 2009 and 2010, with the next full convention in 2011.
The committee members concluding by saying their report "recognizes the changing makeup of CWA, and the fact that our union today offers many opportunities for our leaders and activists to come together regionally and nationally… It provides the continuing opportunity for leaders throughout CWA to meet every year, and it keeps the decision-making authority
over finances and appeals in the hands of our locals.
"The committee hopes that the delegates to the 2004 convention seriously consider this proposal and help guide CWA in the direction we are recommending."
The committee members were unanimous in making these recommendations. They include Local Presidents George Welker, Local 1108, John Bachelor, Local 2111, Pamela Lawson, Local 3108, Jay Egan, Local 4034, Claude Cummings, committee chair, Local 6222, Dennis Martin, Local 7470, Louie Rocha, Local 9423, Edward Carr, Local 13000, Randy Payton, IUE-CWA Local 83761, and Director Arnold Amber of The Newspaper Guild-Canada-CWA.
A special rank-and-file Committee on the Frequency of Conventions is recommending triennial conventions in order to save CWA millions of dollars that can be used to bolster member representation and also address other needs of today's more diverse CWA, the committee stated. The report has been circulated to local union officers and reviewed at district meetings and other CWA gatherings in recent months.
To preserve CWA's democratic processes and local authority each year over member appeals and union finances, the recommendation calls for holding national Leadership Conferences in the non-convention years. The Appeals, Finance and Defense Fund Oversight Committees would meet and make their reports just as they do at regular conventions.
Leadership Conferences would be held in conjunction with the CWA Legislative-Political Conference in Washington, D.C., cutting costs substantially, and each local would be represented only by the local president, or his or her designee, instead of a full convention delegation. Locals would still have the same voting strength as at convention.
CWA's Women's and Equity Committees would continue to meet annually and their reports would be distributed at Leadership Conferences in the off years.
Cost of a Convention: $5 Million
The Convention Frequency Committee, which was formed at the recommendation of last year's rank-and-file Finance Committee, conducted a detailed analysis of convention costs and concluded that each non-election-year convention costs CWA $5 million.
More than half of that total, or $2.88 million, is spent directly by local unions. The committee noted that locals could make greater use of these resources in ways that directly benefit members - in daily representation, organizing, education and training, community and political action of members, union building - through the programs and goals of the CWA Triangle.
Part of its recommendation calls for establishing "a national meeting of a new Communications sector incorporating all telecommunications and cable locals."
The report points out that Bell Regional company members currently are the one major segment of the union that does not have an annual meeting. The Communica-tions sector meeting would replace the existing annual meeting for AT&T and Lucent local leaders and bring everyone in communications together to deal with industry-wide issues as well as those specific to individual employers.
Convention Attendance Declines
The committee reported that local delegate attendance at annual conventions has declined sharply over the years (see chart), and stated: "This can only be attributed to the financial burden of sending delegations every year, coupled with the growing number of other CWA meetings where locals want to be represented."
While 20 years ago - the last time that CWA reviewed the costs and frequency of conventions - annual conventions were the chief opportunity for local leaders to get together, the committee cited a proliferation of CWA sector and employer group meetings now held every year, a result of CWA's growing diversity.
The committee pointed to a major shift in CWA's makeup over the past two decades (see chart), noting that whereas 87 percent of CWA members worked in telecommunications in 1984, that figure is only 48 percent today.
The committee noted that the AT&T breakup of 1984 "unleashed tremendous forces of change upon the industry, our members and our union. Realizing that the days of steady job and membership growth in a stable industry were over, CWA began expanding its organizing efforts into new industries and reaching out to potential merger partners."
Today, more than half the union membership works in such varied fields as journalism, manufacturing, public service, health care, education, printing and publishing, airlines, broadcasting and cable TV, and law enforcement.
All the major sectors hold their own national and regional meetings for local leaders and activists each year, and there are also meetings for major bargaining groups at employers such as GE, ABC and NBC networks, the big newspaper chains, major airlines, and others.
Maintaining 3-Year Election Cycle
Committee members said one reason they are recommending triennial rather than biennial conventions is to preserve CWA's 3-year election cycle, rather than cutting officer terms to two years or extending them to four years.
The committee members stressed that their intent is to make available several millions of additional dollars in the off years for CWA's "Triangle" programs - bargaining/daily representation, political/community action, and organizing.
Prompting creation of the Convention Frequency Committee was the decline in CWA membership in every sector due to the bad economy in recent years. Over the last budget year, CWA saw a $7 million shortfall in projected income, which was mitigated by continued belt-tightening, not filling staff vacancies and use of cash reserves.
CWA right now is the only one of the 20 major AFL-CIO unions with at least 100,000 members to hold annual conventions; for the rest, convention frequency ranges from two to five years.
Changes to Be Phased In
If the report is implemented, CWA will continue to hold conventions in 2005, 2006 and 2008, because of existing commitments to the cities of Chicago, Las Vegas and Toronto respectively.
The first Leadership Conference in Washington, D.C. would be held in 2007. Following the 2008 convention there would be Leadership Conferences in 2009 and 2010, with the next full convention in 2011.
The committee members concluding by saying their report "recognizes the changing makeup of CWA, and the fact that our union today offers many opportunities for our leaders and activists to come together regionally and nationally… It provides the continuing opportunity for leaders throughout CWA to meet every year, and it keeps the decision-making authority
over finances and appeals in the hands of our locals.
"The committee hopes that the delegates to the 2004 convention seriously consider this proposal and help guide CWA in the direction we are recommending."
The committee members were unanimous in making these recommendations. They include Local Presidents George Welker, Local 1108, John Bachelor, Local 2111, Pamela Lawson, Local 3108, Jay Egan, Local 4034, Claude Cummings, committee chair, Local 6222, Dennis Martin, Local 7470, Louie Rocha, Local 9423, Edward Carr, Local 13000, Randy Payton, IUE-CWA Local 83761, and Director Arnold Amber of The Newspaper Guild-Canada-CWA.