S-T Talk January 2024

QUARTERLY LOCAL S-T TOWNHALL ZOOMS:

We will begin our quarterly Local Secretary-Treasurer’s Townhall Zoom meetings in 2024. Mark your calendars for February 27th, May 28th, August 27th, and November 26th, from 3 pm - 4 pm ET. All CWA Local Secretary-Treasurer’s identified in Aptify should be on the lookout for your invitation to the meeting and an opportunity to submit questions and topics in advance.

For our first S-T Townhall Zoom on February 27th, we will cover the conversion from social security numbers to clock IDs as several employers will be transitioning this year. We want to be able to prepare you in advance for these changes and common pitfalls.   

CWA COPE/COMPLIANCE:

990 Reminder

All Locals, including Public Employee Locals, that have $25,000 or more in gross receipts must file an exempt organization information return Form 990 - Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax. This return is due on the 15th day of the fifth month after the end of the fiscal year. The fiscal year for most CWA Locals ends on September 30th, therefore, the 990 would be due on February 15, 2024. The due date may be extended for three months, without showing cause, by filing Form 8868 before the due date. An additional three-month extension may be requested on Form 8868 if the organization shows reasonable cause why the return cannot be filed by the extended due date.

If you have questions about this requirement, contact your nearest IRS office.

DOL Late Filer Notice

If your Local’s Fiscal Year ended on September 30th and you haven’t yet filed your Annual LM report, please do so as soon as possible. While the Department of Labor does not impose fines, filing reports late could lead to your local being audited.

Reports were due December 29, 2023.

APTIFY:

2024 Annual Training Schedule

Our Aptify training schedule for 2024 is listed below. All trainings will be at 12 pm ET over Zoom.

Please click here to register for an Aptify training session

• Aptify/Dues Process Training

        January 12           January 26         March 8          May 17        July 19
        September 27     November 8

• Bottom-Up Dues Process “Refresher” Training

        January 19          February 23        April 19           July 26         October 18

• Microsoft Excel Training for Aptify

        February 9          May 10                August 9          November 15

• *New* Aptify Grievance Management Module

         For Locals:                                                 For District/Sector Staff:
         March 1       May 3                                     January 22         March 15
         July 12         October 11                             May 20               October 25

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

Website Local Directory Update

Review your info on the CWA website and update in Aptify if necessary.

No better time than the New Year to ensure that your Local’s information is up-to-date in Aptify. In the next few weeks, we will be using the information in Aptify to update our local directory on the CWA Website. Reviewing and updating your local's address, contact, and website information in Aptify will help us ensure that the local directory on our CWA website is accurate.

The Updating Local and Officer Roster in Aptify guide is a user-friendly resource that will walk you through the process, making it a breeze to maintain and update local officer records (attached).

You can also navigate to the Aptify Learning Lab, accessible through your computer, tablet, or mobile device by logging into your Aptify account – click HERE.

The Verifying Local Information Currently in Aptify Guide can be used to help update your Local Union’s information (attached).

If you need assistance, email our Aptify Support team at AptifySupport@cwa-union.org.

ICYMI (In Case You Missed It):

COPE/PAF Accountability Program

Locals (except where otherwise arranged) may now begin inputting COPE/PAF cards into Aptify. The COPE/Compliance team is offering to all Aptify users to take part in the trainings over the coming months, beginning January 12th (District staff should plan to participate).

Sign up for one of our three training classes by clicking here.

1. January 12, 2024 from 9:30 am -11:00 am EST

2. January 18, 2024 from 11:30 am -1:00 pm EST

3. January 26, 2024 from 12:00 pm -1:30 pm EST

Instructions on how to use the COPE/PAF Accountability System will be sent to participants via
email the day before the training. To sign up, please click here.
 

In Unity,


Ameenah Salaam
Secretary-Treasurer