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Constitution Changes |
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Sent: Monday, May 01, 2006
Subject: Constitutional Change
To: ALL CEU MEMBERS
FROM: Sandra Wright, President
As you know from the constitutional change documents posted on Union bulletin boards in the past few months, the CEU constitutional review committee had recommended changes to the CEU Constitution and By-Laws in 4 areas: - Changes to alter Shop Steward structure and membership meetings
- Housekeeping Changes to CEU Constitution
- Articles Not Practised as Written
- Legislative Changes
The Constitution and By-Laws had two different methods for making changes. Changes to the Constitution were voted on by members using a balloting process, whereas by-law changes were voted on at the Annual General Meeting.
RESULTS
Ballots were distributed to members regarding constitutional change, and those ballots were counted on March 8, 2006, by the Ballotting Committee. The Ballotting Committee reported to the executive that all proposed changes to the constitution passed by more than 92 percent, with 687 members voting.
At the Annual General Meeting on March 27th, By-Law changes were voted on by members present, and by proxy voting for members from the area offices. All the proposed changes were approved unanimously.
HIGHLIGHTS
Here is a quick review of the changes to the Constitution and By-Laws of the CEU which are substantive (i.e., more than just housekeeping items).
By-Law Article 1 used to require new members to attend a membership meeting held in their area within six months of commencing employment. The requirement was not being followed, and in some cases was not possible, so it is now withdrawn.
By-Law Article 4 used to state that if an Executive member missed 3 meetings in a row or was absent from work for 90 consecutive days, they were deemed to have resigned their position. Now the By-Law provides an exception if deeming the member to have resigned contravenes the Human Rights Code of British Columbia, and it is more specific as to when a by-election will be held.
By-Law Article 7 used to state that all members must carry out picket duty in the event of a strike situation, unless they had an exemption from the executive or medical evidence to the contrary, and failure to do so would result in a suspension of membership. Now the By-Law specifies the strike situation must be a lawful strike, and it provides for an exemption where permission in advance has been given by the executive, or where there would be a contravention of the Human Rights Code of British Columbia.
Constitution Article 6 is changed from specifying a one year term for the Chair of the Shop Stewards, to specifying a two year term. This brings the term of the executive position for the Chair of the Shop Stewards into consistency with the other officer positions.
Constitution Article 11 now calls for one Annual General Membership Meeting, to take place in September or October. Previously we had two such meetings required by the Constitution, one in March or April, and one in September. Other dates, for elections and for the Treasurer to report to the membership, are changed to conform to this Article 11 change.
Constitution Article 16 is amended to specify that changes to the Constitution and By-Laws will now follow the same procedure, whereas before there were two different procedures. Article 11 of the By-Laws is deleted to match the change.
FUTURE
The Constitutional Review Committee will meet again soon to discuss further changes to the Constitution and By-Laws, now that the most pressing changes have been approved by the membership.
The new Constitution and By-Laws are posted at the CEU website, www.ceu.bc.ca
Sandra Wright
President, CEU
October 13, 2005
When your CEU Executive met with you around the Province last year, we announced that a Constitutional Review was underway. Members on the Constitutional Review Committee are Bill Brewer (Director), Mel Camilli (Shop Steward), Stan Reese (Business Manager) and Sandra Wright (President).
 This Committee has completed their first review and identified a number of areas needing change. In fact, the need for reform was so significant that a decision was made to present the proposed changes over a period of time in smaller packages. You have now been presented with the first round of proposed amendments. The Union Executive have passed a motion in support of these recommended amendments.
Constitutional changes must be voted on by ballot. We will be holding membership meetings around the province to allow debate on the proposed amendments and then a vote by ballot will be conducted in each work location. We hope to have these meetings completed by February 2006 and the vote will take place immediately after. The effective date for the Constitutional Changes would be immediately following the spring AGM.
Currently, By-Law changes must be voted on at a General Membership meeting and must be passed by 2/3 of members present and voting, including proxies.
In our amendments we are proposing that both Constitution and By-Law changes be made the same way – through referendum ballot. Assuming the membership accepts the proposed change on this item, we would then have a consistent approach to both Constitution and By-Law changes. We think it will make future amendments more straightforward.
These current proposed amendments have been broken down into four sections - Housekeeping Changes; Legal Changes; Changes to Reflect Current Practices; and Changes to Steward Structure and General Membership Meetings. Every attempt has been made to have an explanation for the proposed amendments clearly outlined on the documents. The Constitutional Review Committee encourages you to read the proposed amendments, and to be ready to discuss them when the meeting is scheduled for your office. If you have questions about constitutional changes that you would like to discuss prior to a meeting, please feel free to contact any of the Committee members.
Legal Changes
Changes to Reflect Current Practices
Changes to Steward Structure and General Membership Meetings
Housekeeping Changes |
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