Union Steward Duties

The Union Steward’s duties are found in the Chapter 262 Constitution*:

ARTICLE IX 

UNION STEWARDS

Section 1. Election:  Job Stewards shall be elected to serve the needs of the membership.  The Chapter President shall determine the number of stewards to be elected.

(a) No later than December of the designated election year, the members in good standing employed in each of the service areas designated above shall meet and elect from among themselves their job steward(s).  The Chapter President shall set the time, date and place of such election meetings.  The Chapter President shall preside at said election meetings, at which nominations will be taken and a secret ballot vote shall be conducted.  All procedural matters relating to these elections, including timelines for notice to the affected members, shall be in accordance with Association Policy 618.

Section 2. Term of Office:  Term of office for job stewards shall be from the January 1 following their election to the end of the chapter and fiscal year, or until their successors are elected, provided that any job steward shall automatically forfeit such office if they cease to be an Active member in good standing.  Vacancies shall be filled by appointment of the President, ratified by the Executive Board, for the remainder of the original term only.

Section 3. Duties.  The Job Steward(s) shall:

(a) Attend annual training sessions for Job Stewards provided by the Association and/or other appropriate training as directed by the President. 

(b) Attend periodic Site Representative meetings as directed by the Chief Job Steward. 

(c) Educate bargaining unit employees about their rights under the contract and determine how problems arising under the contract can best be handled. 

(d) Act as the basic channel of communication between the employees and the chapter and relay specific member concerns to the chapter's Negotiating Committee for incorporation into the bargaining proposals. 

(e) Investigate and prepare grievances for processing and handle grievances at the immediate-supervisory level, and be present as required during other steps of the grievance procedure.

(f) Immediately inform the Chief Job Steward of all grievances received; immediately report to the Chief Job Steward the settlement of grievances processed or the failure to settle within contractual timelines.

(g) Preserve the confidentiality of personal grievances, resolve differences among the membership in grievance handling; maintain a file on all grievances handled which shall be turned over to the Chief Job Steward upon completion.

* Note: The union steward duties section of the Chapter Constitution is currently under revision. The revised article will be posted here after the Chapter members ratify the changes.