Within the past few days, an AMAPCEO member asked me how long I had been concerned about the way AMAPCEO was being run. I replied, without hesitation, "about sixteen years!". In fact, it was this concern that prompted me to run and be elected to the Board of Directors. After ten years of frustration and watching as the Association became less and less accessible to its members, I left the board. I have been chapter chair at Municipal Affairs and Housing for the past few years.
As a member of the Board of Directors, I was constricted by the need to make it appear that the board was unanimous on everything (board solidarity) and to vote as block at Provincial Council. As a chapter chair at Provincial Council and ADC, I can and do represent the views of AMAPCEO members at MMAH, often expressing opposition to AMAPCEO proposals such as Job Evaluation. For years, I have advocated the "de-linking" of JE from collective bargaining. This has not made me popular but it is important to stand up and vote for your convictions. Others talk about openness and transparency but when they have the opportunity to make a difference they vote with the flock.
A major concern of mine has been the lack of "arm's length" oversight of the bargaining team by the Board of Directors. I strongly believe that the bargaining team should be separate and apart from the governance of the Association. In other words, the head of the bargaining team should not sit on the Board of Directors. It is important that the governance structures of AMAPCEO should manage bargaining by setting priorities. Questions intended to elicit information can be viewed as a personal attack. In such a circumstance, it is hard to hold the bargaining team to account. I also believe that the bargaining team members should be elected by members and not selected/
In an effort to de-link the largely undefined position of vice president from the head of the bargaining team, I ran against Bob for the position of Vice President in 2011. I lost. The other day, though, I came across a copy of my speech which I will share with you. While I lost the election, I realize that the issues of 2011 have not been resolved.
For those of you who are new, I share this paper. If nothing else, you will see that the problems of last year persit .
Good afternoon, ADC Delegates:
As a member of the Board of Directors, I was constricted by the need to make it appear that the board was unanimous on everything (board solidarity) and to vote as block at Provincial Council. As a chapter chair at Provincial Council and ADC, I can and do represent the views of AMAPCEO members at MMAH, often expressing opposition to AMAPCEO proposals such as Job Evaluation. For years, I have advocated the "de-linking" of JE from collective bargaining. This has not made me popular but it is important to stand up and vote for your convictions. Others talk about openness and transparency but when they have the opportunity to make a difference they vote with the flock.
A major concern of mine has been the lack of "arm's length" oversight of the bargaining team by the Board of Directors. I strongly believe that the bargaining team should be separate and apart from the governance of the Association. In other words, the head of the bargaining team should not sit on the Board of Directors. It is important that the governance structures of AMAPCEO should manage bargaining by setting priorities. Questions intended to elicit information can be viewed as a personal attack. In such a circumstance, it is hard to hold the bargaining team to account. I also believe that the bargaining team members should be elected by members and not selected/
In an effort to de-link the largely undefined position of vice president from the head of the bargaining team, I ran against Bob for the position of Vice President in 2011. I lost. The other day, though, I came across a copy of my speech which I will share with you. While I lost the election, I realize that the issues of 2011 have not been resolved.
For those of you who are new, I share this paper. If nothing else, you will see that the problems of last year persit .
Good afternoon, ADC Delegates:
Thank you for volunteering your time, effort and talent to represent your AMAPCEO colleagues across the Province at this critical time in the OPS. I truly believe that volunteers like you are the heart of our organization. You are our most valuable resource and should be treated accordingly.
By now, you will have received a number of communications from me.
I initially sent you email:
· To outline of my experience in the OPS and AMAPCEO,
· To tell you about my personal style, and
· To outline what I want to accomplish as Vice President and
Executive Officer of the Association.
Thank you so much for your many words of encouragement and support during the past weeks.
In addition to the electronic communication I also mailed this letter to your home. It tells you about my OPS and AMAPCEO experience. More importantly it expands on those issues that I believe should the key priorities for the Association over the next two years.
I have worked to earn your vote. In these two days at the ADC, I finally get the chance to speak with you in person. By working hard to earn your vote I mean to demonstrate to you just how I will conduct myself as your Vice President.
As Vice President, I have set for myself four broad goals that I believe can and must be accomplished within the next two years. These goals relate less to what we do as an Association but, rather, to how we do it.
How will we conduct ourselves as we deal with the work at hand, whether it be organizing, negotiating, or defending our members?
The four broad goals relate to the protection of members, improved decision and policy making, greater transparency, and valuing our volunteers.
First, as Vice President, I will work diligently to ensure that sufficient resources are allocated to the protection of our members.
Second, as Vice President, I will support measures that encourage a return to the decentralized and shared decision making and policy making that served the Association well in its early years. As an OPS colleague once said, we need to share the power.
Third, as Vice President, I will support, champion and encourage measures that provide greater transparency into the activities of the Association for our members.
And fourth, and perhaps most importantly, as Vice President I will strive to ensure that our local volunteers and activists are valued and respected.
I would like to talk to you now about these changes which I believe are critical to the continued well-being of AMAPCEO. Let me tell you how I see us making these changes that I believe are necessary to ensure the Association is on track and ready for the future.
1. MEMBER PROTECTION
One, as a priority, I firmly believe we must ensure that sufficient resources are allocated to the protection of our members. What do I mean by this?
First of all, the resources I am talking about include the salaried staff that we hire to resolve disputes for our members. However, these resources also include the unpaid volunteer workplace and AMERC representatives who are on the frontlines. In my view, when we exclude these volunteers by failing to provide them with information, excluding them from meetings or failing to seek their input, we are wasting a valuable resource.
My vision for member protection in AMAPCEO is this – in two years I would expect to achieve a system of workplace representation where volunteer workplace representatives and AMERC co-chairs work together seamlessly with paid office staff to ensure excellent service to the members.
HR ONTARIO is broken
But no matter how prepared we are to defend our members and how organized we are, we have to recognize that never before have we witnessed such incompetence and wanton disregard for the Collective Agreeement! As one of our members so eloquently put it, HR Ontario is broken. I found it very difficult to deal with HR Ontario two years ago when the Corporate Division at MAH underwent the reorg from hell. Things have not improved. Our members, particularly those who have been surplussed without a match, are very upset. And where is AMAPCEO? Why are we not sending letters, marching etc. Why are we missing in action? Conversations that start with a member disclosing the latest hiring shocker usually finish with the words, “And what is AMAPCEO going to do about it?”
By protection of our members I refer to the assistance our members have a right to expect from us, when they have complaints or grievances under either the Collective Agreement or the Employer’s own policies.
Judging by the large number of complaints that I hear about the customer service we provide to workplace representatives, it is clear that the service levels have diminished in the past two years. This decline in service has to be reversed.
We are in tough economic times and it will get worse before it gets better. As more members lose their jobs, the number of disputes will undoubtedly increase. And, for us, representation of our members is Job One.
The short term, quick and dirty response to a crisis such as the one we are facing is to throw money at it. And I do not doubt that, over the short term, we will have to hire more staff to handle the ever increasing number of grievances associated with job loss. However, over the longer term, we need to do our homework to make sure we are using our resources wisely.
How will we know when we are there? How will we measure success? How will we know when sufficient resources have been allocated to the protection of our members?
As Vice President I will call for an organizational review of the dispute resolution function within AMAPCEO with participation and input from members who have used these services as well as input from AMERCs and workplace representatives. By 2013, this process should result in the establishment of measurable service standards so we know how we are doing. Future staffing decisions will be better informed.
2. GOVERNANCE: SHARED AND DECENTRALIZED POLICY AND DECISION MAKING
Second, we must encourage a return to the decentralized and shared decision making and policy making that served the Association well in its early years.
Those of us who have been around since the beginning (of AMAPCEO that is) are alarmed by the concentration and centralization of decision making within AMAPCEO. The authority of the Board and Executive Committee has increased, while the role of Provincial Council has decreased. Where the Provincial Council was once a lively forum for the discussion of policy, it has become a sort of focus group.
My vision for shared decision and policy making in AMAPCEO is this – in two years I believe we can revitalize policy making within AMAPCEO so that each component of our governance structure (ADC, Provincial Council, the Board, the Executive Committee) has a real opportunity to play a meaningful role in the establishment of policy. As Vice President I will support initiatives that will rebalance the policy process and decision making in AMAPCEO.
3. GREATER TRANSPARENCY INTO THE ACTIVITIES OF THE ASSOCIATION
Third, we must provide greater transparency into the activities of the Association for our members.
4. RESPECT FOR OUR VOLUNTEERS / ACTIVISTS
Finally, we must ensure that our local volunteers and activists are valued and respected. We are very good at producing studies on how to develop members and chapters, but poor at implementing them. Our activists are volunteers who are willing to work for nothing, but who are not willing to waste their time.
Our workplace representatives are getting burned out, as they struggle with AMAPCEO almost as much as they struggle with the Employer, while trying to get justice and fair treatment for our members. We must remember that our members are why we are here.
I would like to say a few words about our AMERC members who quietly go about the business of enforcing the Collective Agreement. They play a critical role in defending the CA but are the most poorly resourced group of all.
As Vice President of AMAPCEO, I would advocate for support for AMERCs by arranging regular teleconferences and issue based training opportunities for all AMERC reps (on Employer time); and by ensuring the timely sharing of information.
As Chapter Chair at Municipal Affairs and Housing, my focus has been on the governance of the Association and I participate fully in Provincial Council and have taken part in a number of important committees. As AMERC co-chair (on and off over the past 16 years or so) my focus has been on the Collective Agreement, ensuring that our members are able to take advantage of the protection offered by our Collective Agreement, and by the Employer’s policies. We have established a positive working relationship with the Employer within MAH. We also work cooperatively with other bargaining agents as the need arises. Together with my colleagues who are workplace representatives, and health and safety representatives, and delegates to the ADC, our team provides members with the information they need, when they need it. Signed off AMERC minutes for most of the 133 AMERC meetings held in MAH are available on the Ministry website.
As Vice President, I will be a member of the Executive Committee along with the President, Secretary and Treasurer. If you elect me as Vice President, I will not waste this opportunity to get the Association back on track, moving forward!
So, tomorrow when you are marking your ballot please vote Margaret Kipp for Vice President.
Thanks for your time and your attention.
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