Article 5 - Committees and Councils

Section 5.1 - Participation

Members in good standing may volunteer for committee participation. Committee members are expected to attend meetings, contribute to decision-making and planning processes, and share the work of carrying out committee activities and tasks. All committee members should notify other committee members in the case that they cannot attend committee meetings and activities. All committee members should be included in communications about a potential meeting in order to facilitate quorum and participation.

Each committee will establish an on-call rotation among all committee members in order to ensure prompt response, accountability and shared responsibility for the day-to-day-business of the committee. The committee may choose to adopt a different system from the on-call rotation to handle their affairs using the decision-making procedure in Section 6.1.

Section 5.2 - Committee Rules

Quorum and rules of order for individual committees are to be set by the committee upon its establishment and may be updated following the decision-making procedure outlined in Section 6.1.

Section 5.3 - Absences

This article pertains to anyone participating in a committee, the Stewards Council, or the Executive Board. An Excused Absence is defined as any absence that has been communicated to other meeting attendees at least four hours prior to the meeting. If a committee member has not fulfilled their duties for at least the absent period (see Article 23), other committee members may consider that member’s removal by a majority vote of committee members. The absent member will be notified one (1) week prior to such a vote. All unexcused absences will be followed by a call by another meeting attendee. If an officer is voted out of a position on a committee, the Stewards Council, or out of the Executive Board, then said officer will no longer hold that position.

Section 5.4 - Committee Chairs

Each committee has a designated Executive Officer who serves as committee chair, see Article 3 for chair duties. The Committee Chair is responsible for arranging for updates to be provided to the Executive Board prior to each Executive Board meeting. This update contains the points which will be discussed at the Executive Board meeting; the update may include description of recent activities or decisions made by the committee, questions from the committee or request for resources, or suggestions for the improved performance of their respective committees.

Section 5.5 - Standing Committees

The set of standing committees is enumerated in Article 14.

Section 5.6 - Pan-Committee Meeting

Any committee may by consensus choose to convene a meeting of any subset of committees (including all committees) (including the Executive Board and, if appropriate, including stewards). The meeting voting population shall consist of whoever is present at the meeting, regardless of number of attendees. Executive Board rules of order apply. Such meetings are open to all members in good standing. Decisions made will apply to any subject under the purview of a committee with a quorum (as defined for that committee) in attendance. Decisions made in this committee have the same impact as a ruling of any individual committee (including Executive Board and stewards, if in attendance).

Section 5.7 - Grievance Point Duty

Officers and any other GEU members approved by the Grievance Officer may be assigned to assist with individual grievances as appropriate and necessary. Grievance duties entail communicating with the grievant(s) regarding grievance processes, procedures and timelines, ensuring that the appropriate communications with administration contacts are effectively managed, supporting the grievant(s), and attending meetings related to grievance proceedings. The officer or steward on point duty for a grievance will serve as a primary point of contact for the grievant(s). It is the responsibility of the primary point of contact to forward copies of all grievances and related material to the Grievance Officer.

Section 5.8 - Steward Council

This council consists of all GEU department Stewards. The Steward Council is responsible for coordinating membership campaigns and actions for progress towards membership goals. The Steward Council will develop strategies for communicating with and disseminating information to GEU members and those eligible for GEU membership in stewards’ respective departments. This Council is chaired by the VP of Organizing (Chief Steward). In the case of an appeal which involves the Executive Board either as the appealer or the subject, the Steward Council will handle the appeal as outlined in Article 22.2. The Steward Council will meet two (2) times per term to discuss department membership and participation in GEU actions/campaigns, and to represent the concerns of individual departments.