Forestry Commission Trade Unions - www.fctu.org.uk

PCS Group Structures Review 2008

During the first few months of 2008 we changed some of the structures in our group, including;

• In England, increasing the number of branches from three to seven,
• Changing the composition of the GEC,
• Changing the way that branch and group officers are elected, and
• Changing the way that delegates are selected to attend our Group Conference.

Implementation Updates

New Group Constitution 10 May 2008

Following agreement by the Group and National Executive Commitees, delegates at our group conference held on 6th and 7th May in York have agreed to adopt a new group constitution.

Further information: Conference Paper on the Group Review | New Constitution

The main changes contained in the new constitution are:

• A change in the composition of the GEC to reflect the new branches. (Rule 8)
• The appointment of the group’s full-time official as the Group Secretary. (Rule 6)
• The introduction of group level elections for the Group Treasurer, and Organiser (in addition to the President). (Rule 7)
• A change in the composition of this conference to provide a more formal link between the branches and their delegates. (Rule 18)
• The new text is also more consistent with the constitutions being used in other parts of the union and is complient with the union's principal rules.
  

Background to the Review

Introduction

For the last few years the Group Executive Committee has been trying to find ways to enable more members in the FC to be able to participate in how our union operates. Having gathered feedback during 2007, one of the issues that was raised several times, particularly from members in England, is that union meetings are not sufficiently local to enable most people to attend. Therefore last November the GEC set up a small review group to;

1. look at the current branch structure and suggest amendments that would assist in improving local recruitment, activism and organising;

2. to make recommendations for changes to the composition of the GEC and arrangements for our Group Conference;

3. and to identify opportunities to bring our group constitution more into line with the standard PCS model this latter point has previously been highlighted as being desirable by PCS HQ).

Recommendations

At the very end of last year the GEC accepted the recommendations of the review group:

1. That the group moves to an eleven branch model[from the current seven]: the current arrangements for Scotland, Wales and Silvan House; and seven branches in England based on the PCS/TUC regional boundaries.

2. That West Argyll Forest District is moved from North Scotland Branch to South Scotland Branch.

3. That the future GEC comprise; two representatives from each of the North Scotland, South Scotland, Wales and Silvan House branches, to be elected by the members of each branch (i.e. as per the current arrangement); one representative elected by the members of each of the seven England branches; a president, treasurer, organiser and assistant secretary elected by the whole group membership; and the group’s full-time officer acting a group secretary.

   That the current arrangements for group conference are broadly retained, but that delegates are invited to conference as part of mandated branch delegations with: five delegates from each of the North Scotland, South Scotland, Wales and Silvan House branches, and two delegates from each of the seven England branches.

4. That the election for Group President (under the current constitution) be delayed until no later than the end of June 2008 in order to fit with the timetable outlined above.

Implementation

Implementation of the review will take place over the coming months and will only really be noticeable for those members based in England. The key stages will be:

1. A full briefing on the changes will be provided at the forthcoming branch AGM's.
2. The new England branches will be officially formed on 1st April and we shall be organising initial meeting of these branches during April.
3. Budgeting for the new branches as well as changes to membership databases will be handled centrally by the group office.
4. The first meeting of the new GEC will take place in early June.

Seven New Branches for England

From 1st April 2008 our current three branches in England will be replaced with seven smaller ones. Our hope is that this will enable more of you to attend meetings and take an active role in the work of the union. Also, the new branches will be aligned to the boundaries used by the PCS regional offices in England, so each branch will have a single point of contact for seeking local PCS support.

Further information: List of which new branch each office is in | Map of the new branches.

Inaugural Meetings

We are currently in the process of arranging inaugural meetings for each of the new branches. Details of each of the meetings are currently being finalised, but we would please ask that you make every effort to try and attend the meeting of your new branch:

North England: 1100 on 16th April at the Lane End Inn near Brampton, Carlisle. (Google Map)

North West England: Details tbc.

Yorkshire & Humber: 1000 on Wednesday 23rd April at the FC Offices at Wheldrake.

Midlands: 1030 on Friday 11th April at Cannock

East England: 1130 on Tuesday 8th April at Thetford

London & South East England: 1000 on Wednesday 9th April at Alice Holt

South West England: Details tbc.

Even if you don't have the time to take on a formal role, it's really important that you make every effort to attend your local meetings to ensure that the union is properly representing your views and is accountable to you for its actions.

Running a PCS Branch

Although it is possible for our union to be run by a small number of people, it will only be really effective if more of us agree to take on a few small tasks. At a local level the union is run by volunteers, and we do need a few people in each of the new branches to help organise the union's work and to make sure that we are aware of your views and concerns. The key roles within the branch are:

The branch chair is responsible for:

• the overall running of the Branch
• chairing BEC and general members' meetings.
• This would usually take about half a day per month.

The branch secretary is responsible for:

• dealing with correspondence
• liasing with branch chair on agenda items
• minuting and circulating minutes of meetings
• producing a short report for the AGM.
• This would usually take about a day per month.

The branch treasurer is responsible for:

• day to day running of Branch finances
• preparing up-dated accounts for BEC
• checking accuracy of pay invoices and expenses claims
• submitting claims for funding from HQ
• producing audited accounts for the AGM
• ensuring end of year accounts are submitted to HQ.
• This would usually take about half a day per month.

The branch organiser is responsible for:

• ensuring the Branch produces and updates a branch organising and recruitment plan to build a strong branch that reflects the diversity of the workforce
• developing branch communications with workplace reps/distributors to ensure all members receive communications
• ensuring workplace meetings are taking place
• coordinating branch campaigns
• maintaining and up-dating a membership database for the branch
• coordinating branch recruitment.
• This would usually take about a day per month.

The GEC rep is responsible for:

• Attending meetings of the Group Executive Committee, which take place in Edinburgh three times per year
• Highlighting local issues that may be of broader concern/interest
• helping to decide PCS policy on issues that affect the whole FC, such as pay
• Updating local members after each GEC meeting on FC issues that might affect them.
• This would usually take about a day per month.

The NOC/Staff Council rep is responsible for:

• Attending meetings of the joint unions' National Organising Committee, which liaises with FC management over issues of concern/interest
• Highlighting issues of concern that have been raised locally
• Providing local members with feedback on FC issues discussed at the meetings.
• This would usually take about half a day per month.

As part of our agreement with the FC, all of these roles can be done during work time, and T&S expenses are paid by PCS or the FC where appropriate. Full training can also be provided if necessary. Although we appreciate that everyone is busy, it is important that our union is run by us - the local members - and the more of us that give up a little bit of our time, the easier it will be.

Any Questions?

If you have any questions on the changes then please speak to your branch secretary or email the group office.

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