So You Ve Been Elected! Now What ?

So You Ve Been Elected! Now What ?

So You’ve been Elected! Now what.....?

Introduction: One of the big things that we are trying to improve in Local 005 is communication. This document aims to provide you, a Chapter elected representative of the Union, a better idea of what is expected of you and how we can serve you as your Local 005 council. Timelines, Local Policies, activities and commonly asked questions will be presented here. This is in addition to the Component Officer Resource Kit information that is available through the AUPE which will also be quoted here.

Important websites:

  • Aupe.org Union Website for bargaining updates, discounts, digital collective agreement
  • Aupe5.org Local 5 website for council minutes, forms, contact lists, emails

Chapters: The function of a Chapter is:

a) To make recommendations with respect to collective bargaining policy to the Local Council.

b) To administer the Collective Agreement;

c) To provide for the educational and general welfare of its members;

d) To implement at an area level, Union program and objectives; and

e) To recruit new members to the Union.

Key items to know in addition to the component resource officer kit:

Local Council – The Local Council is where the management of the Local takes place. Within it a Chair, Vice-Chair, Secretary, Treasurer, Provincial Executive Rep, Bargaining Committee Rep, and others are all elected. The Local 005 Council updates Local 005 policy as necessary, manage the funds of the Local, receive requests for activity funding and distribute where applicable, update membership with information such as bargaining and any other areas where Local 005 members are involved, etc.

Local Council Representative –There is one local rep elected for every 100 (or portion thereof) Local members. The council rep is the voice of the membership While the chapter Chair can at any time contact the Local Council Executive directly it is encouraged that Chapter information be passed on to the Local through the Local Council Rep to be brought up at the Council Meetings for discussion.

Area Council Representative – Elected as a Chapter representative on the Area Council. The Area Council is comprised of members from the different Locals and Chapters in a particular geographic area. The area council organizes Union events for all AUPE members within that area and is a great way to get to know fellow union members and have some fun. It is not mandatory for each chapter to elect a Area Council Rep but it is encouraged as a way to increase solidarity. The contact information for each area council and the geographic area they encompass can be found under area councils at aupe.org

Chapter Chair/Vice-Chair – Duties of the Chair/Vice-Chair include organizing and running at least one Annual General Meeting (to be held preferably before April 1st so that the Local Council has all of the meeting minutes for their April AGM). Each chapter is encouraged to have multiple meetings as required throughout the year to discuss Union business as well as encourage participation of Chapter members.

The Chapter Chair is able to request a list of its members from AUPE however strict FOIP rules apply. The list is required to be signed for upon receiving and returned without making copies within a set amount of time.

The Chapter executive should have a finger on the pulse of their Chapter. Provide information about Union activities online and at a workplace board. Be ready to provide support to the members of your chapter with contact information for the Union, questions about grievance procedures, training opportunities, etc. We encourage you to pass along information to the Local Council that may be of interest to the Union such as extended acting positions, concerns from the membership, collective agreement issues or anything that you feel is or may become important.

Secretary – The primary role of a Secretary shall have charge of and conduct routine correspondence on behalf of the component. They are also to ensure that accurate minutes are kept for all meetings and have custody of all books, minutes and records.

These may be from Executive meetings, chapter meetings or anything where Chapter members get together to discuss Chapter activities. This is especially important when decisions for the Chapter are being made and where funds are being used. Fan-Out Lists: A fan out list MUST be voluntary. You can use a members list to contact Chapter members but must request their permission to be put on a fan-out list. When members sign in for an AGM or other meeting the sign-in form as developed by AUPE has a clause on it that identifies the use of the information for the purpose of being a worksite contact, though you may want to remind people. A fan-out list should not include work information, personal information only. Remind people to only put personal information on the sign-in sheet. A well-developed fan-out mailing list is the single most important piece of your communication plan. It is important to NEVER send sensitive Union information to work email addresses, particularly regarding bargaining.

Treasurer – In most chapters in Local 005 there has been the move towards the Local 005 treasurer handling the funds for the Chapters in addition to the Local. If this is the case in your Chapter the Treasurer or more likely the Secretary/Treasurer will still be required to keep track of your Chapter finances. This means filling out the proper expense forms and submitting to the Local 005 Treasurer. If there are multiple expenses from various chapter executives, the treasurer would collect, review and send them to the Local 005 treasurer all at once if possible. If any chapters wish to have their own bank account instead of using the Local 005 account they are able to do so with a request to the Local Finance Committee (the executive) and we can help set it up with the Chapter at their local ATB. We use ATB because they give us a very good discount.

A budget should be presented at the AGM and should include a list of activities you are planning for the year with approximate costs. The treasurer budget allocates funding based on a set amount for each person in the Chapter. Attached there is a form for Anticipated Activity Costs and Actual Costs to be used when submitting the budget along with the AGM notes. Activities presented along with the budge at the AGM should be approved by the majority of members present (50+1%). If you need additional funds throughout the year for member engagement or meetings then simply present a request for funds with the anticipated activity cost form to any member of the Local executive for approval.

If at any time there are questions about the funding available for a Chapter, contact the Local 005 Treasurer. Our Treasurer has included an introduction to our Local policies for you, see below:

Hello everyone,

My name is Crystal Ionson and I am currently the treasurer for Local 005.

There has been some misinformation passed on to the Chapters regarding the Chapter Treasurer position. According to Article 23.03 of the AUPE Constitution - There shall be an Executive Board consisting of a Chair, Vice-Chair, Secretary, Treasurer or Secretary-Treasurer and the Representatives to the Local Council. This means that each of the Chapters who currently do not have an elected Treasurer or Secretary-Treasurer will need to elect one at your 2018 Chapter AGM’s.

The Constitution is found here -

Here is an update for the Treasurer or Secretary Treasurer for each of the Chapters.

Please see the attached document for the following;

  • Treasurer Hand book – Procedures to be followed by the Treasurers or Secretary-Treasurers
  • Chapter Budget Approval Process – Procedures to be followed by the Treasurers or Secretary-Treasurers
  • Local 5-Chapter budget-2017 – This is to be used by the Chapter treasurer or Secretary-Treasurers
  • to determine the Chapter Budget for the 2018 fiscal year which is July 1st – June 30th
  • Chapter proposed budget – This is the template the treasurer or Secretary-Treasurers will use to create their proposed chapter budget. The budget needs to be approved at the Chapter AGM and then sent to the Local Treasurer at
  • Gift Card Receipt Doc – To be used if gift cards are being given out
  • Event Actual Expense Form – To be used to submit to the Local Treasurer for reimbursement for activities or events.
  • Additional Funding Request Form – To be submitted prior to an activity or event for funds outside of the approved Chapter budget.
  • Expense claim Forms – Can be found at

In Solidarity,

Crystal Ionson

Local 005 Treasurer

Training – AUPE offers a range of courses for those that are interested, many of these are online. The education calendar can be found at aupe.org/training. Core courses are one to three days in length with many being available online. Highly recommended for all members to have is the Introduction to the Union course. Many courses are paid for directly by the Union however some require Local approval. An Advanced Education Labour school is also held once each year. Members apply to their chapter and then it is sent to the Local Chair and Council for approval to go forward to HQ for approval. This school is typically held in Jasper or Banff and includes courses such as Talking Union, Advanced OH&S Advocate, Arts in Labour History, Beyond Bullying, Continuing Education for Stewards, and Leadership Essentials.

Membership Services Officers- MSO’s are assigned to both the Local and the individual Chapters. The purpose of an MSO is to provide guidance to the components on the Union’s behalf. They can answer questions and advise on Labour relations issues and interpret the Collective Agreement. They are the contact for grievance and other collective agreement questions and procedures. Below is a list of the MSO’s assigned to the Local and Chapters for your reference.

The current MSO list for each Chapter is as follows and more information can be found using aupe.org. The contact information of all of the MSO’s will be their first initial, period, followed by their last name @ aupe.org.

Calgary Chapter 1 Wade MacIntyre

Edmonton Chapter 2 Derrick Karbashewski

Fort McMurray Chapter 3 Berend Wilting

High Level Chapter 4 Chaka Rukobo

Peace River Chapter 5 Ashley Furlong

Slave Lake Chapter 6 Ashley Furlong/Gloria Rein

Grande Prairie Chapter 7 Teresa Long

Lac LaBiche Chapter 8 Gloria Rein

Whitecourt Chapter 10 Berend Wilting/ Julie Cromarty

Edson Chapter 11 Julie Cromarty

Rocky Chapter 12 Shelley Makowski

Red Deer Chapter 13 Angela MacArthur

Blairmore Chapter 15 Darren Gangur

Local 005 MSO Derrick Karbashewski

These MSO’s can change often so if you’re unsure it’s best to call the AUPE resource number 780-930-3300. You can call this number for any Union related inquiries at any time.

Standing Committees There are a number of standing committees that AUPE has that any member can join. Selection to a committee is decided by the AUPE executive committee. If you are interested in joining a committee or want to find out more about them go to aupe.org then MyAUPE tab, then scroll down to standing committees. Application forms are online.

The Standing Committees include:

Legislative Committee

Membership Services Committee

Committee on Political Action

Finance Committee

Occupational Health and Safety Committee

Anti-Privatization Committee

Women’s Committee

Pension Committee

Pay and Social Equity Committee

Young Activists Committee

Human Rights Committee

Environment Committee

Members’ Benefits Committee

Convention Each year AUPE puts on a convention where elected members from all the Locals get together to govern AUPE, update policies and debate policies and update the Constitution. It is an excellent opportunity to meet others in the Local as well as see how the Union is run as a whole, not just our Local. Convention delegates and alternates are selected at chapter AGM’s at the rate of 1 per 100 members or portion thereof. Currently we are allotted 14 reps for our Local. Being elected as a delegate allows their name to come forward to the Local Council where all names are taken into consideration and the Council determines which of the elected delegates they will send to Convention. Each delegate has one vote to represent the needs and interests of their members in the business of the Union.

We encourage all members that have an interest in attending convention to put their name forward as a Convention delegate alternate so if a delegate is unable to attend they can be available to replace them. In accordance with the Union Constitution we cannot make substitutions with people that haven’t been elected as either a delegate or an alternate.

The Local may also send Observers, who don’t have a vote but are able to watch the proceedings of the convention and participate in all other aspects of it. Guests may also be sent at the expense of the Local to assist with Convention duties. Guests are not elected but may be sent to assist with duties as required by the Local.

Conclusion: I hope this helps with a better understanding of your Local and what your role in the Chapter executive is and some of the finer details of how to run your Chapters. As always please feel free to contact your council representative or members of the Local Executive or MSO at any time if you have questions. Thank you for your interest and helping Local 5 to move forward and work together to be a strong and effective Local for our members.

In Solidary,

The Local 005 Executive

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