Union Council

Role

The union council is made up of the Executive Committee, plus the following union councillors from each department. Any member in good standing of the union is eligible to become a union councillor.

The members designated as union councillors represent the following groups:

Business and Administration Department, 1 member;
Communications Department, 1 member;
Computer Department, 1 member;
English Department, 3 members;
French Department, 1 member;
Photography Department, 1 member;

Members

Business and Administration Department
Carmen Kuczewski carmen.kuczewski@concordia.ca
Communications Department
André Durocher a.durocher@hotmail.com
Computer Department
Pankaj Kamthan kamthan@gmail.com
English Department
Dean Garlick bgdgarlick@gmail.com
French Department
Tanya Ullmann tanyau1@hotmail.com
Photography Department
Selvin Cortez info@selvincortez.com
Member at Large
Santo Romano santoromano@videotron.ca

The Union Council meets at least once during each of the Fall, Winter and Spring sessions. Additional meetings may be called as required.

Duties of Union Councillors

A. Duties specified in the Constitution

The attributes of the union council are as follows:

to assume authority between the general meetings
to ensure that the executive committee follows through on the mandates given to it by the general meeting; it shall replace any union officer or union delegate who resigns, is unable to act or is absent; and thus, until the following general meeting; where an election shall be held to fill the vacant position(s);

to elaborate on the policy and activities of the union between general meetings, especially those involving the collective agreement and inter-union matters;
to create the appropriate committees to see to the proper functioning of the union and to elect the members to said committees;
to name delegates to represent the union to the various bodies where the union participates;
to prepare the general meetings.

The attributes of the union delegates (councillors) are as follows:

to ensure that the collective agreement is respected, within the group of employees that he or she represents;

to ensure that newly hired personnel join the union;

to inform the group that he or she represents of the decisions made by the union council, and to defend in the union council the viewpoint(s) proposed by the unionized people in the group that he or she represents;
to personally convene the people in the group that he or she represents to all general meetings, regardless of the prescriptions set out in Article 21;
he or she is elected by the group of people that they are to represent;
he or she is replaced, if necessary, by said group;
the term shall be two (2) years and upon completion, the delegate shall transmit to their successor all the properties of the union in their possession, as well as all pertinent information or documentation.

B. Further information regarding duties

Representing a department

Union councillors hear concerns of individuals and groups in their department. They may: respond on the spot, if possible; refer the matter to the Executive Committee, if necessary; raise the matter at union council meetings; and/or convene a meeting of their department.

Communication

With the Executive Committee. Between UC meetings, union councillors can communicate with the executive either in person, by telephone, or via email.

With their constituency. Union councillors generally communicate with their department before or after departmental meetings or via email, if the department doesn’t hold regular meetings.