Open Negotiations at CUPE Local 3903

For the past few rounds of bargaining CUPE Local 3903 has negotiated openly. This means that any union member is welcome and encouraged to sit in and observe negotiations between the union’s bargaining team and the employer. Additionally, members are encouraged to attend Bargaining Committee, Executive Committee and Stewards Council meetings.

The role of the Bargaining Committee
Unions elect a Bargaining Committee so there will be consistency at the bargaining table. If the union committee was constantly changing it would be hard to present a unified, consistent position. The size and composition of the Negotiating Committee is decided by the membership, but every effort is made to make sure that all bargaining units of the union are represented.
Employers have to accept the Bargaining Committee that the union presents, but other things, like where the meetings take place, and what time they take place, are negotiable.
Having members sit in on negotiating sessions allows the union membership to observe first-hand how negotiations work (or sometimes how they don't work) while still maintaining the necessary consistent role of a Bargaining Committee. In addition, having members present sends a strong message to the employer that members care about the bargaining priorities the union has put forward at the table, which likewise provides important support for the Bargaining Team.

What is the role of members sitting in on negotiations?
Members can only attend negotiations sessions as observers. The Bargaining Committee must have the authority to bargain, so they do the talking, the negotiating. This is the power vested in the Committee by the Union and by law. In order not to give the employer any reason to object to having members present, non-Bargaining Team members should refrain from making comments while negotiations are in progress. (Sometimes this is real hard to do.) Just by being present the members are showing their support for the Union Committee. Members may offer their thoughts to the Committee while in a caucus (this is when either party takes a break in negotiations so that they can talk about an issue amongst themselves) but not while discussions between the union and employer are taking place.

Does this hamper the Union Committee from making hard decisions?
If there are going to be open negotiations then there has to be some discussion and basic understanding among the membership as to what goes on in negotiations. This means we all understand that not every proposal the union makes will be kept on the bargaining table until the end. It means what the union's priorities are needs to be established by the union as early as possible in negotiations, which the Bargaining Team presented to the membership in August 2011 and which were agreed upon. Click here to see the priorities.
There will be some give and take between management and the Union. It does mean that at times the Bargaining Committee may have to spend a little more time during breaks explaining to the members present what their thinking is and what has happened in previous negotiating sessions. It becomes an educational process for them. The Committee will sometimes have to make hard decisions in front of the members, but being a Union that traditionally puts itself in the hands of the members, this isn't as hard as it may seem, because the general membership has played such a central role in determining what the union’s priorities and pillars are in bargaining and that what we don’t win in this round will continue to be fought for in the future, if this is the membership continues to think something is important for us to secure.

Does this hamper the employer from negotiating?
Actually, having members present during negotiations does hamper most employers from saying outrageous things about employees in order to justify their positions. Most employers don't like open negotiations because their comments and attitude become common knowledge to people. This is the way it should be. Many times the Bargaining Committee becomes used to hearing the employer say ridiculous things to justify a position they are holding. When members are present and hear such things they usually become insulted and tell other members what they heard. Thus the veil is often lifted off of the employer's image.
Because of this, many employers will fight hard against allowing members to sit in on negotiations, but our union has fought hard to establish this practice in past rounds.

Open negotiations and the negotiating site
Traditionally CUPE Local 3903 has advocated that negotiations be held during working hours at the workplace. Holding negotiations at the workplace is usually better because it gives the Bargaining Committee easy and immediate access to the membership. If the Committee wants to bring specific people into negotiations to address particular bargaining proposals, then being on-site makes this easier to do.
This is still the best approach, even with open negotiations. But if the site for negotiations must be away from the workplace then bringing more members in to watch lessens the drawbacks of being away from the workplace.