Delegates are vital to Unions, whether it’s ours or any other union. Here’s why we love them.
They play critical roles within Unions by being a source of information for members in their workplace, speaking with new staff about the Union and making sure members know what’s happening and what opportunities exist to get involved.
They are often the first point of contact for someone who needs assistance with a workplace issue or to clarify their general workplace rights and entitlements.
Delegates are also involved in ensuring that workplaces are safe by working with Health and Safety Representatives. They can raise concerns about workplace safety with Health and Safety Representatives on behalf of members or assist members to raise those concerns.
They are like having the Union right there in your workplace. And in some cases, delegates can deal with minor issues directly, for example raising problems about potential incorrect payments for public holidays.
If they’re unsure about things they will refer it to one of the Industrial team.
As a Union, delegates are key people in your workplace we speak with about trends we see in the sort of issues raised by members.
They are also the people we go to, to help us to share information, updates and resources with members and help us distribute them in their workplaces. Delegates are also key people to help us organise member meetings and help to let members know about meetings in their workplace.
They are an essential part of how Unions work and how we can better monitor compliance with our agreements, along with ensuring that members know what’s happening in their Union.
Not only are delegates a vital part of our work as a Union, but they also improve the organisations in which they work.
They help improve compliance with our agreements, give members greater confidence in knowing their workplace rights and entitlements, and assist in making workplaces safer and healthier. These things help reduce staff turnover rates, improve the workplace culture and help reduce staff being on leave due to workplace accidents.
But to make sure that delegates can do all the amazing things they do, we support delegates by providing resources, training and opportunities to get to know other delegates in their workplace and across the state.
We have also worked to include in our agreements clauses that provide delegates with proper time to do their work as a delegate without losing pay or entitlements, along with protection from undue pressure from supervisors, managers and senior management.
There is little doubt about the importance of delegates to us and members.
However, we also know that not everyone we cover has access to a delegate or works in teams that have one of our delegates.
The Union always needs more delegates.
Thought about being a delegate? Wondering what it takes to be a delegate?
If you want to know more about becoming a delegate, then contact us here or via your Member Portal
