The CFT Executive Committee has updated our constitution and is requesting feedback from union members. Please review the constitution below or download this copy CFT constitution and send comments, feedback or questions to David Taft at davidtaft@mac.com.
The comment period will end on Friday, April 3rd and membership will vote on this the following week.
Constitution for Cornish Federation of Teachers
Revised
Article I
Name
This organization shall be know as Cornish Federation of Teachers, American Federation of Teachers Local # 4169.
Article II
Objectives
Section 1. Secure full trade union rights for all employees who are eligible for membership.
Section 2. Advance the economic, social, and political well being of the membership.
Section 3. Encourage mutual understanding and cooperation among the membership.
Section 4. Promote the improvement of standards in the employment situation of the membership.
Section 5. Negotiate and enforce contractual agreements on behalf of the bargaining unit with Cornish College of the Arts.
Article III
Membership
Section 1. All persons are eligible for membership employed as Interim, Adjunct, Affiliated, and Core teachers and instructors of Cornish College of the Arts.
Section 2. No person shall be denied membership on the basis of sex, race, national origin, religious or political belief or social status.
Section 3. A member shall automatically be dropped from the rolls of the organization upon being (2) months in arrears in payment of their dues.
Article IV
Election of Officers
Section 1. Every two years the organization shall elect the following officers:
President
Vice-President
Recording Secretary
Treasurer
Immediate Past President
Section 2. The officers of the organization shall serve as members of the Executive Board.
Section 3. To be eligible for office a person must be a member in good standing of the organization for a period of one year prior to the date of the election.
Section 4. The Elections Committee shall conduct all general and special elections of the organization.
Section 5. Thirty (30) days prior to the date of the elections the Elections Committee shall notify all members of the opening of nominations for office.
Section 6. To be nominated, a candidate must submit to the Elections Committee a petition containing the signatures of ten (10) percent of the membership for the office sought, submitted fifteen (15) days before the elections for office.
Section 7. The Elections Committee shall prepare ballots in such a manner as to insure the secrecy of the ballots at least five days before the election.
Section 8. A majority of the ballots shall determine election to office. In the absence of a majority, the Elections Committee shall conduct a run-off election between the two candidates who received the most votes for the office in question.
Section 9. With the exception of the President, or in the case of recall, all vacancies shall be filled by a majority vote of the Executive Board.
Section 10. A petition signed by thirty (30) percent of the membership and stating specific grounds shall be sufficient to require the Elections Committee to conduct a re-call election of any officer specified in the petition under the procedures in Section 6. If an officer is recalled, the Elections Committee will hold a special election under procedures outlined in Sections 5 and 6.
Article V
Duties of the Officers
Section 1. The President shall:
Be the presiding officer at meetings of the membership and the Executive Board.
Be ex-officio member of all committees except the Elections Committee.
Appoint, with the approval of the Executive Board, the chairs of all committees except the Elections Committee.
Be responsible for the ongoing administration of the organization.
Be one of the responsible financial officers of the organization and be authorized to co-sign financial instruments and make disbursements of funds.
Represent the organization before the bodies of the employer and its executive offices.
Make timely reports to the membership of the organization.
Be able to delegate the responsibilities of the office except where otherwise specified by the constitution.
Section 2. The Vice President shall:
Assume the duties of the President in the event of absence, illness or death of the President.
Oversee the work of the Departmental Stewards.
Chair the Collective Bargaining Team
Co-sign financial instruments in absence of the President and the Treasurer.
Perform duties as delegated by the President or assigned by the Executive Board.
f. Oversee the work of the Grievance Committee, and act as interim Grievance Officer until such time as it is necessary to so assign an officer to a specific grievance.
g. Chair the Adjunct Task Force.
h. Perform duties as delegated by the President or assigned by the Executive Board.
Section 4. The Recording Secretary shall:
Maintain non-financial records and files of the organization.
Record and keep accurate minutes of the meetings of the membership and the Executive Board.
Oversee the work of and certify the results of the Elections Committee.
Perform other duties as delegated by the president or assigned by the Executive Board.
Assist the President in handling the correspondence of the organization.
Edit and publish any CFT newsletters.
Perform other duties as delegated by the president or assigned by the Executive Board.
Section 6. The Treasurer shall:
Receive, record, and deposit all dues monies and other income in the name of the organization
Maintain accurate membership records
Be one of the responsible financial officers of the organization and be authorized to co-sign financial instruments and make disbursements of funds.
Arrange for an audit of the organization annually, to be made available to the membership and the Executive Board.
Transmit per capita payments to the Secretary-Treasurer of the AFT as well as to AFT Washington.
Perform other duties as delegated by the president or assigned by the Executive Board.
Section 7. The Immediate Past President shall:
Serve the Executive Board in maintaining continuity of governance.
Be consulted as institutional memory of institution.
Perform other duties as delegated by the president or assigned by the Executive Board.
Article VI
Executive Board
Section 1. The Executive Board shall meet at the call of the President or at the call of two (2) or more its members to conduct business of the organization that is within its authority.
Section 2. The Executive Board shall approve the chair and membership of all committees except the Elections Committee, and receive reports from such committees.
Section 3. The Executive Board shall be responsible for adherence to and enforcement of the Constitution and By-Laws of the organization.
Section 4. The Executive Board shall make regular reports to membership.
Article VII
Committees
Section 1. The standing committees of the organization shall be:
Elections
LMOC
Collective Bargaining
Section 2. The Executive Board may establish ad hoc committees as necessary.
Section 3. The Chair and two (2) members of the Elections Committee shall be elected every two (2) years by the general membership. Should a member of the Elections Committee seek office, they shall immediately resign from the Elections Committee.
Section 4. Upon appointment, each committee chair shall select committee members and present their names to the Executive Board for approval, (excepting the Elections Committee).
Section 5. The Elections Committee shall conduct and supervise all elections of the organization.
Section 6. The LMOC shall:
Work towards the resolution of contractual and non-contractual disputes in the workplace.
Work with the college administration to clarify and uphold contractual language.
Maintain records of grievances and their disposition.
Work with the Executive Board regarding disputes to be taken to arbitration or civil remedy.
Section 7. The Collective Bargaining Committee shall:
Conduct negotiations on behalf of the bargaining unit in consultation with the Executive Board.
Regularly apprize membership about the ongoing progress of the negotiations.
Request of the Executive Board a vote of the membership regarding tentative agreements between the Committee and the Administrative negotiators, and/or to request a vote of the membership to ratify the contract.
Report to the Administrative negotiators the outcome of these votes by membership.
Article VIII
Departmental Stewarts
Section 1. Each Department of the College whose members teach at the institution shall elect one representative to the organization for a term of two (2) years.
Section 2. The election of the Stewart shall be by majority vote of the Departmental membership.
Section 3. The Stewarts shall report to the Executive Board, receive and review reports of the Board and committees, and shall take appropriate action as the body deems necessary in accordance with and as specified in the Constitution.
Article IX
Duties of the Stewarts
Section 1. Stewarts shall:
Bring to the notice of the Executive Board issues pertaining to grievances and disputes, as well as workplace and organizational concerns of their Department.
Recruit eligible persons to membership.
Report to Departmental membership about the ongoing business of the organization.
Conduct elections when so instructed by the Elections Committee.
Consult with the Department Chair regarding matters of interest to the union membership.
Article X
Membership meetings
Section 1. The Executive Board shall determine the time and place of membership meetings.
Section 2. Meetings of the membership may be called by:
The Executive Board.
A petition of twenty five percent (25%) of the membership.
Section 3. The membership shall be the supreme governing body of the organization.
Section 4. The ongoing business of the meetings shall take place on the floor of the meeting place.
All voice votes taken by membership shall be constituted as one vote per member.
Voice vote proxies will not be counted.
Voting shall be by majority of the members present.
A quorum of 15% of membership will be necessary to conduct business at membership meetings.
Section 5. The membership shall have the right to initiate referenda, which shall be conducted by the Elections Committee.
Article XI
Rules of Order
Section 1. Robert’s Rules of Order shall govern this organization.
Section 2. Elections of union officers shall be conducted in accordance with Department of Labor Officer Election rules as currently written or as modified in the future. Current rules provide for officer elections to be conducted by secret ballot utilizing ballot boxes or US mail. Elections may be conducted at a general membership meeting by secret ballot provided all eligible voting members are provided the opportunity to vote as such membership meeting.
Other votes requiring secret ballot (such as contract ratification) may be conducted electronically or by any means that retains the secrecy of how an individual ballot is cast and prevents individuals from casting more than one ballot on the issue.
Other votes not requiring secret ballot may be conducted in any manner than complies with Roberts Rules of Order.
Article XII
Revenues
Section 1. The dues of this organization shall be adjusted annually according to the ongoing needs of the organization, and shall be levied as a flat fee in addition to the mandated affiliation fees and insurance premiums.
Section 2. Membership may be assessed additional revenue by the Executive Board, provided that a special referendum has been initiated to vote on the assessment and expenditure of these funds.
Article XIII
Affiliations
This organization shall maintain affiliation with the following organizations:
The American Federation of Teachers, AFL-CIO
AFT Washington, AFL-CIO
Article XIV
Amendment
Section 1. Any member of the organization may present a proposed amendment to the Executive Committee, which shall notify membership of the proposed amendment to be voted on at the next scheduled membership meeting.
Section 2. No less than thirty (30) days must pass between the proposed amendment being published and the meeting at which the vote on the amendment is undertaken.
Section 2. Two thirds (2/3) of those members present and voting shall be required for passage of the amendment.
Article XV
Availability of Constitution
Section 1. Three copies of this Constitution and all subsequent amendments shall be submitted to the office of the Secretary-Treasurer of the American Federation of Teachers.
Section 2. One copy shall be in safekeeping by the Secretary of the organization.
Section 3. The Secretary shall make available a copy to any member of the organization if so requested.