CONSTITUTION
AND
BY-LAWS
LOCAL 880
AMALGAMATED
TRANSIT UNION
Revised April 2004
Our Principals
Resolved:
That we hold it as a sacred principle, that union Brothers and
Sisters above all others should set a good example as good and
faithful workers, performing their duties to their employers with
honor to themselves and to their organization.
Resolved:
That we hold a reduction of hours for a day's work increases the
intelligence and happiness of the laborer and also increases the
demands for labor and the price of a day's work.
Resolved:
That we hold a liberal education of the young to be a preeminent
preparation for life's social and industrial work, and that the
principles and purposes of organized labor demand free and
compulsory education.
Resolved:
That we encourage and stimulate our members to take a lively
interest in civil affairs of their country in order that they can
vote intelligently and effectively for the interests of the working
people.
Article I
Section 1:
The stated meetings of this Local Union shall be known as Regular,
Executive and Special. At all meetings, all questions that cannot
be settled by an oral vote must be decided by a secret ballot.
Section 2:
The meeting of this Local Union will be held on the second Tuesday
of each month. The meetings will consist of two (2) sections that
will be known as the A.M. and P.M. meetings. The A.M. meeting will
be called to order at 10:00 A.M. with a quorum of ten (10) members.
The P.M. meeting will be called to order at 7:30 P.M. with a quorum
of twenty-five (25) members. The President shall delegate an
Executive Board member to be the Sergeant-at-Arms at the P.M.
meeting.
No new business shall be entertained
after 9:30 P.M. except by unanimous consent.
Section 3:
Special meetings can be called if there are questions calling for a
vote of the entire membership such as agreements, wage disputes, or
other question of like importance. The President shall call a
special meeting when requested by one-third or more members in
writing. No business shall be transacted at a special meeting
except that set forth in the call. Proper notices stating the
reason, time and place for the meeting will be posted. Except for
unusual circumstances, a reasonable time (no less than thirty-six
[36] hours) will be provided before the meeting is called to order.
Section 4:
The Executive Board or any Committee shall convene at the call of
the President, but such calls must be accompanied with a time and
place of meeting. The majority of the Executive Board and all
standing Committees may convene at will, or at the call of their
respective chairman.
In
the event that the President and Vice President are both absent due
to sickness or injury and are both incapable of performing their
duties, the Secretary-Treasurer shall temporarily fill the office of
the President and immediately have the Executive Board convene to
temporarily appoint an officer to act as President and to decide
whether or not the election would be necessary.
Article II
Officers and Delegates
Section 1:
The officers to be elected of this Local Union shall consist of
President, who shall act Business Agent; Vice President, who shall
act as Assistant Business Agent; Secretary-Treasurer, and four [4]
delegates to the New Jersey State Council, namely the President, one
[1] Operator, one [1] Mechanic, and one [1] Field Salary shall be
the Delegates to the Central Labor Unions and State Federation of
Labor Convention by virtue of their office.
Section 2:
There shall also be elected an Executive Board of which the
President shall be Chairperson, Vice President, Secretary/Treasurer,
the Delegates to the New Jersey State Council and the elected
Committeepersons of the respective locations; including one [1] from the
Field Salaried employees.
The
President's salary shall be adjusted to sixty [60] hours at the top
prevailing hourly rate and adjusted to the nearest dollar weekly.
The Secretary-Treasurer's salary shall be adjusted to [55] hours at
the top prevailing hourly rate and adjusted to the nearest dollar
weekly.
Benefits as per the contract, for the full time officers to be paid
by the Local Union as has been past practice.
Members of Local Union 880 shall be paid a minimum of two (2) hours
to a maximum of ten [10] hours pay at their
top prevailing hourly rate and expenses of ten dollars [$10.00], for
meals and ten dollars [$10.00] for travel, when engaged on Union
assignments authorized by the President of the Local Union.
Executive Board members [Committeepersons] shall be advanced one hundred
fifty dollars [$150.00] a month for expenses including the
delegates to the New Jersey State Council and the Vice President.
When an executive committee person or an executive board member is
required to travel to another location on union business to represent a member, he or
she shall be paid mileage at the prevailing rate established by the
IRS for each mile, rounded off to the nearest penny.
Section 3:
The President and the Secretary-Treasurer and all Delegates to all
Conventions are to be elected at the General Elections. The
President and the Secretary-Treasurer, number one [1], Operators
Delegate to the State Council and the number two [2], Mechanical
Delegate to the State Council will be the four [4] delegates to the
International Convention by virtue of their office.
If
size of the membership warrants, the number three [3], Field Salary
Delegate to the State Council will be the number five [5] delegate
to the International Convention.
Alternate Delegates to the International Convention shall be as
follows: Vice President for the President; Field Salary, number [3]
Delegate is the first alternate to any; number four [4], Operators
Alternate Delegate will be second alternate, number five [5],
Mechanical Alternate will be the third alternate to the
International Convention only.
All
the above positions must appear on the Local Union's General
Elections Ballot.
Article III
Nominations and Elections
Section 1:
The nomination of all the officers of this Local Union will be
opened and closed on the night designated for nominations after a
reasonable opportunity is given to members to nominate candidates of
their choice. This notice of nominations shall be posted on all
bulletin boards at least seven days prior to the meeting.
The
nominations of officers will be held at the regular meeting in
October. The election of officers will be held on the first
Thursday in December.
Members to be eligible to an elective office must have been in
continuous good standing for two [2] years, prior to any election.
Members nominated for office or offices at the nomination meeting
must notify the Secretary-Treasurer within seven [7] days if they
decline to run. If nominated for multiple offices, failure to
notify the Secretary-Treasurer within seven [7] days will forfeit
eligibility for any nominated office.
Section 2:
Election of all officers shall be held under the Plurality System.
Where two or more candidates are nominated for an office, the
candidate receiving the most votes shall be declared elected.
Where two or more officers are to be elected - such as 2-3-4, etc.,
Delegates to be conventions central labor unions, etc., each office
shall be contested separately as Position No. 1, Position No. 2,
etc.
When an election of Local Union officers is held, a candidate shall
have the right to have an observer, at his own expense, at the
counting of the ballots.
No
member who is disqualified from holding office under the provisions
of Section 504 of the Labor-Management Reporting Act of 1959 shall
be eligible for holding office in this association.
The
voting shall be done my mail in ballot. Each member in good
standing shall be mailed a ballot 20 days prior to any election.
All ballots shall contain a return envelope that will be addressed
to a post office box at the nearest post office to the union hall.
Ballots must be returned in the original envelope or the ballot is
void. The president of the local union shall designate a ballot
counting committee. The ballot counting committee shall consist of
four [4] members. No one on the ballot counting committee will be
permitted to be a nominee in the election.
The
Secretary-Treasurer shall prepare a list of names of all members who
are eligible to vote, the same being given to the ballot counting
committee.
After the President of the local union appoints a ballot counting
committee, the chairperson of the committee shall open a post office
box at the nearest post office to the union hall and the chairperson
shall keep the key to the post box until the ballots are picked up.
Ballots shall be picked up at the local post office box at 9:00AM on the first Thursday in December by the ballot counting committee
and brought to the union hall where they will counted.
The
Secretary-Treasurer of the Local Union shall preserve all ballots
and records pertaining to any election of officers of the Local
Union for one [1] year.
Section 3:
All officers of this Local Union shall be elected for a term of
three [3] years. Newly elected officers shall assume the duties of
their office on the first [1st] day of January following
their election. Installation of officers shall take place at the
first meeting following announcement of the election results.
Section 4:
In order to fill vacancies that may occur in any elective office
during the term, the President shall have the power to temporarily
appoint a successor to fill the vacancy if required, and an election
must be held within ninety [90] days.
Notice will be given in the call of the meeting for nomination and
will be given under Article III, Section 2. Plurality system and
secret ballot will prevail, the member receiving the majority of
votes cast is hereby elected to fill the unexpired term, subject to
approval by the Executive Board.
Article IV
Duties of Officers
Section 1:
President's and Business Agent's Duties. It shall be the
duty of the President to preside at all meetings of the Local Union,
to preserve order and to enforce the Constitution and By Laws; to
see that all officers perform their respective duties, and appoint
all committees not otherwise provided for; he shall decide all
questions of order, subject to an appeal to the Local Union. He
shall have a right to vote only in case of a tie, when he shall give
the deciding vote. He shall announce the results of all votes; he
shall enforce all fines and penalties; he shall have the power to
call special meetings when requested by a petition signed by
one-third or more of the members in good standing; he shall sign all
orders on the Treasury for such money as shall by the Constitution
and By Laws or by vote of the Local Union to be ordered paid; sign
all checks and drafts on bank and perform such other duties as the
Constitution and By Laws of the Local Union my require. The
President, by virtue of office, shall be a Delegate to all
Conventions.
Section 2:
Vice President's Duties. It shall be the duty of the Vice
President in the absence of the President, to preside and to perform
all duties pertaining to the office of the President and to render
such assistance as may be required of him. In case of a vacancy in
the President's office, he shall preside until the Local Union
elects a President to the vacancy.
The
Vice President will be an alternate to the President to all
conventions and a member of the State Board in the absence of the
President.
Section 3:
Secretary-Treasurer's Duties. It shall be the duty of the
Secretary-Treasurer to keep a correct account of the proceedings of
the Local Union, to call the roll of officers, carry on all
correspondence, and perform such other duties as pertain to this
office and to deliver to the Local Union at the expiration of his
term of office, all property entrusted to his care.
He
shall keep a true and proper account between the Local Union and its
members, collect moneys due to the Local Union and report and post
all financial reports to the
Local Union at each meeting of the general membership, the amount
collected. He shall make a monthly statement of all receipts,
deposits, expenditures and balances, and deliver his books to the
C.P.A., as legally required for authentication. He shall see that
the Local Union is kept in good standing with the International
Association, forwarding all reports to the General Office and
receiving receipts for the same. The Secretary-Treasurer, by virtue
of office, shall be a Delegate to all conventions.
All
moneys received by the Secretary-Treasurer for dues, initiation
fees, or any source whatsoever, must be itemized in detail in a book
provided for that purpose, before it is deposited in the bank
provided for that purpose, before it is deposited in the bank. All
receipts must be entered in the book under the date upon which they
are received. All moneys belonging to the Local Union, must be
deposited in the bank. A normal working day for the
Secretary-Treasurer shall begin at 9:00 A.M. at the Union Hall.
Section 4:
The duties of the State Council Board members will be to attend full
Board meetings of the New Jersey State Council and all contract
meetings and to report back to the membership when called upon.
Section 5:
Any Officer, Executive Board Member, or Committeeperson who shall
accept an appointment, position or transfer, permanently,
temporarily or part-time to another location or position other than
the one they are elected to, shall forfeit their elected position
immediately providing the member is not forced through seniority or
disability.
This will not debar any member or Officer, who has been elected to
attend the International Convention, or which has been established
under the Landum-Griffith Act.
Section 6:
Duties of the Executive Board. It shall be the duty of the
Executive Board to supervise and direct the management of the Local
Union. They shall constitute the Grievance Committee and shall
investigate all disputes and controversies between the members of
the Local Union and the companies, and report their findings to the
regular meetings of the Local Union.
They shall have the authority to submit the results of negotiations
on agreements or other matters of importance to the entire
membership for a referendum vote of the members to be conducted
under conditions and at times and places determined by the Executive
Board. They shall meet the third Tuesday of each month at
seven-thirty [7:30] P.M. Special meetings shall be called by the
President when it is deemed necessary. The majority of the Board
shall constitute a quorum to do business.
Section 7:
The Executive Board shall recommend to the General Membership
whether or not an appeal of Arbitration shall be taken in cases of
dispute with management, where a member of the Local Union feels
that they have been unjustly disciplined by management.
In
case of Arbitration affecting our members, the matter must be
referred to a referendum vote at the General Membership meeting of
this Local Union and must be approved by a two-thirds majority of
the votes cast.
The
expense of any Arbitration case will be divided equally amongst the
active membership of this Local Union.
Section 8:
The officers and Executive Board of the Local Union shall direct and
handle the affairs of the Local Union, subject to the the laws and
rules of the Association, and in conformity with instructions of the
Local Union. They shall be required to attend twelve [12] regular
and twelve [12] executive board per year. Members who fail to
attend all required meetings without being properly excused by the
President or Financial Secretary, (or Vice President in lieu of the
full time officer) shall forfeit their $150 cash advancement for
that month.
Article V
Duties of Member
Section 1:
Members of this Local Union shall be governed as to their duties
according to the International Laws governing the conduct of
members.
Section 2:
No member shall be allowed to injure the interest of a fellow
member, by undermining him in place, wages or in any other willful
act by which the reputation or employment of any member may be
injured. Discipline of a member shall be governed in accordance
with the International Constitution and General Laws, Section 22.
Article VI
Expenses of Delegates
Section 1:
The wages and expenses of the delegates to the International
Conventions shall be the same rate as International Officers as
specified in the International Constitution and General Laws section
6.20.
Section 2:
Wages for Delegates to the New Jersey State Council shall be ten
[10] hours at their top prevailing rate plus $20 for meals and
$20.00 for travel plus all verified receipts for approved expenses.
Article VII
Dues and Initiations
Section 1:
The initiation fee for this local will be set at $250.00 upon
approval of these by-laws and must be paid to the
Secretary-Treasurer at the Union Hall of this Local Union. All new
personnel joining the Union shall pay their initiation fee within
sixty (60) days from the time they are qualified to perform their
duties.
Section 2:
The dues for this Local shall be set at two [2] hours pay per month
at the top operator's rate, to be rounded off to the nearest dollar
and adjusted in January of each year. The sum of $2.00 per month
per member will be used from the union dues for the purpose of
establishing a Defense Fund. The sum of $1.00 per month per member
will be used from the union dues for the purpose of establishing a
Capital Replacement Fund.
Resolved:
That Local 880 shall establish a Defense Fund. The purpose of this
Defense Fund shall be to cover the cost of arbitration, contract
negotiation and unfair labor practices. The maximum amount of the
fund shall be set at twenty thousand dollars [$20,000.00]. The
minimum shall be set at ten thousand dollars [$10,000.00].
Resolved:
That Local 880 shall establish a Capital Replacement Fund. This
fund shall have a maximum of ten thousand dollars [$10,000.00].
Dues for pension memebers will be no less than the International Per
Capita Tax.
When a member leaves or is furloughed and they withdraw from the
Local Union, their membership ceases and they are no longer entitled
to any benefits. A withdrawl card is valid for submission for
twelve [12] months after the date of issuance provided the bearer
pays the Per Capita Tax for each month that the member was out of
the Association and the regular dues of this Local Union from then
on.
Section 3:
All requests for donations shall be governed by the Executive Board
of the Local Union and the General Laws of the International Office.
Article VIII
Grievances
Section 1:
All grievances must take
the proper steps:
1st Step: All
grievances must be taken to the Shop Steward.
2nd Step: To
the Business Agent or President.
3rd Step: To
the Local Executive Board
4th Step: To
the General Membership
5th Step: To
the New Jersey State Council.
6th Step: To
Appeal to the International Office.
Article IX
Mileage of Officers
Section 1:
The President shall be reimbursed at the prevailing rate established
by the IRS for each mile and rounded off to the nearest penny for a
maximum of 1,500 miles per month for Union business. During
contract negotiations, daily mileage established will be additional.
Section 2:
Automobile insurance for President or Business Agent shall be paid
by the Local and must be carried as business coverage.
Section 3:
The Secretary-Treasurer shall be reimbursed at the prevailing rate
established by the IRS for each mile and rounded off to the nearest
penny for a maximum of 300 miles per month.
Article X
By Laws
Section 1:
The By Laws and rules of this Local Union to be legal and effective,
shall be read at two [2] regular meetings of this Local Union,
before adobtion and shall require a two-thirds [2/3] approval vote
of the membership in attendance and voting at the second meeting to
adopt.
The
By Laws or rules so adopted shall be forwarded to the International
President for approval before going into effect.
Section 2:
All matters not specifically covered by these By Laws or the
International Constitution and General Laws, shall be governed by
Roberts Rules of Order.
Article XI
Order of Business
1.
Call to Order by President
2.
Roll Call of Officers.
3.
Reading of minutes of previous meeting.
4.
Communications and Bills
5.
Reports of Officers
6.
Membership appearance for grievance (where applicable)
7.
Reports of Delegates and Standing & Special Committees.
8.
Unfinished Business
9.
New Business and welfare of the Local Union
10.
Nomination and Election of Officers (where applicable)
11.
Installation of Officers
12.
Adjournment
