MoveUP Communications: Learning About Members, Teaching About the Union

November 16, 2012

MoveUP Communications Director Sage Aaron started the report by going through the latest round of member polling, done in October. The union has been doing polling since 2005 and the Table Officers and Executive Board use the results as a benchmark to find out what the members think of their employers, and of their union.

Some of the findings of the polling were not surprising – members who said they were dissatisfied with their job cited burnout and heavy workload as their main concerns, and wage increases, job security and medical benefits remain the top bargaining priories, as they have for many years.

Three out of four members were either very or somewhat satisfied with their union. When asked why, the three top reasons for satisfaction were that the union tries hard for its members, provides good representation or generally does a good job. Dissatisfied members want to see better representation and more from the union for its members, better contracts through better negotiations.

When asked if they would consider becoming a job steward, ten per cent of members said yes, and members under 35 years of age were most likely to volunteer.

On the question of politics, 63 per cent of members said unions must get involved to counterbalance the money large corporations give right-wing parties.

Following the polling presentation, Sage unveiled three member orientation videos, aimed at explaining the role of the job steward, MoveUP’s history and the roles of unions in society, and MoveUP’s structure and democracy. The new videos are targeted at new and un-engaged members and play around with the preconceptions and misconceptions about unions.

The humours and creative videos were well received by the delegates and will provide stewards with an engaging and entertaining way of teaching members about their union.

The videos will soon up on the website at moveuptogether.ca/member-services.moveuptogether.ca/member-services