Draft Principles For A Broad Open Trade Union Grassroots Network

Basic Aims & Objectives; Communication; Decision-Making.

Some readers will be aware that for some time I have been advocating the construction of a cross-union grass roots network. A meeting has been convened tomorrow to discuss such a project. Unfortunately for me (and for any other with similar interests) a conference to discuss Republicanism & Socialism has been scheduled for some time now to take place on the same day. I publish these draft principles for discussion not to promote bureaucracy but with the intention that any such network formed remains a broad and militant organisation, the property of its members and not of one political party or another nor as a sectarian battleground.

Draft Grass-Roots Union Network Basic Principles

Basic Aims & Objectives
1. The overall aim of the Network is to offer solidarity to the struggles of the workers in Ireland and to assist in making them more effective. The Network will seek to do this by:
• Publicising industrial actions and related demonstrations through Network bulletins
• Sending out requests for assistance and solidarity support through the Network as appropriate
• Taking any other promotional or coordinating actions as decided by the Network
2. The GRTUN is anti-sectarian with regard to religion and is anti-racist, anti-homophobic and anti-sexist.
3. GRTUN has come into existence as a result of our experiences of many of the TU leadership having failed to lead effective resistance against the attacks of Capital and having undermined our attempts to provide such leadership.
4. Having experienced its limiting and undermining effects, this Network stands in opposition to “social partnership” and also to the ideology underpinning it and to any measures that seek to bind the unions into no-strike agreements for any period of time.
5. GRTUN is a broad-based organisation in support of workers’ defence and resistance and considers that breadth one of its strengths. For that reason the Network
• Considers it would be harmful for the Network to fall under the control of any political organisation
• Or to permit attacks of a personal nature on Network members during its proceedings or in Network publications
• Or attacks on any political party with members in the Network and not represented in the Dáil

Communication
1. Content of bulletins shall be the decision of the General Meeting or as otherwise delegated by them.
2. The Administration of the GRTUN will keep a list of the electronic addresses of all members.
3. All members shall receive a copy of each issue of the bulletin and nobody shall be excluded from the above list except by two-thirds voting majority.

Decision-making
1. Decisions shall be made during general meetings or as delegated by majority for periods during general meetings.
2. General meetings shall be called by the GRTUN elected administration committee and
3. may also be called by one-third of the membership or by 50 members, whichever is the least
4. The ruling of the Chairperson at a meeting shall be final unless a vote of “No Confidence” in the Chair’s ruling should be proposed.
5. It shall be sufficient for one member to propose a vote of “No Confidence”; if backed by a second, then the proposer should be allowed to explain and the Chair to speak against, after which the meeting should proceed to vote on a show of hands. A simple majority will decide the issue.
6. If the challenge should be successful then the Chairperson shall vacate the Chair and a replacement shall be selected for the remainder of the meeting. The issue under discussion shall then be reopened.