March 28, 2014 meeting minutes (Los Angeles)

 Minutes: UALE Annual Membership Meeting;
March 28, 2014 Los Angeles, CA

Upcoming Key dates

• Annual Directors’ meeting: Nov 13, 2014
• Executive Board Meeting : Nov 14-15, 2014
• Next annual Conference: March 25—28, 2015
  • Orlando FL at Doubletree by Universal Studios
    

Secretary’s Report

• Minutes reviewed from 2013 conference(distributed via Listserve); passed
• Reminder that all membership and Eboard minutes are available for review on the UALE website
  

President’s Report

Berger Marks Foundation

• Berger Marks and UALE partnership to support women’s summer schools
• Cheryl Coney hired as project coordinator for the women’s summer schools
• Berger Marks is providing $49,000 in funding support plus $6,000 for each summer school

UALE Research grants:

• More applications this year
• Two awards:
  • FIU action research on taxi drivers
  • Denise Wagner on African American Steelworkers in Chicago.
• Next grant opportunity published in Sept and October when RFPs go out.
• Winners should routinely plan to present at next year’s conference

UALE Strategic Plan

• Convened with facilitator at November Executive Board meeting
• New Executive Board will follow up on results

Membership

• Institutional membership has increased with broader inclusiveness of Canadians and other countries and working groups.
• All UALE members should attempt to build on membership
  

Treasurer’s Report

2013 Budget (distributed)

• Last year’s conference was expensive but additional fund raising helped defer costs
• Small budget deficit of $3000

2014/Proposed 2015 Budget (distributed)

Minutes amended 6/10/14 to reflect proper budget years, K.Conlan

• Numbers allotted to categories similar to 2014
• Conference will likely be in the black
• $190,000 as of March 21 in the bank
  • Numbers will change with deposits from this year’s conference
• LSJ and New Labor Forum subscriptions are pass through items

New Treasurer needs to work on improving the web site registration process for conference

Bank fraud notice resulted in closing account in FL and setting up new account at Amalgamated Bank in DC

Membership trends (download below)

• Increasing
• Institutional memberships important to help offset support for community groups
• Current individual membership numbers don’t reflect additions picked up at conference

Treasurer’s report is passed

Download Budget and Membership trends here:  documentTreasurers Report (208 KB) document

Elections:

Run by Emily Twarog assisted by elections committee membership

Process:

• Candidate statements per position circulated for those nominated in advance
• Incumbents noted*; errata that Darryl! Moch is an incumbent At Large Member
• For each position, nominations will be accepted from the floor
• Candidates will give a brief statement as to why he/she is running
• Regional Rep positions are handled among regional membership
  • Explained most recent EBoard reconfiguration of states within the regions
  • AFL-CIO Southern and Western Regional states are combined as the UALE Western Region
  • WV, MD and DC are moved from the UALE Northeaster Region to the Southern Region

President: Cheryl Teare elected by acclimation

Vice President, Universities: Tony Michael elected by acclimation

Vice President, Unions: Al Davidoff elected by acclimation

Treasurer: Lynda DeLoach elected by acclimation

Secretary: Kitty Conlan elected by acclimation

University Representative: Sarah Laslett elected by acclimation

Union Representative: Guillermo Perez elected by acclimation

Community Representative: Jennette Huezo elected by acclimation

Northeastern Region Representative: KC Wagner elected by acclimation

Midwest Region Representative: Paul Iverson elected by acclimation

Western Regional Representative: Bill Shields elected (2 candidates)

Southern Region Representative: Keturah Raabe elected (3 candidates)

At Large Positions: Darryl! Moch, Amanda Pacheco and Pierre Cote elected (6 candidates)

LSJ report:

• Editorial Board will be meeting later
• Special issues planned around RTW coming up
• Solicitation for articles particularly among new members
  

Working Group Reports

Immigration and Globalization Working group

• Appreciate content of the conference centered on the global workplace
  

Worker Writers Working Group

• Copy-write and debates with publishers centered around the impact of technology and dissemination of articles/journals etc.
  

CLC State Fed Working Group

• Working on a research report on how labor education can support CLCs
• Will survey the members of the state fed and clcs
• 6 labor education centers involved,
• Need some people to help interview labor leaders in their area
  

Popular Education Working Group will meet later

K-14 Working Group

• No meeting this year
• Appreciate having public education and labor education imbedded within the conference program

Online Working Group will be meeting online

Caucus Reports

Women’s Caucus

• 2013 women’s summer schools attended by more than 500 women
• Thanks the school hosts University of Arkansas, Cornell and University of WA/Seattle
• Berger Marks support for this year’s programs
• “Afterschool “program being proposed online to supplement the summer school momentum
• 2014 hosts: Queens College, Victoria BC; University of IL, and Highlander School in TN
• Need to get support for hosting schools throughout, including those programs run by male members

 
People of Color Caucus will meet after the membership meeting

New Business

• 2016 conference, looking for Washington DC site
• 2017 conference looking for a host city in the MW
  

Committee volunteers

Communications Committee

• Newly established to promote UALE internally and externally
• Focus on social media
• Need a new website monitor, Ewing will help
• Some funding to help support, job description circulating

Members

Don Taylor (chair)

Debra Kidney

Elise Bryant

Tess Ewing

Helena Worthen

Joe Varga

Conference planning (University VP Oversees)

Daniel Gilbert

Judith Bernier

Helen Moss

Guy Bosworth

Ali Bustamante

Gene Carroll

Constitution and Governance Committee (new)

Guillermo Perez

Lori Province

Pierre Cote

Kitty Conlan

Emily Twarog

Membership

Joe Berry

Paris Walker

Additional volunteers will be solicited from the UALE Listserve

Good and Welfare

• Status of the union education in jeopardy
• Northern CA and Western Region cohosted regional meeting that provides an alternative means of members to convene and can be used to promote annual conference attendance.  
• Portland is hosting LERA conference May 29-June 1
• Workers Independent News labor news radio broadcast deemed “not news” by FCC. May seek support from the Eboard for assistance to refute.
• New board should consider as the worker demographics change, outreach to groups of workers “left out” of traditional employment arrangements. (Independent contractors, adjuncts, etc.) United Workers Congress formed to address their needs.
• UCLA Labor Center celebrating 50th anniversary this year; seeking ad support
• Body recognizes outgoing President Elissa McBride for extraordinary job
• Incoming President Cheryl Teare acknowledges large transition in board composition; new board will convene in the am.

Meeting Adjourne

April 19, 2013 meeting minutes (Toronto)

DRAFT MINUTES

UALE Membership Meeting

Toronto 4/19/13

Secretary’s report

• Review of last year’s membership minutes
• Reference to the UALE website to retrieve all membership minutes
• Call out for people to run for UALE board in 2014

o Position descriptions will be posted to the website

Treasurer’s report

• 2012 full budget
• 2013-14 proposed budget
• Membership is up at membership and institutional levels

o 380 members, 50 Canadians

• Conference will likely break even
• Overall healthy financial situation

Many of the community groups were not able to come to conference due to the Immigration reform activity. G. Perez notes we need to include Canadian groups among community groups to fund.

Motion made and seconded to accept 2012 budget

President’s report

• Town hall meeting outcome from postings

o We share the same hopes

o Challenges to the organization as to the mission of UALE in the future. Mostly centered on broadening the scope of the organizations especially multinational

o Will post full report on the website

• Research grants: one winner presented at the conference. Attendees should spread the word to take advantage. Bob Bussell will be posting criteria soon on the UALE website
• Next year’s conference in LA March 26-29

o Will be able to showcase and highlight immigrant and worker center labor movements

o Lots of energy and culture

o 50 anniversary of the UCLA labor center

o Tony Michael will be notifying people about proposals in late August

o Consider having more information electronic vs hard copy conference materials.

• Staffing of Special Committees

o Nominations/election committee

• Elise Bryant
• Verlene Jones Davis
• Emily Twarog
• Pat Hammell
• Steve Schnapp

o Conference Committee

• Sue Carter
• Ketura Raabe
• Debra Kidney
• Verlene Jones Davis
• Kent Wong
• Barb Thomas
• Casey Wagner
• Susan Winning
• Judy Ancel
• Helen Moss
• Deena Ladd

o Membership committee

• Ashley Dwire
• Erica Wills
• Ruth Needleman
• Adriane Paavo
• Rae Sovereign
• Gayle Hamilton
• Clayton Sinyai
• Eric Foreman
• Yolanda Medina Dejesus
• Mohammad Ali Aumeer
• 2015 Conference

o South (limited union hotels) and Midwest are target location cities

o Good to have a union/program partner

o Straw poll of likely options: Washington DC (6) Chicago (20) Puerto Rico (43) Trinidad (5)

• Membership recruitment: push for membership among colleagues

Caucus Reports

People of Color Caucus

• Submitted a proposal re the 2014 conference theme and other items related to greater inclusion of people of color within UALE and labor education (see attached)

o Caucus would take charge of picking the proposed scholarships pick the winners

o Membership discussion about ensuring that the proposals are included within the conference yet allow the flexibility of developing the conference:

• note conference committee inclusive of People of Color member.

o Amended resolution; passed

   documentPeople of Color Caucus Resolution (15 KB)

Women’s Caucus

• 483 went through the UALE summer schools
• Please get more active in terms of recruitment and participating as instructors
• Ithaca, Little Rock and Seattle are upcoming locations
• Share women’s leadership curricula

Labor Studies Journal report

• 120 clicks, 6000 subscriptions, SAGE promotes within universities,
• Need more citations to get an impact factor (include in manuscripts so organization becomes more visible.)

CLC working group

• is sending out an electronic survey re collaboration between labor educators with central labor bodies

Immigration and Globalization working group

• Try to integrate issues of immigration and globalization more within other presentations instead of in one section
• Helen Moss and Mary Bellman co-chairs for next two years
• Immigration: Citizenship process; guidelines and ed materials including some union ed materials

o Discussion of immigration reform on the listserve

• Globalization priorities: Transpacific Partnership, video on the state of labor rights in Columbia

K-14 Education working group

• Commitment to do two sessions next year; examples from Canada and California
• Resolution submitted: Community College of San Francisco under attack

o UALE will go on record defending the college, meet with Bill Shields to compose a letter and circulate for more signatures

o Resolution passed

Labor Filmmakers

• Will meet later

Online Education working group

• Difference in academia vs labor ed instructors for unions using online programs
• Survey done (follow up with Helena Worthen re report details)
• Need to explore the differences in the two groups: working conditions culture and purpose

Popular Ed Working Group

• Maintain pop ed space within the conference, including a track
• Do a write up on importance of popular ed within the labor movement
• Develop more material for the conference
• Deep the practice of labor ed beyond “participation and sticky notes” to incorporate more intentional political education focus

Worker Writers

• Needs more volunteers
• Pitch for more members to write their stories
• Need to develop writer workshops
• Guide on how to pitch your work to unions

Community based Educators

• Create a working group
• Themes: youth, tap into existing youth groups in the US and Canada, UALE needs to expand its topics. Will post to the website

New working group on Leadership Development in formation

• Elaine Bernard
• Susan Nosov
• France Laurendeau

New Business

• Dock workers in Hong Kong on strike

o Request for UALE to support the strike

o Form for donations or drop off money on the labor notes table

• G. Perez: proposes to expand budget to increase community based funding by $3000 for Canadian groups in 2014 budget for the purpose to attend 2014 conference for. Pull the correct board people into the process of resolving this process issue. Regional reps, Martin, Perez and Schnapp. Passed
• Commend E-board and planners of the conference

Meeting Adjourned at 5:45 pm