1.1     The name of the unit shall be the Ontario English Catholic Teachers' Association, Hamilton- Wentworth Unit hereinafter known as the unit.

1.2     The objectives of the unit shall be: 

1.2.1     to secure for teachers a leading role in education; 

1.2.2     to represent members in all matters relating to collective bargaining; 

1.2.3     to cooperate with other teacher organizations in improving the standards of education;

1.2.4     those defined in the current Association Handbook.

1.3      The rules contained in the latest edition of Robert’s Rules of Order, where they are not inconsistent with these by-laws or with any special rules of order the Association or the unit may adopt, shall govern the unit.

3.1     The unit executive shall consist of the president, immediate past president, first vice-president, second vice-president, third vice-president, occasional teacher representative, treasurer, recording secretary, and four councillors.

3.2     The president shall be released from full-time teaching responsibilities for as long as they hold office.

3.3     The president shall be paid 1.329 times the A4 maximum rate of the collective agreement in effect during the president’s term of office.

3.4     If the president’s position becomes vacant, the executive shall meet and by resolution appoint the acting president for a specific period of time in order of rank starting with the first vice-president.

3.5    The first vice-president shall be released from full-time teaching responsibilities for as long as they hold office.

3.6     The first vice-president shall be paid 1.10 times the A4 maximum of the collective agreement in effect during the first vice-president’s term of office effective July 1, 2014.

3.7     The treasurer shall receive an honourarium of 0.055 times the A4 maximum rate in the collective agreement in effect during his/her term of office.

3.8    Should there be a vacancy on the unit executive, the executive shall meet and by resolution determine the manner that the vacancy shall be filled and determine the period of time it shall be in effect.

3.9     In the absence of the president, those duties shall be performed by a vice-president in order of rank.

3.10    The duties of the unit executive shall be:

3.10.1     to promote the interests of the Association;

3.10.2     to receive and consider reports of alleged unfairness on the part of the school board and reports of professional difficulties between members of the unit and, if necessary, to work with the Counselling and Member Services Department in the resolution of these matters;

3.10.3     to report in writing to the provincial executive any case of alleged unprofessional conduct by a member of the unit and, at the same time, to provide the member with a copy of the report.  Notwithstanding the above, if the adverse report is about a member respecting suspected sexual abuse of a student, then it is not necessary to provide him or her with a copy of the report or with any information about the report. 

3.10.4     to refer to the general secretary all matters requiring legal advice;

3.10.5     to encourage each school to be represented by an experienced, responsible member;

3.10.6     to conduct a workshop for Association representatives when deemed necessary;

3.10.7     to fill vacancies in the membership of the unit executive which occur between annual elections as deemed necessary by the executive;

3.10.8     to choose the delegates and alternate delegates to the provincial annual general meeting and to other provincial conferences;

3.10.9     to hold general meetings when deemed necessary for the welfare of the unit and when required by the unit by-laws and procedures;

3.10.10     to appoint, twelve weeks prior to the general meeting when elections take place, the chair of the nominating committee and a minimum of two other members all of whom are either members or former members of the unit who do not wish to be a candidate for an office on the next executive;

3.10.11     to supervise the compilation of the unit budget and authorize and approve unit expenses;

3.10.12     to levy, with the approval of the unit membership any necessary additional local fee;

3.10.13     if a grant is required to supplement fee income, to submit to the provincial executive a grant application along with the proposed annual budget;

3.10.14     to borrow funds on behalf of the unit, if such action is authorized by the unit membership and provincial executive;

3.10.15     to run the affairs of the unit between general meetings;

3.10.16     to designate that the unit president be the official spokesperson for all matters to be released by the media.

3.10.17     A quorum of any meeting of the unit executive shall be two-thirds (2/3) of the voting members.

3.11     The unit executive may:

3.11.1     establish a subcommittee of its own members to investigate, discuss, and formulate recommendations on any matter relevant to the performance of its duties or the ongoing business of the unit. When forming such a subcommittee or task force, the executive shall set terms of reference and time lines for completion;

3.11.2     recommend any course of action which it deems to be in the best interests of the unit or its members;

3.11.3     formulate procedures to expedite unit business;

3.11.4     appoint a steering committee, house resolutions committee or speaker for executive or unit meetings, as necessary;

3.11.5     call for reports and minutes from any officer or committee of the unit;

3.11.6     recommend action to be taken by any officer or committee of the unit, subject to bylaw, policy, the executive or the general membership;

3.11.7     call for the minutes of any committee and consider those minutes at a meeting of the executive;

3.11.8     seek the advice and counsel of any member of the provincial secretariat;

3.11.9     meet with the director or trustees of the Board to discuss any matter that is not specifically related to negotiations for a collective agreement that may be in progress at the time;

3.11.10     appoint at its discretion additional non-voting advisors to the executive.

3.12     The unit executive shall be elected at the last unit general meeting of the school year.

3.13     The officers shall take office on July 1st of each year.

3.14     The term of office for the president, the first vice-president, second vice-president, third vice-president, the treasurer and the recording secretary shall be for two (2) years or until each of their successors is elected.

3.15     During even numbered years, elections will be held for the following positions: president, second vice-president and treasurer.

3.16     In the 2022-2023 school year, the positions of third vice-president and recording secretary will be for one (1) year

3.17     During odd numbered years, elections will be held for the following positions: first vice-president, third vice-president and recording secretary.

3.18     The term of office for all other members of the unit executive shall be for one (1) year or until each of their successors is elected.

5.1     The duties of the unit president shall be: 

5.1.1     to represent the unit membership;

5.1.2     to call unit general meetings and executive meetings, plan and prepare their programs and agendas, and chair these meetings; 

5.1.3     to file and keep in order all unit records; 

5.1.4     to keep a file and to make available to the unit executive the minutes of executive and general meetings; 

5.1.5     to provide for the distribution of unit executive minutes; 

5.1.6     to keep on file a record of all members; 

5.1.7     to serve on the Council of Presidents; when unable to perform this duty, the unit president shall ensure a designate is chosen according to procedures established by the unit membership;

5.1.8     to forward the names of unit delegates and alternate delegates to the provincial annual general meeting and other provincial conferences;

5.1.9     to organize the preparation of the delegation to the provincial annual general meeting to discharge its duties and responsibilities;

5.1.10     to be one of the signing officers of the unit; 

5.1.11     to attend to all correspondence; 

5.1.12     to be the communications officer;

5.1.13     to keep the membership informed of unit business through the Association representatives; 

5.1.14     to notify the provincial office of all Unit meetings; 

5.1.15     to forward by the prescribed date to the general secretary the names and addresses of the unit executive immediately following their election; 

5.1.16     to submit amendments to the unit by-laws passed by a unit general meeting to the provincial executive for approval; 

5.1.17     to prepare an updated version of the by-laws whenever necessary; and to provide a copy of the by-laws as most recently amended to all Association representatives at the beginning of each school year and to any other member of the unit whenever requested;

5.1.18     to be an ex-officio member of all committees except the nominations committee;

5.1.19     to carry out additional duties as assigned by a motion of an executive or general meeting.

5.2     The president may delegate another member to carry out one of the duties of the president listed above. 

5.3     The duties of the first vice-president shall be:

5.3.1     to assist the president with his/her duties when requested; 

5.3.2     to call a mandatory meeting of the unit if the president does not do so and notify the unit president and the Association general secretary of this action; 

5.3.3     to perform such other duties as may be specified by a motion of an executive or general meeting; 

5.3.4     to report regularly to the unit executive and general meetings;

5.3.5     to liaise with the provincial secretariat members assigned to work with the unit;

5.3.6     to research future directions in education and negotiations, to be well informed about current legislation, and to design and maintain systems giving access to information about the variety of issues and initiatives relevant to unit members;

5.3.7     to be one of the signing officers of the unit;

5.3.8     to be the chief negotiator for the unit.

5.4     The duties of the second vice-president shall be:

5.4.1     to assist the president with his/her duties when requested;

5.4.2     to be informed on issues, trends and problems in the area of occupational health and safety and the workplace environment;

5.4.3     to advise the executive in matters pertaining to occupational health and safety and workplace environmental issues that require attention;

5.4.4     to provide training on health and safety issues to members and to OECTA Health and Safety Representatives as directed by the executive;

5.4.5     to be certified in health and safety;

5.4.6     to be responsible for arranging transportation in the execution of their duties, subject to unit mileage reimbursement;

5.4.7     to perform such duties as may be specified by a motion of an executive or general meeting.

5.5     The duties of the third vice-president shall be:

5.5.1     to assist the president in his/her duties when requested; 

5.5.2     to perform such other duties as may be specified by a motion of an executive or general meeting.

5.6     The duties of the Occasional Teacher Representative shall be:

5.6.1     to assist the unit executive in its duties;

5.6.2     to advise the unit executive on matters pertaining to occasional teachers.

5.7     The duties of the unit treasurer shall be:

5.7.1     to receive and acknowledge all money from the provincial treasury;

5.7.2     to deposit all funds in the name of the unit in an accredited financial institution; 

5.7.3     to be chairperson of the finance committee;

5.7.4     to be one of the signing officers of the unit; 

5.7.5     to keep an account of all money received and expended; 

5.7.6     to pay all authorized accounts and expenses incurred by the unit; 

5.7.7     to present the unit budget to the membership for approval at the first general meeting;

5.7.8     to give an annual financial report to the membership at the first general meeting of the subsequent year; 

5.7.9     to submit the books and financial statements to an accredited auditor no later than four (4) months after the close of the fiscal year; 

5.7.10     to submit an annual financial report audited by a licensed public accountant to the membership at the first general meeting following such audit and to the provincial office; 

5.7.11     to present a financial statement at all unit executive meetings; 

5.7.12     to provide counsel for the new incoming treasurer;

5.7.13     to perform such other duties as may be specified by a motion of an executive or general meeting.

5.8    The duties of the unit recording secretary shall be: 

5.8.1     to record the minutes of all executive and general meetings;

5.8.2     to forward the minutes to the unit president prior to the next meeting;

5.8.3     to perform such other duties as may be specified by a motion of an executive or general meeting.

5.9     The duties of the unit councillors shall be:

5.9.1     to assist the unit executive in its duties;

5.9.2     to perform such other duties as maybe specified by a motion of an executive or general meeting. 

5.10     A member of the unit executive who fails to perform the duties inherent to his/her office may be removed from office by a two-thirds (2/3) vote of the unit executive, provided at least ten (10) days notice in writing of such impending action and meeting date shall be given to him/her, such a member, if removed, may appeal to the unit membership at its next general meeting.

7.1     The unit shall hold a minimum of four (4) unit general meetings per year. 

7.1.1     The first shall be in the first term, with its main purpose being to discuss and approve the unit budget; the auditor's report shall also be presented, if available.

7.1.2     The second shall be in November or December, with its main purpose being to consider resolutions to be sent to the provincial Annual General Meeting (AGM).

7.1.3     The third shall be before the AGM, with its main purpose being discussion of AGM resolutions.

7.1.4     The fourth shall be held in May or June, with its main purpose being the electing of a new unit executive.

7.2     Other general meetings shall be called at the discretion of the unit president or unit executive. 

7.3     Any member of the unit present at the meeting shall be entitled to vote. 

7.4     General membership meetings may receive reports from officers or committees of the unit, question those reports, and debate motions to conduct business of the unit. 

7.5     Notice of meeting and the major agenda items shall be sent to the membership prior to the meeting date except in the case of an emergency meeting.

7.6     A quorum at any general meeting shall be 50% plus one (1) of the membership present at the beginning of the meeting.

9.1     Composition of the Bargaining Team

The bargaining team shall consist of: 

9.1.1     the first vice-president, president, occasional teacher representative and six members appointed by the executive, including at least one (1) additional occasional teacher. 

9.1.2     A secretary shall be appointed from within the bargaining team to take minutes of all meetings.

9.1.3     Any member of the bargaining team may be removed from the committee for irregular attendance at the discretion of the unit executive.

9.1.4     A quorum shall be two-thirds (2/3) of the bargaining team members;

9.1.5     All members of the bargaining team can be present when the team meets the board.

9.1.6     The term of office for the bargaining team shall be until the ratification of the collective agreement.

9.1.7     If the first vice-president is elected or appointed bargaining unit president while negotiations are still in progress, the incoming president shall continue to act as chief negotiator until the new collective agreement is ratified.

9.1.8     If a different first vice-president is elected while negotiations are still in progress, the president shall act as chief negotiator until the new collective agreement is ratified.

9.1.9     If a different president is elected while the outgoing president is acting as chief negotiator, the bargaining team shall propose to the executive the name of a replacement chief negotiator from among the current members of the committee; the executive shall appoint a replacement and their choice shall be subject to ratification at the next general meeting. 

9.2     Duties of the Local Collective Bargaining Committee (Bargaining Team)

The bargaining team shall:

9.2.1     be responsible for the negotiating of the collective agreement;

9.2.2     research all information pertinent to conditions of service and be familiar with all legislation pertinent to teacher employment;

9.2.3     survey the membership to find out the needs and make available to individual members, upon request, a summary of the results of the survey/ group submissions;

9.2.4     draft proposals and provide rationale and costs;

9.2.5     recommend policy and procedure on conditions of service; seek advice, when necessary from the provincial office; keep the provincial office informed.

9.3     Ratification Procedure

9.3.1    Notice of a ratification meeting shall be given to the members at least five (5) days prior to the meeting, except that during a strike/lockout at least twenty-four (24) hours notice shall be given to members.

9.3.2     Ratification shall be held at a ratification meeting by secret ballot. The unit president shall call this meeting. This meeting may be called upon the recommendation of the bargaining team. 

9.3.3     Ballots shall be cast by the individual member voting.

9.3.4     No proxy voting shall be permitted.

9.3.5     The eligible voter list shall be certified by the bargaining unit.

9.3.6     There shall be no less than five (5) polling stations.

9.3.7     Association Representatives or designates appointed by the executive shall act as tellers.

9.3.8     An advanced poll(s) shall be set up for members who are not able to attend the ratification meeting.

9.4     Communications During Negotiations:

9.4.1     All communications from the bargaining team shall be in writing.

9,.4.2     No information shall be given to the members of the news media or to any member of the public, without prior approval of the president.

9.4.3     It shall be a serious breach of confidentiality for any committee member to release information without prior approval of the first vice-president and the president.