The NFFE National Organizing Steering Committee is proud to announce the release of the 2010-2011 Organizing Strategic Plan, a plan that we believe will take this unions organizing success to the next level. Building on the accomplishments of last year’s plan, the 2010-2011 edition makes key changes in the areas of incentives and organizing staff that will make recruiting easier than ever.
One of the most difficult obstacles many Locals face is a lack of time and resources to dedicate to organizing. To make recruiting more financially feasible, NFFE National will now reimburse Locals $100 for each new member recruited. Simply send in a completed and signed 1187 form, and your Local will be reimbursed for your organizing expenses at the end of the month. With the extra cash on hand, it will be easier to host events for current and potential members, purchase union apparel such as t-shirts or buttons, or perhaps even cover lost wages for a member taking the day off to organize. This will also allow Locals to shore up their finances for representational work such as arbitrations and negotiations.
Another substantial improvement to the plan is a boost in full time organizing staff. Instead of having just one National Organizing Director, NFFE now employs two National Organizing Coordinators, each of whom are responsible for coordinating organizing activities with half of NFFEs nearly 200 Locals. Cassie Kerner will be the contact for Locals located to the West of the Mississippi, and Brittany Paull for those to the East, including Texas, Utah and Idaho. In addition, National Business Representatives John Griffin and Roosevelt Littlejohn will now have primarily organizing duties, with Griffin focusing on federal units and Littlejohn on service contract units.
“Our focus in this plan is to develop and sustain a culture of organizing success within NFFE,” said NFFE National President William R. Dougan. “Though we have made great strides in recent years, we will have to do much more to overcome the wave of federal retirements sure to come in the next five years. With this plan, we are doubling down on our commitment to organizing success by taking an ‘all hands on deck’ approach to sustaining and growing our great union.”
The idea here is to make sure that Locals are getting the help they need, and the recognition they deserve for a recruiting job well done. In the coming week, your Local will receive a packet including a paper copy of the plan, a brief flyer highlighting the changes to the plan, and a letter from your National Organizing coordinators explaining what the next steps will be. If you have any questions about the 2010-2011 Organizing Strategic Plan, you can reach Cassie Kerner at ckerner@nffe.org, or Brittany Paull at bpaull@nffe.org. To learn more about the plan, log in and visit the completely remodeled Organizing Central page.