Earlier this month, NFFE staff met with the NFFE National Executive Council (NEC) to conduct a yearly review of NFFE’s Membership Building and Strategic Plan.
The MBSP was designed to give NFFE Locals, officers and staff the necessary tools and information to lead successful recruitment drives. While Locals often face numerous challenges to recruitment such as pay freezes, furloughs and hostile management, NFFE works each year to account for these difficulties and makes the necessary adjustments to the MBSP to assist Locals in overcoming the many obstacles. The NFFE National Staff and NEC are dedicated to providing the most accurate and effective guidance to Locals to recruit new members – the lifeblood of NFFE.
Following an intensive review session that spanned three days, one of the most significant changes is an update to the methodology used to select organizing targets (geographical targets). The change includes a more collaborative process among Local leaders and NFFE staff to identify top recruitment opportunities around the county. Following identification, an appropriate amount of resources will be allocated to foster the development of a strong culture of organizing at the selected Locals. Ideally, upon the success of this program, NFFE will be able to replicate the process at a wider array of Locals across the country.
As NFFE works to adopt a culture of organizing, the time for collective action is now. Every NFFE-IAM member must commit themselves to growing NFFE membership. Through the dedication of Locals and Councils, NFFE will take its memberships to new heights never before imagined. An updated model of collaboration and re-dedication to recruitment will undoubtedly lead to significant membership gains across the board.
However, none of this can be achieved if not for the hardworking NFFE-IAM members talking with their coworkers each and every day, explaining the benefits of being a member. Success in organizing starts with the individual NFFE-IAM member, and NFFE would be nothing without its dedicated membership.
Leaders and NFFE National Staff discuss creating the original MBSP in 2009