Section 1 This Local shall be known as Vancouver Local 20008 of the Government
Services Union (GSU), Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC).
Section 2 The jurisdiction of this Local shall be as determined from time to time by the National Council of the GSU, PSAC.
By-law 2 Objectives
Section 1 This Local shall protect, maintain and advance the interests of the members
coming under its jurisdiction.
Section 2 This Local shall subscribe unconditionally to and accept as its governing
documents, the Constitution of the PSAC, the By-Laws of the GSU,
and these By-Laws.
By-law 3 Authority and Responsibilities
Section 1 The Local shall have the authority to deal with management representatives in
their locality on matters affecting the interests of the membership. The Local
shall also have the authority to initiate action on matters having broader effect
than the interests of the Local membership, by submission in writing to the
National Council or by resolution to the Triennial National Convention of the
Union or by submission in writing to the Area Council of the PSAC, whichever
is appropriate.
Section 2 The Local may designate one of its elected officers as a full-time officer of the
Local and may employ a person or persons to assist in carrying out the work of
the Local. Any financial undertaking shall be the sole and exclusive
responsibility of the Local.
Section 3 The Local may acquire such space and facilities as may be necessary for the
conduct of the affairs of the Local. Any financial undertaking shall be the sole
and exclusive responsibility of the Local.
Section 4 The Executive shall have the authority to establish any committee it deems
necessary for the conduct of Local business.
Section 5 The Local may adopt regulations for the conduct of the affairs of the Local. Such
regulations shall not in any way conflict with the provisions of the Constitution of
the PSAC or of the GSU By-laws.
By-law 4 Membership
Section 1 Regular
The Local shall be composed of all members of the GSU in its jurisdiction, as
determined from time to time by the National Council.
Section 2 Associate
The Local may retain as associate members former members of the Local whose
employment has been terminated.
Associate members shall not be eligible to hold elected office in the Union, shall
have voice but no vote in meetings of the Local, but may be accorded such other
privileges of membership for such length of time as may be provided by the
Local.
Section 3 Honourary
Section 4 Life
Section 5 Upon applying for membership, each member is deemed to have agreed to abide
by and to be bound by the provisions of the Constitution of the PSAC, the
By-laws of the GSU, and these Local By-laws.
By-law 5 Membership dues
Section 1 Each member of this Local shall pay such dues as set by the Convention of the
PSAC, by the Convention of the GSU and by this Local.
Section 2 The amount of Local membership dues for Regular Members shall be established
by a two thirds (b) majority vote of the members present at the Annual General
Meeting or a meeting called for the purpose of establishing dues.
Section 3 Associate, Life and Honorary Members of this Local shall be exempt from
paying dues.
By-law 6 Executive Committee
Section 1 The Executive Committee of this Local shall consist of a President, three (3)
Vice-Presidents, a Secretary, a Treasurer and Area Council Delegate(s).
Section 2 The Immediate Past President shall be a member of the Executive Committee, for
a period of one year after the election of his/her successor, with voice, but no vote
as long as they remain a member in good-standing of the Local.
Section 3 The members of the Executive Committee, (except the Immediate
Past-President,) shall be nominated and elected at the Annual General Meeting
of the Local, and shall hold office until the date of the next Annual General
Meeting.
Section 4 The Executive Committee shall conduct the business of the Local between
general meetings.
Section 5 The Local Executive, in the absence of financial guidelines under the budget, has
the authority to expend up to two hundred dollars ($200) for any one article
without prior approval at a Special General Meeting or the Annual General
Meeting, subject to filing a full report at the next general meeting. Total
expenditures under this section are not to exceed ten percent (10%) of the
current budget.
Section 6 Should an elected office become vacant for any reason, it shall be filled by
an appointment by the Executive Committee until a replacement can be
elected by the membership, in accordance with the By-law governing the
election of Officers.
By-law 7 Duties of Officers
Section 1 The President shall:
a) convene and preside at all special and regular meetings of the Executive
Committee and the Local;
b) submit a written Activity Report to the Annual General Meeting of the Local
covering the period between Annual General Meetings;
c) perform other duties as may be assigned by the Executive Committee
d) appoint a Vice-President to oversee the Steward Network and be responsible
for ensuring that all grievances and appeals are adequately represented.
Section 2 The Vice-Presidents shall:
a) assist the President in his or her duties and replace the President when requested
to do so, or in the case of absence, incapacity, resignation, or death;
b) attend all meetings of the Executive Committee and of the Local;
c) perform other duties as may be assigned by the Executive Committee.
Section 3 The Secretary shall:
a) attend all meetings of the Local and Executive Committee;
b) keep an accurate account of the proceedings of each meeting and distribute
the minutes in a timely manner to the appropriate members and the
GSU National Office;
c) be responsible for maintaining proper files of documents and all correspondence;
d) perform such other duties as pertain to the office or as are assigned by the
Executive Committee.
Section 4 The Treasurer shall:
a) be responsible for keeping a true account of the financial records of the Local;
b) shall submit a financial statement to all regular and Executive meetings of the
Local and shall submit an audited annual financial statement to the National
President of GSU within thirty (30) days following the Local's Annual General
Meeting.
c) collect all moneys payable to the Local and deposit such funds in a financial
institution approved by the Executive Committee in the name of the Local;
d) be responsible for the disbursement of funds payable by the Local in settlement
of its just debts;
g) attend all meetings of the Executive Committee and of the Local;
h) perform other such duties as pertain to the Office or as are assigned by the
Executive Committee;
i) ensure that an up-to-date listing of all members is kept.
Section 5 The Area Council Delegate(s) shall:
a) attend all meetings of the Area Council
b) report to the Executive Committee
Section 6 General
Any officer of the Local, on vacating an office, shall deliver all documents,
moneys or other property of the Local to his or her successor or to the President.
By-law 8 Shop Stewards
Section 1 The Executive Committee shall attempt to arrange for the election or where necessary, the appointment of Shop Stewards.
Section 2 Upon his/her election or appointment, the steward must have, agree to complete,
or upgrade to the latest PSAC sponsored Building Union Solidarity Training Course, as soon as possible.
By-law 9 Meetings
Section 1 Executive Committee Meetings
a) The Executive Committee shall endeavor to hold regular monthly meetings
for the proper conduct of the Local's affairs.
b) Executive Committee meetings will be open to the general membership. Notices
of these meetings will be placed on bulletin boards and/or by e-mail advising the membership of the time and location of the meetings.
c) A quorum for Executive Committee meetings shall be a simple majority of
elected officers.
Section 2 Membership Meetings
a) The governing body of the Local shall be the Annual General Meeting which
shall be held in October of each year.
b) Regular Membership Meetings may be held as determined by the Local Executive
or by decision of the membership at the Annual General Meeting.
c) The agenda for the Annual General Meeting shall be presented by the Executive
Committee and shall include but not be limited to the following:
1) Call to Order by the Chairperson
2) Roll Call of Officers
3) Minutes of Previous Annual General Meeting
4) Report of President
5) Report of Treasurer
6) Committee Reports
7) Amendments to By-Laws, if any
8) Presentation & Approval of Budget
9) Nomination and Election of Officers
10) Nomination and Election of Area Council Delegate(s)
11) Nomination and Election of Auditors
12) Other Business
13) Adjournment
d) A quorum for a General Meeting shall be those members in attendance.
e) A Special Membership Meeting shall be called at the request of a majority
of the Local Executive or at the written request of 25% of the membership
or 30 members (whichever is less.) The Local Executive shall decide the time
and place, but, it shall be held within a period of thirty (30) calendar days of the
request. A special meeting shall deal only with the matters for which it was called
unless the members present agree by a two-thirds majority to consider other
matters of an urgent or necessary nature.
Section 3 Rules of Order
All Local meetings shall be governed by PSAC Rules of Order, as published by
the PSAC.
By-law 10 Election of Officers
Section 1 Election of officers shall take place at the Annual General Meeting and will
follow the procedure outlined in the PSAC Rules of Order.
Section 2 The election of the President, Vice-President(s), Secretary, Treasurer and
Officer(s) shall proceed in that order.
Section 3 The oath of office shall be administered to all officers immediately before
taking office.
Section 4 All officers shall take office at the end of the meeting at which they are elected.
By-law 11 Finances
Section 1 The fiscal year of the Local shall be November 1 to October 31.
Section 2 Three members of the Local Executive shall be designated as signing officers,
two of whom shall sign all cheques. Unless extraordinary circumstances arise,
the Treasurer will be one of the signees.
Section 3 Auditors shall be nominated and elected at the Annual General meeting.
Auditors shall not hold Executive Office in the Local.
Section 4 The Local shall not enter into any financial contractual understanding or
agreement without prior approval of the National Council of the Union.
However, any such undertaking shall be the sole and exclusive responsibility
of the Local.
Section 5 A budget must be approved at the Annual General Meeting.
Section 6 Funds of the Local shall be held in a chartered bank or savings institution
approved by the executive, in the name of the Local
Section 7 A Petty Cash Fund in the amount of $25.00 shall be held by the Treasurer.
Disbursements of funds shall be supported by receipts.
By-law 12 Discipline
Section 1 Should the Local fail to carry out the responsibilities required by the By-laws, the provisions of the By-laws of the GSU shall be applied.
Section 2 Any member or group of members found guilty of engaging in acts detrimental
to the Local as detailed in the By-laws of the GSU, shall be subject to the
disciplinary actions detailed therein. Actions taken under this By-law shall
follow the procedures set out in the appropriate PSAC Regulation.
By-law 13 By-laws and Amendments
Section 1 Any proposed changes to these By-laws shall be submitted in writing to the
Secretary at least thirty (30) days prior to the date set for a General Meeting.
Proposed amendments must be detailed in the Notice of Meeting.
Section 2 Amendments to these By-laws shall require a two-thirds (b) majority vote of the
members attending the meeting.
Section 3 Any amendment shall become operative immediately upon adoption, unless
otherwise specified, and shall be circulated to the membership of the Local,
with a copy to the National President, GSU. These By-laws and any amendments
thereto shall be subject to approval by the National Council of the GSU.
By-law 14 Charter
The members of this Local shall be bound by these By-laws and being so bound
shall be entitled to receive the Charter of the GSU.
By-law 15 General
Section 1 Representation at National Conventions
All delegates and alternates which the Local is entitled to send to National
Conventions shall be elected at a General Meeting of the Local.
Section 2 Representation to Area Council
Delegates to the Area Council shall be elected at the Annual General Meeting of
the Local.
By-law 16 Participation
Section 1 Only members of the Local may participate at meetings of the Local or its subordinate bodies, except, that non-members may participate in an advisory capacity if specifically requested to do so by the chairperson or person in charge of the meeting.
Section 2 The services provided by the local shall be made available in accordance with GSU policies to all members of this Local.
REGULATIONS and POLICIES
Regulation One - Local Financial Accounting
Section 1 - BUDGETS
a) The Local must submit an annual budget to the Annual General Meeting.
b) The Local budget should include, but is not limited to:
1) meeting expenses
2) provision for training (shop stewards, local officers etc.)
3) delegates and/or observers to Conventions (GSU/PSAC/BC FED/CLC)
4) communication expenses (postage, notices, bulletins etc.)
5) honoraria
6) executive expenses
7) Area Council per capita
c) Local funds should not be used for social and/or recreational activities unless they have direct Local membership application.
d) The budget, once approved, becomes the official guidelines for the expenditure of Local funds.
e) Notwithstanding that authority to expend funds is given with authority to approval of the budget, all actual expenditures must be reported to the Local at its general meeting and supported by acceptable accounting documents.
Section 2 - EXPENSES
a) All expenses of the Local must be supported by receipts and accurate records kept for audit purposes.
B) Each member who completes any PSAC course shall receive from the Local, an
amount equal to the PSAC per diem expense.