Introduction to Workplace Representation
Frameworks and tactics to build power and unity in our workplaces while enforcing our contracts and the law. With special guest Steve Williamson!
Register online here or call us at 206-934-6671.
Join us for a four-week introduction to workplace representation, a class for new and veteran shop stewards and other newly active union members. We will cover the basic laws, principles and skills of contract enforcement, with an emphasis on the organizing skills we need to build unity and power at work. Led by Labor Center staffers Adair Dammann and James Oliveros, we are thrilled to add the insight and experience of veteran labor leader Steve Williamson, former King County Labor Council (now MLK Labor) Executive Secretary-Treasurer (2000-2006). We look forward to the opportunity to build cross-union relationships through a discussion of organizing and representing union members at work.
Classes will take place each Tuesday in November except Thanksgiving Week, from 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM. All classes will be offered hybrid, with students participating both live via Zoom. Each class is part of a series; participants completing all four sessions will receive a certificate from the WA Labor Center.
Join us online, or in-person at the Georgetown Apprenticeship and Education Center, 6474 Corson Ave S in Seattle. Our Labor Center has free parking and is available by Metro bus. Interpretation, childcare support and a light dinner (soup, salad and bread) will be provided with advance registration. We look forward to reconnecting! We encourage those attending in person to come by early, and chat while we break bread before class.
Workshop Details: Learn about the rights and resources of stewards and union members, how to aid your coworkers in solving workplace problems. We’ll go into details on Weingarten rights and Loudermill hearings, how to conduct workplace investigations and more. At our final session we’ll apply these skills to organizing for health and safety in our workplaces.
| Class Title | Class Date | Description |
| Introduction to Stewardship: Roles and Resources | November 1 | What rights do union members and stewards have under the law? What tools do we have to solve workplace problems? |
| Weingarten Rights and Loudermill Hearings | November 8 | Weingarten Rights are the most basic building block of worksite representation. Learn how to use this right to build power in your workplace. |
| Conducting Investigations | November 15 | Learn how to use the “Six W’s”, and the legal standard of “Just Cause” along with your union’s intake form to guide your investigation. |
| No Class | November 24 | |
| Applied Stewardship: Organizing for Health & Safety | November 29 | Practice what we’ve learned the past three weeks as it applies to supporting safe and healthy workplaces for our coworkers. |
Cost and Accessibility: The full series costs $40 per person and participants are encouraged to ask their union to pay the cost. No one turned away for lack of funds. Childcare support and language interpretation available with advance registration. Please bring a copy of your union contract to each session. Participants will receive a certificate of completion at the final session.
Registration: Space is limited and a waitlist will form once capacity has been reached. Register online today or call 206-934-6671.