General Membership Meetings (GMMs) are the highest decision-making body of the union. That is because you, as a member, are the real decision-maker of this union. All important decisions are made by vote (see below).
GMMs are held once a month (except for June and July of non-bargaining years), and Special General Membership Meetings (SGMMs) can be called by the executive or by petition of the membership to discuss specific issues. You can always find upcoming meetings on the website’s event calendar, or in the CUPE 3903 newsletter.
You are welcome and you belong in all GMMs. Still, it can be overwhelming when you want to participate but don’t know how. You can always ask the Chair or any member of the executive if you need help during GMMs and they will be more than happy to help. What follows also outlines some information to demystify GMMs.
GMM Structure
Every GMM has common elements that are built into the structure, as well as the opportunity to add new or emerging items of discussion.
Agendas
The proposed agenda for each GMM is shared on the website at least one week before the meeting. Some common elements of agendas are:
- Introductory/procedural items: every meeting will start with the reading of the equity statement and land acknowledgment, a roll call of officers, and often reminders about procedural rules.
- Approving the agenda: if you want to add, remove, or move an item on the agenda, this is the opportunity to do so. You can also email items for the agenda to the recording secretary (recsec.cupe3903@gmail.com) ahead of the meeting. The GMM votes to approve the agenda.
- Approval of previous minutes: it can be boring, but it needs to be done! Most meetings will take a few moments to review the minutes from the previous meeting. Members who attended the previous meeting vote to approve (or amend if there are mistakes) those minutes.
- Notices: some votes require a notice period, which means that they are announced in one meeting and voted on the next. This is to make sure everyone who wants to vote on this issue has time to get up to speed and make plans to attend the meeting. Budgetary changes, any irregular spending (e.g. donations), and bylaw amendments all must have notice. In a GMM, notices are read out but there is no discussion; all of that will take place at the next meeting, before there is a vote.
- Unfinished Business: Any item that was discussed in a previous meeting, including through the giving of a notice, falls under unfinished business.
- New Business: Got something new you want to discuss? When amending the agenda, ask for it to be added to new business.
- Other items: Sometimes there will be something to discuss that is important enough to warrant being its own agenda item, for example bargaining, or certain campaigns. Since agendas are flexible, it’s okay to add these.
- Adjournment: It’s over! Once a motion to adjourn passes, the meeting ends. You can move to adjourn at any point as long as there is not currently a motion on the floor (i.e. if the GMM is in the middle of a vote, it either needs to be voted on or tabled before the meeting can end).
If you are trying to add an item to the agenda and you’re not sure where it would go, don’t worry! Explain what the item is in a few words and the Chair of the meeting will happily help determine where it should go.
What’s Quorum?
Quorum is the number of voting members necessary for the meeting to be called to order (i.e. start). As the GMM is the highest decision-making body of the union, it’s important to set quorum rules to reflect the many units of the local, and also to make sure five people can’t get together and make important decisions that impact everyone.
Current quorum rules for CUPE 3903 GMMs and SGMMs is 1% of current membership with representation from all units. The Chairperson or Grievance Officer can act as representative of Units 3 and 4, since they are smaller units.
Without quorum, no decisions can be made, but there can still be discussion and announcements. Sometimes meetings will begin with those elements while awaiting more members to join, at which point, once quorum is achieved, the meeting will be called to order and begin officially.
If quorum is lost, the meeting officially ends. However, quorum is only considered lost once someone “calls quorum”, which immediately triggers a count to see whether enough members remain. If not, then the meeting adjourns.
Speakers List
In order to make sure that everyone who wants to speak gets an opportunity to do so, GMMs use a speaker’s list system. For online meetings, this means using the “raise hand” function to be added to the list. For in person meetings, this may mean either raising your hand or going to stand in line at the microphone, depending on the room setup and your ability to do so.
When you raise your hand (virtually or physically), you are added to the list. When it is your turn to speak, the Chair will call on you. In the vast majority of circumstances, you should not speak unless you have been added to the list and called upon. This is to ensure that everyone who wants to speak has a chance to do so, without interruption.
Speakers lists are usually first come, first served, i.e. whoever raised their hand or lined up at the microphone first. However, if you have already spoken a lot, the Chair may use their judgement to allow someone who has not spoken yet to go first; you will still get your turn, don’t worry! As a general rule, try to only speak once to a motion, and keep it succinct. However, the Chair may allow repeat speakers, especially where clarification is needed.
Virtual Meetings
Since the COVID-19 pandemic, CUPE 3903 meetings have been held either fully virtually or in a hybrid format. Successful virtual meetings require certain measures to make sure everything goes smoothly. These include:
- Register for the meeting ahead of time. The Vice-Presidents check your information against the membership list to make sure only members and permitted guests attend the meeting. If you register while the meeting is already underway, we will try to approve you asap, but it might take some time as the VPs will be engaged in the running of the meeting.
- Keep your microphone and camera off unless you are speaking. This is to minimize background noise and bandwidth usage, especially for large meetings. If you’re unsure how to do this, feel free to ask an executive member for help in the chat.
- General chat is closed due to repeated abuses. You can however use the chat to direct message the host and co-hosts, who are usually executive committee members. They will happily help you with any issues you are having.
- Don’t speak until the Chair says it is your turn. The Chair can mute your microphone if you repeatedly speak out of turn.
- Treat people the way you would if you were in person: be kind, criticize ideas not people, and respect that everyone wants their opportunity to be heard.
- Voting either takes place as a show of virtual hands, or as a confidential poll, depending on the nature of the vote (any vote that would involve a ballot box in an in-person meeting is done through the third party SimplyVoting). While the host and co-hosts can see the results of the poll as people vote, they cannot see who voted for what. The results of the poll will then be shared on screen so all members can see.
- Mistakes happen: good faith violations of the rules will be met with a reminder. Repeated or malicious violations may result in a time-out in the waiting room, or in extreme cases, expulsion from the meeting.
- In case of a Zoom-bombing (where outsiders crash the meeting, often to upset attendants with sexist or racist content), do not engage. Step away from your computer if it is upsetting; the executive will take care of it. Anyone participating in this behaviour, whether they are members or not, will be immediately removed from the meeting. Preventing Zoom bombings is why registration is necessary.
Making Decisions
GMMs can be a lot of talking, but at the end of the day, their purpose is to make decisions. Most decisions are ultimately taken by vote, and there are rules around voting and discussions.
Motions and Discussion
If you want the GMM to vote on something, you will need to move a motion. A motion describes the who-what-when-where of a decision. Motions begin with “Be it resolved that” (shortened as BIRT) and then clearly articulate the decision, who is responsible for doing it, and time-frames for doing so. If it is a financial motion, it also needs to include the amount to be spent and which budget line this money should come from.
If there are two aspects to one motion, you can add it as a second line that starts with BIFRT (be it further resolved that). If a motion has a financial and a non-financial aspect, they always need to be separated like this. This is so it’s easier to “split’ the motion should the membership want to vote on one aspect but not the other.
Example motion:
BIRT CUPE 3903 (who) endorse the Cool Event by Cool Group (what) on December 1, 2027 (when).
BIFRT CUPE 3903 (who) donate $500 (how much) from the Donations line (budget line) to Cool Group for their Cool Event (what).
You don’t need to have your entire motion perfectly figured out in order to move it. The Chair and other members will be happy to help perfect it so that it does exactly what you mean it to.
The only time you cannot propose a motion is if there is already a motion being discussed. Once someone moves a motion, the Chair must immediately call for a seconder. Once another member seconds the motion, it is time for discussion. Discussion for or against the motion, as well as questions, are all in order. Discussing anything that is not the motion is not. When discussion ends, the motion is put to a vote. If the matter is contentious, the Chair may decide that the speaker’s list will close after a set number of speakers, for example four speakers in favour and four against, but in most cases discussion continues until it naturally ends.
You can move to amend the motion, as long as someone seconds your amendment. An amendment cannot contradict the spirit of the motion, e.g. you cannot amend a motion to endorse to read “BIRT that CUPE 3903 not endorse…”. If you oppose the spirit of the motion, speak and vote against it. Amendments can be used to change amounts, add different language, change who is responsible for carrying out the motion, etc. Once an amendment is moved and seconded, the GMM is now discussing the amendment before putting it to a vote. Once the amendment passes or fails, we return to discussion of the original motion (as amended or not).
You can amend a motion, and you can amend an amendment. However, you cannot amend an amendment to an amendment. Confused? Don’t worry – propose your amendment and if it’s not in order, the Chair will direct you to the right way to make the changes you want.
Different Types of Votes
Most votes are raised hand votes that pass with a simple majority (50%+1). Motions to approve, motions to table, motions to adjourn, and most routine motions follow this simple majority rule.
Motions to amend the bylaws and motions to make large donations require a ⅔ majority vote. Motions to approve bylaw changes and any other motion that is considered sensitive enough is held as a balloted vote, i.e. either with a ballot box or online voting.
For online meetings, often most if not all votes are done by poll simply because it is easier to count votes that way. You can always move that a particular vote be done as a ballotted vote. That motion will be passed as a simple majority raised-hand vote.
A final type of vote is the roll-call vote. Essentially, each person is asked one-by-one to say how they vote. It is time-consuming and therefore unusual. However, if you think a vote is too close to count properly, or you want the minutes to reflect who voted for what, you can motion for a roll-call vote. This is common, for example, when an executive and bargaining team vote to go on strike, so that the vote of each person is recorded.
There are special circumstances where a vote needs to be a 2/3rd majority, for example a motion to reconsider a motion that has already passed. However, these circumstances are rare, and the Chair will explain clearly if it ever comes up.
Help! I’m Not Sure What to Do
Ask for help! You can get on the speaker’s list and tell the Chair what you’re trying to do and they will help you craft the motion as needed. Or you can always private-message (in a virtual meeting) or take aside (in an in-person meeting) a member of the executive and they can help you navigate these rules. Never feel like not knowing what to do means that you shouldn’t speak up: the rules are there so the meetings aren’t chaos, not to prevent anyone from participating. Ask for help as often as you need, there is no judgement here. You will likely be doing your comrades a favour: if you’re confused, it’s very likely someone else is too!
You can also refer to the Rules of Order table below.
Accessibility
All online GMMs have closed captions done live by a professional (not auto-captions). To turn these on, navigate to the bottom of your Zoom screen and you will see a “CC” symbol. Click on that and turn captions on.
For in person meetings, every member who wants to speak must use a microphone. Even if you think you project well, it’s probably not enough for members who are hard of hearing. There is usually a floating microphone that can be brought to you if you cannot walk to the mic or stand in line.
If you need other forms of accommodations, for example ASL interpretation, email Nadia Kanani (cupe3903equity@gmail.com) preferably two weeks before the meeting.
If, at any point in the meeting, there is something preventing you from participating in the meeting fully, you can call a point of personal privilege. This is one of the rare cases where it is okay to interrupt or skip the speaker’s list. A point of personal privilege stops everything until we can resolve the issue and meet your access needs. If you would rather not do that publicly, you can always ask a member of the executive privately.
Rules of Order
CUPE 3903 uses Bourinot’s Rules of Order. You can find the full rules here: Bourinot’s Rules of Order, but this document is needlessly long and complicated. The rules of order are simpler than you might think!
| I want to… | I should say… | What happens next… |
| Propose a motion | “BIRT that [your motion]…” | The Chair will call for a seconder; if seconded, discussion of the motion begins |
| Amend a motion | “I want to amend the motion to read [specify the exact amendment]…” | The Chair will call for a seconder; if seconded, discussion of the amendment begins |
| Call the question (i.e. let’s stop talking about this already!) | “I call the question.” | The Chair will call for a seconder. If seconded, it goes straight to a vote (no discussion). If the motion to call the question passes, we go straight to a vote on the original motion/amendment. |
| Table a motion (i.e. we’re not ready to vote on this, let’s talk about it next time) | “I motion to table.” | The Chair will call for a seconder; if seconded, the motion to table goes straight to a vote (no discussion). |
| Make a point of order (i.e. claim that the Chair is interpreting the bylaws or rules of order incorrectly) | “Point of order” | The Chair must stop everything to hear the point of order. If there is still disagreement on the point of order, a member can challenge the Chair (see below). |
| Challenge the Chair (i.e. formally challenge the Chair’s ruling on a point of order) | “I challenge the Chair” | The Chair must immediately stop chairing and allow an alternate to take over (usually a Vice-President). First the Chair, and then the member issuing the challenge, explain why they believe they are correct. Then we go straight to a simple majority vote (no discussion). If the challenge is successful, the decision of the Chair is overturned; if the challenge fails, the decision of the Chair is upheld. In all cases the Chair resumes chairing once the challenge is complete. |
| Adjourn the meeting | “I move to adjourn” | Unless there is currently a motion being discussed, the Chair will call for a seconder. Once seconded, a simple majority vote can adjourn the meeting. |