Public and Commercial Services Union

It was agreed in 1998 by the NEC that there should be separate Forums at a national level representing the interests of:

• Race/black members
• Women members
• Disabled members

It was also agreed that there should be a self-organising group with central funding representing the interests of lesbian, gay and bisexual members

The NEC also agreed to the formation of:

• Black Members Forum
• Disability Forum
• Health and Safety Forum
• Women's Forum

Purpose

The role of the Forums need to be consistent with the overall structure of the union.

Outside of delegate conference, the NEC is the body with the responsibility for developing detailed policies and for progressing policies through publications and campaigns.

It is important that the role of the Forums fits into this process and that they provide a means for feedback and co-ordination.

It was therefore agreed that the role of the forum meeting should be:

• to act as a mechanism for providing specialist advice to the NEC on issues affecting women/black/disabled members and health and safety issues affecting members
• to provide a link between groups and the NEC in order to support the exchange of information in taking forward the union's equality and health and safety agenda.

With regard to the health and safety Forum, to provide support to those with responsibility within groups for negotiations on health and safety strategy and policy

The terms of reference would be to:

• provide specialist advice and to make recommendations to the NEC on issues referred to the Forum by the NEC
• provide advice and guidance to the NEC on the union's bargaining agenda
• provide advice to the NEC on strategies to address discrimination and health and safety aspects for the union's campaigning agenda
• provide advice to the NEC on recruitment and organisation strategies for women/black/disabled members and use of health and safety as a recruitment tool
• provide advice to the NEC on education strategies for women/black/disabled members and for health and safety and for those who negotiate on their behalf
• provide advice to the NEC on strategies for improving the participation for women/black/disabled members in the union and on organisation for health and safety.

Composition

Representation on the Equality, Health and Safety Forums needs to be drawn from the widest possible base in order to facilitate networking and to support the exchange of information.

It was agreed therefore that each group should have the right to send a representative to attend Forum meetings.

In addition, Occupational Associations and Regional Committees can send a representative. Large national branches can also request representation.

It was also considered that the NEC should have a substantial presence at Forum meetings to emphasise the partnership between Forums and the NEC and to foster a sense of ownership and purpose and that the Chair of each Forum should be appointed by the NEC.

Representation at Forum Meetings

A key role for each of the Forums is to provide specialist advice to the NEC on the experience of women, black and disabled members and on health and safety issues.

It is therefore important that Forum members are able to fully participate in discussions and bring to the Forum knowledge of problems within their bargaining areas.

It is not a problem to ensure that representatives to the Health & Safety Forum have responsibility within their group for health and safety negotiations and that representatives to the Women's Forum are women but given the under-representation of black members and disabled people at group officer level, it was recognised that groups may not have GEC members who are black or disabled as the case may be.

It was therefore decided that in agreeing the composition of Forums, the NEC advises groups that:

• their representative should be (wherever possible) a person with responsibility within the group for negotiations on health and safety strategy and policy, a woman, or a member of a black racial group or a disabled person (as the case may be) or
• where it is not possible to find such representatives from within the GEC, the group (shall wherever possible) send a representative from outwith its executive committee and in the latter case co-opt such representative as a non-voting GEC member.

Frequency of Meetings

Each Forum meets no more than three times per year.

Servicing and Working Arrangements

The Secretary to each Forum is to be a full time officer appointed by the Joint General Secretaries.

It was not considered necessary to appoint other officers from within a Forum but Forums may wish to appoint ad hoc working groups to progress particular issues from time to time, subject to budget allocations.

The Secretary is responsible for producing agendas and minutes of meetings which are referred to the NEC for endorsement. The business at Forum meetings is conducted around discussion of particular items and standing items such as group reports are avoided.

Seminars and Education

In order to ensure that the union's work around equality has a particular focus and to provide a mechanism for consulting and involving members (from under-represented groups) it was agreed that:

• there should be annual seminars for women, black members and disabled people
• there should, in addition, be an annual seminar for lesbian and gay members organised on the same basis as above seminars should not be motion based but should involve education activities, briefings and workshops i.e. part education, part briefing and part policy discussion but the NEC should receive a report of the seminar together with any recommendations arising from it
• these seminars should be jointly organised by the education department and the equality department and prior approval for the programme, arrangements, target audience and budget should be subject to prior approval by the NEC.

Summary of Recommendations

Separate Forums have been established at national level for women, black members and disabled people and a Forum to deal with Health and Safety issues.

The NEC supports a self organising group for lesbian, gay and bisexual members and provide central funding.

The role of the Equality and Health and Safety Forums is:

• to act as a mechanism for providing specialist advice to the NEC on issues affecting women/black/disabled members and health and safety issues and
• to provide a link between groups and the to support the exchange of information in taking forward the union's bargaining agenda.

The terms of reference of the equality and health and safety Forums is to:

• provide specialist advice and to make recommendations to the NEC on issues referred to the Forum by the NEC
• provide advice and guidance to the NEC on the union's bargaining agenda
• provide advice to the NEC on strategies to address discrimination and health and safety issues on the union's campaigning agenda
• provide advice to the NEC on education strategies for women/ black/ disabled members and on health and safety issues and for those who negotiate on their behalf
• provide advice to the NEC on recruitment and organisation strategies for women/black/disabled members and the use of health and safety as a recruitment tool
• provide advice to the NEC on strategies for improving the participation of women/black/disabled members in the union and on organisation for health and safety

Each group, occupational association, regional committee and some large national branches have the right to send a representative to Forum meetings.

The NEC has a substantial presence at Forum meetings.

The NEC appoints the Chair of each Forum.

The NEC advises groups that their representative to Forum meetings should be both a person with responsibility within the group for negotiations on health and safety strategy and policy or a woman, or black, or a disabled person in order to provide specialist advice and
an elected or co-opted member of the GEC.

Each Forum meets no more than three times per year.

The Secretary to each Forum is a full time officer appointed by the Joint General Secretaries.

The Secretary is responsible for producing agendas and minutes of meetings which are referred to the NEC for endorsement.

Annual seminars are organised by the Forums in consultation with the education department for women, black members, disabled members and lesbian, gay and bi-sexual members.

The programme, arrangements, target population and budget for the seminars is approved in advance by the NEC.