Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union of Canada
Welcome To:
On Guard For You 247
Le Syndicat canadien des communications, de l’energie et du papier
LABOUR EDUCATION
Courses Descriptions - Available In Every Province

STEWARD I
The Steward I course is designed for new stewards.  The course helps you develop the
skills and confidence you need to represent your fellow members. You develop a better
understanding of the collective agreement.  You practice grievance handling, from
meeting with the aggrieved member through to presenting the union’s case to
management.  

Participants in Steward I also review CEP’s history and structure, learn to recognize
employer practices that promote divisions among workers, and identify ways of building
unity in the workplace.

ANTI-HARRASSMENT & DIVERSITY TRAINING
Anti-Harassment and Diversity Awareness course participants learn about CEP’s anti-
harassment, anti-racism and equity policies, collective agreement language, human rights
legislation and leading court cases. They develop a better understanding of diversity and
human rights, and become more comfortable in dealing with workplace harassment and
equity issues.

The course uses a lively mix of discussion, presentations and workshop exercises,
including case studies.

Union activists, stewards, executive members, members of equity committees, health and
safety activists, Mentorship Program participants and grassroots union members who wish
to raise awareness of harassment and equity issues in their workplace and want to equip
themselves to deal with harassment and equity problems should take this course.

COLLECTIVE BARGAINING
For those of you unfamiliar with collective bargaining, the course introduces you to the
negotiations process and helps you develop basic bargaining skills. You will see how
legislation, political institutions and economic circumstances influence collective
bargaining.  This course also introduces you to basic costing and the dynamics of
bargaining.  Simulated bargaining sessions allow you to practice what you have learned.

FINANCIAL OFFICER
The Financial Officer course is for Treasurers, Financial Secretaries, Secretary-
Treasurers and Trustees. The Financial Officer course covers all aspects of the Local’s
finances – you learn how to keep books, how to authorize expenses, how to work with
money – dealing with cash transactions, handling cheques, and banking. Financial Officers
learn how to budget and how to prepare reports. Trustees learn how to make quarterly
audits. You learn how to calculate the dues, how to maintain a membership list, and how
to operate a roster.

HEALTH & SAFETY LEVEL 1
This course is designed to provide participants with a basic understanding of health &
safety. The course includes history, health and safety concepts, how the body is
affected by the workplace, principles of control of hazards, workplace inspection, how
to pursue health and safety improvements at the workplace, policy committees and basic
health and safety law.

The course material is provided by the Workers Health & Safety Centre.  Instructors are
WHSC accredited instructors.

This course is for beginner health and safety activists and is a prerequisite for Level 2
courses.

LOCAL OFFICER 1
Local Officer 1 (formerly Leadership 1) is for new local executive members, committee
chairs and experienced stewards, or for other members who will likely become executive
members in the near future. Local Officer 1 covers the basic knowledge and skills
elected local leaders need. On Local Officer 1 you write job descriptions for the
different members of the local executive.  

By the end of the course, you know what you are supposed to do, what each executive
member is supposed to do, and how to work together collectively to ensure the local
runs smoothly. You develop leadership skills -- how to plan and chair meetings, how to
motivate members, how to avoid stress and burnout. By exchanging ideas and
experiences with other participants, you expand your own fund of knowledge and
experience.  You return to your local with a better understanding of what you can do to
make your local more effective.

ORGANIZING (PILOT COURSE)
Organizing module for locals or councils of locals who are interested in organizing in
their communities. Participants will learn the basics of organizing and understand the
techniques and approach to use when organizing workplaces.


ADVANCED STEWARD
The Advanced Steward course is for experienced stewards who have already received
basic steward training and want to know more about discharge and discipline,
insubordination, innocent absenteeism, the duty to accommodate and the duty of fair
representation. Participants develop skills as educators, communicators and activists.
They make presentations on grievance handling, labour history, and the importance of
unions.  They learn how to get the message out, how to write an effective letter to the
editor, and how to use computers more efficiently in their union work. Participants
develop techniques for recruiting new members, motivating existing members and shaking
up the system through political and social activism.

UNION JUDO
Union Judo is for Union leaders and activists from locals facing workplace reorganization.
This course is full of practical advice for local activists and leaders in workplaces which
management is reorganizing through process re-engineering, high velocity culture
change, down-sizing, team concept, TQM, etc. Participants share experiences about
changes that are taking place, and analyze the forces driving these changes. The course
shows you how to represent your members in direct confrontation (karate tactics) and
how to use management’s momentum to bring them to your level (judo tactics). You will
learn how to increase union involvement in decision, maintain the union’s identity among
the members and build an independent capacity to address new issues and management
initiatives as they arise.
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CEP/SCEP 247
Ontario - Quebec - Atlantic Canada