Article VI - Statewide Standing Committees

STATEWIDE STANDING COMMITTEES

Section 1. Committees.

A. MAPE shall have Statewide Standing Committees as defined below.

Constitution and Rules Committee
Elections Committee
Employee Rights Committee
Executive Committee
Job Action Committee
Local Presidents Committee
Meet and Confer Committee
Meet and Confer Chairs Committee
Negotiations Committee
Nominations Committee
Organizing Council
Political Council

B. Good faith effort shall be made to see that statewide committees are comprised of members from Greater Minnesota in proportion to their membership in MAPE as of January 1 of each year. In appointed committees, vacancies shall be filled following the same procedures as for the committee appointments.

C. Appointed committee members serve for a term corresponding to that of the Statewide Officers and continue their duties until their successors have been appointed.

D. Appointed committees may remove members:

When the member has 3 unexcused absences in the last 12 months; and
With notification to the member 14 days prior to a vote by the committee; and
By a majority vote of the committee.

Section 2. Constitution and Rules Committee.

The Constitution and Rules Committee shall consist of five members. This committee is responsible for analyzing proposed changes to the governing documents, Delegate Assembly Resolutions, and Delegate Assembly Standing Rules. The committee will indicate that a proposed change is not ready for debate if the submitted proposal conflicts with statute, current governing documents, Delegate Assembly Standing Rules, or within the proposed document itself. Explanations describing the conflict will accompany the decision. If no conflict exists, the committee will label the proposal as ready for debate.

At each regularly scheduled Delegate Assembly, the Constitution and Rules Committee shall report on changes made by the Board of Directors to the bylaws and policies since the previous regularly scheduled Delegate Assembly.

Other duties are assigned by the Board of Directors, the Executive Committee, or the Delegate Assembly.

Resolutions initially proposed during the Delegate Assembly are not required to be coordinated by the committee.

Section 3. Elections Committee.

The Elections Committee shall consist of five members. It shall serve as Elections committee for statewide and regional elections. Retired individuals who are also associate members and had been MAPE members for the 2 years immediately preceding their retirement may serve as full voting members of the Statewide Elections Committee. The Board of Directors shall designate one of the five members as the committee chair. No statewide or regional officer or candidate for statewide or regional office shall be a member of this Committee. The committee's responsibilities include validating candidate credentials, monitoring campaigns, conducting elections, and hearing protests.

Section 4. Employee Rights Committee.

The Employee Rights Committee shall consist of the Regional Steward Director of each Region and the Vice President.

Section 5. Executive Committee.

The President shall be the presiding officer of the Executive Committee. The Executive Committee shall conduct the business of MAPE between the meetings of the Board of Directors and shall perform other duties as directed by the Board of Directors. The Executive Committee shall meet at the call of the President or a majority vote of the Executive Committee.

The Executive Committee shall consist of:

The Statewide Officers
The Chair of the Political Council
The Chair of the Organizing Council

For the purposes of term limits, all positions on the Executive Committee are considered statewide officers.

Section 6. Job Action Committee.

The Job Action Committee shall consist of the Vice President of each Local. The First Vice President shall chair the Committee.

Section 7. Local Presidents Committee.

There shall be a Local Presidents Committee that will meet, at least once, annually. The meetings will be called by the Chair or at the request of at least 10 local presidents.

The Local Presidents Committee shall consist of each Local President from all MAPE Locals.

The Local Presidents Committee will share information between Locals in regard to Local policies and issues. The Local Presidents Committee may make recommendations and offer assistance to the Delegate Assembly, Statewide Officers and the Board of Directors.

The Local Presidents shall elect a Local President to chair the Local Presidents Committee for a one-year term. The election will occur at the annual meeting. The Chair must be a Local President for the entire one-year term. In the event of a vacancy in the chair the Statewide President, with concurrence from the Board of Directors, will appoint a Local President to chair the committee for the remainder of the one-year term.

Section 8. Meet and Confer Committees.

A. There shall be a Meet and Confer Committee for a given Appointing Authority. See Appendix D of the MAPE contract for a list of agencies.

B. Each committee shall consist of:

A committee chair;
Up to 12 members;
Up to 2 alternate members.

C. Each committee's chair will be elected in an agency wide election.

Elections will be part of the annual statewide elections in even years through 2022 and then switch to odd years starting in 2023.
Members can vote for the chair of their respective agency.
The term of office is two years and until their successor is elected.
Vacancies in the Chair will be filled by the Vice Chair and the committee will elect a new Vice Chair.

D. Each committee will elect one of its members as Vice Chair. The Vice Chair will perform the duties of the Chair in the Chair's absence or vacancy of the Chair position.

E. Each committee shall elect one of its members as Secretary. The secretary shall keep a record of the proceedings of Meet and Confer Committee meetings with the respective Appointing Authority.

Section 9. Meet & Confer Chairs Committee.

There shall be a Meet and Confer Chairs Committee that will meet as determined necessary, and at least quarterly. The meetings will be called by the Chair or at the request of a majority of Meet and Confer Chairs.

The Meet and Confer Chairs Committee shall consist of each Appointing Authority Meet and Confer Committee chair.

The Meet and Confer Chairs Committee will share information between Meet and Confer Committees in regard to common workplace issues, best practices for working with Management, and effective workplace actions and member engagement practices.

The Meet and Confer Chairs shall choose one of their members to chair the Meet and Confer Chairs Committee. The Meet and Confer Chairs Committee Chair will be responsible for scheduling meetings, setting agendas, and ensuring meeting minutes are maintained.

Committee Members shall elect a Speaker who will act as a liaison between the Meet and Confer Chairs Committee and the Executive Committee and MAPE Board of Directors and serve on the Negotiations Committee as a full member. The Speaker will be elected at the Negotiations Convention. The Speaker is an elected position for purposes of holding MAPE office, and will serve a two-year term. All bylaws pertaining to the rights of MAPE office holders apply to the Speaker.

The Speaker will be responsible for sharing information regarding common workplace issues, working with Management, workplace actions and member engagement practices with the Executive Committee and MAPE Board of Directors for consideration in strategic decision making, and with the Negotiations Team for consideration in developing collective bargaining proposals. The Speaker will report to the Executive Committee and MAPE Board of Directors monthly.

Section 10. Negotiations Committee.

A. Statewide. Each region shall elect a member to represent the region on the statewide negotiations committee in a special election called by the statewide elections committee at the start of a new negotiations cycle, on a date set by the board of directors. The elected members shall, to the extent possible, reflect various aspects and interests of the members of the unit. Should a vacancy occur on the committee the local officers of the region shall select a replacement from the affected region’s membership.

Statewide negotiations committee members elected by the regions in regularly scheduled elections will be seated when work begins on the next agreement between MAPE and the state of Minnesota. (seated elected committee members will not be replaced by newly-elected members while negotiations are in progress.)

In addition, the president, with the consent of the executive committee, may appoint up to three at-large members to the committee. The statewide negotiations committee shall choose one of its members to serve as chair of the committee, or two members to serve as co-chairs. The statewide negotiations committee shall represent MAPE during negotiations with the employer. The three at-large members may be on a temporary basis. The executive committee, by a two-thirds vote, may select a substitute for any one of the at-large members on a need basis. All appointments are subject to approval by a majority vote of the board of directors

B. Local. Local Negotiations Committees shall be formed prior to the appointment of the Statewide Negotiations Committee. The Local committees shall solicit information and input from the members of the Local, and forward such input and any recommendations to the Statewide Negotiations Committee. The Committee shall select the chair of the Local Negotiations Committee.

C. Other Bargaining Units. Bargaining units represented by MAPE, other than State Unit 214, shall elect their own negotiations committee(s).

Section 11. Nominations Committee.

The Nominations Committee shall consist of five members. It shall serve as Nominations Committee for statewide and regional elections. The Board of Directors shall designate one of the five members as committee chair. The committee’s responsibilities include identifying potential leaders throughout the union and encouraging them to run for office. The committee will make every effort to ensure that there are eligible candidates for all statewide and regional elective positions. The committee will work with local officers and members to identify potential regional leaders, encourage them to run for elective office and make every effort to ensure that there are candidates for all regional elective positions.

Section 12. Organizing Council.

A. An Organizing Council, consisting of five elected members and two appointed members. The Statewide President is an ex-officio non-voting member of the council.

B. The council shall promote full and equal participation of all people represented by MAPE in the Union and workplace. This includes:

Organize diverse professionals to build power, membership recruitment and retention, relationship building and conducting actions led by local leaders who are accountable to members.
Providing training, mentoring, and practical experiences for people to develop their leadership skills.
Strategies should include deliberate attention to diversity, inclusion and protected classes.
Collaborate with external organizations.

C. Charter. The council will operate under a charter approved by the Board of Directors. The charter will be created in alignment with the Board of Directors' strategic plan.

D. Term of Office. All terms shall be the same as other statewide officers, except when a vacancy occurs (see Vacancies below). The terms shall remain staggered.

E. Elections. Elections for three of the council seats shall be held in odd-number years. Elections for two of the council seats shall be held in even-numbered years. Elections will be held as part of the annual statewide elections.

F. Appointments. The two appointed council members shall be appointed by the Statewide President subject to Board approval.

G. Chair. The council will elect one of its members to serve as Chair. The term of office is for two years and until their successor is elected. The election of the Chair will be in even-number years, at a council meeting. Vacancies in the Chair will be filled by the Vice Chair. Appointed positions are not eligible to be elected Chair.

H. Vice Chair. The council will elect one of its members to serve as Vice Chair. The term of office is for two years and until their successor is elected. The election of the Vice Chair will be in even-number years, at a council meeting. Vacancies in the Vice Chair will be filled by a special election of the council, at a council meeting.

I. Vacancies. If a vacancy occurs in the second half of the council member’s two-year term, the President will make an appointment subject to Board of Director’s confirmation. A vacancy occurring in the first year of the council member’s term will result in a special statewide election. If a vacancy occurs because not enough candidates accepted nominations during a regularly scheduled statewide election, the President will make a temporary appointment subject to the Board of Director’s confirmation. This temporary appointment shall also serve as a nomination for this office during the next statewide special election.

Section 13. Political Council.

A. The Political Council shall consist of five elected members and two appointed members. The Statewide President is an ex-officio non-voting member of the council.

B. The council shall engage and organize members interested in legislative activities and collaboration with other organizations for the benefit of MAPE members. This includes:

Define legislative/political priorities and provide member education and engagement.
Strategies should include deliberate attention to diversity, inclusion and all protected classes.
Keep the members informed about legislative issues and relevant labor-related political activity.
Working with members to improve their interactions with government officials.
Collaborate with external organizations.

C. Charter. The council will operate under a charter approved by the Board of Directors. The charter will be created in alignment with the Board of Directors' strategic plan.

D. Term of Office. All terms shall be the same as other statewide officers, except when a vacancy occurs (see Vacancies below). The terms shall remain staggered.

E. Elections. Elections for two of the council seats shall be held in odd-number years. Elections for three of the council seats shall be held in even-numbered years. Elections will be held as part of the annual statewide elections.

F. Appointments. The two appointed council members shall be appointed by the Statewide President subject to Board approval. One of the two appointed members shall be a member of the Political Action Committee if one is currently not seated.

H. Vice Chair. The council will elect one of its members to serve as Vice Chair. The term of office is for two years and until their successor is elected. The election of the Vice Chair will be in even-number years, at a council meeting. Vacancies in the Vice Chair will be filled by a special election of the council, at a council meeting.

I. Vacancies. If a vacancy occurs in the second half of the council member’s two-year term, the President will make an appointment subject to Board of Director’s confirmation. A vacancy occurring in the first year of the council member’s term will result in a special statewide election. If a vacancy occurs because not enough candidates accepted nominations during a regularly scheduled statewide election, the President will make a temporary appointment subject to the Board of Director’s confirmation. This temporary appointment shall also serve as a nomination for this office during the next statewide special election.

Section 14. Electronic Meetings.

Statewide standing committees and other statewide, regional, and local MAPE committees may hold meetings which some or all members attend by electronic means if simultaneous aural communications among all participating members are, at least, equivalent to those of meetings held in one room and requirements in MAPE’s parliamentary authority, governing documents, and policies are met.

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