Organisational Transformation Overview and Facilitation Guide

This section of the Power Resources Tool Kit will help us improve the effectiveness, growth, and longevity of our unions in the face of global and local realities.

Organisational transformation includes a substantial change to what the union is and does. It involves a change in attitudes/mentalities, priorities and resource allocation and operating processes. It is a mid-term undertaking that reflects the long-term vision of the union and needs to be decided democratically. It can be the result of a strategic planning process that has carefully examined external and internal challenges.

To utilise these materials, first prioritise one of the global challenges listed below (or choose a different challenge your union is facing). Familiarise yourself with the materials provided, and any other relevant materials.

Next, go to the materials on Strategic Planning and apply a strategic planning process to the global challenge that you have prioritised. As outlined in the “Strategic Planning” materials, you will need to secure a mandate from all relevant decision-making bodies, especially leadership, form a core committee to drive the process and move forward to create a strategic plan.

If you already have a mandate to move forward on one of these global challenges are ready to pressure an employer or government entity, then turn to theCampaigning and Organising section to plan your work. You may want to create climate jobs, to reduce carbon emissions, to hire more women, youth or other underrepresented workers, or organise informal workers into a union of formal workers.

If you do not have an employer or decision-maker to pressure, then the strategic planning materials in combination with these materials on organisational transformation will be the most useful.

Which of these materials can help you improve the effectiveness, growth and longevity of the union?

Climate Justice. Climate change is our most urgent challenge. These materials address the importance of addressing climate justice and help us move forward with trade union action and education on just transition, climate jobs and carbon reduction, in the workplace and at the national, international and industry levels.

Discrimination, Equity and Inclusion covers three key concepts, 1) intersectionality, 2) systemic discrimination and 3) Silence and Implicit Bias. These concepts are then used to examine Anti-racism and Decolonisation, Women and Gender Equity, and Youth.

Anti-racism and Decolonialisation covers the various ways that unions can take action to reclaim the histories of under-represented racial/ethnic groups and Indigenous Peoples; support self-organisation and equity of representation within unions; and strengthen trade union education, alliances and organising.

Women and Gender Equityprovides recommended resources and actions to advance women’s rights and gender equality, both at the workplace and in unions.

The materials onYoung Workersprovide resources for young workers who are facing exploitation and discrimination at the workplace and who are working to increase representation of youth and youth movements within unions.

Crossing the Divide: Informal Workers supports unionsthat are accustomed to working with formal workers to cross the divide and develop strategies to integrate informal workers into the union.

Organising and Servicing Models – Ways to Increasing Worker Participation in Unions. There are two models that can be useful in analysing our union work and creating the kinds of unions we want. “Organising”, where workers see themselves as the union and “servicing”, where workers expect services and representation from the union. Examining these two approaches can help us evaluate and adjust our union work to increase worker participation, growth and associational power.