A Voice for Members, a rank-and-file ticket in the upcoming for the Community and Public Sector Union (CPSU) election, is campaigning on a platform that priortises membership-led involvement in the union.
The elections opened on June 10 and run until July 4. The rank-and-file ticket, the first in 32 years to challenge the incumbent union leadership, is fielding activists in听.
Mitch Vandewerdt-Holman, candidate for Assistant Secretary told 91自拍论坛 in a interview on 3CR听Community Radio that the ticket was formed because of the leadership鈥檚 lack of transparency and democratic structures.
He said 鈥渕embers didn鈥檛 know who their delegates or organisers were鈥 and that in the lead up to an enterprise agreement there had been 鈥渓ittle to no consultation鈥 with the membership about the demands.
The ticket is campaigning for a leadership that is prepared to fight the proposed government cuts to the public sector.
Voice for Members鈥 includes increasing membership participation, taking a stand on social justice, the right to organise and better conditions for all.
It is also highlighting public sector workers鈥 right to participate in public life, without government overreach. Public sector workers members have been threatened with disciplinary action after signing statements in support of Palestine. Vandewerdt-Holman said members did not receive enough support from the leadership when this happened.
Public sector workers who have taken a stand in support of Palestine have also faced , including attempts to red-bait them on emails which were found to have been linked to a CPSU staff employee account.
Vandewerdt-Holman said that the incumbents had听also been dishonest about their own political affiliation; at least 12 are听members of Labor.听
One of the major political issues driving the Voice for Members ticket is the fact the led to a loss in wages and conditions. It is also concerned about Victorian Labor鈥檚 proposal to cut .
Voice for Members has formed a counter-proposal, the ,听which proposes to make savings elsewhere but which preserves public sector jobs. It says听public money can be saved without cutting the public service听
Mitch Vandewerdt-Holman described Labor's proposed job cuts as 鈥渕isplaced austerity鈥, adding that a Voice for Members is not only pushing for better wages and conditions, it has 鈥渟olutions鈥 to the public sector budget squeeze.
Asked about drawing lessons from the campaign Vandewerdt-Holman said an 鈥渋mportant one is to have a platform that brings members together around the values of unionism, and policy that addresses both servicing members and democracy in the union鈥.
[The CPSU Victoria elections end on July 4. For more information on A Voice for Members check its website .]