UWUA PER CAPITA 2004
November 7, 2003
TO: ALL UWUA FINANCIAL OFFICERS
FROM: GARY M. RUFFNER, NATIONAL SECRETARY-TREASURER
SUBJECT: NOTIFICATION OF 2004 DUES & PER CAPITA INCREASES
Dear Brothers and Sisters:
In accordance with the Constitution of the Utility Workers Union of America, AFL-CIO, adopted in Atlantic City, New Jersey, on April 6, 1946, and amended through June 28, 2003, the National Union is officially notifying all local unions that the monthly dues paid by the membership is to be increased as of January 1, 2004, by the amount of one dollar and sixty-three cents ($1.63) per month.
This required increase in dues is based on an average wage increase gained by the UWUA membership for the year 2003 of 3.185%. This average is arrived at by using the wage increases obtained through negotiations for the members of all UWUA local unions and dividing the total by the number of locals involved. The provisions of Article VI, Section 1a. of the National Constitution, specifies that the dues increase, therefore, will be 3.185% of the $51.17 Base Average Dues.
Therefore, each local union's financial officer is required to notify the company where a checkoff agreement is in effect, to increase the dues deduction by the stated amount beginning with the month of January 2004. For those local unions not having checkoff agreements with their respective companies, you will be required to notify each member that his or her monthly dues will be increased, as of January 1, 2004, by one dollar and sixty-three cents ($1.63) per month. If you encounter any problems with a company in instituting this increase, please notify the National Union Office immediately. We will do whatever we can to assist you in resolving these problems
Also, beginning as of January 2004, the per capita paid to the National Union will be increased by an amount equal to 50% of the monthly dues increase of one dollar and sixty-three cents ($1.63) per month. This will increase the current monthly per capita of ten dollars and fifty-two cents ($10.52) per month to eleven dollars thirty-three and one-half cents ($11.335) per month. This is an increase of eighty-one and one-half cents (81.5¢) per month, or forty-eight cents (48¢) per month more or eleven cents (11¢) more per week than the expected per capita increase prior to the 2004 per capita increase adopted at the June 2003 Convention.
UWUA Financial Officers
November 7, 2003
Page 2
For those local unions that have the entire dues checkoff remitted to the National Office, no particular additional action is required other than to send the proper notification to the company regarding this increase in the monthly dues to the membership. The National Office will withhold the eleven dollars thirty-three and one-half cents ($11.335) per member from the dues checkoff check received in the month of February. The checks received in February are generally for the dues collected in January or the preceding month. Those local unions collecting dues directly from their membership, or those local unions receiving the checkoff check from a company, will be required to increase their monthly per capita payment to eleven dollars thirty-three and one-half cents ($11.335) per month when filing their January per capita reports, whether submitted in January or February.
Article VI, Section 1, of the National Constitution was changed during the 1983 Convention to eliminate the previously established limit of the amount of monthly per capita allocated to the Special Defense and Organizing Fund. At the present time, the portion of the monthly per capita allocated to the Special Defense and Organizing Fund is one dollar and nine cents ($1.09) per member per month. The Constitution provides that ten percent (10%) of the eighty-one and ½ cent (81.5¢) increase in the monthly per capita be allocated to the Special Defense and Organizing Fund. Therefore, the monthly amount allocated to the Special Defense and Organizing Fund during 2004 will be one dollar and seventeen cents ($1.17) per member per month except for the months of January 2004 through June 2004.*.
The breakdown of the monthly per capita of eleven dollars thirty three and one-half cents ($11.335) received by the National Union will be as follows: One dollar and seventeen cents ($1.17) to the Special Defense and Organizing Fund after June 2004*, and ten dollars and sixteen and 1/2 cents ($10.165) to the General Fund to be used for operating the National Union during the last half of the year 2004*. The entire eleven dollars thirty three and one-half cents ($11.335) received by the National Union will be placed in the General Fund for the first half of 2004 per the Constitution Change at the 2003 Convention.*
The National Constitution includes a provision which would permit any local union, that feels it can pay the increased monthly per capita to the National Union and still have sufficient funds necessary to carry on the required activities of the local at its current level of dues, or at the level below the automatic increase of one dollar and sixty-three cents ($1.63) per month, to reduce its dues structure at any time after the increase has been placed into effect.
However, to do this, specific action must be taken by the local union membership to reduce the dues. A vote of the membership must be conducted in the same manner as a vote required for an increase in the local union's dues, for this action to be in compliance with the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act. It is not proper for any local union to continue its dues at the current level, or to decrease its dues structure by merely ignoring this notification of the Convention's action to increase the dues in the manner stated above.
If your local union eventually does take action to decrease the dues required of the membership, or to increase them at any time when necessary to provide sufficient operating funds for the local union, please notify the National Office so that the National Union records can be properly maintained.
UWUA Financial Officers
November 7, 2003
Page 3
I would suggest that action be taken on this communication as soon as possible, to provide sufficient time to make sure that the deductions are started on time, and to provide additional time as needed to resolve any problems which may develop in getting this increase into effect.
If you have any questions, or need additional information with regard to this requirement, or any of the matters contained in this notification, please feel free to contact the National Office and we will be more than happy to provide the answers to all questions raised.
I am enclosing a copy of ARTICLE VI, Section 1 and Section 1a, as adopted at the 1983 Convention and later amended, for your information.
* Payments to the Defense Fund were suspended from July 1, 2003, through June 30, 2004, by a change of Article VI, Section 1 at the 2003 convention.
/s/
Sincerely and fraternally,
Gary M. Ruffner
National Secretary-Treasurer
GMR/rmf
Enclosures
cc: All Local Union and Council Presidents,
UWUA Executive Board, Staff, and Officers
