In this training session we will discuss how to have “organizing” conversations, which are conversations intended to convince a non-member to sign up to be a member of the union. Such conversations are critically important because Florida is a “Right to Work” state and so faculty are not automatically added to the union; instead, they must be actively convinced to join.
We need to maintain a density of 60% to keep the union, and the UFF-FIU chapter has for several years hovered right around that density, which means we are in constant danger of decertification. Many, if not most, of non-members have not even been asked to joined the union, on account of the small size of the membership committee relative to the size of the bargaining unit. Therefore getting the membership at large to help with recruitment is critical: if every member had two organizing conversations in the Spring term, we could have multiple touchpoints with every non-member and convince many of them to sign-up, simultaneously saving the union, increasing our bargaining power, and providing us a much needed buffer against decertification.
In this session we will go through the basics of having an organizing conversation, addressing common concerns of organizers, identifying common objections to joining the union, and providing rebuttals to those objections. After this initial orientation, we will conduct few role play sessions where we will practice having organizing conversations in a safe and supportive environment.
Training will take place tomorrow, Thursday, March 19, 2:30–4 p.m. CBC 140