How to Confront Racism in Unions
Unions are designed to promote and maintain the rights and benefits of employees for a company or organization. Legally, unions must adhere to an equal opportunity employment policy, meaning that they should promote and protect diversity in its hiring practices. Racism and discrimination, therefore, are not tolerated at the job site. If you feel you are being discriminated against or you have witnessed race discrimination at the workplace, follow proper union procedures to confront the issue.
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Instructions
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Research your organization's policy on race discrimination. Start with your individual regional union's policies and then look to the national level. There may be specific guidelines for how to follow a grievance or how to contact your union representative that are exclusive to your union. For example, you may need to first confront the harasser or write a written statement.
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Write down the date and time of events that occurred in the workplace. This for your own records, but also may be necessary if the issue becomes a legal matter. Contact your local union representative with this information. He will likely need a copy of this information for his own records as well.
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Confront the person who made the discriminatory remarks or behaviors. This should only be done if you feel comfortable with the person to do so. If the race discrimination was especially heinous, this might be difficult and potentially dangerous to do, so use discretion.
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Contact anyone else who witnessed or was subject to the discrimination. If your union representative fails to act on your word alone, having fellow union members vouch for your complaints or substantiate your story can give weight to your grievance and help ensure a firm enforcement of policy. If it is a issue felt by many others, you may encourage members to take a stand by making buttons, flyers, circulating petitions and otherwise giving others the opportunity to unite against this discrimination.
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Look to the national union relations organizations, such as the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, to come to your aid. If you were fired for what you feel to discriminatory reasons, or you were the victim of race-related harassment, you might need national assistance with your claim. According to UnionDemocracy.org, you have 180 days to contact the National Labor Relations Board if your union fails to take action of your discrimination claim.
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Become an active part of the union board. You may want to run for union office when possible that you can help develop the policy against race discrimination and help ensure the rights of union members.
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References
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