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Union representative
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<h2 id="duties">Duties</h2> <p>The duties of a union steward vary according to each trades union's <a href="/facts/Constitution/GppU7erf">constitutional</a> mandate for the position. In general, most union stewards perform the following functions: </p> <ul><li>Monitor and enforce the provisions of the <a href="/facts/Collective_bargaining/7DzIwUzy">collective bargaining</a> agreement (labour contract) to ensure both the firm and union worker are not violating the terms of the agreement.</li> <li>Ensure that the firm is in compliance with all national, state and local <a href="/facts/Law/luzxWkg0">laws</a> and <a href="/facts/Regulation/eFR0l2x9">regulations</a>.</li> <li>Represent and defend fellow workers whom the firm believes violated company policy or the terms and conditions of the collective bargaining agreement, often through the <a href="/facts/Grievance_(labour)/nu0P3V5t">grievance</a> process.</li> <li>Communicate and disseminate official union policy, memos and directives to workers in the shop.</li> <li>Popularize and promote union consciousness and values in the workplace.</li></ul> <p>Unlike other union representatives, stewards work on the <a href="/facts/Shop_floor/Le072Lzr">shop floor</a>, connecting workers with union officials at regional or national levels. The role of shop stewards may vary from being a mere representative of a larger national union towards independent structures with the power of collective bargaining in the workplace. </p> <h2 id="in-political-history">In political history</h2> <p>In the United Kingdom, a network called <a href="/facts/Shop_Stewards_Movement/wK5wPQCR">Shop Stewards Movement</a> organised shop stewards against the First World War. In Germany, a network of shop stewards called <a href="/facts/Revolutionary_Stewards/uzAaHo55">Revolutionary Stewards</a> took an important role in the revolutionary "<a href="/facts/German_strike_of_January_1918/9nzewF2b">January Strike</a>".<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:2" href="#fn:2"><sup>2</sup></a> </p> <h2 id="other-designations">Other designations</h2> <p>Father of the chapel (FoC) or mother of the chapel (MoC) are the titles in the United Kingdom and <a href="/facts/Australasia/KCCr5pqh">Australasia</a> referring to a <a href="/facts/Shop_steward/MzKR7ATE">shop steward</a> representing members of a <a href="/facts/Trades_union/PjeN2WKu">trades union</a> in a <a href="/facts/Printing/ta4QpeDE">printing</a> office or in <a href="/facts/Journalism/hue0m1xf">journalism</a>. The FoC or MoC is assisted by the clerk of the chapel or by a deputy FoC/MoC. In the printing trade, a chapel is the traditional name given to a meeting of <a href="/facts/Typesetting/CsKmfY0t">compositors</a>. The name originates in the early history of printing in Great Britain, though the <a href="/facts/National_Union_of_Journalists/LuSYawkH">National Union of Journalists</a> states that the precise origins of the terms are unclear.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:3" href="#fn:3"><sup>3</sup></a> </p> <h2 id="further-reading">Further reading</h2> <ul><li>John Benson, <i>Unions at the Workplace: Shop Steward Leadership and Ideology</i>, 1991.</li> <li>Ralf Hoffrogge, <i>Working-Class Politics in the German Revolution. Richard Müller, the Revolutionary Shop Stewards and the Origins of the Council Movement</i>, Brill Publications 2014, <a href="/facts/ISBN_(identifier)/15AdSPa9">ISBN</a> 978-9-00421-921-2.</li> <li>Y. Rittau and T. Dundon, 2010, The roles and functions of shop stewards in workplace partnership: evidence from the Republic of Ireland, Employee Relations, Vol 32(1), p. 10-27.</li></ul> <h2 id="references">References</h2> <ol> <li id="fn:1"><p>The Union Steward's Complete Guide, David Prosten, Union Communication Services, Inc. <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Union-Stewards-Complete-Guide-Updated/dp/098398719X" target="_blank">https://www.amazon.com/Union-Stewards-Complete-Guide-Updated/dp/098398719X</a> <a href="#fnref:1" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:2"><p>Ralf Hoffrogge, Working-Class Politics in the German Revolution. Richard Müller, the Revolutionary Shop Stewards and the Origins of the Council Movement, Brill Publications 2014, ISBN 978-9-00421-921-2., pp. 21-31. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" target="_blank">/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)</a> <a href="#fnref:2" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:3"><p>"National Union of Journalists (NUJ): Chapels and branches". <a href="https://www.nuj.org.uk/work/chapels/" target="_blank">https://www.nuj.org.uk/work/chapels/</a> <a href="#fnref:3" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> </ol>