Industrial Workers of the World

Transcription

1 Preamble & Constitution of the Industrial Workers of the World As Amended Through January 1, 2002 Organized July 7, 1905 IWW CONSTITUTION & BYLAWS PAGE 1

2 Table of Contents Preamble... 3 ARTICLE I: Name and Structure... 3 Departments... 3 Industrial Unions... 4 Regional Organizing Committees... 4 ARTICLE II: Membership... 5 Job Branches... 5 Quorums... 6 ARTICLE III: General Officers... 6 Elections of General Administration 6 Duties of the General Secretary- Treasurer... 7 Duties of General Executive Board.. 8 International Solidarity Commission9 Charges Against General Officers... 9 ARTICLE IV: Clearing House... 9 ARTICLE V: Duties of Branch Secretaries and Delegates ARTICLE VI: Assemblies Representation Credentials Temporary Session Delegates Eligibility Records of Delegates Joint Delegates Indebtedness Auditing Committee Resolutions ARTICLE VII: Label Seal ARTICLE VIII: Revenue Initiation Fees & Dues ARTICLE IX: Amendments, Etc Conflicting Parts Referendums Recall ARTICLE X: Transfers, Craft Cards 15 Withdrawal of Cards PAGE 2 ARTICLE XI Charters ARTICLE XII: Unemployed members GENERAL BYLAWS ARTICLE I ARTICLE II: Defense ARTICLE III: Charges ARTICLE IV: Employees Expelled Members ARTICLE V: Delinquency ARTICLE VI: Supplies, Etc ARTICLE VII: Speakers and Organizers ARTICLE VIII: Intoxication ARTICLE IX: Declinations ARTICLE X: Publications ARTICLE XI: Agreements ARTICLE XII: Amendments ARTICLE XIII: Private Interviews. 19 ARTICLE XIV: Conflict Mediation Committee SELECTED RESOLUTIONS Political Parties & Discipline Organizing Campaigns Funding for Organizing Translations Resolutions Expenditures Finance Committee Communications Infrastructure List of Industrial Unions Order of Business INDEX IWW CONSTITUTION & BYLAWS

3 PREAMBLE The working class and the employing class have nothing in common. Ther e can be no peace so long as hunger and want ar e found among millions of the working people and the few, who make up the employing class, have all the good things of life. Between these two classes a str uggle must go on until the workers of the world or ganize as a class, take possession of the means of pr oduction, abolish the wage system, and live in har mony with the ear th. We find that the centering of the management of industries into fewer and fewer hands makes the trade unions unable to cope with the ever -growing power of the employing class. The trade unions foster a state of af fairs which allows one set of workers to be pitted against another set of workers in the same industr y, thereby helping defeat one another in wage wars. Mor eover, the trade unions aid the employing class to mislead the workers into the belief that the working class have inter ests in common with their employers. These conditions can be changed and the inter est of the working class upheld only by an or ganization for med in such a way that all its members in any one industr y, or in all industries if necessar y, cease work whenever a strike or lockout is on in any depar tment thereof, thus making an injur y to one an injur y to all. Instead of the conser vative motto, A fair day s wage for a fair day s work, we must inscribe on our banner the r evolutionar y watchwor d, Abolition of the wage system. It is the historic mission of the working class to do away with capitalism. The army of production must be or ganized, not only for ever yday str uggle with capitalists, but also to car ry on production when capitalism shall have been over thrown. By organizing industrially we are forming the str uctur e of the new society within the shell of the old. Knowing, therefore, that such an or ganization is absolutely necessar y for emancipation, we unite under the following constitution: ARTICLE I Name and Structure Section 1. This or ganization shall be known as THE INDUSTRIAL WORKERS OF THE WORLD. Sec. 2. The Industrial W orkers of the World shall be composed of actual wage workers br ought together in an or ganization embodying Job Branches, Industrial Union Branches, General Membership Branches, Industrial Unions, Industrial Departments, and Regional Or ganizing Committees. Departments Sec. 3(a) An Industrial Depar tment shall be composed of Industrial Unions in closely kindred industries appropriate for representation in the depar tmental administration, and assigned ther eto by the General Executive Board of the Industrial W orkers of the World. b) An Industrial Depar tment shall consist of two or mor e Industrial Unions aggregating a membership of not less than 20,000 members. The Depar tments shall have super vision over the af fairs of the Industrial Unions composing same, pr ovided that all matters concer ning the entir e membership of the IWW shall be settled by a r eferendum. c) The Depar tments shall be designated as follows: 1 - Department of Agricultur e, Land, Fisheries, and W ater Pr oducts. 2 - Department of Mining. 3 - Department of Constr uction. 4 - Department of Manufacturing and General Pr oduction. 5 - Department of T ransportation and Communication. 6 - Department of Public Ser vice. IWW CONSTITUTION & BYLAWS PAGE 3

4 Industrial Unions Sec. 4(a) Industrial Unions shall be composed of actual wage workers in a given industry welded together as the par ticular r e- quirements of said industr y may r ender necessary. b) Whenever five or mor e industrial Union Branches with a combined member - ship of no less than 100 has been attained in any industr y, the General Executive Boar d shall issue an Industrial Union char ter upon receipt of a petition signed by two-thir ds of the combined membership of said Industrial Union Branches. c) An Industrial Union, once char tered, shall act to convene a Convention or Assembly to adopt Industrial Union Bylaws and a uniform Industrial Union dues structure, and to nominate Industrial Union officers to be elected by mail ballot of the membership of said Industrial Union. d) Industrial Union Branches in the same industr y without a char tered Industrial Union ar e encouraged to establish coordinating bodies consistent with Section 5 hereof. Sec. 5. Component par ts of the IWW may set up such coor dinating bodies as they wish, provided their cost shall be defrayed by the sections setting them up, and fur ther provided that they shall not void rank and file contr ol. Sec. 6. No legislation conflicting with the constitution of the IWW shall be passed by any subor dinate body. Sec. 7. All char ters of Industrial Unions, ROCs and local bodies wher e no ROC exists shall be issued by the GEB. In industries where the IWW includes a functioning Industrial Union, char ters shall be issued only on r ecommendation of its General Organizing Committee. In other industries it shall be permissible for local General Membership Branches to or ganize and administer local bodies of workers in any industry until they apply for and ar e granted Industrial Union Branch char ters. PAGE 4 In localities wher e there is one or mor e Industrial Union Branch(es) and a General Membership Branch, it shall be locally optional either to set up a delegate council to handle matters of common concern (such as educational, defense, and social activities) or to leave these to the General Member - ship Branch, with the sharing of financial obligations to be arranged between them. Wher e no General Membership Branch is char tered, it is expected of all members of the IWW to arrange for occasional meetings at which any and all members, whether they are members of Industrial Union Branches or not, may meet together to plan local joint activities. Char ters shall be issued to GMBs or to IUBs only if the GEB finds it feasible for their members to meet together. More than one GMB in the same city or ar ea shall be char - tered only when the GEB finds language, transportation, or other practical r easons warrant it. Regional Organizing Committees Sec. 8. (a) Regional Or ganizing Committees are subor dinate regional sections of the IWW. Whenever ther e are 10 or mor e members of the IWW in a r egion, they may petition the GEB to form a ROC. b) ROCs may set their dues str uctur e, local branch sizes and elect of ficers. Services provided to individual ROCs shall be negotiated between the ROC and General Administration. c) ROCs may print membership car ds and issue stamps in the local language(s). The membership numbers for the car ds shall be provided by General Headquar ters. d) ROCs will negotiate with the General Administration for ser vices and a per capita for international organizing activities. e) All ROCs will be r equired to set up an Organizing Bulletin or other method of internal discussion accessible to all members within that ROC. The local Or ganizing Bulletins shall contain an international IWW CONSTITUTION & BYLAWS

5 report from the GST and GEB which shall be provided to the ROC on a monthly basis. f) In the absence of an ROC in a r egion, one or mor e individuals may be delegated by r egional members, or by the GST, for a period of one year for the purpose of or ganizing an ROC. Such delegates shall r eport at least quar terly to the GST, and may r e- tain all dues and initiation fees collected. ARTICLE II Membership Sec. 1(a) It is the aim of the IWW to build world-wide working-class solidarity. The IWW ther efore actively opposes bigotr y and discrimination on and of f the job. No wage or salaried worker shall be excluded from the IWW because of race, ethnicity, sex, nationality, creed, disability, or sexual orientation. Membership is open only to wage or salaried workers except as pr ovided in Section 1(b), but can be denied to those workers whose employment is incompatible with the aims of this union. b) No unemployed or r etired worker, no working-class student, appr entice, homemaker, prisoner or unwaged volunteer on a project initiated by the IWW or any subor - dinate body ther eof shall be excluded fr om membership on the gr ounds that s/he is not cur rently receiving wages. Such workers may take membership in the Industrial Union for the industr y in which they last worked, or for which they ar e now training, or at which they work par t-time, or in the case of students and homemakers in Educational W orkers I.U. 620 or Household Service W orkers I.U. 680 respectively as may seem most practical. This pr ovision shall not deny to any Industrial Union or Industrial Union Branch the right to limit vote on strictly point-ofproduction matters. W orkers employed in cooperatives democratically run by their employees are welcome to membership. Members who become temporarily selfemployed may r etain their membership or apply for withdrawal car ds, which ar e issuable also to those who must withdraw when they become employers. c) No member of the Industrial W orkers of the W orld shall be an of ficer of a trade or craft union or political par ty. Branches may allow IWW members to become of ficers of trade or craft unions as long as these exceptions ar e reported to the General Administration and no IWW member receives significant pay (mor e than dues rebate and expenses) as a r esult of being an officer or of ficial in a union that does not call for abolition of the wage system. Exceptions may be made by the branches to allow unpaid of ficers of political par ties to become members. Sec. 2. All applicants shall agr ee to abide by the Constitution and r egulations of the IWW and diligently study its principles and make themselves acquainted with its pur - pose. This obligation shall be printed on the application blank. Sec. 3. Whenever members of the Industrial W orkers of the W orld shall hold jobs in mor e than one industr y, they may simultaneously be members of mor e than one Industrial Union or Industrial Union Branch with full rights to democratic par - ticipation in said bodies, pr ovided that they are actual workers in said industries, and provided further that they pay all dues and assessments r equired by each Industrial Union or Industrial Union Branch of which they are members. Members who ar e simultaneously members of mor e than one Industrial Union or Industrial Union Branch shall have only one vote in General Or ganizational elections and r eferenda. Job Branches Sec. 4(a) Whenever ther e are five or more members on the job, they shall constitute themselves a shop or a job branch, and elect a shop committee and a job delegate to attend to urgent matters between business meetings. No member should ser ve permanently on a committee. At each meeting a new committee should be elected. All IWW CONSTITUTION & BYLAWS PAGE 5

6 members should take their tur ns at ser ving on committees. b) To encourage workers self-management of the means of pr oduction and the abolition of the wage system, the IWW shall allow non-wage pr oducer cooperatives to join as char tered IWW co-ops having the right to use the IWW label on their pr oducts. IWW co-ops shall consist of at least three members. Any elected co-op of fice shall be subject to r ecall election if one is called for by the membership. The r ecompense of the members in IWW co-ops shall not undermine wages in the Industr y. IWW co-ops will honor all unions boycotts and strikes. IWW co-ops will use union pr oducts and ser vices whenever possible and recycle as feasible. Quorums Sec. 5(a) Not less than five members, not including the paid Branch Secr etary, shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business. b) No paid of ficial of any par t of the Industrial W orkers of the W orld shall be permitted to vote in Branch meetings. ARTICLE III General Officers Sec. 1 The General Administration shall consist of the General Secr etary-treasurer and the General Executive Boar d. Sec. 2(a) The ter m of of fice shall be for 1 year and the same shall commence on Januar y 1. Officials, after having ser ved their first term of office, shall be eligible for two more terms only, except as specified in Section 3 (c) and (d). b) The General Executive Boar d shall set the wages of all general or ganization employees and organizers. PAGE 6 Elections General Administration Sec. 3(a) The General Secr etary-treasurer shall be a member for 3 years, and 18 months in continuous good standing immediately prior to nomination. The General Executive Boar d shall consist of seven members, all of whom have been members for 18 months, and 12 months in continuous good standing, immediately prior to nomination. In the event that no nominee for General Secr etary-treasurer meeting the 3 year membership r equirement can be found, then the 3 year r equirement shall be r educed to one of 2 years membership with 18 months in continuous good standing prior to nomination. A person elected to office must r emain in continuous good standing until assuming that of fice or for feit the right to hold the office. b) Nominations for General Secr etary- Treasurer and members of the General Executive Boar d shall be made at the General Assembly of the IWW or thr ough the mail with nominations closed by the adjournment of the General Assembly. In either event, election shall be by general r eferendum ballot as pr ovided for in Ar ticle IX, Sec. 2. The ballot shall include space for writein candidates. Either a verbal acceptance on the floor of the Assembly or a written acceptance addressed to the General Secretary- Treasurer must be r eceived from each candidate whose name is placed on the ballot. No member shall be a candidate for or be permitted to hold mor e than one General Administration of fice at a time. c) The thr ee candidates r eceiving the highest number of nominations for General Secretary-Treasurer shall have their names placed on the ballot. Members who have served three or more consecutive ter ms as General Secr etary-treasurer shall not have their names placed on the ballot, except in the event that thr ee qualified nominees cannot otherwise be secur ed. When this is the case, the names of the nominees who have served three or more consecutive ter ms may be placed on the ballot, but the ballot shall clearly state the number of terms in succes- IWW CONSTITUTION & BYLAWS

7 sion previously ser ved by such a candidate. All write-in candidates who meet the r e- quirements of Ar ticle III, Section 3(a) ar e considered qualified nominees. The one r e- ceiving the highest number of votes on r eferendum being elected. d) The 21 candidates r eceiving the highest number of nominations for General Executive Boar d member shall have their names placed on the ballot. Members who have served three or more consecutive ter ms on the General Executive Boar d shall not have their names placed on the ballot, except in the event that 15 qualified nominees cannot other wise be secur ed. When this is the case, the names of the nominees who have served three or more consecutive ter ms may be placed on the ballot, but the ballot shall clearly state the number of terms in succession pr eviously served by such a nominee. A write-in candidate must r eceive a minimum number of votes equal to 5% of the IWW members in good standing. All write-in candidates who r eceive the minimum number of votes and meet the r equirements of Ar ticle III, Section 3(a), ar e considered qualified nominees. The seven nominees r eceiving the highest number of votes on the referendum shall constitute the General Executive Boar d. e) The General Executive Boar d Chair - person shall be the alternate to the General Secretary-Treasurer. Alternates to the General Executive Boar d shall be the r emaining nominees in the or der of votes received. In the event of a vacancy on the General Executive Boar d, with all duly elected members or alter nates alr eady serving or being unavailable, the General Secr etary and the GEB Chairperson shall appoint a boar d member until another shall be elected by referendum. f) No of ficial of the General Administration shall be permitted to hold other office in, or become a paid employee of, any Industrial Union of the Industrial W orkers of the W orld. Duties of the General Secretary-Treasurer Sec. 4(a) The duties of the General Secretary-Treasurer shall be to take char ge of all books, papers and ef fects of the office. S/ he shall conduct the cor respondence pertaining to his/her of fice. S/he shall be the custodian of the seal of the or ganization, and shall attach same to all of ficial documents over his/her of ficial signatur e. S/he shall fur - nish the committee on cr edentials, at each General Assembly, a statement of the financial standing of each Industrial Union. S/he shall have a voice, but no vote, in the governing bodies of the or ganization. The General Secr etary-treasurer shall close his or her accounts for the fiscal year on the last day of June. S/he shall make a monthly r eport to the General Executive Board and the general membership. S/he shall also make a complete itemized r eport of financial and other af fairs of his or her office to each General Assembly. S/he shall pr epare and sign all char ters issued by the General Executive Boar d or ROCs. S/he shall r eceive all moneys for char - ters from Industrial Unions and Industrial Departments. S/he shall r eceipt for same, care for and deposit all moneys as instr ucted by the General Executive Boar d in some solvent bank or banks, which shall be drawn out only to pay indebtedness arising out of due conduct of the business of the or ganization, and then only if bills have first been duly presented by the cr editors when a check shall be drawn by him/her in payment thereof. S/he shall employ such assistants as ar e necessar y to conduct the af fairs of his/her office, remuneration for such employees to be fixed by the General Executive Boar d. b) S/he shall publish a monthly General Organization Bulletin containing his/her monthly r eport as well as that of the General Executive Boar d; together with official notices, referendum ballots, monthly and annual financial r eports, and other organi- IWW CONSTITUTION & BYLAWS PAGE 7

8 zation business. In the event of financial necessity the General Secr etary/treasurer is authorized to issue fewer than twelve bulletins per year, but in no case fewer than eight per year. The Bulletin shall also include letters from IWW members on cur rent referenda and elections, or ganizing campaigns, and other union business. Any member or branch in the union in good standing is allowed 1 page per month (250 wor ds). A $5 donation to help cover costs is r equested, but not r equired of those who can not afford it. Any submission over one page must include a minimum donation of $20 per page to be printed. This pr ovision does not apply to reports of committees, r eports of the GEB, char ges filed, or other materials required by the Constitution or Bylaws to be included in the GOB. The GST shall publish all submissions r eceived by the published monthly deadline, deleting only epithets and/or personal attacks against other members (except that members shall have complete freedom to criticize the conduct of union of ficials without censorship, subject to the provisions of Bylaws Ar ticle III Section 6a). Duties of the General Executive Board Sec. 5(a) The General Executive Boar d shall elect its own chairperson fr om its own number. The General Executive Boar d shall have general super vision over all af fairs of the or - ganization between conventions, and shall watch vigilantly over the inter ests throughout its jurisdiction. It shall be assisted by the officers and members of all or ganizations subordinate to the Industrial W orkers of the World. It shall appoint such or ganizers as the conditions of the or ganization may justify. b) The General Executive Boar d shall not appoint or cause to be appointed any delegate or organizer against the pr otest of, and without first notifying, the General Or ganizing Committee of the Industrial Union which has jurisdiction in the ter ritory in which the PAGE 8 delegate or organizer is to operate. All organizers so appointed shall at all times work under the instruction of the General Executive Boar d. All organizers and General Executive Boar d members, while in the employ of the Industrial W orkers of the World, shall r eport to the chairperson of the General Executive Boar d in writing, on blanks pr ovided for that purpose, at least once each week. c) The General Executive Boar d shall have full power to issue char ters to Industrial Depar tments, Industrial Unions, Branches, and Industrial District Councils. d) The General Executive Boar d shall have full power and authority over all IWW publications and guide their policy. e) The members of the General Executive Board shall have power to visit any subordinate body of the IWW and have full authority to examine and audit all accounts of such body; and also to enfor ce the use of the uniform system of bookkeeping as adopted by the Assembly of the IWW fr om time to time. f) The General Executive Boar d shall meet on the call of the chairperson or major - ity vote of the General Executive Boar d. g) All matters per taining to the or ganization shall be settled by the entir e General Executive Boar d by mail or wir e when absent from headquar ters. It shall take a majority vote to settle any question. h) The General Executive Boar d shall have power to appoint a secr etary of the General Defense Committee whenever they deem it necessar y. i) The General Executive Boar d shall issue a monthly r eport of their activities. International Solidarity Commission Sec. 6(a) The International Solidarity Commission shall be composed of thr ee IWW members with at least 18 months continuous good standing, to be elected by general r eferendum. b) The General Secr etary-treasurer and IWW CONSTITUTION & BYLAWS

9 General Executive Boar d chairperson shall serve as ex officio members of the Commission with voice but no vote. c) International Solidarity Commission members ar e subject to the same nomination, election and r ecall pr ocedures as any other IWW of ficers. d) The Commission will coor dinate the IWW s international r elations with other unions; maintain an ongoing, r egular exchange of information and publications; and coordinate international solidarity campaigns. The Commission shall issue international solidarity appeals and statements in behalf of the or ganization, subject to veto by the General Executive Boar d. Charges Against General Officers Sec. 7(a) Char ges against any of the General Officers shall be filed in writing with the G.E.B. or the General Assembly, at the option of the person filing char ges. Also, in the case wher e a member of the Union who is not a General Of ficer is accused of exercising the authority of the GEB or GST without their appr oval, such char ges shall be filed in writing with the GEB or the General Assembly, at the option of the person filing char ges. If the char ges are filed before the G.E.B., they shall at once have a copy of the char ges sent to the accused, together with the notice of the date of the hearing of the c harges. Char ges filed before the General Assembly must be sent to the General Secr etary at least 30 days prior to the date of the convening of the assembly. On receipt of the char ges the General Secretary will for ward a copy of the same to the accused and notice to appear at the convention for trial. b) Any decision of the G.E.B. on char ges tried by them shall be subject to appeal to the next General Assembly and fr om the General Assembly to the general member - ship. The decision of the General Assembly on char ges can be appealed to the general membership. This appeal must be filed with the General Administration within ninety (90) days fr om the adjour nment of the General Assembly. The cost of appealing to the general membership shall be bor ne by the par ty taking the appeal. If the vote on appeal r esults in the favor of the par ty taking the appeal then the General Or ganization shall r efund the cost of the appeal. ARTICLE IV Clearing House Sec. 1(a) The General Headquar ters of the Industrial W orkers of the W orld shall function as a Clearing House that will automatically settle all debts between Industrial Unions and General Headquar ters. b) All cr edentials authorizing members to initiate members or to collect dues shall be issued by the General Secr etary-treasurer. He or she shall issue such cr edentials on his or her discr etion, on the recommendation of the local or industrial union of ficers, and must do so on the instruction of the General Executive Boar d. Those so cr edentialed shall have been members for 6 months, except that newly or ganized groups may elect one of their members to ser ve in that capacity. All such cr edentials shall bear a distinguishing number, and shall empower the bearer to initiate members or collect dues in all industries. c) The General Secr etary Treasurer may, at the request of a General Membership Branch or Industrial Union Branch, issue blank delegate cr edentials with distinguishing numbers in blocks of five to the Branch Secretary-Treasurer. The branch may r equest as many blocks of delegate cr edentials as needed, and the General Secretary-Treasurer shall attempt to honor all r equests for blank credentials. The General Secr etary-treasurer shall deny issuing blank cr edentials only if the Branch r equesting them has failed to report on time as r equired by the IWW Constitution. The Branch may elect delegates and issue a set of blank cr edentials to a new IWW CONSTITUTION & BYLAWS PAGE 9

10 delegate as it sees fit, provided that they meet the conditions outlined in sub-section (b). The newly cr edentialed delegate shall complete a form issued by the General Secretary-Treasurer that includes backgr ound and membership information, as well as a brief explanation for the need for delegate status. A cur rently cr edentialed delegate of the branch issuing the new cr edentials must agree to sponsor the new delegate, and shall cosign the form. The sponsoring delegate shall be r esponsible for all actions taken by the new delegate in their duties as a delegate until the General Secr etary-treasurer approves the new delegate. Delegates from General Membership Branches and Industrial Union Branches may sponsor new delegates from any member within a r easonable distance of the branch. The sponsoring branch shall be r esponsible for outfitting the new delegate with membership supplies. d) All job delegates or others bearing such cr edentials shall r ecord all fees, dues, assessments, etc., collected on the forms provided by the General Secr etary and shall identify receipt both on the page of the dues book and on top of the stamps with their credential number and date, and shall r e- port at least monthly to the General Secr e- tary by submitting this r ecord together with all signed applications for membership, and all fees and dues money r eceived; provided, any Industrial Union or Industrial Union Branch, or General Membership Branch, through which the delegate operates may require that this r eport be transmitted through it to r ecord the information in its own files and to r etain such por tion of moneys as this constitution and per tinent Bylaws permit. e) The Chairperson of the General Executive Boar d shall countersign all checks issued by the General Secr etary-treasurer. At the same time as the General Executive Board selects its chair, it shall also select a non-boar d member to be designated check co-signer. The co-signer will have the same eligibility r equirements as a Boar d member. PAGE 10 f) Job delegates working out of the general office shall r emit all of initiation fees and dues, whether for employed or unemployed members. Secr etaries of char tered branches shall r emit one-half of same to the general office and r etain the other half in the branch tr easury. g) The General Secr etary-treasurer shall be the custodian of the funds of a General Membership or Industrial Union Branch only upon its r equest, but s/he shall be the custodian of the funds of each Industrial Union, except operating funds for which the organizers or of ficers ar e, in accor dance with the Bylaws, held r esponsible. The General Administration cannot use the funds so entrusted to it without the consent of the Industrial Unions or other bodies owning such a fund, so long as these bodies continue. h) Supplies issued delegates and branch secretaries on behalf of Industrial Unions shall be char ged to the Industrial Union. i) Reports with r emittance for dues, etc., paid during the month shall be sent to the General Secr etary not later than the 10th day of the following month. Should any branch or Industrial Union fail to do so, further supplies to it shall be withheld until these reports are received. j) Any candidate for G.S.T. wishing to relocate General Headquar ters shall so state in their candidate statement, and that intention shall be noted by including the pr o- posed location next to the candidate s name on the ballot for general of ficers. ARTICLE V Duties of Branch Secretaries and Delegates Section 1. Except as pr ovided otherwise in Branch or Industrial Union Bylaws, branch secr etaries shall be the r esponsible custodians of all branch r ecords, funds and supplies; shall issue such supplies to delegates in their branch and r eceive reports from them; shall maintain such r ecords of these transactions as Bylaws or or ganizing IWW CONSTITUTION & BYLAWS

11 programs r equire; shall r eport all such business to the General Secr etary-treasurer at least monthly; shall also transmit to the General Secr etary copies of all minutes of meetings and of his or her own monthly financial r eport to his or her branch; shall endeavor to keep all members in good standing and awar e of all r eferenda. S/he shall also report at least monthly to the General Secretary on the activities and pr ospects of his or her branch. ARTICLE VI Assemblies Section 1(a) Each year the IWW shall hold a General Assembly of the Union, the date and venue of the next Assembly to be set by the Assembly in session befor e its adjournment. b) The General Assembly of the IWW shall not r emain in session over 10 days. Prior to the General Assembly the General Executive Boar d shall issue an agenda to the delegates to the General Assembly specifying the time limit on each question. All r esolutions shall be pr ovided to General Headquarters at least 60 days befor e the opening of the General Assembly, and headquar ters shall furnish copies of the agenda and all resolutions to all char tered branches, ROCs and registered delegates at least 30 days before the opening of the Assembly. No resolution not cir culated in advance shall be considered by the Assembly unless it is of an emergency natur e and the delegates vote by a two-thirds majority to add to the agenda. Sec. 2. The General Assembly of the IWW is the legislative body of the union and has the power to expel any member for violation of the IWW Constitution, Bylaws, or principles. The Assembly s enactments ar e of legal force, provided they are approved by general r eferendum. Referenda to approve assembly motions shall be issued accor ding to the provisions of Ar ticle IX, Sec. 2. Representation Sec. 3(a) Representation at the General Assembly of the IWW shall be mass membership and delegate on the basis of one member one vote. b) Delegates can have mor e than one vote only on issues on which they car ry written instr uctions fr om the member or body that instructed them. c) When two or mor e delegates are representing an Industrial Union in the Assembly, the vote of such Industrial Union shall be equally divided between the delegates. d) The expenses of delegates to the General Assembly, including their mileage, shall be bor ne by the body they r epresent. Credentials Sec. 4(a) On or befor e July 1 of each year the General Secr etary-treasurer shall send to the Chairperson of the General Or - ganization Committee of each Industrial Union cr edentials in duplicate for the number of delegates and alter nates they ar e entitled to in the convention. b) The Chairperson of the General Or - ganization Committee of the Industrial Union shall pr operly fill out the blank cr e- dentials received from the General Secr e- tary-treasurer and r eturn one copy to the General Office not later than August 15. The other copy shall be pr esented by the delegate to the Committee on Cr edentials when the convention assembles. Temporary Session Sec. 5. The General Executive Boar d shall draw up a list of delegates against whom no contest has been filed at the General Office. The General Secr etary-treasurer shall call the convention to or der and read the aforesaid list. The delegates on the said list shall pr oceed to form a temporar y organization by electing a temporar y Chairper - son and a Committee on Cr edentials. Delegates Eligibility Sec. 6(a) Delegates to the General Assembly fr om the Industrial Unions must be members of the IWW for 1 year and in continuous good standing for 60 days immedi- IWW CONSTITUTION & BYLAWS PAGE 11

12 ately prior to nomination. b) The general administration of ficials shall be delegates at lar ge, with voice but no vote. All paid of ficials and employees must be of f the payr oll 90 days prior to the convening of the General Assembly to become eligible as delegates. Any member who has not been on the payr oll 10 consecutive days in the 3 months immediately prior to the convening of the Assembly, shall be eligible as a delegate. No delegate shall cast more than one vote when voting on the seating of a contested delegate or delegates. No delegate shall have mor e than one vote on the expulsion of a member. c) Delegates to the General Assembly shall not ser ve for two consecutive ter ms. Records of Delegates d) The Clearing House shall for ward a complete record of each delegate elected to the General Assembly of the IWW to the chairperson of the G.E.B. and to the Secr e- tary-treasurer in order to facilitate the work of the Credentials Committee of the General Assembly. Joint Delegates Sec. 7. Two or mor e unions, with a total membership of 500 or less, may jointly send a delegate to the Assembly, and the vote of said delegate shall be based on the r epresentation her einbefore provided for. Indebtedness Sec. 8. Industrial Unions that ar e indebted to the official or gans or the publishing bur eau contr olled by the or ganization, having suf ficient funds to pay their indebtedness, shall not be entitled to r epresentation in the General Assembly. Auditing Committee Sec. 9. The General Assembly of the IWW shall elect an auditing committee to audit headquar ters books and supplies. Its expenses shall be bor ne by the General Or - ganization. It shall issue a r eport within 90 days of its election, and cause this r eport to be published in the General Or ganization Bulletin. Resolutions Sec. 10. Resolutions for the General Assembly shall be acted upon by their Industrial Union convention, and if the Industrial Union has no convention, then the branches acting on same must send them to their Industrial Union G.E.B. or G.O.C. chairperson to be segr egated; and each r esolution shall be on a separate sheet of paper and duplicated. No r esolution sent in by an individual shall be consider ed by the General Assembly. ARTICLE VII Label Sec. 1. There shall be a Universal Label for the entire organization. It shall be of a crimson color and always the same in design. The use of the Universal Label shall never be delegated to employers, but shall be vested entirely in our or ganization. Except on stickers, cir culars, and literatur e proclaiming the merits of the Industrial Workers of the W orld, and emanating fr om the General Offices of the Industrial W orkers of the W orld, the Universal Label shall be printed only as evidence of work done by IWW members. When the label is so printed it shall be done by the authority of our or ganization, without the inter vention of any employer. Whenever the Universal Label is placed upon a commodity as evidence of work done by Industrial W orkers, it shall be accompanied by an inscription underneath the label stating what the work is that Industrial Workers have done, giving the name of Industrial Depar tment to which they belong and the number or numbers of their unions; and the Universal Label shall never be printed as evidence of work done without this inscription. Seal Sec. 2. Each Union and Branch shall be PAGE 12 IWW CONSTITUTION & BYLAWS

13 provided with a seal by the General Secr e- tary-treasurer, which shall bear the number of the Union, and all of ficial papers fr om the union or branch must bear an imprint of this seal, and none will be legal without this impr ession. ARTICLE VIII Revenue Sec. 1. The r evenue of the organization shall be derived as follows: Char ter fees from Industrial Depar tments shall be $25.00 and for Industrial Unions $ Industrial Union Branches shall pay $2.00 for seal and char ter. Initiation Fees & Dues Sec. 2(a) The Industrial Unions shall have autonomous right to set their own initiation fees, dues and assessments, other than General Or ganizational assessments. It is the policy of the IWW to put no financial bar rier to prevent any worker fr om joining. Accor dingly, initiations shall not exceed $15.00 nor monthly dues exceed $ All Industrial Unions shall char ge sufficient dues to meet their obligations. No par t of the initiation fee or dues mentioned above shall be used as a sick or death benefit, but shall be held in the tr easury as a general fund to defray the legitimate expenses. b) Industrial Unions and Industrial Union Branches shall have autonomous right to set their own initiation fees, dues and assessments. However such dues must be set at a rate that enables continued per capita payments. These payments ar e for the General Administration and char tered bodies (such as General Membership Branches and their successors) as described in (e) below. c) It is the policy of the IWW that no financial bar rier shall pr event any worker from joining. Accor dingly, Industrial Unions and Industrial Union Branches shall not set excessive initiation fees or dues. In no case shall Industrial Union or Industrial Union Branch initiation fees or monthly dues exceed two times the straight time hourly wage of the member. d) All Industrial Unions and Industrial Union Branches shall char ge sufficient dues to meet their obligations and cover their expenses. No part of the initiation fees or dues mentioned above shall be used as a sick or death benefit, but shall be held in the tr easury as a general fund to defray legitimate expenses. e) Dues paid by Industrial Union Branch members to their delegates consist of thr ee parts: 1) Industrial Union Branch dues 2) Per capita due to General Administration, defined as fifty per cent of the amount mandated under subsection (a) above; 3) Per capita due to the local General Membership Branch or its successors, which amount shall be negotiated between these bodies and the Industrial Union Branch. f) The G.E.B. is authorized at its discr e- tion to waive initiation fee or r educe it to a nominal fee when incorporating previously organized workers or in organizing campaigns among especially distressed workers. The G.E.B. is further authorized to waive dues payments in the event of a strike or lock out. g) All dues stamps for all Industrial Unions must be of the same design without the price printed on them. h) A page shall be pr ovided in the cr e- dentials fully stating the initiating fee and the dues char ged by every Industrial Union for the information of delegates and branch secretaries. i) For members in Canada and the U.S. dues shall be set as follows: 1) Dues shall be $6 per month for workers earning less than $1000 per month. 2) $12 per month for workers earning between $1000 and $2000 per month. 3) $18 per month for workers earning IWW CONSTITUTION & BYLAWS PAGE 13

14 more than $2000 per month. Sub-minimum dues of $3 per month may be paid by members in poor economic circumstances. Dues of members in the subminimum categor y who belong to or ganized branches shall be appor tioned as follows: $2.50 to the General Administration, $0.50 to the branch. Initiation fees shall be equal to one month s dues. Each new member shall be provided a copy of the One Big Union pamphlet. j) Regional Or ganizing Committees shall set dues for members in their r egions. Dues for members in r egions without ROCs shall be set, in local cur rency, by the GEB in consultation with members in those r egions. k) The General Executive Boar d is authorized at its discr etion to allow 50% of the dues and initiations collected to be r e- tained by those involved in an or ganizing campaign pr ovided the delegates involved report on the progress of such campaigns to the General Executive Boar d monthly, and account for all money r eceived and spent. ARTICLE IX Amendments, Etc. Sec. 1(a) All pr oposed amendments to the Constitution and Bylaws shall clearly state the ar ticle, section and paragraph to which the amendment applies. New ar ticles and sections shall be so stated. Each clause to be amended shall be on a separate sheet. Conflicting Parts b) All par ts of the Constitution conflicting with amendments ratified by a r eferendum vote ar e hereby declar ed null and void. Referenda Sec. 2(a) A r eferendum on any or ganization question, including constitutional amendments, may be initiated by the General Executive Boar d, or by a petition of 15 members in good standing. b) All pr operly submitted r eferendum items shall be included on a ballot to be issued each year no later than October 15. Notification of all r eferendum items, including the full text of all questions to be voted upon and the names of all nominees for General Administration of fice who have not declined, shall be pr ovided to all members at least 30 days prior to the issuance of the ballot. Notice shall be either thr ough publication in the Industrial W orker or the General Organization Bulletin, together with a mailing to all char tered branches, and shall specify the deadline for submitting discussion of the r eferendum items for publication in the General Or ganization Bulletin which shall accompany the ballot. Ballots shall be sent to all members in good standing and shall be open for voting for not less than 30 days and not mor e than 45 days. Ballots shall be sent by thir d class mail to members r esiding within the United States, and by air mail to those r esiding in other countries. The deadline for r eceipt of ballots at General Headquar ters shall be printed on the ballot, but in no event shall be later than November 30. Ballots shall be counted and the r esults released no later than midnight December 1. c) Ballots issued by local ROCs on union-wide referenda may be counted by a ROC ballot committee. The ROC ballot committee must then communicate the r e- sults via secur ed correspondence to the union-wide ballot committee at the General Headquarters. The ROC results shall be opened at the same time as all individual ballots. The tallies of individual ROCs may not be announced before the union-wide tally. d) The r eturns of the r eferendum shall remain in General Headquar ters in sealed envelopes until the ballot committee meets. The ballot committee shall meet immediately on expiration of time set for r eturn of ballots. The General Secr etary-treasurer shall notify Industrial Union or body initiating r eferendum of date set for count of ballots. e) The ballot committee to count the PAGE 14 IWW CONSTITUTION & BYLAWS

15 votes on the referendum shall be composed as follows: Thr ee members in continuous good standing for 1 year prior to their election on committee shall be elected by the Industrial Unions in the city in which Headquarters is located. In r eporting thr ough the monthly bulletin the r eturns of r eferendums and elections, the General Secr etary-treasurer shall give the names of the ballot committee together with their car d numbers and the Industrial Union of which they ar e members. f) The Industrial Union or body initiating a r eferendum shall pay the expenses of its own delegates on ballot committee unless the referendum is car ried, in which event the expenses shall be borne by the general organization. g) Referendum r eturns from any Industrial Union cannot exceed its paid-up membership for the 3 months prior to the vote on the referendum in question. h) Ballots shall be pr epared in such a way as to assur e complete secrecy in voting and shall be in duplicate form to allow the member to r etain a r ecord of his or her vote. Ballots shall contain no information identifying the ballot with the member who sent it. All infor mation per taining to the member s name and standing will be enter ed onto the voucher envelope. Once the ballot is approved by the ballot committee, it will be secur ed separately from the member s identifying information. All ballots must be number ed. Ballots not number ed or from members in bad standing will not be considered valid ballots. Any members whose ballots have been invalidated shall be notified by first-class mail within seven (7) days of the decision by the Ballot Committee, explaining the r eason his or her ballot was invalidated. i) All constitutional changes ratified by a general r eferendum ballot shall take ef fect Januar y 1, unless other wise decided by the General Assembly. j) Any par t of this General Constitution may be suspended or set aside for 1 year if so appr oved by a general r eferendum, initiated as pr ovided for in Section 2(a) of this Ar ticle. Recall Sec. 3. The General Administration Officials shall be subject to r ecall upon a r eferendum, initiated as pr ovided for in Section 2(a), Article IX. No later than thr ee days following a r eceipt of a petition or motion for recall, the General Administration shall notify all char tered Administrations and Branches of same, and specify the date by which members can submit ar guments concerning the question for publication in the GOB accompanying the ballot on r ecall. Ballots shall be issued no later than 30 days following r eceipt, and shall be issued in accordance with the pr ovisions of Ar ticle IX, Section 2. Officers shall continue in of fice during the r ecall r eferendum. ARTICLE X Transfers, Craft Cards, Etc. Sec. 1. Ther e shall be a fr ee interchange of cards between all organizations subordinate to the Industrial Workers of the World, and any Industrial Union shall accept, in lieu of initiation fee, the paid up membership car d of any r ecognized labor union. Sec. 2(a) Members of an Industrial Union who cease work in that industr y and are working in another industr y for 30 days or mor e, must transfer to the pr oper Industrial Union. No member is allowed to transfer unless actually working in the industr y s/he wishes to transfer to. b) Any member of char tered unions when working in another Industrial Union over 30 days and who fails to transfer shall be considered a member in bad standing. Sec. 3. Members in ar rears in dues and assessments cannot transfer fr om one Industrial Union to another. Delinquent delegates cannot transfer. Sec. 4(a). All delegates upon transfer - ring a member fr om one Industrial Union IWW CONSTITUTION & BYLAWS PAGE 15

16 to another shall immediately send the r ecord of transfer to the Clearing House. b) Any member of the IWW who has attended any I.U. confer ence or convention, with voice and vote 90 days prior to the convening of the General Assembly, at which action was taken on r esolutions to be presented to the General Assembly, or at which delegates to the General Assembly were elected, shall not have voice and vote at any other I.U. Convention or Conference prior to the General Assembly. PAGE 16 Withdrawal of Cards Sec. 5. On application, members who cease to be wage workers shall send their cards to the Secretary-Treasurer of the Clearing House who shall enter date of withdrawal on transfer page of membership book, together with his or her of ficial signatur e, and return same to the withdrawing member. Sec. 6. Any member in continuous good standing for 10 years, and found, after proper investigation by the Branch of the Industrial Union to which s/he belongs, to be incapacitated for life, the Industrial Union shall issue him/her a special membership car d car rying the privilege of having a voice under Good and W elfare, but with no voice on the business of the Branch. ARTICLE XI Charters Sec. 1. The number of signers r equired on an application for a Char ter shall not be less than 10. Sec. 2. The char ter of a union or branch shall be sur rendered when membership falls below 5. Sec. 3. Upon a union sur rendering its char ter, the ROC (or GEB wher e no ROC exists) shall appoint a r epresentative of the Industrial Workers of the World to take charge of the char ter, supplies and property and funds of said union. Members or of ficers of said union r efusing to deliver char ter, supplies, property or funds of union sur rendering its char ter to the authorized r epresentatives of the Industrial W orkers of the W orld shall be expelled fr om the organization. ARTICLE XII Unemployed members Section 1. Except where Industrial Unions pr ovide otherwise, any member whose income for the pr eceding month has been less than $ shall be entitled to pay dues for that month at the minimum rate of thr ee dollars per month, this to include students working par t-time. If a member pays mor e than one month in advance and later the member s income changes to above $800, that member must pay the difference in dues with r espect to the new income beginning with the month that it changed. Special minimum-income stamps shall be issued by the Clearing House, and shall be enter ed separately in all accounts. Sec. 2. Members with minimum income dues stamps ar e entitled to full rights and privileges; representation at Assemblies shall in no way discriminate between the two types of dues; except as otherwise provided those paying minimum income dues shall be required to pay all assessments due fr om employed members. GENERAL BYLAWS ARTICLE I Sec. 1. Unions shall have the power to enact such laws for their government as they may deem necessar y, providing they do not conflict with the Constitution and Bylaws of the Industrial W orkers of the W orld. Sec. 2. A majority vote cast shall rule in the general or ganization and its subor dinate parts. ARTICLE II Defense Sec. 1. The General Defense Committee (GDC) shall be composed of the GDC Central, GDC locals, initiated by local Industrial Unions and/or General Membership IWW CONSTITUTION & BYLAWS