Boost Your Organizing | Training

Name: Boost Your Organizing | Training
Uploaded: 2021-02-24T20:49:50.000Z
Duration: 1 h 56 min 21 s

Introduction and Welcome

The trainers welcome the participants to the training session on using time-tested tactics to evaluate and boost organizing. They mention that everyone is on mute to minimize background noise.

Participants are welcomed to the training session.

Muting participants helps reduce background noise.

Training Session Details

The trainers express their excitement about the large group attending the training session and explain that they will be using the chat feature for interactive activities.

Trainers express excitement about the large group attending.

Participants are encouraged to use the chat feature for interactive activities.

Training Agenda

The trainers provide an overview of what will be covered in the training, including assessments, one-on-ones, and building effective power-building organizing programs.

The training will cover leaderful organizing model basics.

Assessments, one-on-ones, and more will be discussed.

The goal is to develop leaders and scale progressive movements.

Introductions and Motivations

Participants are invited to introduce themselves in the chat by sharing their names, pronouns, and motivations for joining the training.

Participants are asked to introduce themselves in the chat.

Names, pronouns, and motivations are shared by participants.

Participant Responses

Some participants from Canada and various parts of the United States share their motivations for joining the training in response to a prompt in the chat.

Participants from Canada and different parts of the United States share their motivations for joining.

Ground Rules and Poll

The trainers set ground rules for participation and conduct a short poll before diving into defining core attributes of leaderful organizing model.

Ground rules for participation are established.

A short poll is conducted.

Trainer Introductions

The trainers introduce themselves. Seth, a partner success specialist with Action Squared, shares his background in community and online organizing. Liz, an organizer in the labor movement, talks about her experience with one-on-one conversations and field work.

Seth introduces himself as a partner success specialist with Action Squared.

Liz introduces herself as an organizer in the labor movement.

Training Tools and Experience

The trainers provide information about the tools they use for organizing and their experience in the field.

Seth discusses Action Builder and its role in facilitating relational organizing.

Liz shares her experience as an organizer in the labor movement.

Conclusion of Trainer Introductions

The trainers conclude their introductions and express excitement about co-leading the training session.

The trainers conclude their introductions.

They express excitement about co-leading the training session.

The Role of Data in Organizing Strategic Decisions

This section discusses how organizing strategic decisions are based on data and quantifiable benchmarks. Targets often include union busters who work behind the scenes. The ultimate goal is to win National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) elections for union recognition and contracts.

Organizing strategic decisions are data-driven and based on quantifiable benchmarks.

Union busters, who are often hidden behind bosses, are the main targets.

The victory is achieved by winning NLRB elections for union recognition and contracts.

Importance of Organizing and Sharing Knowledge

The speaker expresses their excitement about sharing their knowledge about organizing. Ground rules for the session are set, including typing questions in the chat and respecting everyone's time. The importance of learning from lived experiences and recognizing everyone as both a teacher and a student is emphasized.

The speaker is excited to share their knowledge about organizing.

Ground rules include typing questions in the chat and being respectful of time.

Learning from lived experiences is important, as everyone here is both a teacher and a student.

Building Authentic Relationships in Organizing

This section highlights the importance of building authentic relationships in organizing. It emphasizes that people's lived experiences make them experts in their own lives and communities. Additionally, it acknowledges that everyone here brings their full selves as both teachers and students.

Building authentic relationships is crucial in organizing.

Lived experiences make individuals experts in their own lives and communities.

Everyone here is both a teacher and a student, bringing their full selves to learn from each other.

Learning from People's Experiences

This section emphasizes the importance of learning from people who tirelessly work to help others recognize and step into their power. It acknowledges that organizing is about building robust networks based on trust and honoring our shared humanity.

Learning from those who work tirelessly to empower others is essential.

Organizing involves building robust networks based on trust.

Honoring our shared humanity is a key aspect of organizing.

Integrating Tactics for Impact

This section discusses the challenges of integrating different tactics, such as voting and organizing moments, mobilizing people, and utilizing local and national resources. It highlights the need to unite these actions for maximum impact.

The challenge lies in integrating various tactics for impact.

Examples include integrating voting and organizing moments, mobilizing people, and utilizing resources effectively.

Uniting these actions is crucial for creating the envisioned future.

Core Concepts Covered in Training

This section introduces the five core concepts that will be covered in the training session. These concepts include assessments, one-on-one interactions, identifying and nurturing leaders, assigning tasks, measuring progress, and defining wins.

The five core concepts covered in the training are:

Assessments

One-on-one interactions

Identifying and nurturing leaders

Assigning tasks

Measuring progress and defining wins

Polling Participants' Interests

A poll is conducted to gauge participants' interests in specific learning points. Participants are asked to indicate their preferences by typing A, B, C, D, E or F in the chat.

Participants are polled to determine their interests in specific learning points.

Responses are collected through chat messages indicating preferences with letters A-F.

The Story of Mick Hospital

The speaker shares the story of organizing nurses at a hospital, referred to as Mick Hospital for anonymity. Mick Hospital is a multinational corporation that acquires local non-profit community healthcare systems and turns them into profit-driven entities.

The speaker shares the story of organizing nurses at Mick Hospital.

Mick Hospital is a multinational corporation that converts non-profit community healthcare systems into profit-driven entities.

Organizing a Campaign from Nothing

This section discusses the importance of individuals who joined the campaign and took it to the next level. It highlights the transformation of nurses and their impact on turning an entire department from anti-union to pro-union.

Nurses Who Made a Difference

Juanita, Raquel, and Scarlett were ICU nurses who played a crucial role in elevating the campaign.

Carolyn, a med surg nurse, successfully turned an entire department from anti-union to pro-union.

Jolene, an O.R nurse, found her voice and power through the campaign.

Ellen, a powerhouse nurse, became a union organizer in her retirement.

The Challenge of Union Busters

This section emphasizes that organizing efforts face powerful enemies known as union busters. These well-resourced individuals aim to undermine unionization by using fear tactics and professional skills.

Union Busters

Union busters are highly skilled professionals who are paid to terrorize nurses and workers to discourage them from unionizing.

Big hospitals like MCHospital employ in-house union busting teams.

By employing transformational methods instead of transactional ones, organizers can overcome these challenges.

The Importance of Assessments

Assessments play a vital role in building collective power among volunteers and activists. They help identify workplace and community experts who recognize their own power and lead their own work.

Using Assessments

Assessments are essential components for building collective power.

In the MCHospital campaign, a one through four assessment scale was used.

Workers themselves indicate their assessment based on their willingness to take action for forming a union.

Actions taken by workers also demonstrate their assessment.

Defining a Leader

This section explores the concept of leadership and how it relates to the campaign. The qualities of a leader are discussed, highlighting the importance of having followers.

Qualities of a Leader

Juanita is an example of a leader who was loved and respected by everyone.

A leader possesses qualities such as bravery, trustworthiness, curiosity, and being a good listener.

However, having followers is the key quality that distinguishes a leader from others.

Different Levels of Support

This section explains the different levels of support within the campaign, ranging from leaders to anti-union individuals. It emphasizes the significance of understanding each level for strategic decision-making.

Levels of Support

Ones are leaders like Juanita who have followers and are highly respected.

Twos are supporters like Annie who participate but may not have time to lead or organize colleagues.

Threes are undecided individuals who can sway the outcome of campaigns.

Fours are anti-union nurses like Karen who collaborate with management to undermine union efforts.

Assessing Anti-Union Individuals

This section focuses on assessing anti-union individuals within the campaign. It highlights Karen as an example and mentions the possibility of having an active anti-union person in some contexts.

Assessing Anti-Union Individuals

Karen strongly opposes unions and spreads union buster rhetoric among her colleagues.

In some cases, anti-union individuals may collaborate with management and union busting teams.

Some campaigns may also encounter active anti-union people categorized as fives or fixers.

Timestamps provided above correspond to approximate times in seconds based on the transcript.

New Section

This section discusses the importance of continuously assessing individuals' support for a cause and the need to engage them in taking action.

Assessing Support and Taking Action

It is important to continually test assessments by making asks of people to get them to engage and take action.

Simply stating support for a cause does not necessarily make someone a true supporter. Engaging individuals in actions helps determine their level of commitment.

By asking, listening, and understanding the problems and solutions that co-workers or neighbors share, commonalities can be discovered, leading to stronger bonds and collective action.

New Section

This section explains the concept of one-on-one conversations as powerful tools for organizing.

The Power of One-on-One Conversations

One-on-one conversations are like friendly organizing interviews that help cultivate trust and identify shared interests.

These conversations allow for discovering commonalities, understanding issues at work, and realizing collective power to address them.

New Section

This section highlights the importance of effective one-on-one conversations in organizing campaigns.

Lessons from One-on-One Conversations

One-on-one conversations are crucial in any campaign but can be challenging if not done properly.

Avoid focusing solely on recruitment goals during one-on-one conversations; instead, spend time getting to know the person, their concerns, and shared self-interest.

Facts alone do not persuade people; emotions play a significant role in decision-making regarding unions or taking action.

Building relationships and helping individuals discover their own motivations and interests is more effective than trying to convince or teach them.

The Importance of Asking Questions and Listening

This section emphasizes the significance of asking open-ended questions and actively listening to others. It highlights how effective questioning can lead to self-discovery and empowerment.

Asking Open-Ended Questions

Engage in conversations by asking open-ended questions that require full sentence responses.

Agitate thoughts by asking the right questions at the right time, encouraging individuals to reflect on why things are the way they are and who benefits from certain situations.

Allow individuals to discover their own frustrations and injustices through their own experiences and stories.

Active Listening

Actively listen without interrupting or imposing personal opinions.

Create a safe space for individuals to share their stories, emotions, and concerns.

Build trust by showing genuine interest in their experiences.

Empowerment Through Conversation

Help individuals feel empowered and transformed through meaningful conversations.

Avoid telling them what they should think or feel; instead, guide them towards self-discovery.

Both parties should leave the conversation feeling more empowered, even if only marginally.

Identifying and Nurturing Leaders

This section discusses the process of identifying leaders within a group or organization and nurturing their potential. It emphasizes the importance of defining leadership within your program.

Identifying Leaders

Recognize that leaders already exist within a workplace or community setting.

Build relationships with natural leaders who have followership.

Look for individuals who demonstrate confidence, influence, and initiative.

Nurturing Leadership Potential

Provide opportunities for volunteers to take on different roles within your program to identify their strengths.

Define what leadership means within your organization based on your goals and objectives.

Create tasks and responsibilities that align with leadership characteristics to nurture emerging leaders.

Building Relationships with Natural Leaders

This section highlights the importance of building relationships with natural leaders within a workplace or community. It provides an example of identifying a leader through their social connections.

Example: Raquel, the ICU Nurse

Raquel, a young ICU nurse, was identified as a potential leader due to her role in hosting a bachelor watch party for other nurses.

By recognizing her influence within her social circle, she was invited to join the organizing committee.

The transcript ends here.

The Underrated Leader in the Labor Movement

In this section, the speaker discusses Janet, a timid but strong and underrated leader in the labor movement. Janet played a crucial role in bringing Juanita into the fold.

Janet's Role in Bringing Juanita into the Fold

Through asking questions and reputation, Janet identified Juanita as someone who wanted to fit the bill.

Janet invited Juanita to a meeting at her home where they discussed hospital issues and the vision for improvement.

After a particularly stressful day at work, Juanita expressed her frustration to Scarlett and decided to form a union.

A few days later, Juanita and Scarlett met with Janet for coffee, which led to the start of their campaign.

Breaking Into Surgical Services

This section highlights how the organizing committee faced challenges when trying to break into surgical services. They had to find alternative tactics due to closed units and limited connections.

Overcoming Challenges in Surgical Services

Surgical services were closed units behind locked doors, making it difficult for workers to interact with each other.

The union utilized a legislative campaign that involved nurses sending postcards of support for hospital safety legislation.

Janet took on the task of collecting postcards from nurses by knocking on doors and engaging them in conversations about unions.

During an organizing meeting with nurses, Janet shared her success story of talking to Ellen, one of the senior nurses in surgical services.

Ellen joined the organizing committee and helped break open surgical services.

Not All Leaders Are on Our Side

This section emphasizes that not all leaders will support the union. The speaker mentions an OB nurse who was naturally anti-union but still a natural leader.

Dealing with Different Types of Leaders

The OB nurse mentioned earlier was naturally anti-union but had leadership qualities.

Developing leaders involves having one-on-one conversations, agitating, asking questions, and marching arm in arm through the campaign.

Solidarity is crucial in cultivating and developing leaders.

Being there for leaders when they need support, whether as a shoulder to cry on or a cheerleader, is essential.

Cultivating and developing leaders often means being a good friend.

Encouraging Courage and Accountability

This section highlights the importance of encouraging courage and accountability in order to nurture leaders. It also addresses the concept that leaders have followers.

Encouraging Courage and Accountability

Encouraging people to practice courage is important in nurturing leaders.

Being accountable and showing up for others helps them find their strength.

Leaders have followers, emphasizing the simple concept that leadership involves having people who follow them.

The transcript provided does not include any timestamps beyond 2209 seconds (approximately 36 minutes).

Desiging Leadership and Growing More Leaders

In this section, the speaker discusses the importance of designing leadership and growing more leaders. They emphasize the need for leaders to be active public supporters of a campaign and how leadership should be earned. The ability to grow more leaders is seen as a core task for experienced leaders.

Importance of Designing Leadership

Leaders should be active public supporters of a campaign.

Designing what it means to be a leader before launching a campaign is critical.

Leadership needs to be real and earned.

Growing More Leaders

Experienced leaders have the task of growing more leaders.

Assigning tasks helps in growing potential leaders.

The outcome is the development of new leaders within the organization.

Leadership Transformation: A Personal Experience

In this section, the speaker shares a personal experience about how leadership can transform individuals. They highlight the story of Jolene, an OR nurse who initially struggled with communication but transformed into a strong leader through step-by-step tasks.

Transformation Story: Jolene, OR Nurse

Initially, Jolene was scared and struggled with communication.

Through completing escalating tasks, she grew into her power as a leader.

Tasks included talking on the phone, attending meetings, signing petitions, and appearing on television commercials.

Her transformation from fear to strength was inspiring for everyone involved.

Tasks in an Escalation Campaign

This section focuses on defining tasks in an escalation campaign. The speaker emphasizes starting small and gradually moving people outside their comfort zones. Clear goals are essential throughout the process.

Defining Tasks in an Escalation Campaign

Tasks should start small and build up gradually.

Each task should connect clearly to the overall goal of winning a contract and forming a union.

Examples of tasks include meeting for coffee, attending meetings, signing petitions, and publicly shaming employers.

Tasks should escalate and move people outside their comfort zones but not too quickly to avoid scaring them off.

Characteristics of Good Tasks

This section discusses the characteristics of good tasks in an escalation campaign. The speaker highlights the importance of building public support, fostering solidarity among workers, and setting clear goals.

Characteristics of Good Tasks

Good tasks build public support for the campaign.

Tasks should encourage workers to talk to each other and fight together in solidarity.

Clear measurability and time-bound nature are important for effective tasks.

Defining the universe or specific targets is crucial for success.

Conclusion

In this final section, the speaker concludes by emphasizing the importance of defining tasks that gradually move people outside their comfort zones. They highlight the need for clear goals, building public support, and fostering solidarity among workers.

Key Takeaways

Designing leadership and growing more leaders is essential for successful campaigns.

Personal transformation stories demonstrate the power of step-by-step tasks.

Good tasks in an escalation campaign should be clear, measurable, time-bound, and build public support.

Solidarity among workers is fostered through well-designed tasks that encourage collaboration.

Timestamps may vary slightly depending on the source video.

New Section

In this section, the speaker discusses the importance of speaking up and taking time to think about tasks. They also highlight the need for creativity and how tasks can be different in various settings.

Importance of Speaking Up and Taking Time (0:43:54 - 0:44:04)

It is important to speak up and not remain silent, as it can lead to missed opportunities.

Taking time to think about tasks and quantify them is crucial.

Creativity plays a role in task management, which may vary between workplace and community settings.

Time as a Factor in Task Management (0:44:04 - 0:44:44)

Building strength takes time, just like building muscles through tension over time.

Tasks can be seen as tension that needs to be lifted, with each task contributing to building strength.

The more we practice managing tasks, the easier it becomes.

Working Together to Define Wins (0:45:00 - 0:45:21)

Collaboratively defining wins is essential when launching a campaign.

Having a clear end goal in mind helps guide the campaign's direction.

Engaging leaders, activists, and members in defining wins and measuring progress is crucial.

Measuring Progress Toward Goals (0:45:21 - 0:46:59)

Measuring progress requires defining the scope of the campaign.

In labor organizing, there are predefined parameters based on labor laws.

Pitfalls in community organizing include trying to organize everyone instead of focusing on specific goals.

Determining the number of people needed for accomplishing goals is vital.

The equation of one leader for every ten activists helps determine leadership development needs.

Organizing Committee and Distribution (0:47:15 - 0:48.20)

Establishing an organizing committee is crucial in both labor and community organizing.

The organizing committee should consist of 10% of the campaign's universe, meeting the required number of people for achieving goals.

Distribution of leaders and supporters across different units, shifts, or departments is important.

Assessments and Completed Tasks (0:48:20 - 0:48:44)

Assessments of individuals as ones or twos should be backed by completed tasks.

Dropping someone down to a lower assessment level if they have not completed certain tasks.

Success Story in Hospital Campaign (0:48:44 - 0:49:09)

A hospital campaign achieved an overwhelming victory in their NLRB election with a 70% majority.

They successfully bargained and ratified their first contract, which is rare in labor organizing.

The transcript provided does not include timestamps for all sections.

The Power of Storytelling in Organizing

In this section, the speaker emphasizes the importance of storytelling in organizing and shares a personal story to illustrate its effectiveness.

The Impact of Personal Stories

Personal stories help to connect with people on an emotional level and make organizing methods more relatable.

Real-life examples demonstrate that organizing is not always straightforward and can be messy.

Time-Tested Tactics for Organizers

This section highlights the value of using time-tested tactics in organizing and encourages participants to reference these methods for their own programs.

Key Concepts Covered

Assessments: Understanding the needs and priorities of individuals or groups.

Assigning tasks: Distributing responsibilities among team members.

Working together to find wins: Collaborating with others to achieve common goals.

One-on-one assessments: Building relationships based on emotions during individual meetings.

Task or task: Focusing on relationship building rather than selling a product or idea.

Leadership qualities: Exploring what makes a leader, including growing responsibility.

Q&A Session and Wrap-up

The session concludes with a brief Q&A session where participants can ask questions related to the training topics.

Addressing Membership Concerns

If someone no longer wants anything to do with the union after being a member in the past, it is best to respect their decision and move on without trying to convince them otherwise.

Alternatively, focus on cultivating relationships with the friends or leaders of individuals who have distanced themselves from the union.

Follow-up and Additional Training

The recording of the training session will be shared via email to participants.

A link to the organizing guide will also be provided.

Participants express interest in a follow-up training that delves into class analysis and race analysis, which were not covered in this session.

Action Builder Tool

Action Builder is a tool set that helps visualize assessments and organize information about workers or participants. It can be integrated with traditional organizing methods.

New Section

In this section, the speaker discusses how to apply principles to an already formed group experiencing apathy during the pandemic.

Applying Principles to an Already Formed Group

The pandemic has made face-to-face communication difficult, leading to increased apathy in groups.

Using technology like Zoom can help supplement face-to-face interactions and build relationships.

One-on-one conversations are crucial for understanding workers' concerns and interests.

Apathy may be a result of workers suppressing their feelings due to being beat down by circumstances.

By asking the right questions and identifying workers' hot button issues, organizers can engage even seemingly apathetic individuals.

A recording of the training will be made available.

New Section

This section highlights the challenges faced during the pandemic and how organizers have found creative ways to continue their work.

Challenges and Creative Solutions During the Pandemic

The pandemic has posed challenges for organizing efforts, but individuals have found innovative ways to continue their work.

Despite opposition from union busters, it is important to swing back against disengagement by engaging with workers effectively.

The guide being discussed was written during the pandemic and includes a section on navigating these challenges.

Organizers are finding ways to adapt and continue organizing despite the difficulties presented by the pandemic.

The transcript is already in English.