“Koach La Ovdim – Democratic labor organization” Bylaws
“Koach la Ovdim, (“Power to the workers”) Democratic labor organization” aims
Promoting and assisting workers to organize, support and assist employees in improving their working conditions and salaries, including if necessary the signing of agreements, including collective agreements on wages and working conditions, on their behalf. To struggle against trends, processes and economic measures that violates workers rights, their wages and the organized labor. To Struggle for social and economic justice, a universal welfare state and industrial Democracy.
“Koach La Ovdim Democratic labor organization” Bylaws
(The only legally binding version is the Hebrew one)
1 – All bylaws are applicable for all members regardless of gender.
2 – These by- law are an agreement between the organization and its members and between the members themselves
Membership
3. Membership
(A) The founders are members of the organization from date of registration in the Register of Organizations.
(B) A person wishes to become a member of the Organization shall submit to the “Central committee” a request With the Following wording:
“I (name, address, workplace address if there is one, a job if there is one, Social Security number, phone number, email address if available) would like to be a member of ” Koach La Ovdim Democratic labor organization “. The aims of the Organization and it bylaws are known to me. If I am accepted as a member, I pledge to uphold the bylaws, the decisions of elected institutions of “Power to the Workers Democratic labor organization” and to act in accordance with the aims of the organization.
(C) The decision on the admission of the applicant as a member of the Organization is made by the “central committee”; if the “central committee” refuses to accept the applicant, he may appeal the refusal to the General Meeting / “Delegates’ Assembly”.
4. Rights and obligations of a Member
(A) A member of the Organization must belong to a branch of the Organization.
(B) A member of the Organization is entitled to attend and vote at any meeting of the branch in which he is a member.
(C) A member of the Organization is entitled to elect the Delegates of the branch to the “Delegates Assembly”, and to be elected as a Delegate of the branch to the “Delegates Assembly”.
(D) A member of the Organization is entitled to be elected for each position within the framework of the organization, unless his right is restricted under these Bylaws.
(E) A member of the Organization is entitled to participate in its activities and enjoy its services.
(F) The “central committee”, with the approval of the General Assembly /”Delegates’ Assembly”, shall determine the amount of the monthly membership fee payment which will be obligatory for all members.
(G) Non-payment of dues during 3 consecutive months is grounds for termination of Membership, under the terms of Section 5 (b) 3 below.
(H) The expiry of Membership does not exempt from payments that the member owes to the Organization.
5. Membership expires –
(1) At the death of the member;
(2) Upon withdrawal from the Organization; a written notice of withdrawal will be sent to the organization’s registered address.
(3) Expelling from the organization.
(B) The “central committee” may recommend to the General Assembly / Delegates’ Assembly to decide on the termination of Membership for the following reasons:
(1) A member of the organization has not paid the membership fee for 3 consecutive months and / or fails to pay any other payment due to the organization of it;
(2) The member does not comply with the provisions of the Rules or the decisions of the General Assembly / Delegates Assembly;
(3) The member acts contrary to the aims of the organization.
(C) General Assembly / Delegates’ Assembly will decide on the termination of Membership. The member must be given a proper opportunity to present his claims’ regarding the expelling to the “Delegates Assembly”.
(D) General Assembly / Delegates Assembly may give its powers under this section to a sub-committee to be appointed by it.
(E) The decision of the General Assembly / Delegates Assembly under this section, can be appealed by the member to the Internal Court of the organization.
Giving notice to a Member
6. (A) Any notice which should be given according to these bylaws, unless otherwise noted in these Bylaws, shall be given in writing via mail, fax or email, depending to the address or fax number or e-mail given by the member upon joining the organization and / or the address and / or fax number and / or e-mail address registered in the Register of Members of the organization.
(B) Each member of the organization may change their personal information registered in the Register of Members of the organization, by giving written notice to the “central committee”.
Article Two: “Delegates Assembly”
7. All Powers of the General Meeting will be given to the “Delegates Assembly” when the Organization has more than 200 members. If the organization drops to below 200 members, all powers are returned to the General Assembly.
Time and place
8. The Day, hour and place of the meeting of the General Assembly/Delegates Assembly will be determined by the “central committee”.
9. (A) General Assembly / Delegates’ Assembly shall be conveyed by a notice to every member of the Assembly at least ten days in advance, specifying the day, time, place and agenda of the meeting.
(B) Each member of the General Assembly / Delegates Assembly would be able to file objections and / or additions to the agenda of the meeting, and in writing up to three days before the meeting.
(C) The objections and / or additions to the agenda, which are submitted in accordance with these By- laws, will be put to a vote at the beginning of the meeting.
10. A regular General Assembly / “Delegates Assembly” meeting will choose the chairman of the Assembly, members of the “central committee” , members of the Audit Committee and members of the Internal Court of the organization. A regular General Assembly/ “Delegates Assembly” will also receive regular reports on the organization’s activities and operations by the “central committee” and the report of the Audit Committee and will discuss and decide on the approval of the financial report and the verbal report presented by the “central committee”.
11. The General Assembly / Delegates Assembly shall keep minutes of its meetings. The protocol will be distributed to all members of the organization listed. If the meeting is a meeting of a “Delegates Assembly” all votes are open and cannot be done by a ballot.
12. (A) The Assembly shall not be opened unless at least one quarter of the members are at the meeting; Where it was present at the opening of the meeting, it may continue its deliberations and decisions even if the number of participants decline.
(B) If the quorum in sub –law (A) is not conveyed within an hour of the time specified in the invitation, the assembly could continue in the low count from the above.
Extraordinary meeting of the General Assembly/Delegates Assembly
13. (A) “Central committee” may decide to hold an extraordinary meeting of the General Assembly/ Delegates Assembly. It must give an advance notice before the meeting.
(B) If at least five members of the General Assembly / Delegates Assembly, which are more than 5% of all the members of the General Assembly / Delegates Assembly, Request by a written document with their signatures sent to the “central committee”, an extraordinary meeting, Such a meeting will be conveyed by the “central committee” within 21 days at the most.
(C) An extraordinary meeting of the General Assembly/ Delegates Assembly shall have the right to decide on all matters which a regular meeting can decide upon.
14. Chairman of the Delegates Assembly will take office immediately after his election by the Assembly and will fill the role for a year.
Resolutions
15. Resolutions of the General Assembly/Delegates Assembly meeting will be taken by a regular majority of those voting, unless the law or these bylaws require a different majority.
16. At the first meeting of the General Assembly / Delegates Assembly elected, and after the election at a regular meeting of a chairman, elections to the “central committee” and the audit committee, will be held.
Electoral System
17. The elections to the “central committee”, Audit Committee and the Court of the organization will be equal and personal.
Right to be elected
18. Each member of the organization is entitled to be elected to the “central committee”, the audit committee and the court, unless incompetent and / or bankrupt and / or convicted of a shameful act by a court of law.
19. The “central committee” members shall consist of at least a 1/3 from each gender. If the number of the organization listed members is more than 200, at least half of the members of the “central committee” will also be members of the Delegates Assembly. If the number of members of the organization registered more than 5,000, at least one member of the “central committee” will be from the Arab population of Israel.
Article Three: “central committee”
Membership
20. The number of members of the “central committee” will be determined by a decision of the General Assembly / Delegates Assembly and shall not by less than seven.
Tenure
21. (A) A “central committee” shall take office after a regular meeting of the General Assembly/ Delegates Assembly and stay in power until the next regular meeting or the election of a new “central committee” and for a maximum period of one year; a member of the “central committee” can be reelected to the new “central committee”.
(B) A member of the “central committee” may resign at any time by written notice to the “central committee”; a member of the “central committee” shall cease to serve if declared legally incompetent or bankrupt or convicted of a shameful act by a court of law.
(C) A general assembly/ Delegates Assembly, in a regular meeting or in an extraordinary meeting can dismiss the “central committee” or any of its members by a regular majority.
(D) If the “central committee” or part of its members is dismissed, an extraordinary meeting of the General Assembly/ Delegates Assembly will be held within 21 days from the date of dismissal.
22. In case of an ousted “central committee” or if its members number dropped for any reason to less than 7. The last “central committee” will continue to hold office until the election of a new “central committee” or a new “central committee” member, which ever relevant, and up to a maximum of 21 days.
23. “Central committee” may regulate itself.
24. At a meeting the “central committee” decisions are decided by a regular majority votes; a unanimously “central committee” decision can be adopted also without a “central committee” meeting.
25. “Central committee” will write a protocol of its decisions and its members positions in the voting on the decisions. The protocol will be distributed to the Delegates Assembly.
26. The “central committee” may authorize two or more of its members or of the organization members to commit or sign on behalf of the organization, and perform on its behalf acts which are within the “central committee” powers.
Article Four: Audit Committee
Membership
27. The number of members of the Audit Committee shall be determined by resolution of the General Assembly / Delegates Assembly. A member of the Audit Committee cannot be a member of the “central committee”.
28. (A) The Audit Committee will regulate its proceeding and hold office until a General assembly/ delegates assembly choose a new audit committee and for a maximum of one year. Audit Committee member can be reelected to the Audit Committee.
(B) An audit committee member may resign at any time by written notice to the “central committee”; Audit committee member shall cease to serve if declared legally incompetent or bankrupt or convicted of a shameful act by a court of law.
(C) The Assembly may dismiss the audit committee or any of its members by an extraordinary majority vote of more than half of all members of the General Assembly / delegates Assembly.
29. If a position in the Audit Committee falls vacant a member of the Audit Committee shall not be appointed in his place. In this situation, the General Assembly/delegates Assembly shall be conveyed within 21 days in order to elect members to the vacant positions in the audit committee.
Audit Committee meetings
30. The Audit Committee may regulate its proceedings.
The duties of the Audit Committee
31. The Audit Committee is responsible for checking the integrity of operations of the Organization and its institutions, including adjustment of the operations to the Organization aims, check the achievement of objectives of the organization and cost-effectiveness, monitor the implementation of the resolutions of the general assembly/ delegates assembly and “central committee”, offering “central committee” ways to correct these deficiencies in the management of the organization, check out the financial statements of the organization, its accounting books and wage payments, including the designation of funds towards the organization aims, and to present its finding before the “central committee” and the General assembly/delegates assembly.
32. The General Assembly / delegates Assembly, on the recommendation of the “central committee”, may appoint a special auditing body and give it the powers of the audit committee under this article.
Article Five: the Branches
Establishing and closing branches
33. The organization will set up branches across the country based on the following:
(A) A “central committee” recommendation that was approved by the General Assembly / delegates Assembly.
(B) At the request of 25 members of the organization to establish a new branch when those members are working in the same industry and within the same geographical area and there is not yet a branch which is defined by this combination of industry and geography.
(C) At the request of 25 members of the organization to establish a new branch when those members are working in the same workplace and there is not branch at this workplace.
34. (A) If the number of members of a branch is lower than 25, the “central committee” may recommend to the General assembly / delegates Assembly to dissolve the branch.
(B) If a branch was dissolved, the “central committee” will transfer its members to an existing branch with the definition that best describes the combination of the member’s employment and geographical area. If no such branch exists the dissolved branch members will be transferred to a general branch.
35. Each member of the organization must be a member of one branch of the organization. A new member will be posted upon his request or “central committee” decision to the branch at his workplace or to a branch defined according to the industry in which he is employed and location of his workplace. If there is no such branch – the “central committee” will post him to a branch with other definitions.
36. An organization member can only be a member of one branch of the organization at the same time.
37. The organization’s “central committee” may transfer a member of the organization between branches only upon his written request.
Elections of Branch delegates
38. Each branch will have delegates in the “delegates Assembly” according to the number of its members:
A. (1) branches of up to 50 members can elect one delegate to the delegates Assembly.
(2) Branches of 51 to 100 members – two delegates.
(3) Branches with more than 100 members – two delegates and another delegate for every 50 additional members.
B. The members’ number for the purpose of determining the number of the branch delegates will be the number of members 21 days prior to the delegates’ elections.
39. The branch delegates will be elected by the branch members through voting procedure at least once a year.
40. Election of delegates will be personal and by a ballot. Each member will be allowed to vote for a maximum number of delegates that is equal to the number of delegates that the branch is entitled to.
41. (A) The “delegates assembly” will nominate a Central Elections Committee which will be responsible for the organization and conduct of the branches delegates elections.
(B) A member of the Central Elections Committee must:
1. Not be a candidate for election as a branch delegate to the Delegates Assembly.
2. Not be a member of the “central committee”.
3 Not be a member of the Delegates Assembly.
4. Fulfill all the requirements set out in section 43 below.
(C) The Central Election Committee shall determine and distribute guidelines to ensure elections in accordance with these bylaws.
42. (A) The branches shall elect at least one delegate from each gender.
(B) Above is subject to the fact that the branch would have the right to choose at least five delegates and that there will be candidates of that gender who want to be elected.
43. The following cannot be elected as delegates of the Branch:
(A) The owner or a controlling shareholder of the workplace where the branch members are employed unless the workplace is owned by the employees.
(B) The Director-General of the workplace where the branch members are employed and employees directly subordinate to the Director – General.
(C) Any employee authorized to make members of the branch redundant.
(D) General Assembly / delegates Assembly can decide upon exceptions to paragraphs (b) and (c).
44. Relatives cannot serve simultaneously as delegates of the branch. Relatives for purposes of this section are: mother, father, son, daughter, brother, sister, spouse / partner according to Interior Ministry records.
Completion of his term of office and replacing representative
45. (A) A branch delegate which does not wish to continue in his post, will sent a letter of resignation from his position as a representative to the “central committee”.
(B) Delegate resignation will become effective 48 hours after receipt of the letter at the registered address of the organization.
46. Branch delegate may be deposed by the following procedure:
(A) A request signed by at least 10% of the branch listed members will be sent to the “central committee”.
(B) Upon receiving the “central committee” will be obliged to convey a meeting of the branch members within 14 days of receipt after giving notice to all registered branch members. “Central committee” will decide on the meeting procedure.
(C) The branch meeting will deal only with the issue of deposing of the delegate/ delegates of the branch. Decision will be made by a regular majority of the branch members present at that meeting.
47. (A) If a delegate leave his post due to resignation, the candidate who ran for the position of branch delegate and gained the most votes among the candidates not elected, will serve under him.
(B) A delegate leaving his post due to a deposition, or in the case and that there is no candidate as mentioned in 47(a), the “central committee” will hold new elections at the branch to fill in the vacant delegates posts.
Article Six
48. If the organization will be dissolved, after fully repaying debts, remaining assets will be transferred to an organization or organizations with similar aims.
Article Seven: Changing the bylaws
49 These bylaws can be changed only by a majority of members of the General Assembly / delegates Assembly present, provided that the voters for change counters over a third of all members of the General Assembly / delegate Assembly.
Article H: court
Court
50. The General Assembly / delegates Assembly shall establish an internal court and decide upon its procedures.
51. Powers of the Court shall be as follows:
(A) The Court will serve as a body for appeals on Decisions by the organization elected committees.
(B) Dispute Settlement between members of the organization.
(C) Resolving disputes regarding the manner of interpretation of regulations and the bylaws.
(D) Appeals against decisions of the Central Election Committee.
Bylaws regarding industrial actions and collective agreements adopted at a General assembly on December 2008
Declaration of an industrial action by “central committee”
1 The “central committee” may declare an industrial action for each branch or group of branches, for each group of the organization members, and decide upon a strike measures at any scope and duration it sees fit.
2 “Central committee” decision on this issue can be decided by any majority during a “central committee” meeting, or unanimously even without a meeting.
3 Each member of the “central committee” is authorized to sign the declaration of a labor dispute or a strike in the name of the “central committee”.
Declaration of a strike by the decision of the Delegate’s Assembly
1 The Delegates Assembly may declare an industrial action for each branch or group of branches, for each group of the organization members, and decide upon strike measures at any scope and duration it sees fit.
2 Delegate’s Assembly’s decision on this issue can be accepted by any majority during its meeting or by a majority of more than half of the members of the delegates Assembly even without a meeting.
3 A labor dispute or strike decided by the delegates Assembly, will be sent by the “central committee” without delay and within 24 hours at most (excluding Saturdays and holidays) from the time the decision was made, unless it was decided upon a labor dispute at a later date.
Termination of a strike
1 A strike that was decided in advance to last less than 48 hours can be terminated by those who called it.
2 A Strike that was declared at the request of a branch and for less than 48 hours can be terminated by the branch leadership.
3 A strike that was decided in advance to last longer than 48 hours or to be with no time limit will be stopped before that time ends, only after a decision by majority vote, of the organization members that takes part in this strike and those that asked to join the organization during the strike and paid the annual membership fee.
Collective agreement
1 Negotiating team on a collective agreement or other agreement between the organization and an employer or multiple employers (the agreement), will be determined at a meeting of the relevant branch/branches or by the branch/branches leadership.
2 “Central committee” may add other members to the negotiating team.
3- Collective agreement will be signed by a person empowered to do so on behalf of “Koach La Ovdim democratic workers organization”, only after approval by voting in which all the members of the organization that are going to be covered by that agreement, can participate. The agreement must be approved also by the “central committee”.
4 If “central committee” refused to approve the signing of a collective agreement, the “central committee” must call a meeting of the “delegates assembly within 36 hours and act upon its decision regarding that collective agreement.
Branch leadership
1 Branch leadership will be elected once a year, according to a procedure determined by the “central committee”, unless otherwise decided by a general meeting of the branch members. [This procedure will be called “standard election procedure of branch leadership”]
2 Every branch delegate to the delegates Assembly is also a member of the branch leadership.
3 If no Branch leadership was elected, the branch delegates to the Delegates Assembly are the branch leadership.