I may have slightly disgraced myself at the election hustings at the SV Weave today.
I was asking short, well-mannered, low intensity questions about what the candidates intended to do about representing worker interests on the Board of our co-op, which we are regularly reminded is half-owned by its workers.
I got as far as asking the incumbent Worker-Owner Director, who has been on the Board for five years now, is running for re-election and is Chair of the Board (which, um, should carry some weight, somewhere), I got as far as asking him what he had actually done about setting up a Board Task Force to examine worker's issues, a Task Force he was merrily propounding, and the answers became double-speak.
Well, we've discussed it. Did you set it up? Well, no-one suggested it. I did. On several occasions [Manager stands up and leaves, with 'here we go again' expression on his face]. Well, suggest it again.
You've been on the Board for five years. You've done nothing to set up anything like a Task Force. And the best you can offer is, try suggesting it again?
I stood up and said it was time to go. I can take only so much bs from Board Worker-Owner Directors, whom we never see, and who seem to believe that telling us what they haven't done every two years is representing us.
I told the incumbent that. Wished his opponent well. Told the incumbent I would not be voting for someone who has done nothing for workers in five years. And left.
I will be voting for Caitlin Moira Williams. And I'm cluttering up her FB Wall again, to let her and her friends know this. We need genuine conversation in our co-op. And someone on the Board who will not let the General Manager prevent such meaningful conversation.
Now, I'm going to go have a nap and calm down.
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