Victory for DCLs: Better national representation

On this third day of the 2024 National Convention, delegates voted in favour of resolution CS-016A – National DCL Committee, a major step toward greater recognition for directly chartered locals (DCLs) within PSAC’s National Board of Directors.

PSAC’s first DCL was created in Quebec 30 years ago. Since then, many more have been added, including a university sector celebrating its 20th anniversary this year. “PSAC-Quebec, as the region with the most DCLs, has always and continues to proudly champion them,” said Yvon Barrière, Executive Vice-President, PSAC-Quebec. “We’ll keep fighting to ensure DCLs have a strong voice at the national level.”

Following rallying speeches from several Quebec delegates, the National Convention acknowledged the significant disparity between component and DCL representation in PSAC’s national governance structures. The resolution is a first step to addressing this gap. 

It creates a National DCL Committee, which will receive its mandate from the National President. The new committee will consist of two representatives per region. Over the course of the cycle, it will meet once in person and as often as it wishes virtually. 

The committee will submit reports of each meeting to the NBoD, including recommendations on how to advance DCL governance, representation and inclusion within PSAC. In addition, six DCL members from the committee, one per each region with DCLs, will attend one NBoD meeting during the budget cycle as determined by the National President.