LTB 726/16 – Simon Sapper – CWU National Officer
No. 726/2016
12th December 2016
TO: ALL CWU BRANCHES
Dear Colleague
Simon Sapper – CWU National Officer
The purpose of this LTB is to announce that Simon Sapper, CWU National Officer, has decided to leave the union on the 31st December 2016.
The CWU would wish to place on record our sincere thanks for the work Simon has done on behalf of our members over many years. Simon first became a National Officer in 1989 back in the old NCU and is currently the longest serving officer of the union.
During his career Simon has undertaken many varied and wide ranging roles and has made a great contribution to the work of CWU and the wider trade union movement. In due course, we will of course ensure his contribution is properly recognised. In the meantime, we thank Simon and wish him all the best for the future.
CWU Re-design Project
I can also advise Branches that given the union is currently moving forward our Re-design Project, it is not our intention to fill Simon’s vacancy and the work he currently undertakes will be absorbed within our existing Headquarters departments/functions. This approach is in keeping with the aims and objectives of re-design and we will ensure that we continue to effectively carry out all the work commitments previously associated with Simon’s role. Therefore, the following interim arrangements will be introduced from 1st January 2017 and will operate for a period of six months, at which point they will be reviewed and either confirmed or adjusted, as appropriate.
Youth Committee – Jo Thair (Policy Assistant) will take on responsibility for all work relating to our Youth Committee. Jo will be supported in this work by the GS Department and will report directly to me. In addition, the Youth Committee Chair, Jake Fear and Vice Chair, Jimmi Brown, will take on enhanced roles to assist the development of young people within the union.
In line with re-design, we will use this period to review the work of the Youth Committee and encourage the development of new and innovative ideas to further enhance the role of younger representatives and members within the union. I have discussed this with the Youth Chair and Vice Chair and I am particularly keen that the Youth Committee itself is at the heart of this work. This should be seen as an opportunity to build on the excellent work previously carried out by Simon Sapper and his team.
Union Honours – The work involved in preparing National Honorary membership and Gold Badge Awards will now be undertaken by the General Secretary’s Department.
National Discipline Committee – An announcement regarding how we will cover the work of the National Discipline Committee post the 31st December, will be made in due course. It is the intention to undertake an immediate review on this area of work as part of the Re-design Project. In the meantime, we will continue to ensure that our exiting procedures remain in place to address genuine complaints that arise from time to time within the union.
Any enquiries on the above LTB should be addressed to the General Secretary’s Department.
Yours sincerely
Dave Ward
General Secretary