How to use workplace mapping to effectively organise

For Community Branch Secretaries, managing both your professional responsibilities, as well as your role as a Branch Secretary can feel like a juggling act. From managing member correspondence, organising meetings, supporting your reps and dealing with member concerns, you have a lot to deal with. But, what if there was a tool that could not only help simplify your tasks as a Branch Secretary, but also drastically increase your branch’s effectiveness as a bargaining unit? Let us introduce you to workplace mapping.

What exactly is Workplace Mapping?

Workplace mapping is more than just drawing a diagram, it is a strategic approach to understanding your workplace, identifying key strengths and weaknesses, and helps you to build an effective, responsive and powerful bargaining unit.

At its core, workplace mapping is a visual and/or data driven representation of your workplace. This can range from something as simple as a floor plan, a word document, or even a detailed excel spreadsheet. However, no matter the format, its purpose remains the same — to provide a detailed, comprehensive overview of your branch. This can include:

• Membership density: How many members are in your branch? How many potential members are there? Where are there gaps?
• Activist network: Are there any other Community Reps in your branch? Where are they located? Are there areas without union representation, such as equalities or health and safety?
• Workplace demographics: Understanding shift patterns, departments, job roles and even equality data (gender, ethnicity, disability, age) can highlight specific needs and opportunities in your workplace.
• Communication channels: What are the best ways to communicate with your branch? Is there a staff room you can leave information in? Does your branch have a WhatsApp group?
• Key issues: What are the current major concerns in the workplace? Are your members happy? What can the union, and your bargaining unit do to overcome these issues?
• Management structure: Who are the key employers or management you need to deal with during representation meetings or pay talks?

Why is mapping essential?

Strategic recruitment and organising

By knowing EXACTLY which areas of your branch have low membership, and knowing what key issues affect non-members, you can use mapping to target your recruitment efforts effectively, tailoring your approach to specific concerns and allocating union resources where they’ll have the biggest impact.

Enhanced communication

A well-mapped workplace will allow you to build and maintain robust communication networks between your reps and your members. Mapping can help identify who to speak to, what communication channels work best, and ensures two-way communication between reps and members. This is especially useful to encourage quick responses from members, as well as mobilising members in support of campaigns.

Effective campaigning

Mapping allows you to identify common issues in your branch, helping to campaign on issues that will unite your membership and have high chance of success. It also allows you to highlight to non-members how effective your bargaining unit, and your union are.

Identifying and developing activists

Mapping can reveal potential new reps in your branch, as well as which areas are underrepresented, such as equalities or health and safety. By identifying these key areas, you can encourage members to get more involved in becoming reps and activists, strengthening your bargaining unit’s presence in the workplace.

Proactive problem solving

When you have a clear picture of the issues affecting your workplace, such as health and safety hazards, stress or diversity (through mapping exercises), you can be more proactive in addressing these issues with management, and even prevent bigger issues in the future.

Getting started with Workplace Mapping

Workplace mapping does not have to be a complicated or arduous process, and once you have started it, you just have to keep on top of it to ensure your branch is healthy and running effectively as a bargaining unit. Here are some tips and tricks to help you get started:

• Start small: If your workplace is large, you should begin by mapping your own department or shift pattern, then go from there. You could even work together with other reps to piece together a larger map of your workplace.
• Gather information: If you’re not sure where to get information from, you should start by utilising existing resources like internal staff lists, directories or fire warden lists. The most important way to gather information is to engage in one-on-one conversations with both members and non-members – their responses will give you crucial, in-depth information that you can use to map your workplace. Also, as a Community Rep, you will have access to Subscriber on the Go, a brilliant tool to help you map your members.
• Involve your members and other reps: Mapping is a collective effort, therefore you should encourage members and reps to contribute any and all knowledge they have that will help build a map of your workplace. Involving others will also help everyone to feel a bigger part of the bargaining unit.
• Keep it dynamic: In the modern world of work, workplaces are constantly changing, and your map should too. You should regularly review and update any and all maps you make to ensure it remains both accurate and relevant to your bargaining unit.
• Choose how you’ll map: Everyone works differently, therefore you should choose a method of mapping that works not only for you, but also your workplace. If you’re more of a visual person, then a floor plan that details the physical layout of your workplace, where people work and any key issues will work better for you. If you’re more of a data driven individual, then an excel spreadsheet that tracks names, departments, shifts, contact information and concerns/interests may work better for you.

By utilising mapping in your workplace, you can transform your approach to organising to be more proactive and strategic. It is all about seeing the bigger picture, empowering your members and ultimately, building a stronger and dynamic collective unit in your workplace.