Public and Commercial Services Union

While you are likely to be in full possession of the facts of your case this is almost certainly going to be the first time that the representative has heard your explanation so make sure you are clear about what the issues are.

You should prepare your case thoroughly before you meet your union representative.

If possible, bring copies of all the relevant papers, minutes and letters pertaining to your case and make sure that these papers are in chronological order.

It may be worth preparing a time-line or other notes so that you can explain the issues that you are concerned about as clearly as possible.

When you see your representative you are not putting your side of the case in order to win their support.

Your representative will not judge you as a person for the situation you are in.

You need to provide the representative with all the information you have including those things that you may wish to forget.

While there are times when a member has been victimised by the employer for no good reason, in other cases you may have contributed to the situation in some way.

All this information is important to the union representative.

If you have failed to give your representative all the facts relating to your case, you run the risk of making your case impossible to resolve.

Before you see the representative think about what you would like to achieve by way of an outcome.

It may be that you are not sure what can be achieved but it is likely that you have some idea how the matter could be resolved.

The representative is likely to ask you questions and take notes. Notes also remain confidential and will be locked away or kept secure.

You may ask to see any notes that are kept on you by your representative.

If the case is something that the representative has not come across before then he or she may ask your permission to speak to another representative, full-time officer or the personal case unit to seek further advice.

It is up to you whether you allow a representative to do this but it will be difficult for them to do their job if you don't.

Once you have explained your case and answered any questions that your representative may have asked, you will then need to agree with him or her what happens next.

You may receive in writing a copy of what you have agreed with your representative and you should check this carefully to ensure that there are no errors.