![\"Steward](\"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/12\/Steward-Training.jpg\")
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December 12, 2025 —<\/em> PEF offers steward training across\u00a0all 12 of the union\u2019s regions. Each region has different training\u00a0techniques\u00a0and\u00a0the sessions often vary\u00a0based on\u00a0the instructors.\u00a0So\u00a0when\u00a0Debbie Egel\u00a0started working\u00a0as the\u00a0Interim\u00a0Organizer\u00a0of Field Services for\u00a0Regions\u00a010-12, she\u00a0wanted to do something to\u00a0shake things up.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI think a lot of members felt there was a lack of engagement with the material,\u201d said Egel. \u201cThe lectures were good,\u00a0and the information was great, but members were not keeping up with the material. Some people were taking phone calls\u00a0and checking texts. We needed a change.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Egel\u00a0paired up with PEF Senior Field Representative Bradley Kolb\u00a0to design\u00a0a new\u00a0Steward\u00a0Training focused on boosting engagement and interactivity.\u00a0They believed\u00a0that\u00a0since\u00a0PEF\u00a0represents\u00a0thousands of\u00a0professional, scientific, and technical\u00a0titles,\u00a0training should be better tailored to suit\u00a0specific\u00a0regional\u00a0needs.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI think the main issue here is one shoe does not\u00a0fit\u00a0all,\u201d said\u00a0Kolb. \u201cPEF represents over 3,000 titles\u00a0in more than\u00a070 different agencies. Each agency has different\u00a0internal\u00a0policies, memorandums of\u00a0agreement,\u00a0and other mechanisms. We wanted to resolve this issue by targeting specific groups of members and creating the training,\u00a0so everything\u00a0contained\u00a0is applicable\u00a0to the members in the classroom.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Egel agreed, citing that\u00a0while PEF staff are typically familiar with the\u00a0general practices\u00a0involved with being a steward,\u00a0representing\u00a0the members, and problem solving, when issues arise on site,\u00a0a steward\u00a0is\u00a0the first line of defense.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cEngagement was\u00a0part of the\u00a0issue, but what we wanted to make sure new stewards understood is that they are the live embodiment of the contract and of the union,\u201d said Egel. \u201cStewards are on the ground and know what the issues are at their agencies\u00a0better than we do.\u00a0We want to make sure\u00a0they\u2019re\u00a0equipped to handle those issues\u00a0and that they know their rights and the contract.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Egel and Kolb began by going through the existing training modules\u00a0that exist across each region. From there, they combined\u00a0useful information from the modules and\u00a0identified\u00a0what was missing. The result was a mixture of lecture-based learning and interactive exercises to\u00a0make the training fun and engaging but also memorable.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cIt was important that we made sure that members receive and retain the training,\u201d said Kolb.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n In\u00a0November,\u00a0Egel and Kolb were ready to launch\u00a0their newly designed training.\u00a0The training included exercises that went over contract language, effective communication,\u00a0as well as\u00a0spotting\u00a0issues\u00a0and\u00a0filing\u00a0grievances.\u00a0It\u00a0also\u00a0included a\u00a0Jeopardy\u00a0style\u00a0game that quizzed\u00a0members on\u00a0labor-management, standby vs. on-call\u00a0and several key parts of the PEF contract.\u00a0The focus, said Egel, was on making sure the training was interactive\u00a0and expanded their basic knowledge.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWe tried\u00a0to give people\u00a0not only the communication skills they needed to be able to\u00a0talk about the contract, but also we tried to make sure they could articulate the difference between Must, Shall, May and Could where it appears in the contract,\u201d said Egel. \u201cSome of the participants\u00a0did not realize how important the language is right down to those specific words.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n PEF Vice President Darlene Williams was at the training in November.\u00a0She\u00a0felt that Egel and Kolb\u2019s goal to boost engagement\u00a0was not only achieved, but it also helped to build confidence in the participants.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cIf we truly want members to understand how the grievance process works, then walking them through writing a first-step grievance and showing them how it gets submitted is essential,\u201d said Vice President Williams. \u201cThis training helped members understand whether their grievances are\u00a0viable, what steps they should take before filing, and when a first step is or is not\u00a0appropriate. It sparked important conversations among the participants about what should happen first and where to go next.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Williams believes that\u00a0November\u2019s\u00a0training is a strong foundation for PEF to build on and refine in order to create a complete package\u00a0that new and existing stewards can refer to and use on the job.\u00a0She also believes a stronger first-step\u00a0grievance writing section would be a benefit\u00a0to participants and, with proper samples brought back from the training, a benefit to\u00a0members at their worksites.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cOverall,\u00a0the training was excellent. The\u00a0activities, examples, movement and interaction the presenters used kept the room energized,\u201d said Williams. \u201cThe real sign of success was when participants returned from a very nice lunch still eager to learn, still participating, and still fully committed.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Feedback following\u00a0the training\u00a0backs up Williams\u2019 review.\u00a0Out of about 20\u00a0Stewards, 19\u00a0strongly approved of the training in exit surveys.\u00a0Many cited that they wanted more coverage of the contract and a deeper understanding of\u00a0Articles.\u00a0Others felt that they walked away with an understanding of what it means to be a\u00a0PEF Steward.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Kolb was\u00a0happy to receive the feedback and has already begun\u00a0refining the training.\u00a0He\u00a0thinks\u00a0that PEF staff should receive the training\u00a0as well.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI think staff would have greater insight and input into the training,\u201d said Kolb. \u201cIt would help us expand the training to other regions\u00a0and update the trainings for the new PEF leaders we\u2019ve had over the past few years.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Egel\u00a0hopes that this is a great start for members to get involved further and looks forward to hearing from the new\u00a0Stewards\u00a0as they put\u00a0the training to\u00a0good use\u00a0at their agencies.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI was so impressed with everyone\u2019s engagement, responses and thoughtfulness that I told them I could not wait to see the first grievances they\u00a0write,\u201d said Egel. \u201cI think this training\u00a0was\u00a0very\u00a0helpful\u00a0for members. If the foundation of the union is the contract and\u00a0we\u2019re\u00a0not clear on what is in it or what it means, then\u00a0Stewards have a harder time interpreting the articles. Training like this can really\u00a0help\u00a0change that.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" December 12, 2025 — PEF offers steward training across\u00a0all 12 of the union\u2019s regions. Each region has different training\u00a0techniques\u00a0and\u00a0the sessions often vary\u00a0based on\u00a0the instructors.\u00a0So\u00a0when\u00a0Debbie Egel\u00a0started working\u00a0as the\u00a0Interim\u00a0Organizer\u00a0of Field Services for\u00a0Regions\u00a010-12,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"division":[],"allowed_regions":[],"allowed_divisions":[],"class_list":["post-8248","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","issue-volume-43-no-11"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n