Of interest from Nick who has been doing some reading during the break...
[the Carr report was written in 2022 and it is strong. This from the Exec Summary: "The RCN has been described as being “in a state of crisis as it goes blindly from one catastrophe to another without any respite in sight”. On the basis...
... of what I have seen, it is difficult to argue with that assessment."]
["It is an organisation which at its top, is riddled with division, dysfunction and distrust. Whilst the distrust is most prominent relation to the RCN’s Council and its Executive, it extends...
["... to relationships within Council and within the membership as well as between its professional and trade union arms."]
["There is a culture of suspicion within Council in which it does not believe that the Executive is acting in the best interests of the members..."]
Blimey.
["The culture of suspicion is further driven by fear of the next Emergency General Meeting (EGM). Both staff and Council members alike operate in an atmosphere in which they expect that their decisions will lead to a revolt from active groups within the membership who, due to the threshold requirement of 1,000 votes, are able to trigger an EGM as has been done twice in the last four years. This in turn causes organisational paralysis."]
["The make-up of Council does not reflect the membership of the College – despite recent improvements in the gender balance, it is still nearly 60% male whereas the membership is almost 90% female. As far as ethnicity is concerned, it is no better and the current Council is not reflective of the fact that around 45% of RCN members are from the BAME community. Many of those who serve on Council are seen as being “the same old faces” who have operated in the upper echelons of the College for many years. This, together with the lack of women or ethnic minority members, permits of a culture in which the College is seen to be run by middle-aged, white men. The substantial number of resignations from Council in recent years has only served to reinforce this perception. If RCN members do not feel that the College looks like they do – whether it be by reference to gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation or disability – they will at best not engage with and be active in it and at worst, will take their membership elsewhere."]
[Wow - "There is a real issue that needs to be addressed in relation to the culture of Congress. The evidence that I have seen suggests that there is a level of expectation amongst a significant number of (male) attendees that opportunities for sexual activity will present themselves at Congress. As a consequence, the boundaries between consensual and potentially exploitative sexual activity are at risk of becoming blurred if they have not already done so. That Congress is seen as a place at which there is, for at least some attendees, an expectation of, or an opportunity for, sex to take place, means that there is also the opportunity for alcohol and power-related exploitation of the vulnerable."]
[okay we're back]
....