the term "sindicat" in catalan is used in a broad sense to mean an association for the defence of the economic or social interests of its members, and therefore is often used generically to refer to labour organizations, as well as in the titles of certain labour organizations or federations (for instance, the confederació sindical de treballadors de catalunya, the unió sindical obrera de catalunya, the coordinadora obrera sindical, etc.), student organizations (sindicat d'estudiants dels països catalans, sindicat d'estudiants del país valencià, sindicat democràtic d'estudiants de la universitat de barcelona, etc.) and journalist organizations (sindicat de periodistes de catalunya / sindicat de professionals de la comunicació, etc.), among others. the members or leaders of these organisations, however, are not called "síndics".