Contents
- Introduction
- Structure
- Collectives
- Committees
- Students’ Council
- Sub-Committees
- General Meeting
- Referendum
- Elections
- Appeals and Grievances
Introduction
The University of Melbourne Student Union (UMSU Inc.) has several levels of accountability and governance. At a government level, UMSU is governed by the Associations Incorporation Act 1981 (legislation administered by Consumer Affairs Victoria (External Link)). Internally the highest regulatory document is the Constitution. Regulations cover issues such as the conduct of meetings, elections and financial matters.
If you would like terms explained, visit the Glossary
Structure
UMSU operates through various departments. Most departments have a three-level structure. The collective is an informal level open to anyone and while they must be consulted, they do not have formal decision making power. Committees are formal decision-making bodies specific to their departments. Committees are then accountable to Students’ Council, which will normally only deal with departmental matters if there is an appeal.
Exceptions include the professional departments, the Clubs & Societies Department and the Media Department. The C&S Department does not usually run collectives, but the committee is elected by and accountable to the Clubs & Societies Council. The C&S Council in turn is accountable to Students’ Council. The Media Department usually runs collectives, but is accountable directly to Students’ Council. Professional departments (i.e. departments run by professional staff) are accountable through the Senior Staff Member, also known as the General Manager.
UMSU Organisational Structure 23KB
Collectives
Attending a collective meeting provides students with an informal way of providing input into UMSU. It also provides students with a chance to meet officers and other elected representatives and to get involved in the different projects of the department. Collectives are usually fairly small, approximating the size of a tutorial class. Students are welcome to attend as many or as few collective meetings as desired.
Committees
Committees are the formal decision making body of a department. A committee has the power to authorise spending and to direct the officer(s) accountable to it. It is composed of 7 voting representatives, elected annually, in addition to the relevant officer(s) as non-voting representatives. Additionally, a committee may co-opt up to three additional members as non-voting representatives.
Students are welcome to attend committees even if they are not elected to that committee. All students have full speaking, moving and seconding rights. This means that a student is well within their rights to attend a committee meeting and to ask questions about the activities of the department, argue for or against initiatives and propose new directions. Notices for committees are available on this website and in the noticeboard in the ground floor dining room of Union House.
Students’ Council
Students’ Council is the peak decision making body of UMSU. Its meetings are open to all students, who have full speaking, moving and seconding rights. Just as is the case for a committee this means that students may attend, ask questions, argue for or against propositions and propose their own. Notices for Students’ Council are available on this website and in the noticeboards on the first floor of Union House.
Students’ Council’s voting representatives include 14 general representatives, one queer representative, one indigenous representative, one international representative and one mature age representative.
Students’ Council sets the overall budget and may direct professional departments via the Senior Staff Member (a.k.a. General Manager). It also authorises spending on behalf of the whole organisation and makes other decisions relevant to the whole organisation.
Sub-Committees
Students’ Council delegates some of its powers to Sub-Committees. There are always at least two Sub-Committees; a Finance Sub-Committee and a Staffing Sub-Committee. Each Sub-Committee is composed of 6 voting representatives elected by an from the voting representatives of Students’ Council. Each Sub-Committee also has the President, Secretary and one other Officer elected by and from the Officers as a non-voting representative. Elections are conducted for 6 month terms (beginning 1 January and 1 July).
Finance Sub-Committee approves smaller expenditure, often on behalf of the Media Department because it does not have its own committee.
Staffing Sub-Committee may handle matters relating to staff or appointing representatives to University Committees. Staffing Sub-Committee may meet in camera (in secret). This protects the privacy of UMSU’s staff.
General Meeting
A General Meeting of students has legal importance as well as the power to direct Students’ Council to make any decision within its powers. A General Meeting also has additional powers, including changing the Constitution which are legally only available to General Meetings. For example, under the law, the Constitution can only be amended by a special resolution at a General Meeting which has had 21 days notice.
On an annual basis, the General Meeting is important in order to provide students with certain information, for example, auditor’s reports.
Referendum
A Referendum involves students voting on an issue or question, instead of choosing representatives. A referendum has similar powers to a General Meeting insofar as it may direct Students’ Council to make any decision within its powers. Referendums are governed by the Electoral Tribunal.
Elections
Elections occur on an annual basis in order to determine the membership of Students’ Council and its Committees. They last a week in second semester. Costs associated with elections include the hiring of a Returning Officer, which is done through an election company that conducts the election (ballot papers, vote counting etc).
The Electoral Tribunal is responsible for receiving the report of the Returning Officer and sets regulations for the conduct of elections based on recommendations of Students’ Council.
The Electoral Tribunal consists of:
- Chris Penman (Vice Principal and General Counsel, University of Melbourne) who was appointed by the Vice-Chancellor
- Michael Gronow (BA (Hons); LLB (Hons); LLM (Melb); MCIArb; Barrister at Law) who was appointed by the Dean of the Faculty of Law
- Saveria Dimasi (Director of Legal Services, University of Melbourne) appointed by Students’ Council
Previous Returning Officer’s Reports:
Appeals and Grievances
Students may not always agree with the decisions made by the various bodies of UMSU. In addition to simply voting out disagreeable representatives at the next election it is also possible to appeal financial decisions made at a committee level. There are also procedures for resolving disputes between members as members and decision-making bodies within UMSU.
If a committee makes a decision to spend money, within a five academic days or two weeks, whichever is less, an appeal to Students’ Council may take place. Three voting representatives from the Committee which made the decision or four voting representatives from other committees or 30 students may deliver a signed notice of appeal to the Secretary and this must be dealt with at or before the next regulat meeting of Students’ Council.
Members may also overturn decisions of Students’ Council or Committees through requesting a General Meeting or Referendum and then using that to direct the relevant body.
The Grievance Tribunal is also available to resolve disputes. The first step in formal grievances is mediation, but if this fails the Grievance Tribunal will make a binding decision that cannot be appealed within UMSU. The Grievance Tribunal consists of:
- One member appointed by the Vice-Chancellor (Vacant)
- One member appointed by the Dean of the Faculty of Law (Vacant)
- One member appointed by Students’ Council (Vacant)
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Posted Monday 12 January, 2009. Updated Sunday 27 September, 2009.