MUNFA is seeking nominations or volunteers to fill one position as a CAUT Defence Fund Trustee for our Faculty Association.
The primary purpose of the Defence Fund is to provide strike benefits to Faculty Associations while its members are engaged in a strike or lock-out and experiencing loss of salary. The CAUT Defence Fund dates from 1978, it is formed of Associations that are members of CAUT, and includes 62 member unions representing over 36,000 academics from St. John’s to Victoria.
Each member union appoints a Trustee (Associations with more than 500 members appoint a second Trustee, and those with more than 1,000, a third).
Trustees generally serve two year terms and have two main roles: Firstly, they have fiduciary responsibilities to ensure that monies are used solely to meet the objectives and purposes of the Fund. Secondly, they represent the views and interests of their own Faculty Association.
Some of the specific responsibilities of the Trustee are:
- Attend the annual meeting to review and discuss policies the state of the Fund, and examine and approve the budget for the next year
- Participate in teleconference meetings to approve strike support for a member organization.
- When a member association is on strike, and the Defence Fund President sends out a call for ‘flying pickets’, the Trustee may be asked to walk the picket line with striking members.
- If and when MUNFA is contemplating strike action, provide information to a teleconference meeting of the Defence Fund about the state of negotiations.
More information about CAUT and the Defence Fund can be found at http://defencefund.caut.ca/ or from the MUNFA office: munfa@mun.ca.
Please submit names of nominees or volunteers, with a short statement indicating your reason for interest in the position, to the MUNFA office by September 2, 2020; the MUNFA Executive shall appoint the Defence Fund Trustee.
