February 6th: Update to Membership
Get to Know the SAFA Organization, Part I
Last week, we announced that SAFA will be adding 2 new Division Representatives, bringing the total number of Table Officers to 11 positions, plus the President. What do these positions do? How are these positions filled? The answers are below!
If you would like to learn more about the Table Officer positions, reach out to your Divisional Representative – they’ll be happy to share more about their work. You can also request the Terms of Reference for these positions by contacting SAFA.
Part two of this article, which will be posted in a couple of weeks, will review the roles of the Department Representatives, as well as nonvoting positions such as the Vice-President and the Board of Governors Representatives.
Table Officers
The President
- Elected by all SAFA members.
- Must be a full-time employee and SAFA member in good standing.
- SAFA compensates the employer for the President’s time, enabling a workload reduction.
- Elected to a 2-year term, may serve for unlimited number of terms.
- Manages the business and affairs of SAFA between meetings of the Table Officers, including holding financial co-signing authority.
- Chairs all Table Officers and Executive Board meetings; serves as the tie-breaking vote.
- The President represents SAFA both on internal committees and within external organizations such as CAUT and ACIFA. Serves as SAFA’s spokesperson.
Treasurer/Secretary
- Elected by all SAFA members.
- Must be a full-time employee and SAFA member in good standing.
- Elected to a 2-year term, may serve for unlimited number of terms.
- The Treasurer/Secretary, with support of SAFA administration, is responsible for preparation of minutes and maintenance of financial records.
- This position also presents the annual SAFA budget to membership and has financial co-signing authority.
Divisional Representatives
- Elected by members within that division.
- Any SAFA member in good standing can serve.
- Elected to a 2-year term, may serve for unlimited number of terms.
- Duties include managing the business and affairs of SAFA along with the President.
- Div Reps attend weekly Officer meetings, as well as serve on joint SAFA/SAIT committees. They also serve as Association Stewards by handling member questions or concerns and completing preliminary investigations on potential Collective Agreement violations.
Past Executive Representative
- Elected by the Table Officers.
- Must have previously held a SAFA Executive position.
- This position provides knowledge of past practices and takes on special projects or committee roles as needed.