Prepared by: Corina Dransutavicius
Approved: March 13, 2024
Policy
The Executive of the Athabasca University Faculty Association (AUFA) hereby establishes the AUFA Member Emergency Fund (MEF). This fund will be used to support members experiencing financial hardship, the cause of which the member cannot reasonably overcome, or due to a sudden loss or reduction in renumeration from the University which has put the member in need of temporary financial aid. This fund shall replace the previous Member Emergency Fund formerly restricted to financial hardship experienced due to job action.
Administration
1. The AUFA Member Emergency Fund shall be announced to membership at least annually and the policy and associated application form shall be made available on the AUFA website.
2. Under the AUFA Member Emergency Fund policy, members experiencing financial hardship shall be eligible to apply for an interest-free loan of a maximum of $2,000 per member per annum.
a. At the discretion of the AUFA Executive Director, loan requests beyond this maximum may be presented for approval to the AUFA Executive.
b. Moneys for this fund shall come from regular membership dues under the line item “AUFA Emergency Fund.”
c. The maximum annual contribution to the AUFA Emergency Fund shall be determined annually by the Finance Committee and included in the budget for approval.
3. Financial hardship is understood to mean the inability to meet childcare needs, housing needs, transportation needs, or similar essential needs arising from circumstances beyond the member’s control. The cause of the financial hardship need not be directly related to the member’s employment at Athabasca University.
4. Eligibility for the AUFA Emergency Fund would not apply to cases where the normal remuneration is inadequate for the individual’s expenses. Examples of where this fund may be used include:
a. An unexpected change in renumeration to the member from the University resulting in financial hardship, OR
b. Job action, such as a work stoppage during collective bargaining, resulting in financial hardship, OR
c. A financial crisis imposed upon the member due to circumstances outside their own control, such as a housing loss during a natural disaster.
5. All applications should be submitted to the care of AUFA’S Executive Director at aufahq@aufa.ca.
6. Decisions regarding member eligibility and loan allowance shall be made by decision of the Executive Director.
a. Where appropriate, the Executive Director shall seek advice on the eligibility of applications from the AUFA Executive or other AUFA members where no conflict of interest arises.
b. The Executive Director shall not divulge the name or other personal information which may identify the applicant without their express written consent unless that information must be provided to issue funds to the applicant. All information in the application will be held in the strictest confidence.
c. The Executive Director shall try to respond to applicants with five (5) business days of application submission.
d. If the Executive Director is unable to tend to member loan applications within the allotted five (5) business days, another AUFA Staff member or the AUFA Treasurer shall perform the duties as outlined above.
7. AUFA members wishing to challenge the decision reached regarding member eligibility and loan allowance should send their appeal letter including an explanation for the appeal and additional supporting documents to aufahq@aufa.ca.
a. Upon receipt of a MEF loan appeal, an AUFA Staff member shall anonymize the information contained in the original request, appeal, and supporting documentation and submit the application package plus appeal documentation to the AUFA Executive for review.
b. Normally, a decision regarding the MEF loan appeal shall be made by the AUFA Executive by asynchronous online vote – votes shall not be anonymous. An appealed MEF decision requires at least seven (7) voting members of the Executive to cast their votes and two-thirds of votes cast to be in favor of granting the appeal.
c. The AUFA Executive’s decision regarding the application shall be final.
8. The Executive Director shall make an annual report to the AUFA Executive on loans issued, outstanding, and repaid in advance of the annual budget creation.
9. Loans are to be repaid in full within six (6) months of the completion of the work stoppage, the resolution of the change to the member’s renumeration (whether in the member’s favour or not), or the conclusion of the circumstances causing the member’s financial hardship.
a. The exact terms of the repayment (including the payment installment amounts, the frequency of payments, etc.) shall be determined in the individualized promissory note.
10. This fund is not a replacement for the normal assistance provided from government or other agencies. AUFA may refer individuals to the appropriate agencies for assistance.
Please return completed forms to aufahq@aufa.ca.