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A resolution passed at the July 2023 committee meeting became Standing Resolution number 15 which says that "Club Social Days will be held on the first days of the walk seasons and include Big Day Out and Xmas". This is a really bad resolution for a number of reasons.
- There is no club documentation that defines "walk seasons - are "walk seasons" the same as the seasons - i.e. Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter?
- Are the "first days" of the undefined walk seasons the first day of the season, or the first Wednesday of the season, or the first weekend of the season?
- Is "Xmas" the Wednesday Xmas Party Day, the weekend Xmas party day, or Xmas day?
We have traditionally held the Wednesday Xmas Party around the first or second week of December, but is this really the first day of the Summer walk season, given we traditionally then have a break for almost two months? The two Xmas parties were originally the last activities of the year, with a long break subsequently following during the rest of December and January. The new walk year - and the real beginning of the Summer walk season - actually started in the first week of February. This day evolved into the "Big Day Out" which had a social gathering after organised walk(s), a bike ride and a kayak paddle.
The Winter walk season begins in June and we now have a social day at the beginning of June. The Spring walk season begins in September and we now have a social day at the beginning of September. The Autumn walk season begins in March, and despite the new resolution, there is no social day at the beginning of the Autumn walk season.
If this resolution is allowed to remain, it should be changed to specify the actual days i.e. the first Wednesday of February, the first Wednesday of June, the first Wednesday of September, the first Wednesday of December.
However, it is not the awful wording of the resolution that I am complaining about. Rule 2 of the SBW constitution states that "the objectives of the Club shall be: a. To provide recreational opportunities for members interested in bushwalking and other related activities" and "b. To promote the conservation of the natural environment." There is nothing in the constitution saying that social activities are part of the objectives of the club.
The "recreational opportunities for members interested in bushwalking and other related activities" has always been defined by the club as bushwalks, bike rides, kayak paddles, snorkelling etc. and has never included social activities. As a result, any resolution to replace bushwalking activities with social activities is outside the objectives of the club and is therefore unconstitutional and should never have been passed.
Section 13 of the current SBW constitution which deals with "Disciplining of members" says that "a complaint may be made to the committee by any person that a member of the Club has refused or neglected to comply with a provision or provisions of this constitution". By replacing bushwalking days with social days, the committee has failed to comply with the objectives of the club and the provisions of the constitution.
It could be argued that the Wednesday Xmas Party is a social event scheduled on a bushwalking day and that this sets a precedent for the club to include social events in its program, but it could also be argued that the club never scheduled walks in December and January, and that the Wednesday Xmas Party actually occurs after the walking year has finished and so does not actually replace a walking day.
The wording of the objectives of the club as shown in the constitution should be clarified, as it could be argued that social activities could validly be thought of as "recreational opportunities for members interested in bushwalking and other related activities", even though this contradicts the traditional interpretation of bushwalking and similar activities.
Perhaps the club's first objective in the constitution should be clarified to better define the objectives of the club. If we are a bushwalking club then the first objective should be changed to "to provide bushwalks and similar outdoor activities for members". If we are a social club as well as a bushwalking club then the first objective should be changed to "to provide social activities, bushwalks and similar outdoor activities for members".
If the club's objectives in the constitution are not clarified by changing the constitution or by providing a clear definition via a standing resolution, the argument that social events are valid "recreational opportunities" and can therefore replace bushwalks could mean that the club would not have to schedule ANY bushwalks EVER.
Regards,
Brett
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