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Expected Vacancies: When can we post? What if they resign?


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Our union officer election results are being counted and the result should be announced this afternoon. Both candidates for President currently hold another office, so we expect the original position of whoever wins to be replaced by special election. Our overall goal is to have this special election process go as smoothly and quickly as possible. The speed is especially important because one outgoing officer (a different position on the same special election ballot) is retiring and we want as much overlap with his successor as possible so he can teach them.

 
Regarding installation, the bylaws say:
Section 12. The officers elected shall be installed as soon as practicable, after the votes are tabulated and the final election results detennined. They shall not assume the duties and responsibilities of office until the first of the month following election. After being duly elected to office in this Association, such elected officer will swear the following oaths, such oath to be administered by the Association President or the highest ranking officer present at the meeting when such electees are to be inducted into office… The acceptance of the inductee as an officer of this Association will be contingent upon his or their swearing or affinning this oath.
 
We want to post for the special election as soon as possible. We are assuming that we can’t actually do that until the offices are technically vacant. Is that correct? If so, based on the above, when would that actually happen? What is the difference between “installation” and “assum[ing] the duties and responsibilities"? Regarding the oath, the above says “meeting”. Could that be a board meeting or must it be a membership meeting? We don’t really have an “induction meeting”. The practice has been that the new officers just start doing their thing on the first of the following month, but we'd like that to happen sooner.
 
In order to expedite, if necessary we thought we might have the President-elect resign their current position at a special board meeting tonight so we could post for their position. The current President is also willing to resign if that simplifies things. However, we were worried by this bylaw provision:
Section 13. Any member refusing to serve after being elected to an office shall not be eligible to hold office in this Association for a period of three (3) years.

If they resign to “do the right thing”, are they “refusing to serve”? We obviously don't want them to be penalized in any way, especially being barred from holding another office going forward.

Anyway, we’d like your thoughts on the safest and quickest way to proceed.
 
Thanks.
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1 hour ago, SeanDeNigris said:

Our union officer election results are being counted and the result should be announced this afternoon. Both candidates for President currently hold another office, so we expect the original position of whoever wins to be replaced by special election. Our overall goal is to have this special election process go as smoothly and quickly as possible. The speed is especially important because one outgoing officer (a different position on the same special election ballot) is retiring and we want as much overlap with his successor as possible so he can teach them.

Why will the current office held by these candidates be vacant instead of being filled by the same election that elects the president? Does that term of office not coincide with the term of office for president?

And in any event, unless the bylaws provide that no person may hold two offices simultaneously, election to another office would not create a vacancy in the existing office unless the person submits a resignation (from the first office) to the appropriate body and the resignation is accepted.

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Thanks for the quick reply. Yes, their terms are staggered.

Regarding the procedure for filling vacancies, the bylaws state:

Quote

In the event that an Executive Board officer or the Welfare Fund Chairman vacates their office elected position becomes vacant for any reason, the Executive Board shall temporarily elect a replacement by majority vote within 30 days. An election to fill the position for the remainder of the term will then be held as soon as practicable…

There is also:

Quote

No member shall… hold more than one (1) office in this association at the same time

 

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OK, but there are still some more questions here.

2 hours ago, SeanDeNigris said:
In order to expedite, if necessary we thought we might have the President-elect resign their current position at a special board meeting tonight so we could post for their position. The current President is also willing to resign if that simplifies things. However, we were worried by this bylaw provision:
Section 13. Any member refusing to serve after being elected to an office shall not be eligible to hold office in this Association for a period of three (3) years.

If they resign to “do the right thing”, are they “refusing to serve”? We obviously don't want them to be penalized in any way, especially being barred from holding another office going forward.

We can't tell you what "refusing to serve" means in the context of your own bylaws, but why are you concerned only about the current president's resignation triggering this clause, but not the fact that the president-elect is abandoning his current office, which would mean he is ineligible to serve as president?

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3 hours ago, SeanDeNigris said:

We want to post for the special election as soon as possible. We are assuming that we can’t actually do that until the offices are technically vacant. Is that correct?

RONR has no such requirement.

3 hours ago, SeanDeNigris said:

If so, based on the above, when would that actually happen? What is the difference between “installation” and “assum[ing] the duties and responsibilities"? Regarding the oath, the above says “meeting”. Could that be a board meeting or must it be a membership meeting? We don’t really have an “induction meeting”. The practice has been that the new officers just start doing their thing on the first of the following month, but we'd like that to happen sooner.

So far as RONR is concerned, installation ceremonies are purely ceremonial and have no effect on when the term begins, so I don't think it matters when that ceremony occurs. It is ultimately up to your organization to interpret its own bylaws but it seems to me the "duties and responsibilities" clause is intended to define when the term of office begins.

3 hours ago, SeanDeNigris said:

In order to expedite, if necessary we thought we might have the President-elect resign their current position at a special board meeting tonight so we could post for their position. The current President is also willing to resign if that simplifies things. However, we were worried by this bylaw provision:

Section 13. Any member refusing to serve after being elected to an office shall not be eligible to hold office in this Association for a period of three (3) years.

If they resign to “do the right thing”, are they “refusing to serve”? We obviously don't want them to be penalized in any way, especially being barred from holding another office going forward.

It is up to your organization to interpret its own bylaws.

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2 hours ago, Shmuel Gerber said:

…why are you concerned only about the current president's resignation triggering this clause, but not the fact that the president-elect is abandoning his current office, which would mean he is ineligible to serve as president?

We are equally concerned with both, but since it seemed like the answer would be the same, I tried to simplify the question.

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26 minutes ago, SeanDeNigris said:

We are equally concerned with both, but since it seemed like the answer would be the same, I tried to simplify the question.

Well, if the provision is indeed applicable to those who have already been serving in office for a period of time, then it would seem that whoever is elected president and already holds another office is sunk either way -- he will have to abandon one office or the other, thereby becoming ineligible for both.

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