Chair Statements to a Board Member

[Guest Steven]

Does the Chair have the right to make comments to a particular Board Member in an open meeting duly called?  EX - Board Member has been unruly in past meetings and wants to acknowledge to Board Member in hope that it will not happen in the future.  

[Josh Martin]

20 minutes ago, Guest Steven said:

Does the Chair have the right to make comments to a particular Board Member in an open meeting duly called?  EX - Board Member has been unruly in past meetings and wants to acknowledge to Board Member in hope that it will not happen in the future.  

No, I don't think it is appropriate for the chair to admonish a board member during a meeting on the basis of past misbehavior or to warn against potential future misbehavior. See RONR, 11th ed., pgs. 644-648 for the appropriate procedures to use if and when the board member becomes unruly again.

[Transpower]

RONR (11th ed.), p. 445, ll. 22-28:  "If a member commits only a slight breach of order--such as addressing another member instead of the chair in debate, or, in a single instance, failing to confine his remarks to the merits of the pending question--the chair simply raps lightly, points out the fault, and advises the member to avoid it.  The member can then continue speaking if he commits no further breaches."

 

 

[Richard Brown]

The chairman can speak to the board member privately. He also can and probably should politely call the member to order next time it happens.

If this sort of thing happens regularly, and with other members committing breaches as well, I think it would be appropriate for the chairman, at the beginning of a meeting, to perhaps remind the board members in general of the rules of proper conduct and decorum without calling out any particular member.

[Kim Goldsworthy]

On 6/21/2017 at 11:17 AM, Guest Steven said:

Q. Does the Chair have the right to make comments to a particular Board Member in an open meeting duly called?  

EXAMPLE - Board Member has been unruly in past meetings and wants to acknowledge to Board Member in hope that it will not happen in the future.  

Answer: No.

The chair should do all such admonishing OUTSIDE of the meeting hour, BEFORE the meeting.

Your chair exhibited poor leadership skills, poor people skills. -- The time to prevent problems is before the meeting, not during a meeting.

Your chair was out of order. Someone should have raised a Point of Order saying so.

 A disciplinary action against your chair may be appropriate.

[Rev Ed]

On 6/23/2017 at 10:48 AM, Richard Brown said:

The chairman can speak to the board member privately. He also can and probably should politely call the member to order next time it happens.

If this sort of thing happens regularly, and with other members committing breaches as well, I think it would be appropriate for the chairman, at the beginning of a meeting, to perhaps remind the board members in general of the rules of proper conduct and decorum without calling out any particular member.

Richard,  this is what I am thinking - it could an inexperienced Chairman who does not maintain control of the meeting. 

But, if the member, even after repeated corrections, continues to be an issue at meetings, the Board could look at Chapter XX of RONR or the By-laws about discipline.  The member could be disciplined if the Board* feels that it is intentional - especially after repeated attempts to 'correct' the issue.  Discipline could include being named in the Minutes, to a suspension, and up to removal from office (either as a member of the Board, or as a member of the Board and the organization.)

*For the experienced RONR members here: It is up to the the Board to follow the disciplinary measures found in RONR or the By-laws of the organization, so they may or may not have a lot of power in what occurs.