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Immigration Daily News Vote NO to resolution 1 at the MIA EGM on Monday 4 SeptemberAustralian Immigration Daily News
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Vote NO to resolution 1 at the MIA EGM on Monday 4 September
The announcement of an Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) scheduled for Monday 4 September at 4pm, is a unique opportunity for the joint members of the MIA and MA, who are qualified voters (current financial members of the MIA) to confer a proxy vote in accordance with clause 12.4 of the MIA constitution.
Vote-NO-to-resolution-1-MIA.pdf (proxy form)
12.4 A Voting Member may appoint another person as their proxy to attend and vote for the Voting Member at any general meeting by: a) signing an instrument appointing a proxy in the form prescribed by the Board in the Rules or otherwise in a form complying with the Act; and b) depositing the instrument appointing the proxy, or sending it by such means as the Board prescribes, at or to the Office or other place specified for that purpose in the notice of meeting, no later than the deadline specified in the notice.
I would be pleased to accept your proxy votes to vote down the proposed amendments to the MIA constitution which would entrench the current and future Board members.
Vote-NO-to-resolution-1-MIA.pdf (proxy form)
The current proposal was also the subject of an EGM some years ago and at that time Angela Chan was the President of the MIA.
The proposal was withdrawn as soon as it became evident that the membership of the MIA were not prepared to give up their annual right of review of the performance of the Board.
I am firmly of the opinion that unless a Board is responsive to the needs of the membership and is prepared to act in the best interests of the members and to protect the rights of members then it has no place at the Board table.
It is for the membership to determine who best represents their interests.
It is my recommendation that you vote down this proposal.
Given the relatively short notice of the EGM it will be necessary to have on hand all of the proxies no later than 3pm on Friday 1 September 2017 and a scanned copy of the Proxy can be scanned and emailed to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
I would like to put the MIA Board on Notice about a number of key changes that they might consider implementing after amending the constitution at some future stage.
Reform Agenda
- 1. Fusion of MIA and MA
- 2. Vesting of membership approvals in the membership rather than the Board, with a specific provision wherein any person who is an RMA or an exempt person can apply for membership and in the event of a seconding (20 members in good standing) of that membership application that the individual be admitted as a member upon payment of membership fees.
- 3. The use of plebiscites to determine the wishes of the membership in relation to membership related issues including membership fees and all items of expenditure over $50K in relation to the employment of contractors and other commercial services where 3 tenders have not been sought.
- 4. To provide for a mechanism wherein an EGM may be proposed by 100 current financial voting members and then the proposal for the EGM is taken out of the hands of the President and then put to a plebiscite which is binding on the Board. Upon receipt of the EGM proposal in proper form a plebiscite is conducted within 28 days on the proposal.
- 5. The proposal that where a sitting board member is unable to attend or resigns that the casual vacancy be put to the members in an election in the state where the vacancy occurs and a new appointee is then a member of the board and absent that appointment the work of the Board is suspended. (This avoids delay or procrastination)
- 6. The proposal that the Board survey its membership to determine what issues of concern about the state of the organisation and its management exist amongst the membership and to then consolidate and report on that information.
- 7. That any future appointments of the CEO position be the subject of a transparent recruitment process wherein applicants for the position and their resume is put before the Board after canvassing by an appointed recruitment agency, and that the members be given the opportunity of voting for the candidate. (This is to address a problem that arose in the most recent round of recruitment where MA founder, Liana Allan was an interviewed candidate for the CEO position, and offered to occupy the CEO position for a salary markedly lower than her current salary, with a view to fusing the two peak bodies.)
- 8. That all remuneration packages for all employees of the MIA, including the Board be identified and disclosed in the annual report.
- 9. That all meetings with the Minister, Assistant Minister and DIBP by members of the Board or employees of the MIA be minuted and those minutes be distributed in a newsletter to the membership within 14 days of the meeting.
Below is the pre-filled proxy form (click on link):
Vote-NO-to-resolution-1-MIA.pdf (proxy form)
I would ask you to consider and then complete and sign and then scan and email your proxy to hThis email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . I will ensure that your proxy is sent on time and has been checked for validity before it is sent in. This will be the 'vote no' proxy co-ordination email inbox. It is important that all proxies are accounted for.
I will personally attend the MIA EGM on 4 September at 4pm at the said location, with copies of the proxies you send to me to ensure that your wishes are taken into account.
If you have any questions please email me on This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .
Comments
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Tuesday, 15 August 2017
Please send your proxy! Please reconsider. If the MIA offer online voting it means members can easily vote. Filling out forms and doing proxies by printing off a form and then saving and emailing or faxing is harder and more time-intensive (disincentive to vote). The less 'NO' votes the better for the MIA as they want this resolution to pass.
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Tuesday, 15 August 2017
Proxies from MIA members are already flowing in.
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Tuesday, 15 August 2017By sending the proxy form in is that just for voting 'no' to the resolution or does that also include bringing up the Reform Agenda listed above?
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Tuesday, 15 August 2017
MAgent it is just for voting no to the resolution. The reform agenda would require an EGM and for those matters to be put on the table. This would be able to happen if the designated number of members can request an EGM.
It seems that MIA members are also interested in the reform agenda, based on the feedback so far. Watch this space. -
Tuesday, 15 August 2017The Reform Agenda is a place to start.
This EGM first, then a future EGM can start to address members concerns.
Reform generally starts at the bottom, vested interests higher up the food chain once they get a taste of power are reluctant ( as a general rule) to give it up. -
Tuesday, 15 August 2017
One of the dissatisfaction I have expressed, a dissatisfaction experienced by many agents in their inability to talk to a case officer or a unit manger on a crisis situation. The Department deals with human life situations who have paid significant amount of fees on issues that affects their lives. In any services that deals with members of the public on important issues it is absolutely essential, in my opinion, there ability to talk to a case officer is a must. To hide behind automated answering voice is no solution to human crisis and anxiety.
Robert K Chelliah -
Tuesday, 15 August 2017
I agree, there needs to be a dedicated channel for RMAs...after all what is the point of being an RMA where there is no principle of reciprocity or mutuality with DIBP. I feel that the RMA is in a special relationship of trust with DIBP ( at least that what the AAT says) so it would be nice to be able to have a dedicated enquiry line with real time resolution of problems. MA does it's best to assist colleagues with the resolution of problems but sometimes, just sometimes, we need someone at DIBP to "fix" or shift a roadblock. The new NSW State Director Lesley Dalton is a breath of fresh air. She is experienced, considered and an effective communicator who is interested in strategies to implement policy. She does not regard RMAs as a problem but an instrument to assist the Government in implementing its policies. She is a top performer.
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Thursday, 17 August 2017
Agreed, Robert and Chris and I welcome the comments about the new NSW State Director with great hope... It is virtually impossible to contact a case officer to discuss important life changing issues with them about a client's application and this is poor form - definitely NO reciprocity or mutuality there when there should be... RMAs are put through the coals for doing just that... For too long now, if you don't have an agent and you want to discuss something important, you ring the main switch or you can't get an answer and in the meantime you may be refused... Worse still, you are authorised by your client to deal with the Department but it rings your client directly and doesn't leave a number (or client doesn't ask for one - in a sheer state of angst) you're faced with having to send polite emails with reminders about the meaning of Form 956 with a 'please get back to me as soon as you can so my client is not unduly disadvantaged'.
What if you need to shift your caseload to another agent (imagine that...) and you can't check if the change over's been noted, the new agent can't get a confirmation that's been noted, cases with documentation pending cannot be readily accessed because there is NO-ONE to speak to anymore, except a general email which doesn't always work on deadlines and to sections which don't always speak to each other about the change...
Reliance on the goodwill of professional, well-meaning (but overworked) officers, continues to be the norm - it inevitably leads to incorrect decision making or unavoidable delays, refused applications in a clogged Merit review processes and with misery all around (plus the potential generation of a few MARA complaints (!).
MA has actively raised this with the Department on numerous occasions and, no doubt, will continue to do so, arguing for a dedicated line as well as against the misguided notion that RMAs may ring the Department to harass its staff... really? why would we harass staff when we rely on them for an appropriate decision?
This is but one of the many issues Industry Associations advocate on, surely...
Now back to the MIA new EGM date, keep us all posted! -
Wednesday, 16 August 2017
Wow just go a cancellation notice for the Meeting.
from MIA. Wonder what is cooking?
MA MODERATOR: THIS COMMENT MIGHT BE FALSE. WE ARE CURRENTLY VERIFYING WHETHER THIS IS A TRICK. -
Wednesday, 16 August 2017
It is not cancelled but postponed to Friday the 8th September. MIA is being naughty, insteadf of heading the notice with the word POSTPONEMENT MIA uses the word CANCELLATIOBN. Deceptive lot they are.
Robert Chelliah -
Thursday, 17 August 2017
This was not in fact a prank or trick. The MIA did issue a cancellation notice, but if you read their cancellation notice carefully it is a postponement.
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Thursday, 17 August 2017
Yes..must read carefully.. A simple appropriate - from Cancellation to Postponement - would have been more helpful.
Cheers .
Immigration blog
I wont be participating in the EGM as I feel they could have initiated online attendance and online voting options. The MIA is too Sydney focused.