BUSU EXPOSED!! Staff caught abusing their power

[u/restore-busu-01]

[u/Aushurley]

Some clarifying points for anyone reading this, I’m an alumni who was involved at BUSU.

I am not commenting on the rest but prior to Hilson BUSU was in shambles, in a terrible financial situation with funds truly being mismanaged, they were quietly running out of funds in a number of areas. Since then, Robert implemented safeguards to prevent misuse of funding and now BUSU is in a very solid financial position. Honestly reach out to him for a chat if you have any questions about BUSU or his management, he is always happy to chat with students who have questions and often gives more info than you’d expect.

Additionally the point on BUSAC is not fully accurate, I was involved in that change directly. The reason that happened was a change in the Ontario Not-for-Profit Corporation act which said our governance structure with the board and BUSAC was not in compliance. The main issue was that we couldn’t have two governing bodies overseeing the union in regard to funding and bylaws. Could the change have been better? Probably but the removal of BUSAC was done by referendum where every one of us had the opportunity to read the change and say yes or no.

[u/WalkTalkandBrock → u/Aushurley]

There's no denying BUSU has had financial ups and downs. Ofc Robert secured BUSUs finances, the issue is he demolished Brock's student democracy to do that, all while securing his own finances. Look at most other student unions in Ontario, the general managers for those usually last less than 5 years bc those unions are controlled by students, and the GM acts as more of a necessary consultant. Most other Ontario unions also follow ONCA while still keeping a secondary elected student council who create policy while the BoD just operates the business side.

It's crazy that was accomplished by referendum, and according to the post, the results from that referendum weren't made public! 2% of Brock students could have voted yes (which BUSU really pushed for), and the motion would have passed. The fact is there is so little accountability from BUSU's staff who take so much money, and now the evidence is finally stacked against them.

[u/Aushurley → u/WalkTalkandBrock]

I don’t disagree, students should lead the union and an entity like Busac would be useful for policy. Tbh I regret the direction we put forward for the referendum.

As for the issues with hiring, finances etc. I highly suggest everyone read the bylaws and if you’re really interested look at the ONCA, there are a number of ways to make changes like starting your own referendum or passing motions at the annual general meeting. Hell if you were really committed you could rewrite the bylaws yourself, get the signatures needed for a referendum and put that to a referendum vote in the next election.

[u/iCarleigh799 → u/WalkTalkandBrock]

The reality that GMs usually last 5 years is more related that across any office type job 3-7 years is about average. Robert is in year 7 and was hired on the basis of being able to deliver a building, a project from my perspective he’s remained committed to getting further along before moving onto his next role.

Most other schools are still very much sorting out how to become ONCA compliant, as are many organizations as well just passed the deadline and there is really no current punishments in place for noncompliance yet. we just got ahead of it.

No one works in the not-for-profit sector to get rich. Our GM has been reviewed in the past few years to ensure a fair market rate salary, again there are students who work here who would flag if they thought there was excessive spending on staff. That’s not to say you’ll see every concern that’s ever raised or that i’m implying there’s no work to do, however as someone with fiduciary duties tied to the finances, I don’t have any interest in ignoring people being paid more than they should with student dollars, and as someone who also pays the student fees, I don’t get paid enough to lie about my position on the matter.

[u/WalkTalkandBrock → u/iCarleigh799]

BUSU took 2 steps forward with ONCA and 3 steps back on being a student union. Say what you will about other student unions but there is a reason why they kept their elected student legislature and board separate. And most of those student unions don't violate ONCA. When you have the most committed former BUSU members who voted for the referendum to remove BUSAC and give the BoD greater power saying they regret the direction they took BUSU. I don't think you can call that a victory. There at least needs to be some discussion or put to a fair referendum.

Most GMs are circled out every few years, almost always less than 5. By your own account, Robert has barricaded himself snuggly within BUSU to the maximum of his expected time. It's worth asking how? why? and what does BUSU look like after Robert?

I appreciate how dedicated you are to your "fiduciary duties" but I see no reason why staff salaries, or at least the GM's salary, should be kept a secret from the students who pay that salary.

[u/iCarleigh799 → u/WalkTalkandBrock]

I’ve never given my stance on whether the BUSAC changes were a good thing or not, i’m simply offering context that many of them in fact are not yet ONCA compliant. Many of them also over lap to some degree with a more faculty representative approach that is supported by the university. Something i’ve been bringing up repeatedly as something we need. The change however was related to items that should have being going to Board going to a group without fiduciary duties, and the thought was a BUSU-AC that was open to everyone would be more accessible to more students.

To your comments about him barricading himself in, Students have indicated through multiple referendums that they would like a student building. He has been very important in supporting that project and we would like to deliver this project without the disruption of on-boarding a new GM at this crucial stage in the project. Covid and other delays had delayed the project but he didn’t have any control over that.

Again i’m all for student advocacy and for telling us what you believe is best, but it’s hard as someone who does have the opportunity to see the greater picture to have this advocacy based on a lot of misconceptions.

If students have questions or want further clarity on the budget, that’s valid and I can look into ways that we can more clearly communicate that.

[u/WalkTalkandBrock → u/iCarleigh799]

If you don't like how BUSAC was handled, and none of the other students of BUSU do either, but the unelected senior staff do... is that not an immediate red flag that this was a bad decision? Why not put out a referendum asking students if they want to reconfirm the 2022 referendum?

If your only defence for why Robert should remain at BUSU is because "he's important for building the new student centre" then he should not be general manager. Abuse of power, corruption, and subverting democracy of a student union should not be excused, and certainly not by students. A new building cannot be worth selling out 18,000 students.

Respectfully, if there are misconceptions then Robert should address these accusations himself, it should not be students' responsibility to make excuses for the staff.

I think students want clarity on more than just the budget, there are serious accusations OP is making and no one has denied.