The Retirees' Newsletter
The Faculty and Librarian Retirees' Association, University of Windsor, Windsor, Canada

Issue # 15 -- December, 1995

RETIREE MEMBERSHIP ON UNIVERSITY COMMITTEES At the October meeting, Ed Habib, President, explained the "university committee situation" as far as retirees are concerned. There are only two committees (outside the Retirees' Association itself) on which retirees presently have respresentation and a third on which future representation is possible.

The three committees are the following:

1) The Faculty Association's Pension and Benefits Committee: The Faculty Association permits up to three retirees to sit on it. It is advisory only. (See the story on p.1). Any member of the Retirees' Association is eligible but actual membership is appointed by the President of the Faculty Association in consultation with their executive.

2) The Joint Retirees' and Administration Committee: This Committee meets yearly to exchange views on matters reflecting retirees' concerns. It consists of an equal number of retirees (drawn from the Association's executive committee) and members from top University administration, plus a representative from the Faculty Association. It has been at these meetings that most of the gains for retirees in the form of continued privileges to use University facilities have been made. These have been reported in The Newsletter over the years.

3) The Board of Governors Pension Committee: This is made up of members from the Board and representatives of campus unions.

The Faculty Association has two representatives. Habib said that last year the Pension and Benefits Committee requested that the President of the Faculty Association petition President Ianni for a seat for a retiree. The President demurred on the ground that every retirees' union would want one. However, he said it would be acceptable if the Faculty Association were willing to turn over one of its seats to a faculty retiree. And there the matter apparently stands.

A VACANCY NOW EXISTS ON THE PENSIONS / BENEFITS COMMITTEE

Citing family reasons, Bill Phillips has announced that he will no longer be able to continue as a member of the Faculty Association's Pension and Benefits Committee. This leaves a vacancy which, it is expected, will be filled through the selection approved at the fall meeting.

OCTOBER MEETING APPROVES SELECTION STEPS

Any member of the Retirees' Association is eligible to sit on the Pension and Benefits Committee. With this in mind, the October meeting passed the following motion:

"That any member interested in serving on the Faculty Association Pension and Benefits Committee submit his/her name to the Executive of the Retirees' Association, which will apply judgement in selecting names to go to the President of the Faculty Association, limiting the number of such names to the number of vacancies."

The Association

The Faculty/Librarian Retirees' Association at Windsor was formed in 1990, to give a unified voice to retirees; to provide a bridge for communication with the University; to encourage social contact among the retirees; and to open a few doors through which retirees could continue to contribute to the University of Windsor.

Thus the Association is meant to fill what could otherwise be a void in the lives of retirees - possible isolation from the University and from their former colleagues; and possible lack of understanding of vital pension and health issues that affect them directly.

The Association operates under a Constitution. Nevertheless the preamble to our Constitution recognizes since we have "retired from active duty in the work force, there is no real need for formality and rigidity in the ConsTitution" and that it should be interpreted in that spirit.

There are only two meetings of the full membership per year: in the spring and the fall. An informal social committee arranges several other events per year - dinners, plays, picnics, and so on -all of which are paid for by those who take part. The Association encourages smaller special interest groups to form as occasion and their interests warrant. Because of extreme economy of operation, dues have been kept at the level of $10 per year. This includes five issues of The Retirees' Newsletter (see p.3).

Currently, the officers of the Association are the following:

President: Edwin Habib

Sec'ty-Treas: William Libby

Elected Members of the Executive Committee: David Booth and Robert Whitehurst.

Ex Officio Members of the Executive Committee: Norm Shklov and Bill Phillips.

The address is:Faculty/Librarian Retirees' Association, Univ. of Windsor Post Office, Windsor, ON., N9B 3P4

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