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Page 1 of 3 Your student voice came under threat from ACT's legislation to end universal membership of students' associations.
Students have historically used their voice on university councils, polytechnic councils, and students' associations to fight for what's best for students, whether that means securing interest-free student loans or demanding high quality and student focused education. But recently the strength of the student voice came under attack from government changes to council seats and membership of students' associations.
Students lost their representation at polytechnics when student representatives were taken off polytechnic councils, and the Act Party legislation to impose Voluntary Student Membership (VSM) on students' associations across New Zealand had its third reading in Parliament on the 28th of September 2011. These changes threaten student representation, advocacy and student support on campus.
Why should we be worried about student representation and the student voice?
It came under threat this year: student representatives were taken off polytechnic councils, and the ACT Party's legislation for Voluntary Student Membership (VSM) could devastate students' associations and the work they do for students.
Students' associations provide an independent voice working hard for you at a local and national level, providing a wide range of opportunities and activities on campus, and helping to ensure that students continue to get a high quality degree or diploma out of their study.
At present, when students enrol at most tertiary institutions they pay a levy that goes towards services like advocacy, welfare services, events like Orientation and support for clubs and sport. They also become members of their students' association, the democratic organisation run by students for students that controls how that money is spent.
The student services and student representation came under threat from voluntary student membership and the loss of council seats, as these changes undermine the strength of the student voice on campus life and education.
From January 1st 2012, students can no longer be automatically included as members of their students' association.
The VSM legislation posed many threats:
VSM threatens important student services and damage your tertiary experience
Your student experience and study success is supported by students' associations and the services they provide. Welfare and academic advocacy, student representation on institution committees, financial assistance, legal help, counselling services, student social events, Orientation week, student clubs and societies, campus recreation facilities, and university sports are all services brought to you by your students' association.
Tertiary institutions view students' association services as useful and relevant to their students, and as helpful in enhancing the quality of the education experience offered.
All the evidence from Australia, Waikato, and Unitec from when they went voluntary shows that this legislation could strip away the student services and student experience that you value. A 2010 PriceWaterhouseCoopers report estimated that under voluntary membership, service levels in NZ would fall by at least 48 percent and as much as 73 percent.
If Australia regrets it, why did we do it? Such dramatic revenue losses in New Zealand will slash many services and simply won't be sustainable for several students' associations.
VSM will affect your education and cost tertiary institutions more
Voluntary membership will put further pressure on tertiary budgets and government spending. In Australia and at Waikato, when associations could no longer provide services and facilities, the institutions themselves were left to pick up the pieces. If the institutions wanted to keep the services, representation, and advocacy, they needed to divert their limited funding from existing teaching and research budgets or simply raise their fees. So as a student, either your education will be compromised, or you will end up paying more for less.
Australia's experience with voluntary student membership shows considerable evidence of how voluntary student membership has led to significantly negative effects on student representation, campus social life, the provision of advocacy services, and on student engagement.
The Australian government was forced to create a specific $120 million transition fund for voluntary membership which our Government has made very clear they will not do, and is now trying to return and restore much of what was lost following the introduction of VSM.
The Bill will take away your choice
There are two types of student membership for associations - 'voluntary' or 'compulsory'. The previous law was flexible and allowed for students themselves to choose between the two membership types through campus-wide referenda. At Auckland University, students last voted in 2003 to retain voluntary membership, while students at Waikato voted to go back to compulsory in 2000, and Unitec most recently in 2007. Students could also individually opt out of membership of their association based on financial hardship or conscientious objection.
The VSM legislation will force ALL students' associations to be voluntary. We believe it is up to students to make these decisions, and not for Parliament to interfere in independent incorporated societies.
When there's no association left to join, there's no choice regarding membership of your students' association. The legislation, in effect, removes the choice to join a well-equipped, effective, and independent students' association. Tertiary institutions value the role associations play in education and agree that the independent and student-focused nature of associations means they are best placed to appropriately serve their students. We don't want to lose them!
VSM will take away your independent student voice
To be genuinely critical of tertiary institutions, associations also need independent funding. Under universal membership students set the membership levy and decide how levy funds are spent. Under voluntary membership, the students' association is dependent on the tertiary education provider for funding, which makes it dependent on the institution.
Under VSM, if you had an issue to take up with your institution and went to your university-dependent students' association to act as an advocate, it would be like the institution was representing you against itself.
Under voluntary membership, your student representation and advocacy will be weakened and less independent, you'll still pay for student services, BUT the student body will have less control over the money that's spent and the services being provided.
The legislation was an ideological solution in search of a problem. It will take away your choice, your voice, your services, and your representation, with no regard to how this will affect your education and your tertiary experience.
The implementation date in the Bill wont allow time for associations and institutions to adjust
The implementation date of the ACT Party's legislation to end universal membership of students' associations is January 1st 2012. This is a very short timeframe and is destructive and extreme. This puts unecessary pressure on students' associations and tertiary institutions to quickly adjust to the new environment. Next year's budgets for universities and polytechnics may have been already been passed leaving little option to fund any lost association services, student consultation or necessary changes will be difficult to make at this late stage, important contitutional changes forced by the Bill might not have time to happen, and institutions may not have time to negotiate service agreements with associations to ensure important services for students can remain. Both associations and institutions will be put at risk if the Bill comes into action without preparing the main stakeholders for a new environment. At a minimum the implementation date of the Bill should have been extended, but more importantly National should have put forward a fairer more enduring alternative to ACT's extreme legislation, to ensure an independent student voice and good cost-effective student services could have continued.
The legislation won't allow use of student loan to pay association fees
Under the previous law, you could pay your students' association fee through your student loan – the money you paid to your association didn't have to come out of your pocket, it could go on your loan along with the other fees you're charged when enrolling to study (eg tuition fees, Student Services Levy).
ACT's legislation won't allow that. If you want to join, you'll have to pay your association fees separately from your own pocket there and then, or use the course related costs component of your student loan (not really an option for most students who use it all for books or practical resources needed for courses like nursing and design).
And what about part time students who, under the National government's changes to the student loan scheme, can no longer borrow course related costs at all? Association fees should have been treated like other fees you pay and are able to be covered by the fees component of loans.
Page 2 of 2 What can be done to keep the student voice?
The government should:
Oppose the Education (Freedom of Association) Amendment Bill and not allow it to be passed.
Ensure general and Māori student representation is a priority for institutions and is appropriately resourced.
Restore student representation on Councils at Institutes of Technology & Polytechnics.
What can you do?
Get involved!
Sign on to the campaign, like Demand A Better Future and Save Our Services on facebook, join in with what students are doing on your campus to raise awareness of the threats your student representative voice is facing on your campus, support your association to be a strong voice for students, and make sure your local MPs know that you don't want to lose your voice on student affairs. Get in touch with your students' association to see what you can get going on your campus.