VSM Catch Up
Bringing you up to speed with VSM, CSM and lots of other annoying acronyms.
(Finding out what you’re spending $120 bucks on.)
Students have less than a week left to sign an online petition to save their services.
The Save Our Service Campaign is urging students to petition against Act MP Roger Douglas’ Education (Freedom of Association) Amendment Bill before March 31st.
I’m willing to bet most of you have no idea what any of this is about, even though it will be affecting you.
Firstly, what do all these capitals stand for?
CSM: Compulsory Student Membership.
VSM: Voluntary Student Membership.
NZUSA: New Zealand Union of Students’ Association.
USU: Unitec Students’ Association.
SOS: Save Our Services
And what does this have to do with me?
Every year you study at Unitec you pay to be a member of the USU Students’ Association. This year you paid $120 (including GST.) If you’re a part time student you will have paid less. Either way, you probably didn’t even notice, because it’s tacked onto your fees.
At Unitec this fee covers a variety of things, including: This website, events like Sound in the Sun, student advocacy (lawyers), free sausage sizzles, In Unison magazine, sports teams, clubs, international services and education services ( including running Student Reps and the Satisfaction Survey.)
It also means if you have problems such as a dispute over grades or an assignment, or facilities and conditions on campus you can take your issue to the USU, who are independent from Unitec, and are here to represent you.
Have students always paid this?
Up until 1998, all student unions in New Zealand universities and polytechnics were compulsory to join. In 1998 the National party introduced and passed the Voluntary Students’ Association Membership Bill which meant students could vote as to whether they would automatically keep paying the membership fees. The USU Students’ Association was made voluntary for several years after this vote. Students’ voted for compulsory membership (CSM) again in 2007, however individual students can still contentiously object to being members.
Most universities and polytechnics have currently voted to have CSM, with the notable exception of Auckland University. Our Aussie neighbours had voluntary membership imposed by their Government in 2005. According to SOS this caused a massive decline in welfare, counselling and advocacy services at Australian tertiary institutes.
So what’s this Save Our Services thing?
ACT MP Sir Roger Douglas has put forward a bill (http://www.act.org.nz/files/Education_(Freedom_of_Association)_Amendment_Bill_0906_Douglas.pdf) called Education (Freedom of Association) Amendment Bill. Submissions for or against this bill will be accepted until March 31. It will then be considered by the Education and Science select committee in April and May.
NZUSA (which USU is not part of) has started a campaign called SOS because they feel Sir Douglas’ bill threatens the services that students’ associations provide.
“Roger Douglas’ voluntary student membership (VSM) bill threatens the services, representation, and experience students currently receive on campus. The quality of education for hundreds of thousands of tertiary students all around the country is being put at risk,” says NZUSA co-President David Do.
“When we visited campuses around the country this month, we clearly saw that students, staff, and institutions value the work their associations do everyday,” said Do.
OUSA the Otago University students association went as far to put themselves up for auction on Trade Me as an anti VSM stunt. The listing only stayed up a few hours before trade me removed it.
If you want to sign their submission you can go HERE (http://www.saveourservices.org.nz/online-submission.html)
Question is, do I want to save CSM?
Students and students’ associations around the country are divided on their stance on the bill. Some are actively campaigning on campus and through student press.
Others like Act on campus are “thrilled” with the bill.
In 2009 In Unison editor Stacey Knott and reporter Joseph Harper asked students what they thought of CSM. One student commented on the In Unison website, saying: “Events on campus pre-2005 were non-existent, there were no clubs and sport consisted of a water slide one afternoon.”
“There were no uni games or tertiary challenges. Orientation was one beer tent in the hub for two weeks - there were no O-packs, free sausages, free drinks or entertainment. Since then the USU has enabled students to take part in a wide variety of events and changes within Unitec. Course fees have not risen at all in the last three years. Students now have regular access through the education service to the academic board and have a solid student rep program running.”
Other comments included: “$103? pfft, I ate my moneys worth in sausages last week, so I’m all good.”
Twenty Five students were asked if they felt well represented by the USU. Only around half said yes, and many said they didn’t utilise a lot of the services offered by the USU. Despite this, 15 of the 25 surveyed said they would still join if a voluntary membership system was put into place.
So you’ve got until March 31st to have your say, do you want the whole student body to automatically pay, or do you want to individually decide each year?