IMPORTANT: See the letter from Tony Haven, SLSNSW President, received yesterday afternoon regarding our Lifesaving Agreement.
At our monthly meeting we discussed the issue at length & I asked every Committee member for their recommendation – 7 supported the position of not doing Saturday patrols & recommended that we do not sign the agreement & 2 supported the position of not doing Saturday patrols & recommended that we sign the agreement because of concerns about the threat made by SLSNSW & the future of the club.
The discussion considered comments from members received at previous meetings and via electronic media.
Based on the discussion, the Committee has made a resolution to maintain our previously communicated position and not to sign the agreement in its current form but will agree to undertake patrols starting Sunday 20 September in accordance with the proposed lifesaving agreement if there is an undertaking by SLSNSW to agree to engage in meaningful & direct negotiations with the aim of reaching an agreed outcome.
Should we not receive that undertaking from SLSNSW, on the day that the SLSNSW motion to discontinue our membership takes effect (Thursday 17 September 2015), the doors on our surf club will be locked – no patrols, no nippers, no competition, no access to the gym or amenities and we will be required to commence securing &/or selling club assets. In addition, from that date, we plan to take the story to the media.
Today I made contact with SLSA to engage their urgent assistance in resolving this matter. I spoke to SLSA President Graham Ford’s Personal Assistant to arrange a discussion with him but the PA pointed me in the direction of a senior manager who deals with these types of matters & I am expecting a call from her tomorrow. Essentially, I want to:
- Take her through what has taken place since February 2014 (the date of my first attempt to have this matter discussed & resolved)
- Share our perspective on why we think we shouldn’t have to do Saturday patrols
- Share our view of how we have been left out of / pushed aside in the negotiation process by both SLS Illawarra & SLSNSW
- Explain how we continue to be ignored when we ask reasonable questions or request information relating to Saturday patrols, consequences of not signing agreements & dispute settling procedures
- Seek advice on how this matter can be resolved while we maintain services with no loss of surf life saving privileges and entitlements
- Explain why, in our opinion, this matter & process needs to mediated / facilitated by an independent person
A quick analysis of the hours that we are required to undertake for the 2015/16 season:
- The proposed agreement requires us to patrol Corrimal Beach for a total of 307 hours on Sundays & Public Holidays
- The proposed agreement requires us to patrol Corrimal Beach for a total of 20 hours on Saturdays
- The Saturday hours represent 6% of our total patrolling hours requirement
SLSNSW appear happy to proceed with no patrols on Corrimal Beach on Sundays & Public Holidays & oversee the extinction of 103 years of surf life saving history for the sake of 20 hours of meaningless, unnecessary, duplicated patrols on 5 Saturdays – it doesn’t make sense & it probably doesn’t meet the objects of their own Constitution!
If you care about what is happening to your Club, now is the time to get involved and have your say. Feel free to share your views respectfully, the Committee welcomes your feedback on this extremely important matter.
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