YMUG Constitution

1. Name

The name of the group shall be The Yorkshire Mac User Group or YMUG

2. Aims

The aims of YMUG will be:

  • To help members get the most from their hardware and software whilst promoting a spirit of friendship between like-minded individuals.

3. Membership

Membership is open to anyone who:

  • Supports the aims of The Yorkshire Mac User Group.
  • Uses Apple Software.
  • Is enthusiastic about Apple products.

Membership will begin as soon as the membership application has been accepted. There will be an annual membership fee which will be agreed at the Annual General Meeting (AGM) and will be payable by all members. A list of all members will be kept by the membership secretary.

3.1 Ceasing to be a member

3.1.1 by the member

Members may resign at any time in writing, via email, to the secretary.

3.1.2 for non payment of subscription

Any member who has not paid their membership fee to renew their membership after automatic reminders have been sent by the membership system, will be contacted by the committee, who will then decide whether that member is deemed to have resigned.

3.1.3 at the request of the committee

Any offensive behaviour, including, but not limited to, racist, sexist or inflammatory remarks, will not be permitted. Anyone behaving in an offensive way or breaking the equal opportunities policy may be asked to resign from the group unless an acceptable apology is given or if the behaviour is repeated. The individual concerned shall have the right to be heard by the committee before a final decision is made.

4. Equal Opportunities

YMUG will not discriminate on the grounds of gender, race, colour, ethnic or national origin, sexuality, disability, religious or political belief, marital status or age.

5. Officers and committee

The business of the group will be carried out by a Committee elected at the Annual General Meeting. The Committee will meet online as necessary. The Committee will consist of 8 members, and be composed of 4 officers and 4 committee members. Up to 2 additional members may be co-opted onto the committee at the discretion of the committee. The officers’ roles are as follows:

  • Chairman, who shall chair committee discussions and shall be responsible for reporting of minutes and the distribution of all papers
  • Secretary – Membership & Technical, who shall be responsible for keeping records of members, maintaining website and associated systems.
  • Treasurer, who shall be responsible for maintaining accounts and monitoring expenses.
  • Newsletter Editor, who shall be responsible for curating, publishing and distributing the weekly email newsletter

In the event of an officer standing down during the year a replacement will be elected by the next General Meeting of members.

Any committee member not participating in committee business without apology for three months will be contacted by the committee and asked if they wish to resign.

The Committee discussion list will be open to any member of YMUG wishing to participate, who may speak but not vote.

6. Meetings

In this digital age and given the widespread geographical location of the groups members most group business meetings will take place online, either via email discussion or using group chat software such as Slack.

Meetings may also be held at a real life venue, these meetings will be more traditional group meetings with speaker, questions and answers and product demonstrations. Group business may take place at these meetings but will be open online to the wider group for votes and agreements.

Voting to ratify decisions will be made by online system and all votes will be cast within seven days of the ballot opening being declared in the weekly newsletter, or by general message sent to the entire group.

Votes cast after this period will not be counted.

6.1 Annual General Meetings

An Annual General Meeting (AGM) will be held within fifteen months of the previous AGM.

All members will be notified at least 3 weeks before the date of the meeting, giving the method and/or venue, date and time.

Nominations for the committee may be made to the Secretary before the meeting, or at the meeting.

All proposals at the meeting will be put to the wider membership for voting and a quorum of voters must be met to ratify any decisions.

The quorum for the AGM will be 10% of the membership or 10 members, whichever is the greater number, this quorum will apply to voting members as opposed to attending members.

During the AGM:-

  • The Committee will present a report of the work of YMUG over the year.
  • The Committee will present the accounts of YMUG for the previous year.
  • The officers and Committee for the next year will be elected.
  • Any proposals given to the Secretary at least 7 days in advance of the meeting will be discussed.

6.2 Special General Meetings

The Secretary will call a Special General Meeting at the request of the majority of the committee or at least eight other members giving a written request to the Chair or Secretary stating the reason for their request.

The meeting will take place within twenty-one days of the request and will normally be held on-line.

All members will be given reasonable notice of such a meeting, giving the means or venue, date, time and agenda, and notice may be by telephone, email or post.

The quorum (as vote casting members) for the Special General Meeting will be 5% of the membership or 15 members, whichever is the greater number.

6.3 General Meetings

General Meetings are open to all members and will be held as often as necessary and will normally be held on-line.

All members will be given reasonable notice of such a meeting, giving the means or venue, date, time and agenda, and notice may be by telephone, email or post.

The quorum (as vote casting members) for a General Meeting shall be 3% of the membership or 10 members, whichever is the greater number.

6.4 Committee Meetings

Committee meetings may be called by the Chair or Secretary. Committee members must receive notice of meetings at least 3 days before the meeting, which will normally be on-line.

The quorum for Committee meetings is three Committee members.

6.5 mactalk

The group runs an email based discussion forum.

This constitution applies to all activities in that forum with the addition of the following:

6.5.1 mactalk code of conduct

All posters to mactalk should follow the guidelines and code of conduct detailed here: https://ymug.org/mactalk/

A helpful how to post guide can be found here: https://ymug.org/postings-guide-mactalk/

6.5.2 copyright and intellectual property

All posts made to mactalk are copyright of the author and apart from quoting the authors words in a reply to the list, permission should be obtained from the author before republication. Posts to the mactalk mailing list contain information and advice that is freely given.

That advice and information becomes part of common knowledge. You are free to act on that common knowledge however you see fit. If you want to impart information or give advice that you do not want to become common knowledge, then you should not post it to the list, but instead offer that advice off-list and clearly state any restrictions you intend to place on that advice.

6.5.3 Disclaimer

Please also note that the following disclaimer applies:

The opinions, advice and facts stated on mactalk are those of the author(s) who do not warrant or assume any legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information, apparatus, product, or process disclosed. This information is:

  • of a general nature only and is not intended to address the specific circumstances of any particular individual or entity other than the original poster being replied to;
  • not necessarily comprehensive, complete, accurate or up to date;
  • sometimes linked to external sites over which we have no control and for which we assume no responsibility;
  • not professional or legal advice (if you need specific advice, you should always consult a suitably qualified professional).

7. Rules of Procedure for meetings

All questions that arise at any meeting will be discussed openly and the meeting will seek to find general agreement that everyone present can agree to.

If a consensus cannot be reached a vote will be taken and a decision will be made by a simple majority of members present. If the number of votes cast on each side is equal, the chair of the meeting shall have an additional casting vote.

8. Finances

An account will be maintained on behalf of the Group at a bank or financial system agreed by the committee.

Three payment signatories will be nominated by the Committee (one to be the Treasurer).

The signatories must not be related nor members of the same household. All payments will be agreed by two of the signatories by means of a requisition note detailing the form and purpose of the payment, signed by two signatories, and held by the treasurer.

Records of income and expenditure will be maintained by the Treasurer and a financial statement given at each meeting.

All money raised by or on behalf of YMUG is only to be used to further the aims of the group, as specified in item 2 of this constitution.

9. Amendments to the Constitution

Amendments to the constitution may only be made at the Annual General Meeting or a Special General Meeting.

Any proposal to amend the constitution must be given to the Secretary in writing, via email. The proposal must then be circulated with the notice of meeting.

Any proposal to amend the constitution will require a two thirds majority of those present and entitled to vote.

10. Complaints Procedure

Please submit a complaint privately by email or letter to a Committee Member, setting out your reasons for complaint.

The Committee will acknowledge the complaint either by email or by letter, and refer the complaint to a ‘responsible officer’ who will be identified in the acknowledgement, and will be the person charged with investigating the complaint.

The responsible officer will open a file on the complaint and will deal with the complaint in the manner they consider most appropriate, referring to YMUG Constitution, mactalk guidelines and other appropriate policy documents. This will include having an open mind, ensuring that the subject of the complaint has had an opportunity to explain their case, and asking for any further information from yourself that they may need.

On completion of their enquiries the responsible officer will communicate the decision to you and place a record of their decision on file. This will normally be within 10 working days of the complaint being received. If it is likely to be longer, this will be communicated to you in advance.

The decision of the committee and their responsible officer is final.

11. Dissolution

If a meeting, by simple majority, decides that it is necessary to close down the group for any reason, including but not limited to:

  • failure to elect a committee
  • failure to reach agreement on an issue affecting the whole group.
  • division within the group to create a splinter group.

It may call a Special General Meeting to do so. The sole business of this meeting will be to dissolve the group, distribute assets and close down the YMUG brand.

If it is agreed to dissolve the group, all remaining money and other assets, once outstanding debts have been paid, will be donated to an appropriate charitable organisation. The organisation will be agreed at the meeting which agrees the dissolution.

12. Changelog

This constitution was adopted by the Special General Meeting that took place during February 2019

2018/11/05

Numbering scheme changes and minor edits, during mactalk members review

2018/11/11

minor edits, during YMUG members review

  • removed management from management committee at 3.1.3 for clarity