Dear Members,
All of us expect the highest standards of leadership when it comes to money. But in recent years we’ve seen leaders in government, companies and unions indulge in excess, greed and dishonesty. It makes me both angry and disappointed…I’m sure you feel the same. At the TWU, we take our responsibilities to members seriously, and know that we have to be certain that the TWU has the best safeguards in place to protect members’ money.
That’s why the TWU National Committee of Management felt it was important to conduct a full review of our own practices, and to update our internal policies and procedures to make sure that we continue to do everything by the book. We don’t just want the TWU to meet its legal obligations – we want the TWU to lead the way on transparency and accountability. We want to be the benchmark for other organisations. At the TWU, member’s money – your money – is only spent for the benefit of members.
Our actions will be guided by our union values:
The interests of our members must always come first;
We believe in openness, transparency and accountability; and
We have the utmost respect for the rights and welfare of our members and employees.
Last year we commissioned an independent review of our policies and procedures to bring them up to date. You can view a copy of the report on our website. You will see that it covers things like financial training, budgeting, and approvals for expenditure on credit cards, fuel cards and cab charges. Many organisations conduct an annual review of their policies and procedures to stay on top of changes to regulations or accounting standards – but we intend to conduct this review every six months from now on.
We have also released a statement from our independent consultant about our commitment to continue to implement transparent and proper systems of accountability, as well as the current and future work planned. The windows to the union’s financial governance and accountability are open – and will remain so. I hope that this information can give full confidence in your Union. Please contact us with any queries.
Yours in Unity,
Tony Sheldon
TWU NATIONAL SECRETARY