Handling conflict within your organisation
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New laws for Victorian incorporated associations came into effect on 26 November 2012. We are updating all our resources for Victorian incorporated associations - please check the 'last updated' date at the bottom of our resources to see if they reflect the new laws. The new Associations Incorporation Reform Act 2012 (Vic) can be accessed here, and you can read more about the changes at Consumer Affairs Victoria's website here.
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All not-for-profit community organisations have to deal with conflict sometimes. Healthy debate is good for your organisation, but if conflict and disputes are preventing your organisation from achieving its goals, you need to know how to handle it effectively and legally.
This page provides information on dealing with conflict and disputes involving members of a community organisation.
This page does not cover disputes or conflict involving employees (see www.pilch.org.au/employees), volunteers (see www.pilch.org.au/volunteers/), situations that may endanger the health and safety of people in the workplace (eg. bullying, see www.pilch.org.au/OHS), or violence (where the police may need to get involved, and criminal laws may apply).
Note: The information below has NOT been updated to reflect any relevant changes in the Associations Incorporations Reform Act 2012 (Vic) that came into effect on 26 November 2012.
Using mediation in Victorian not-for-profit organisations
Mediation is a useful way to try to resolve disputes within community organisations - and can be free for Victorian community organisations. Click on the information sheet below to find out more about mediation - what it is, how it works, and how to get the best out of the process.
Conflicts within Victorian incorporated associations
Dealing with disputes and grievances with members
Victorian incorporated associations must have procedures for dealing with disputes (or grievances) under their rules. Typically, these disputes arise where there is conflict between:
- member(s) of the organisation and the rest of the organisation
- member(s) of the organisation and the committee of management, or
- members of the committee of management (or board).
For example, a member might complain that the annual general meeting was not properly held; tensions may arise about the use of funds; or a committee member may dispute whether another member of the committee was validly elected.
Removing or disciplining a member
In Victorian incorporated associations, disciplinary procedures can allow an organisation to remove, suspend or fine a member who is acting inappropriately or damaging your organisation’s ability to operate.
Removing a committee member from the committee
The committee of management (or board) of a Victorian not-for-profit incorporated association controls and manages the business and affairs of the organisation. Sometimes an organisation's ability to achieve its aims is disrupted because a committee or board member is behaving inappropriately. If this happens, your organisation needs to know:
- what to do before trying to remove a member from the committee
- how a committee member can be removed from the committee, and
- what happens once a committee member is removed.
Going to court about an internal dispute
The law provides some options for going to court about an ‘internal dispute' within a Victorian incorporated association. However, going to court is stressful, time consuming and expensive - it is a last resort.
The information sheet below contains general information about:
- Things to try before going to court about an internal dispute,
- What kinds of internal disputes can be taken to court under the Associations Incorporation Act 1981 (Vic), and
- what to do if someone takes legal action against your organisation.
Before deciding to take court action about an internal dispute, think about what is really important about the dispute. Will going to court fix it? Also ask:
- Who, if anyone, is likely to get what they want by going to court?
- How much has the dispute cost so far, and how much more will our organisation spend if it goes to court?
- What will be the personal costs of going to court be (eg, time, impact on individual's lives, relationships and stress levels)?
- Are there other alternatives (eg, resigning or starting another organisation)?
Seek legal advice before making a decision about what to do.
Resources
Victorian government
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The government agency responsible for regulating Victorian Incorporated Associations - Associations.
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A free dispute resolution service funded by the Victorian Government.
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This guide is published by the Victorian Office for the Community Sector and can be used by community organisations to assess the conflict resilience of their organisation.
Other
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This is part of QUT’s Developing Your Organisation Manual which provides directions to help not-for-profits meet their governance, organisational and service delivery responsibilities.
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LIV’s referral service allows you to locate a lawyer that can provide legal advice on various topics.