At some point every association has members who act improperly. Some organizations may see it often. It is sure to happen — an umpire losing his temper and shoving a player, a referee cursing at a coach or officials fighting with each other.
What do you do when a member acts in some inappropriate way? Can you summarily remove the official from the association or impose other discipline? The answer depends on what preparations you’ve made within your association bylaws and constitution before an incident takes place.
Code of conduct. Before incidents occur, your association should create a code of conduct, outlining acceptable conduct for all members. Doing so helps fulfill the critical task of placing your members on notice that certain intolerable conduct may result in discipline by the association. Those rules of conduct may be stated very generally or very specifically. Both methods have benefits and pitfalls.
A general conduct rule might state, “No member official shall act in any manner that is detrimental to the association.” That statement allows the association to tell the membership that proper conduct is required without forcing the leadership to narrowly define exactly what is deemed proper or improper conduct. It’s a viable strategy because no group can possibly anticipate every future inappropriate act by a member. However, the benefit of that generalized statement is also its major downfall: By failing to specify prohibited conduct, members may be left wondering just what is and is not prohibited.
If a group does try to write a code of conduct outlining prohibited acts with great specificity it will wind up with a list of forbidden actions. The list will vary depending upon the group’s community and its membership. One community may feel that legal gambling on professional sports is perfectly acceptable while another community might feel that such actions are not in the best interests of the association and are grounds for discipline.
A specific list of forbidden actions might fit the bill for certain organizations. However, a list of forbidden acts risks missing certain undesired conduct. There exists a legal concept that a list that includes certain items does so to the exclusion of the rest, meaning that a list that prohibits certain activity may implicitly permit all other actions.
Perhaps the best code of conduct might be one that incorporates both a general prohibition and a specific notice of particular forbidden acts. It might be stated as, “No member official shall act in any way that is detrimental to the association, including but not limited to …” The language “including but not limited to” allows your association to list a few specific infractions that will not be tolerated while still putting your members on notice that other infractions may be grounds for discipline.
The penalty. After your association informs members that certain conduct will not be tolerated, your association must provide for penalties in the event the code of conduct is violated.
Penalties are determined by your association; certain infractions may warrant warnings, fines, probation, suspension or even immediate termination. That decision is up to your association.
Remember that whatever penalties you choose to outline in your rules should always attempt to be fair and equitable. Keep in mind most of your members will deserve a second chance. While some member actions are so heinous that immediate termination is warranted, most actions will not be so reprehensible as to justify the official’s immediate termination. Instead of automatic termination for all violations, place rules in your penalty provisions that allow for fines, probation or suspension. Along with probation comes the understanding that another violation will result in a heavy fine, lengthy suspension or permanent termination. Permanently terminating an official automatically for a first offense is just asking for a lawsuit against the association. Allowing for fines, probation, suspension or a combination of these as alternates to termination may help avoid such lawsuits and may help create an atmosphere of fairness in your association.
This article is for informational purposes and is not legal advice. |
