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AWTE UK Bye-Laws
These Bye-Laws supersede all previous Bye-Laws and Rules published by AWTE-London.
- The Women's Travel Club, founded in Great Britain in 1954, is now known as the Association of Women Travel Executives UK Limited.
- The aims and objectives of the Association shall be to:
- improve the status of women in the travel industry, to educate and to network both nationally and internationally
- promote international fellowship and understanding through personal contact and exchange of ideas
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- The Executive Committee shall comprise of the Chairman, Vice-Chairman, Finance Officer, Secretary and the Chairmen of the Sub-Committees for Membership, Events, Public Relations, Website and Communications, and Honoraries and Associates.
- The quorum is five Active Members, one of whom must be the Chairman or Vice-Chairman. The Chairman has the casting vote.
- Ideally, all officers shall be Active Members of the Association, with the exception of the Chairman of the Honoraries and Associates. However, the Executive Committee may co-opt any Member to take any office except as Chairman or Vice-Chairman. The co-opted Member may then run for that office at the next election.
- The Secretary shall convene and arrange meetings, take the Minutes and organise the elections.
- The Secretary shall be responsible for the Minute Book and the Finance Officer for the VAT Returns, Audited Accounts and any petty cash book. The books of the Association are to be handed over to the incoming Secretary and Finance Officer each year.
- The books shall remain the sole property of the Executive Committee and the Association.
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- A member is not eligible to stand for election to the Executive Committee until a period of twelve months' active membership has been completed.
- Executive Officers of the Association retire annually, however, they may elect to serve for a further term of one year but not exceeding two years. The exception is made in favour of the Secretary, Finance Officer and Website and Communications Chairman, who may be re-elected each year and may serve for an indefinite period.
- No member shall be eligible for nomination as Chairman of the Association without having served at least two years on the Executive Committee of the Association during her membership. The Chairman will, except in exceptional circumstances, have served as Vice-Chairman.
- The Chairman of the Benevolent Fund Committee may be invited to attend Executive Committee meetings.
- The affairs of the Association shall be managed by an Executive Committee consisting of the Officers which shall meet at least six times a year and shall provide feedback to the membership through the appropriate channels.
- There shall be five sub-committees reporting to the Executive Committee: each chaired by a member of the Executive Committee. In addition to the Chairman each sub-committee shall have up to three members who will be co-opted on an annual basis.
- The terms of reference of the sub-committees shall be as follows:
Membership sub-committee
- To maintain the membership database.
- To approve membership applications against agreed criteria, for final approval by the Executive Committee.
- To pass any contentious or unclear applications to the Executive Committee for decision.
- To organise a new members' evening twice a year.
- To actively encourage membership of the Association and to conduct targeted membership drives.
Events sub-committee
- To organise social and educational events and ensure that there is a mixture of events to suit the interests of all sectors of the membership.
- To organise the Christmas luncheon.
- To monitor and record attendance at all member events.
Public Relations sub-committee
- To liaise with journalists and key opinion formers.
- To ensure that the Association's corporate guidelines are agreed and conformed to in both internal and external communications.
Website and Communications sub-committee
- To plan and develop the AWTE website.
- To be responsible for all aspects of the website.
- To be responsible for email communication with the membership.
- To update email and hardcopy membership mailing lists.
- To maintain links to the websites of other organisations of interest to the membership.
Honoraries and Associates sub-committee
- To represent the interests of Honorary and Associate members.
- To organise at least two events per year for the Honoraries and Associates. These may also be attended by Active Members.
- To produce a quarterly newsletter to the Honorary and Associate members, providing updates on Committee meetings, Active membership activities and general news of interest.
- To communicate all events to the Honorary and Associate members without email by post or fax.
MEMBERSHIP
- Active Members shall be directors, proprietors, managers and executives, with a minimum of three years' management experience of: transportation companies, tour operators, travel agencies, commercial houses, tourist offices, hotels, hotel and villa representatives, conference organisers, group and incentive travel organisers, incoming tour operators, attractions, cruise lines, holiday centres, handling agents, travel trade associations, travel representation companies, online travel companies and the following, provided that 80% of their work emanates from travel: journalists, PR consultants, lawyers, insurance, recruitment, college lecturers and trainers.
- Honorary Members shall enjoy the benefits and privileges of Active Members but shall not pay a membership subscription. They may vote only for the Honorary and Associates Chairman at General Meetings or by proxy.
- Members who leave the industry and have been Active Members for at least one year may transfer to Associate Membership. They shall pay a reduced membership fee, be entitled to receive Association notices and to attend Association functions designated 'All Members'. Associate Members may hold office as Chairman or member of the Honoraries and Associates sub-committee or when co-opted for any office except as Chairman or Vice Chairman by the Executive Committee and subsequently elected to that office by the membership entitled to vote. Associate Members may vote for the Chairman of the Honoraries and Associates at General Meetings or by proxy. Should the Member re-join as an Active Member, the Associate Membership shall be considered part of the continuous membership period.
- Any member who changes her address or occupation must advise the Membership subcommittee within three months of that change taking place.
- The entrance fee and first annual subscription shall be payable on election and thereafter the annual subscription is payable within one month of the renewal date. Subscriptions are due on 1 April and failure to tender them by 30 April will result in the termination of membership.
- Applications for membership will be submitted to the Membership Chairman and approved by the Executive Committee in accordance with the criteria established in para. 8. Successful applicants shall be informed in writing and be given the necessary user name and password to access the secure Members' Pages of the website.
- The Chairman of the Membership sub-committee shall keep a list of all members which is the property of the Association and shall not be sold or passed on without the permission of the membership.
- Resignation from the Association should be made in writing to the Chairman of the Membership subcommittee. A fully paid-up member will be allowed to retain membership of the Association during temporary unemployment for either 12 months or until the end of the membership year, whichever is the greater, but thereafter membership will cease.
CONDITIONS
- Active Members are expected to attend at least three events of the Association per year. Failure to do so may result in termination of membership.
- Any member acting in a manner likely to bring the Association into disrepute can be expelled by a two-thirds majority of the Executive Committee. Any such member shall have a right of appeal to the Executive Committee in person at a meeting of the Executive Committee especially convened for that purpose.
- Members are encouraged to use the Association logo, within the Association's corporate guidelines, in any advertisement or for any business purpose.
POWERS OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
- The Executive Committee shall have the power to:
- Determine the strategy of the Association subject to consultation with the membership.
- Expend moneys of the Association in accordance with annual budgets.
- Co-opt Members to the Executive Committee if a post becomes vacant. Co-opted members must stand down and may stand for election at the end of each year.
- Call an Extraordinary General Meeting.
- Approve membership applications as presented by the Membership sub-committee.
- Appoint sub-committees to complete ad-hoc tasks.
GENERAL MEETINGS
- The Association year begins 1 April and the Annual General Meeting (AGM) shall be held within three months of this date. Not less than 28 days' notice shall be given to the membership.
- An Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) may be called by the Executive Committee or by the Committee Secretary following receipt of a request signed by not less than 25% of the Active Members of the Association. Such a meeting shall be called within 28 days of receipt of the request and not less than 14 days' notice shall be given to the membership.
- All members shall be entitled to attend General Meetings of the Association.
- Active Members may vote for specific resolutions at General Meetings in person or by postal ballot, their voting forms to be held by the Chairman.
- Honorary and Associate Members may vote only for the Chairman of the Honoraries and Associates at the AGM or by proxy.
FINANCIAL MATTERS
- The Association shall, at its AGM, appoint an Auditor.
- The Accounts of the Association shall be kept by the Finance Officer and shall be open for inspection by any member of the Executive Committee and the Auditor. If required, she will be empowered to co-opt one or two bookkeepers to assist her.
- The Association's Financial year is 1 February to 31 January and the annual accounts shall be produced and certified by the Auditor in good time for submission to the AGM for adoption.
- All expenditure shall be made by cheque signed by the Finance Officer and one of the following: Chairman, Vice-Chairman or Committee Secretary.
- At each Executive Committee meeting the Finance Officer shall present a financial statement.
- The Finance Officer shall, each year, prepare a budget and draft guidelines for the payment of expenses and payments from the Association's funds shall only be made on production of a receipt.
- No unauthorised members shall have the power to pledge the credit of the Association in any way and all contracts entered into on behalf of the Association shall be signed by two Executive Committee Members, one of whom should be either Chairman or Finance Officer, after approval by the Executive Committee, which shall be minuted.
- A bank account shall be opened in the name of the Association.
ALTERATION OF THE BYE-LAWS
- Any alteration to the Bye-Laws of the Association requires the consent of two-thirds of the Active Members casting their vote, either in person or by proxy at an Extraordinary or Annual General Meeting of the Association.
CONFIDENTIALITY
- All matters discussed in Committee and deemed sensitive must be treated as strictly confidential.
WINDING UP
- The decision to wind up the Association must be taken at an Extraordinary Meeting of the Association. The notice of the meeting must give a full report of the reasons for this.
- Such a meeting shall be chaired by the Chairman or a member of the Executive Committee.
- An audited statement of accounts must be sent to each member.
- No proxy votes will be accepted.
- After the decision has been taken to wind up the Association the signature of two Officers from the following: Chairman, Finance Officer, Vice-Chairman or Committee Secretary are required on all cheques.
- All cheque books, files, membership lists and other records of the Association should be lodged with the Auditor.
- The assets of the Association shall be used for the payment of creditors and then in a way as determined by a majority vote of those Active Members present at the EGM.
- The decision to wind up the Association must be carried by two thirds of the Active Members attending the Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM).
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