Minutes of the Annual General Meeting
Wednesday, September 9, 2020
Meeting via Zoom, 11:00-12:30
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Sign In and Welcome
President Ginette Lamontagne welcomed participants to the fifth Annual General Meeting of MURA/ARUM. Due to lockdown rules imposed by the Covid-19 outbreak, the meeting was held online via the Zoom videoconferencing app. The extraordinary circumstances meant that members from Nova Scotia, Ontario and British Columbia were able to join. The President introduced Richard London who had assisted in the preparation of visual material and who acted as coordinator for the Zoom presentation.
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Approval of the Agenda
Moved by Estelle Hopmeyer and seconded by Gordon Burr that the Agenda for the meeting be accepted. Motion carried.
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Approval of the Minutes of the Annual General Meeting of June 20, 2019
The Minutes of the meeting of June 20, 2019 had been distributed to the members electronically. The President asked if there were any corrections or amendments. As none were put forward, Ronald Guttman moved and Trudis Goldsmith-Reber seconded that the Minutes of the 2019 AGM meeting be accepted. Motion carried.
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Report of the President: Five-Year Milestone
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Genesis of MURA/ARUM
The President noted that the Association had existed for five years and saluted the individuals who had worked to bring it into being as a single organization representing all McGill retirees. She cited in particular John Dealy, Kohur GowriSankaran, Judy Pharo, Meira Terk, Linda Montreuil and Ron Critchley, and offered kudos to the various staff groups that had provided start-up funds. The President reminded members that a comprehensive history of MURA-ARUM can be found on the Association’s website.
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Growing Membership
MURA has enjoyed the support of the University’s senior administration since its inception. Initiatives promoting the Association on campus include liaison with HR so MURA can contact employees approaching retirement as well as an annual reception for new retirees hosted by Principal Fortier and featuring presentations by MURA representatives. The President added that provision of office space on campus and the inclusion of a MURA Board member on the University’s Staff Benefits Advisory Committee all demonstrate that MURA is considered to be an integral part of the McGill community.
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McGill’s Bicentennial Celebration
With events originally due to kick off on Founder’s Day, March 31, 2021, the President reported that MURA’s Board had suggested a one-day party in June for all staff, past and present, under a big tent on the lower campus. The Bicentennial Celebration Committee welcomed the idea, but as Covid spread, plans were changed and a scaled-down party is to take place in the fall. Virtual projects include an exhibit of McGill’s “unsung heroes” under the supervision of Gordon Burr, highlighting contributions of 19th- and 20th-century faculty and staff. The President also invited MURA members to contribute to a video of the importance of retirees to McGill.
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Report of the Vice-President (Internal)
Vice-President (Internal) Kate Maguire outlined activities both before and during the lockdown. She missed pre-pandemic events where members could gather, including for neighbourhood walking tours, luncheons and theatre evenings. During the lockdown MURA events continued online and for the first time, the Association fielded a team for a now-virtual Trivia Night, started in 2010 by David Harpp. The “MURA Freebirds” finished respectably mid-pack. Events for the remainder of the year included a session on finding a financial planner, a discussion with Henry Mintzberg and daughter Suzie Mintzberg, and two musical evenings.
The Vice-President thanked members who had initiated/coordinated various Association activities, including Joan Wolforth (Book Club, Restaurant Group), Claude Lalande (Cercle de lecture), Bob Stanley (Golf Group), Katherine Gray-Donald (Knitting Group), and Gregg Blachford, Hugh Ray, Susan Kojima, Debbie Mercier, Joan Barrett, Joan Wolforth (Cycling Group).
The frequency of MURA communications had increased during the pandemic, providing members with sources of reliable information on Covid, as well as suggesting entertainment sites during the lockdown. The Vice-President reported that 89 people had joined the group’s Facebook page.
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Presentation of the Financial Review
Treasurer Bob Stanley announced that there would be three resolutions, based on documents previously distributed, requiring formal approval from members.
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The first documents he presented comprised details of MURA’s revenues and expenses for the period April 2019 to March 31, 2020. The Treasurer reminded members that the statements had been reviewed by Pierre Gagnon, CGA, CA, but had not been audited as the process was deemed unnecessary and too costly by the MURA Board.
He moved for approval of the Financial Review, seconded by Lorraine Torpy, and called for a vote. The Zoom function allows participants to press a button to vote. Richard London tallied the votes and the resolution was approved by a count of 42 (yes)-0 (no). Motion passed.
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The second resolution concerned the annual membership fee paid by members who had not been part of a McGill staff association at the time of retirement. Fees for the great majority of MURA members are covered by agreement with these associations. The annual fee of $25 for non-affiliated members nonetheless must be approved each year.
The resolution put forward by the Treasurer and seconded by Rosemary Cooke was approved by a count of 42-0. Motion passed.
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Finally, the Treasurer presented the proposed Budget for the period April 1, 2020 to March 31, 2021. He noted that this was the fifth version of the Budget, reflecting the ongoing changes brought about by Covid. For example, there were no travel expenses for MURA executives as the CURAC (College and University Retiree Associations of Canada) annual conference had been cancelled. Similarly, MURA’s plans to host the 2021 CURAC conference as part of McGill’s bicentennial celebrations, had also been cancelled. A $3,000 placeholder budget item was included as the University might still present an online lecture at CURAC’s AGM. Reduced expenses due to cancellations and the transition from on-site to virtual activities meant that MURA would end the year with an estimated surplus of $7,000.
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Treasurer Bob Stanley moved, seconded by Lorraine Torpy, that the 2020-2021 Budget be approved. The vote was 44-0 in favour. Motion passed.
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Report of the Vice-President (External)
Vice-President (External) Katherine Gray-Donald, who also fills the role of Board Secretary, presented her report on membership and recruitment. She stated that MURA recruitment had started well but slowed down as Covid restrictions increased. Nevertheless, overall membership stood at 434 with 17 more retirees added since last year.
She also noted that the MURA Executive had developed a Conflict of Interest statement with input from the Board. It was approved on May 28, 2020, and all Board members have since signed the statement.
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Report of the Nominating Committee
The Nominating Committee, composed of Sylvia Sklar, Honora Shaughnessy and Wes Cross was formed to put forward names of candidates to stand for election to the MURA Board. Committee chair Wes Cross reported that three Board members whose terms were expiring agreed to stand for re-election and seven other candidates agreed to run. The election, organized by Katherine Gray-Donald, was held between April 15 and May 15, 2020. Ante Padjen was named MURA/ARUM President-Elect to replace Ginette Lamontagne who was concluding her five-year term.
Members of the MURA/ARUM Board for 2020-2021
Bob Huot (2020-2023)
Debbie Mercier (2020-2023)
Eduardon Pereira (2020-2023)*
David Kalant (2018-2021)
Kathy Mayhew (2018-2021)**
Judy Pharo (2018-2021)**
Beverlea Tallant (2018-2021)**
Saul Ticktin (2020-2023)
* Served since 2017 ** Served since 2015
President Ginette Lamontagne then introduced President-Elect Ante Padjen, who would begin his term as President in June 2021. A former professor in the Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, Ante Padjen was also founder in 1989 of the I Medici orchestra at McGill. The President-Elect acknowledged the outstanding service of Ginette Lamontagne, and thanked her and Executive colleagues Bob Stanley, Katherine Gray-Donald, Kate Maguire and Richard London for helping him during his “apprenticeship.”
9. Staff Benefits Advisory Committee Update
The President then called on Kathy Mayhew to report on updates from the Staff Benefits Advisory Committee. Covid has severely restricted travel, something enjoyed by many retirees who often spent winters outside Canada. After a flood of inquiries about insurance coverage related to Covid, HR set up a FAQ web page (www.mcgill.ca/hr/benefits/insurance/travel) to address them. She noted that the University’s Supplemental Health Plan is moving away from coverage of named drugs to supporting generic brands.
Kathy Mayhew advised that a new HR R2R (Recruitment to Retirement) concept had introduced Workday, a cloud-based platform to replace older HR apps like Banner, Minerva and POPS and which will be used to record personal data and provide access to beneficiary information, tax documents, etc. She added that McGill pension plans had transitioned from Morneau Shepell to Sun Life Financial in August 2020. She reminded everyone of the importance of keeping HR apprised of changes to their personal information.
10. CURAC (College and University Retiree Associations of Canada) 2021 Conference
Board member Beverlea Tallant reported on the plans made by MURA to host the 2021 annual conference of CURAC, as part of McGill’s bicentennial celebrations. Beginning in 2017, a great deal of work went into the project and just as final plans were being made, the conference became another casualty of Covid-19. The MURA committee considered launching a virtual version of the conference but because of factors like the number of time zones across the country and possible Zoom fatigue, it was deemed unfeasible. Discussions continue with CURAC as to whether a presentation by a prominent McGill speaker might be offered at the CURAC 2021 AGM.
11. McGill Communities Council (MCC) Update
Board member David Kalant, who represents MURA on the Council, reminded members of the events of November 2011, when a strike by MUNACA (McGill University Non-Academic Certified Association) led to protests on campus, the occupation of Principal Heather Munroe- Blum’s office and the involvement of police. After an investigation, the MAUT (McGill Association of University Teachers) produced a Report on Governance, Protest and Security in March 2012.
A committee was then formed to represent all campus employee and student groups (except senior administration) to foster better communication among the groups and to consider issues affecting faculty, staff and students. Recent discussions have focused on Covid-19, racism on and off campus, and the presence of the James McGill statue. David Kalant noted that among the documents distributed to members was a MURA position paper on the statue which had been sent to senior administration.
12. Working Group on Lifelong Learning (WGL3) Update
The President introduced Gregg Blachford, former head of McGill Career Planning Service (CaPS) who represents MURA on the Working Group on Lifelong Learning. The committee was set up to develop an approach to lifelong learning for McGill’s next century, an initiative linked to the bicentennial celebrations. After looking across campus and at other universities to see what is offered, the group found that lifelong learning is considered to be of interest primarily to people in retirement. While most faculties offer credit and non-credit courses, others believe that doing so takes resources from their traditional 18- to 24-year-old demographic.
The report of the Working Group recommends that McGill:
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celebrate and promote what lifelong learning courses/programs we already offer
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reach out to a broader demographic beyond traditional students
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develop ways to measure the impact of lifelong learning at McGill
The WGL3 recommendations will be forwarded to another committee and Gregg Blachford is hopeful that actions will be in place as the bicentennial gets underway.
13. MURA Newsletter
Debbie Mercier has taken over as Editor of the MURA Newsletter from Joan Wolforth. She asked for feedback, stories and photos from members on travel and Covid experiences, as well as for members’ views on the usefulness and frequency of the publication, currently produced annually. The next issue should be published in the spring of 2021.
14. Q&A
The question and answer session was facilitated by Richard London.
Jodie Hebert began with a query about the call to remove James McGill’s statue from lower campus because he had been a slave owner. She remarked that removal of the statue was extreme. David Kalant replied that the MURA Board’s position statement submitted to senior administration recommended that the statue remain and that a plaque be added to provide historical context.
Lorraine Torpy asked what percentage of new retirees each year opted to join MURA. Katherine Gray-Donald estimated that the number stood at about 20%. She noted that new members don’t always join at the time they retire but may wait a few years to do so.
Wanda Trineer mentioned that she had only heard about MURA through a chance meeting and wondered how communication could be improved. Bob Stanley responded that MURA relies on sister organizations on campus to spread the word and that the Association only has indirect access to potential retirees through HR.
Claude Lalande remarked that most groups at McGill have a land acknowledgement statement to begin their meetings, recognizing that an event is taking place on unceded aboriginal territory. He asked whether it was an oversight or a deliberate policy that MURA did not include such a statement. The President asked for comments. Gregg Blachford agreed with Claude Lalande and the President said that she would take the matter to the Board for consideration. (Over the following few minutes many participants added comments agreeing with the idea.)
Claude, coordinator of the Cercle de lecture, invited anybody with more ideas for activities for francophone members to advise MURA’s executive. Ginette Lamontagne, a member of the Circle de lecture, said how much she enjoyed the group and encouraged new activities.
Debbie Mercier asked for clarification regarding the change in management of the McGill University Pension Plan. Kathy Mahew confirmed that as of August 2020 all pension management has moved to Sun Life Financial from Morneau Shepell. Richard London added that the HR pension information page had been updated to reflect the change.
Returning to the issue of recruitment and Bob Stanley’s earlier response, Karen Cavanagh suggested many people were not aware of MURA. Bob Stanley said that in-person sessions were often the best recruitment tools. He commented that events like the CURAC conference would have provided significant awareness of MURA and that a regrettable consequence of Covid was the cancellation of high-profile events.
Jane Amro mentioned that there may be two distinct retiree groups for possible outreach, those at or approaching retirement and those who left the University before MURA existed. If people have not updated their contact information or did not keep their McGill email, they may be particularly difficult to reach. The President noted that an upside of the pandemic was the ability of retirees in other locales to join online events.
Grazyna Wilczek asked whether McGill was forfeiting responsibility for management of McGill pensions. Richard London reassured Grazyna that the functions performed by Morneau Shepell and Sun Life Financial were strictly administrative (record keeping, e.g.) and that all investment decisions were still made by the University’s Pension Committee. Only the clerical work had been outsourced as Kathy Mayhew confirmed.
At the conclusion of the Q&A, President Ginette Lamontagne invited Henry Leighton, a founding Board member, to offer a celebratory toast. He saluted the Fifth Anniversary of MURA/ARUM, the evolution of the Association over five years and its leadership who had worked so hard on behalf of retirees.
The President declared the Agenda completed. She thanked those who assisted with the Zoom meeting, those who presented reports and all MURA members. She then invited participants to unmute and to raise their glasses in celebration.
Respectfully submitted Diana Grier Ayton Recording Secretary
