THE WELFARE POLICY FOR GHANA INSTITUTION OF SURVEYORS

FINAL DRAFT

GHANA INSTITUTION OF SURVEYORS

(GhIS)

WELFARE POLICY& BYE-LAWS

FEBRUARY 2019

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

TITLE PAGE

1.0 Preamble 3

2.0 Introduction 3

3.0 Objectives 3

4.0 Membership 4

5.0 Welfare Fund 4

6.0 Finances 4–5

7.0 Welfare Benefits 5–7

8.0 Financial Statements 7

9.0 Membership of The Welfare Committee 7–8

10.0 Welfare Committee 8–9

11.0 Sanctions 10

12.0 Meeting 10

13.0 Dissolution of Fund 10

14.0 Revision of The Policy Document 10

15.0 Effective Date of Policy Coming into Force 10

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1.0 PREAMBLE
We the members of Ghana Institution of Surveyors (GhIS) in a spirit of care, friendship,
cooperation and assistance, do hereby enact, adopt and, pursuant to our aims and objectives as
outlined in the Sections herein, give to ourselves this Welfare Policy and Bye-Laws.

2.0 INTRODUCTION
This document shall be the Welfare Policy guiding and regulating the members of this Institution.
Membership shall be by default. The Policy document shall at all-time be the Executive Instrument by
which disbursements will be made and all welfare activities of the Institution organized.

3.0 OBJECTIVES
The broad objective of the welfare policy is to promote solidarity, friendship, cooperation and
assistance among members of the Institution.

The specific objectives are to:

a. Assist and support members in the event of;

i. The death of a member.

ii. The death of a member’s spouse, parents or biological children (one child).
iii. The marriage of a member.
iv. The out-dooring (naming) of a member’s child
v. A protracted sickness of a member (list of sickness to be on advice from Doctors)
vi. Unforeseen mishaps (accident, natural disasters, etc.)

b. Optimize the growth potential of The Welfare Fund by investing the funds in Financial

Instruments, approved by Governing Council.

c. Provide benefits as stipulated in Article 7 of the Policy.

d. Seek the general interest and welfare of all members of the Institution.

e. Raise funds from members to assist in the above areas and any other areas that Governing

Council may approve.

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4.0 MEMBERSHIP
a. Membership of The Welfare Fund shall be open to the following classes of members of the
Institution: Fellows, Professional Members and Technicians.

b. A member shall remain a member until his or her membership with the Institution is terminated
as a result of misconduct and shall abide by all the rules and regulations of this Welfare Policy.
Every member shall complete a membership form providing all the necessary information
required about him.

5.0 WELFARE FUND

a. A welfare fund shall be established for the benefit of the members of the Institution.
b. The name of the Fund shall be known and called ‘The Surveyors’ Welfare Fund’ (hereinafter
referred to as “Welfare Fund”.)

6.0 FINANCES
6.1 FUNDING
a. The Welfare Fund shall be funded primarily by:
i. Yearly contributions OF ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY GHANA CEDIS
(GHC120.00) per a member, which shall be incorporated in the annual subscription O
ii. Levies.
iii. Donations
iv. Voluntary contributions
v. Interests/profits that accrue from investments undertaken with the Welfare Fund.

b. A yearly review of all dues, levies and donations shall be decided at the Annual General
Meeting of the Institution.

c. All monies must be promptly paid into the welfare account from the various sources of
collection.

d. Members shall be required to pay a special contribution of a kind as and when the need as
determined by Governing Council arises.

6.2 MODE OF PAYMENT/CONTRIBUTION

Payments other than annual subscription shall be made through the following ways:

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i. Direct payment (cheque/cash) into the welfare account with a selected BANK (account No.
to be circulated);

ii. Standing orders to the welfare account;

iii. Payments to regional welfare representatives; or

iv. Mobile money accounts (contacts to be circulated)

6.3 ACCOUNTS
a. The Welfare Committee shall open and maintain a Savings Account with a Bank approved by
the Governing Council.

b. There shall be three (3) signatories to the account namely

i. The Honorary Treasurer (Principal Signatory),
ii. The Welfare Committee Chairman (2nd Signatory)
iii. The Welfare Committee Treasurer (3rd) Signatory

c. The Principal Signatory (Hon. Treasurer) and one other signatory shall sign at a time for
withdrawals.

d. For any envisaged protracted absence of any of the signatories, the Governing Council shall
take appropriate steps to replace them.

7.0 WELFARE BENEFITS

a. A gestation period of twelve (12) months will be instituted in which the coffers of the Welfare
Fund shall not be touched for payment of any sort.

b. A member qualifies for FULL benefits after twelve (12) months of promulgation of this Policy.
c. Only members in GOOD STANDING shall benefit from The Welfare Fund

d. A token amount, approved by Council, shall be paid to any member who is in good standing if
the gestation period of the fund is not over before a case arises.

e. The benefits of a member shall be as follows:

Category I: Death.
1. Member – GH¢3, 000.00
2. Spouse – GH¢2, 000.00
3. Parent – GH¢1, 500.00
4. Child – GH¢1, 500.00

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Category II: Social

1. Marriage – GH¢1,000.00
2. Sickness – GH¢2000.00 Maximum (Refer to clause 7.1.8)

Category III: Others

1. Any other welfare needs that the Committee shall deem fit, and with the approval of
Governing Council.

7.1 CONDITIONS FOR BENEFITS

1. To qualify for the above benefits, an individual must have been a member for at least 12
months and been in good standing.

2. Benefits shall be paid to Members in Good Standing only and a member not in good standing
shall forfeit his/her entitlement.

3. A bereaved member shall complete a prescribed Application Form before any entitlement is
paid out. Failure to do so shall result in a member losing his or/her benefits. Required
information on the Form could be the provision of a Death Certificate, an Identity Card of the
beneficiary or any other document that confirms relationship to the deceased.

4. A member is entitled to benefits for biological children in case of death.

5. Marriage ceremonies include Ordinance, Religious and Traditional Marriages and payment
benefits shall be made only once per member.

6. When someone is seriously sick, the welfare team will visit the person and ascertain the
gravity of Illness and then decide on the form of support to offer the member. A medical report
may be necessary for any monetary consideration.

7. A delegation of at most 3 persons shall represent the Institution in any event when the need
arises and their transportation and accommodation expenses shall be borne by the Welfare
Committee.

8. The Welfare Committee shall not give out LOANS to any member.

7.2 MARRIAGE
 The Institution shall attend marriage ceremonies to which members have been formally invited.
 Only one marriage will be recognized for welfare benefits.
 The formal invitation should reach the Chairman at least two (2) weeks before the event.
 Benefits shall be presented to the member at the event on behalf of the Institution.

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7.3 BEREAVEMENT
a. A member who is bereaved should write formally to inform the Institution at least two weeks
to the funeral.
b. Funerals that shall concern the Institution are:
i. Parents,
ii. A spouse,
iii. Two (2) Biological children.

Note: The names of these relatives should have been entered on the personal particulars form
completed by each member on registration.

c. The Welfare Committee shall decide in consultation with the surviving spouse and other
members of the bereaved family, how to make the donation to the bereaved family.

7.4 ILL-HEALTH
The Welfare Committee shall determine the severity of each case in consultation with the
Governing Council and award benefits accordingly.

8.0 FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

8.1 RECORD-REEPING/ACCOUNTS
a. The accounts of the Fund shall be kept in such books and in such form as may be approved from
time to time by the Welfare Committee in consultation with the Governing Council and in
accordance with simple and accepted accounting principles.
b. The financial statement shall be made available to the Governing Council on a quarterly basis.

8.2 AUDITING
a. External Auditors of the Institution shall audit the accounts of the Welfare Committee.

b. The Finances of the welfare fund shall be audited half-yearly by Internal Auditors set up by
Governing Council, who shall then render their report to the Governing Council for reporting
to AGM.

9.0 MEMBERSHIP OF THE WELFARE COMMITTEE

9.1 MEMBERSHIP
a. Membership of the Welfare Committee shall comprise:

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1. The Vice President – Chairman

2. The Honorary Treasurer
3. Two representatives each from the three (3) Divisions of the Institution.
4. A representative from the Women’s wing of the Institution - Women in Surveying (WinS)
5. A representative from the Young Surveyors Network
6. Coopted members - For effective management of the welfare across the country, the
Welfare Committee shall Co-opt a member from each region as Regional welfare
representative/Liason officer.
b. All Welfare Committee members at the time of appointment should be in Good Standing.
c. The Committee’s work shall be voluntary.
d. Members of the Committee are bound by the same ethics and rules governing the Institution
and are Subject to the Constitution of the GhIS.
e. Co-opted Members of the Welfare Committee shall not have voting rights.

10.0 WELFARE COMMITTEE

10.1 OFFICERS OF THE WELFARE COMMITTEE
The officers of the Welfare committee shall be designated with responsibilities as follows:
1. Chairperson of Welfare - Vice President of the Institution
2. Vice Chairperson of Welfare - Honorary Treasurer
3. Secretary - To be designated by Governing Council
4. Treasurer - To be designated by Governing Council
5. Organizer - To be designated by Governing Council

10.2 FUNCTIONS OF THE OFFICERS OF THE WELFARE COMMITTEE

a. The Chairperson shall:
1. Call and preside over all meetings of the Welfare Committee.
2. Be the spokesperson of The Welfare Fund.
3. Provide direction and lead committee members, ensure good returns and proper
management of the Fund’s Assets (Cash and non-cash)
4. Have the power in consultation with other committee members to convene general and
emergency meetings.

b. The Vice Chairperson shall:

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Assist the Chairman in the performance of his/her duties and act in his/her absence.

c. The Secretary shall:

1. Attend all meetings; keep proper records of all functions and activities of the welfare
committee.
2. Act as the Chairperson in the absence of both the Chairman and Vice Chairman.
3. Be the custodian of the welfare policy, records, resolutions, reports and correspondence of
the Welfare Committee.
4. Take minutes of all deliberations and table reports to the Welfare Committee for
discussion.
5. Maintain a Confidential Register of all members, their spouses, parents and children.

d. The Treasurer Shall:

1. Be required to keep proper books of Accounts of the Welfare for all payments and debits.
2. Ensure that receipts are issued for all payments.
3. Keep a receipt book and on monthly basis, reconcile with the Accounts Department of the
Secretariat for auditing purposes as and when required.
4. Be liable to render quarterly accounts to the Welfare Committee members.
5. Prepare Financial Statements of the Welfare Fund.
6. Ensure safe custody of welfare assets and keep up to date records of all financial
transactions of the fund.
7. Not disburse any money of the Welfare Fund without prior notice and approval of the
Welfare Committee in the form of a written authorization by the Chairperson of the
Committee.

e. The Organizer shall:

1. Be responsible for the arrangement/securing venues for the Committee meetings.
2. Responsible for the coordination of all Welfare events of the Institution and ensuring that
members actively participate.

10.3 FUNCTIONS OF INTERNAL AUDITORS OF THE INSTITUTION

Internal Auditors (Appointed by Council) shall;
a. Audit the welfare fund half-yearly and render their report to the Welfare Committee.

b. Cooperate with external auditors set up by Governing Council of the Institution, to audit the
accounts of Welfare Committee yearly.

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11.0 SANCTIONS
a. Any member who is found to have misconducted him or herself under this Welfare policy,
would be sanctioned. The person shall be referred to the Disciplinary Committee of the
Institution for the proper sanctions to be recommended.

b. Any member who makes false claims or misrepresents himself may be deemed to have
misconducted him/herself and may be referred to the Disciplinary Committee for sanctions.

12.0 MEETINGS
a. Meetings shall be held at least once in every quarter and members must attend.
b. Emergency meetings may be called at any time by the Welfare Chairperson.
c. Decisions at all meetings shall be taken by simple majority of the members present.
d. The quorum for any meeting shall be more than half of the appointed members present.
e. With the exception of Emergency meetings, notice of meetings shall not be less than five (5) days.
f. The agenda shall be issued by the Welfare Committee Secretary to all members not less than
three (3) days before the date of the meeting.
g. The welfare Committee shall operate by consensus or by majority vote if they cannot arrive at
a consensus. The Chairperson shall have a casting vote.
h. The Welfare Committee shall submit a quarterly report of the status of its activities at the
meetings of Governing Council.

13.0 DISSOLUTION OF THE FUND

The Fund shall not be dissolved except by a resolution passed by the entire members of the
Institution, (in good standing) at an Annual General Meeting.

14.0 REVISION OF THE POLICY DOCUCUMENT

The provisions of this policy document shall be reviewed and amended periodically, to reflect
emerging realities and administrative challenges of the fund as and when necessary at annual
general meeting of the Institution.

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15.0 EFFECTIVE DATE OF POLICY COMING INTO FORCE

The Welfare policy and Bye-Laws shall be in effect after the date of approval of GhIS at an
Annual General Meeting (AGM).

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