The lawsuit is in the mail…

Well maybe not yet, but one might be on the way soon!

In the Council report in the current 2011 Report book we commented:

Council notes with concern the amount of time and energy spent by various Partner Department staff in conversation (and sometimes intervention) with churches. This includes…churches that fail to appoint Ministers according to the Terms and Conditions (examples include churches whose ministers are without a position description or an appointment agreement and churches who fail to maintain legally required employment, leave, LSL and superannuation records)….. And we could’ve added “the ministers who fail to take fair and appropriate responsibility in this relationship” too.

It has been said that “we are remembered for how we finish”, rather than all those good things that might have been achieved together in our place of employment (or ministry). While this is a true statement, so are these, “how you start is how you will finish” and “how you train is how you will play”…and maybe “how you finish, is how you’ll start”…

So what am I saying?

Sometimes ministers and churches are both way too fast (even desperate…) in how appointments are made and how those appointments are documented. Position Descriptions and Ministry Agreements (or ‘contracts’) are sometimes left until later, Sometimes church leaders can forget to complete them. Ministers can forget too. Either side can “not get around to signing” documents that have been prepared. Either side might think “it’s not worth rocking the boat” about these sort of things. Worse still, such documentation can be considered ‘ungodly’ or ‘worldly’ and therefore are never even written up, let alone signed.

Local budget constraints can mean that some of the statutory responsibilities are left unmet. Reviews of a church’s ministry (and the leaders and the minister) are either not done, or end up being unproductive episodes. Keeping records can seem too hard. Timely and appropriate salary payments can be forgotten. Inexperienced (or even unaware?) leaders may not know some of the things that should be done.

And everything is fine, until it ceases to be fine.

It can be complicated to reconstruct these documents when the relationship changes or concludes, in a timely manner or otherwise, as sometimes happens. It can be impossible for some churches to back pay a few years of Long Service Leave or superannuation. It can be tough to remember how many holidays the minister actually had over those years. It can be too hard for both parties to finalise all these matters quickly and sensitively when the time demands it. It does need to be noted that this difficulty can be created from either side of the church and minister relationship.

The Terms and Conditions of Employment of Ministers document (to be re-written this year) is clear about what constitutes good employment practice. This document, of necessity based on relevant Federal and State laws and regulations, is an appropriate expression, for churches and ministers, of ‘The Church as Employer’ policy recommended to all churches in 2010. That policy included the following statement:

These recommended policies are based on the belief that Churches of Christ in Victoria and Tasmania exists and carries out all its activities as an expression of the Christian faith, demonstrated by love of God, and love of our neighbours and ourselves. We believe that all human beings are valued and loved by God and that life involves responsible relationship with others as an essential part of what it means to be human involving the physical, emotional, social and spiritual dimensions of life.

Churches of Christ have a foundational commitment to creating a just, caring and participatory society for all people, a commitment that is integral to the church’s role and responsibility as an employer.

A basic recommendation is that Churches of Christ congregations, Partner Departments and agencies will meet legislative requirements, be a fair and just employer, reflect appropriate community standards, and create workplaces that are living, dynamic expressions of the church’s mission and values.

All I know is that too much energy (locally and globally) that could be used in “living out the way of Jesus and inviting others to do the same” can go down the toilet when these kind of messy situations arise.

Back to that Council report I quoted from above…The Properties Corporation and Mission and Ministry are equipped and available to proactively serve churches in these important areas. Such support is accessible to all affiliated churches.

While Council is concerned about the amount of resources involved in ‘reactive’ situations, we are most concerned about potential legal and financial liability implications for churches if these matters are not managed well.

Indeed, the lawsuit might soon be in the mail…

How are you—as a minister, a church leader or a church member—fulfilling your responsibilities and obligations in your church?

~

Paul Cameron
Executive Officer

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PS   Later in 2011 Workshops based around these themes will be held throughout Victoria and Tasmania.

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