Membership terms

Parties to the Membership Agreement

1. Early Childhood Australia Pty Limited (ECA) is a not-for-profit public company limited by guarantee. The Principal Purpose for which the Company is established is to pursue charitable purposes towards advancing the welfare of all children aged 0-8 years. The income and property of ECA must be applied solely towards the Principal Purpose.
2. The ECA Constitution, 21 April 2021, is the governance document for ECA. These terms and conditions are drawn from and accord with that document.
3. To be eligible for Membership of ECA, a person/organisation must be committed to the Principal Purpose of ECA, subscribe to the ECA Code of Ethics and meet the eligibility requirements set out in each Membership Class (see Table 1 below).
4. A person becomes a Member when their name is entered into the ECA Membership Register (having applied for and given consent to Membership by ordering a Membership or Membership renewal and making a payment or requesting an invoice for future payment).
5. The ECA may determine the amount of the Annual Membership Fee from time to time and impose different Annual Membership Fees for different Membership Classes (see Table 1 below). The Annual Membership Fee is due and payable by each member within 30 days of a fee notice being issued to that member.
6. A Member that does not pay their Annual Membership fee within 30 days of a late payment notice is deemed to have resigned their Membership.
7. The liability of a Member (in the event of the winding up of ECA) is limited to the Guaranteed Amount, being $10.
8. An Organisational Member must appoint an individual as its Representative. An Organisational Member may appoint more than one Representative but only one Representative: (i) may exercise the organisation’s powers as Member at any one time; and (ii) may be counted for the purposes of determining a quorum at a general meeting.
9. Organisations are required to nominate a key contact for us to contact email about these matters, as well as a contact email for billing and renewal. These can be the same, or different.
10. Membership includes Member Alerts, notifications about voting in General Meetings, National Board elections and State Committee or Branch (TAS) elections, as well as communication from ECA about your membership status.
    A member cannot unsubscribe from member communications, but subscription to all other marketing lists can be edited here.

ECA General Meetings and Elections

11. The National Board of Directors of ECA may call a General Meeting at any time. Notice of a general meeting must be given to every Member and every Director at least 21 days in advance (except in circumstances set out in the Constitution) and must:
                            (a) be in writing;
                            (b) state the place, day and time of the meeting;
                            (c) provide details of any technology that will be used to facilitate the meeting;
                            (d) state the general nature of the business to be transacted at the meeting;
                            (e) state the wording of any Special Resolution to be considered (and state that it is proposed as a Special Resolution); and
                            (f) state that proxy voting is not permitted.

12. ECA may hold a General Meeting at any two or more locations using any technology that gives the Members as a whole a reasonable opportunity to participate and a person participating through the use of technology will be deemed to be present at the meeting in person.
13. Members have weighted votes at General Meetings and in ECA elections (for the National Board of Directors and for State/Territory Committees (or Branch) according to their Membership Class (see Table 1 below). On a vote conducted at a general meeting each person present carries the weighted votes of each Member they represent.
14. Voting at General Meetings must occur by poll (including in-person ballot, mail-in ballot and/or electronic ballot as determined by the Board)
15. The Board must hold an Annual General Meeting at least once in every calendar year. The business of an Annual General Meeting may include any of the following (even if not stated in the notice of meeting):
                            (a)the annual financial statements and any auditor’s report;
                            (b)the appointment of Directors; and
                            (c)the appointment and remuneration of any auditor.
    
16. ECA elections for the National Board of Directors and State/Territory Committees (or Branch) must be held by postal or electronic ballot of the Members entitled to vote. Members have voting rights according to their Membership Class (see Table 1 below).

Table 1. ECA Membership Classes
Membership Class	Annual fee	Right to notice of General Meetings	Voting rights at General Meetings
Services and schools –early childhood services, schools and other organisations working directly with young children and families	$330	✓	Three votes
Professionals –early childhood education and care professionals who work with or for young children, their families and carers	$175	✓	One vote
Students and concession holders –individuals studying early childhood education or equivalent, or unemployed, retired or on extended leave	$20	✓	One vote
Institutions –universities, research institutions, registered training organisations, local, state and federal government agencies and other institutions	$479	✓	Three votes
Life members – honorary form of membership bestowed upon individuals who have made a significant contribution to ECA and the early childhood sector over the course of their lifetimes	N/A	✓	One vote
International – individuals/organisations outside of Australia who wish to support the work of ECA	Membership class + international surcharge ($40)	✓	Non voting