Shaping our future

This page serves as the central hub for updates on Federal Retirees’ governance, structure and effectiveness review and will be updated as new information becomes available.

How we got here

Federal Retirees is proud to be a large and engaged national community of 170,000 members with six decades of history.

The issues that matter to our members — retirement income security, access to health care, and healthy and dignified aging — are becoming more important to the future of our country, as older adults represent a growing share of Canada’s population.

As with any well-managed organization, the National Association of Federal Retirees must continue to evolve so we can meet these challenges and remain a strong, credible and influential voice for you, for our full membership, for all retirees and for those soon to be retired.

To make sure we continue to meet the needs of our members and volunteers, while protecting the long-term sustainability of the association and its not-for-profit status, Federal Retirees is reviewing the current governance structure.

Members, volunteers and outside experts have told us there is opportunity to improve the current governance structure, to ensure Federal Retirees is sustainable, democratic, member-focused and able to deliver results for the people we serve.

Members want a stronger voice

Members told us they want a more direct and meaningful role in association decision-making.

Today, many members are not engaging through the current branch system. At the same time, members say they would be likely to vote in national director elections if given the opportunity.

There is a clear desire for new and more accessible ways to participate in the association, which are not currently available.

Volunteers want to focus on what matters most

Volunteers told us they are spending too much time on administrative responsibilities and not enough time on the activities they find most meaningful and rewarding: advocacy, engagement and community building.

Volunteer recruitment and succession planning have also become increasingly challenging. Only one in five branches currently has enough volunteers to carry out activities, and some branches have had to close as a result.

The current structure creates challenges

The existing governance model has created confusion around roles and responsibilities, resulting in slower decision-making and increased administrative burden.

Resources and finances are distributed unevenly across branches, and administrative requirements can be difficult to manage consistently across the association.

To protect the association’s future, we need a governance structure that is more sustainable, efficient and responsive to the needs of members and volunteers.

What we’re considering

A future governance model must be designed to strengthen member engagement, better support volunteers, improve organizational effectiveness, and ensure compliance with the Canada Not-for-Profit Corporations Act.

It also needs to be built in collaboration with our members and volunteers, leveraging their experiences and insights to ensure we’re responding to the needs of today and tomorrow.

One Member, One Vote

We are examining how our voting model can better reflect democratic values, regional fairness and the voice of every member.

A core principle of modern governance best practices is “One Member, One Vote.” In this system every member would have the opportunity to vote directly for national directors, with each vote carrying equal weight.

This would be a change from our current model where branch presidents cast weighted ballots on behalf of all the members within their region. A future model could use this approach to ensure decisions reflect the voice of the entire membership. It would also respond directly to members’ desire for greater involvement in the association.

Piloting new branch models

Branches from several provinces have independently come forward with ideas for pilot initiatives to explore improved branch models in their regions. These pilots would be developed in collaboration with participating branches, and would help us learn what works, what needs improvement and how members can be better served no matter where they live. These pilots will look to:

• Allow volunteers to focus on advocacy, recruitment, member service and local engagement.
• Reduce administrative burden on volunteers.
• Support volunteer recruitment and succession planning.
• Encourage broader participation and fresh perspectives.
• Reduce volunteer burnout and strengthen long-term sustainability.
• Ensure a more equal distribution of resources among branches.

The purpose of any pilot is to provide us with important data and learnings on how our association can continue to evolve, strengthen and ensure future decisions are informed by real experience.  There will not be any formal changes to branch structure while these pilots are underway.

Volunteer action groups

To respond to the desire for more volunteer opportunities, with more flexibility, a future governance model could incorporate volunteer action groups.

These groups could focus on the association’s strategic priorities, while leveraging the talent and expertise of our members.

Standing and ad hoc groups could help ensure leadership receives coordinated input from members across the country while respecting regional and local perspectives.

Dedicated staff support would help reduce administrative workload and ensure recommendations and outcomes are communicated clearly and consistently.

A stronger foundation for the future

Together, we will create a clearer governance structure, strengthen accountability, reduce risk and help safeguard the association’s not-for-profit status.

Most importantly, we will ensure Federal Retirees is well positioned to continue advocating effectively on behalf of members for years to come.