Popping the cork on the latest MUNSU scandal

By Courtney Barbour

Bring out the gong: yet another MUNSU board of directors blunder has to come to light. This time the indiscretion comes doesn’t come from a concert flop, or an ill-planned communications policy. The hot-button issue at hand facing MUNSU brings forward a much more controversial and touchy subject – the existence of bar tabs for MUNSU board of directors executives. Concerns brought forth by some board of directors members and students in the general membership center on the opaque nature of these tabs. No concrete cut-off amount is set; no parameters exist regarding their use or intended purpose; and records kept of these tabs have amounted to little more than a scrap of paper tossed in the garbage at the end of the night. These are serious concerns, and it is commendable that members of our union have raised them, but they’re not getting to the root of the problem. What’s most troubling is the fact that these tabs are even allowed to exist at all. Becky Winsor, director of campaigns said that she has never personally held a bar tab at the Breezeway. Winsor has expressed her disapproval that the tabs are even allowed to exist. Simply put, Winsor is right. It doesn’t matter what checks are put in place or depths of detail provided to ensure accurate records are kept. Be it for building relations with promoters, staff meetings, or simply for one’s convenience and enjoyment, allowing executives to carry a bar tab or write off alcohol consumption as a business expense is a major MUNSU faux pas. You’d be hard pressed to find an organization with a similar policy in place. Many companies have policies that forbid alcohol consumption to be expensed to the company. Allowances for per diems and expenses for meetings with staff or prospective clients are given on the condition that alcohol is explicitly excluded. If employees consume alcohol it’s expected that they handle its payment personally and up front. Allowing personal bar tabs, even if they are repaid in full in the future, only opens the door for misuse or errors in accounting. Holding staff meetings at the Breezeway and expensing alcohol to the union, no matter if it’s a single pint or several pitchers, should be frowned upon all together. The Breezeway can and should be used as a meeting space considering the renovations to improve the bar’s function and aesthetics. But I’ll be damned if you need to expense a pitcher of Coors Light to hammer down the objectives of a staff meeting.
Cameron Campbell’s comments at the most recent board meeting raised more than a few eyebrows. Campbell, director of external affairs, gave examples of his use of the tab, including purchasing drinks for his own consumption on a Friday and paying for them the following Monday. My question for Campbell and any other executives, past or present, availing of the tabs is this: why can’t you simply pay for your drinks when you order them, just like everyone else? If you’re ordering drinks at the bar, don’t do it on MUNSU’s dime even if it’s paid back in full the next day. You can perfect your talent as a scotch connoisseur without hearing a peep from the union by paying for your drinks up front and from your own wallet. An ATM awaits your arrival near the Breezeway entrance should you find yourself in the inconceivable position of having pockets devoid of cash. Our sister school, Sir William Grenfell College in Corner Brook has a strict no-tab policy in place at their campus bar. This policy is smart and effective – no-tabs means no room for errors in judgment or uncomfortable questions and finger-pointing from peers. The situation at hand here at the Breezeway has caught dear old MUNSU with its pants down once again. This time however it will be hard for the executive to skiver up their drawers before we see what’s underneath.

Courtney Barbour

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