Editing Students' union (section)

====Canada====
{{Main|List of Canadian students' associations}}
In [[Canada]], the existence of a college or university students' union and the membership of those who attend the institutions is mandatory across Canada under various provincial statutes.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|date=October 20, 2020|title=Act respecting the accreditation and financing of students' associations|url=http://legisquebec.gouv.qc.ca/en/showdoc/cs/A-3.01|access-date=March 7, 2021}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite web|date=February 24, 2021|title=University Act [RSBC 1996] CHAPTER 468|url=https://www.bclaws.gov.bc.ca/civix/document/id/complete/statreg/96468_01|access-date=March 7, 2021}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{Cite web|title=Bill 184, College and University Student Associations Act, 2011|url=https://www.ola.org/en/legislative-business/bills/parliament-39/session-2/bill-184|access-date=March 7, 2021}}</ref> Included in Canadian students' [[tuition fees]] is anywhere from an additional $10–$500 fee to pay for the services of the union for either undergraduate or graduate support. The money raised from dues is used to support, programs, services, advocacy, salaries, part-time staff costs, overhead costs and a variety of other general costs. Student elections typically happen prior to the end of the previous educational year as the membership elect their unions' executives for the following year. The current largest undergraduate student union in Canada is the York Federation of Students, at York University, with around 60,000 members.

Most students' unions are charged by their membership to protect their best interests at the university, municipal, provincial and federal government levels. Advocating for support from the provincial government for areas such as lower tuition fees, support for sexual and gender based violence, and financial support, as well as creating position papers and providing research to support various causes. Many students' unions in Canada are members of one of the national student organizations, the [[Canadian Alliance of Student Associations]] (CASA) or the [[Canadian Federation of Students]] (CFS). Those that belong to the CFS at the national level also belong to the CFS at the provincial level. Those that do not belong to the CFS may belong to a provincial student organization like the [http://nbsa-aenb.ca/ New Brunswick Student Alliance], the [[Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance]] ([http://www.ousa.ca/ OUSA]), the [http://collegestudentalliance.ca/ College Student Alliance], [http://studentsns.ca/ StudentsNS] (formerly known as ANSSA), the [http://www.bcstudents.ca/ Alliance of British Columbia Students], the [http://caus.net/ Council of Alberta University Students], or the [http://www.albertastudents.ca/ Alberta Students Executive Council]. In Quebec, the provincial student organizations are the [[Quebec Federation of University Students]] (''Fédération étudiante universitaire du Québec'' or FEUQ) for university students, [[College education in Quebec|college]] students are represented by the [[Fédération étudiante collégiale du Québec]] or FECQ, while the [[Association pour une solidarité syndicale étudiante]] or ASSE includes students from both the undergraduate and graduate levels of education.

Different provinces have different rules governing student unions.  In British Columbia under section 27.1 of the University Act, student unions may only raise or rescind mandatory student union fees through a democratic referendum of the membership.<ref name=":1" />  Once fees are passed through this mechanism, the board of governors of the respective institutions are then required to remit those fees to the student union, and may only interfere in the internal affairs of the student union if it fails to complete annual audits of its finances, giving these student unions strong autonomy over their institutions.  In Ontario, the autonomy of student unions is set by standards outlined by each institution, giving university administrators a broader scope of powers over the finances of student unions. Ontario educational institutions may only revoke collecting fees on behalf of the students' union if they are in contravention of the Corporations Act of Ontario. Other provinces have governing acts specific to the institutions, such as [[University of Manitoba Students' Union Act|The University of Manitoba Students' Union Act.]]

Students' Unions in Canada typically offer a variety of services such as LGBTQ2+ groups, Women's Centre's, Food Banks, Bicycle Repair Shops, Campus First Aid teams, Walksafe programs, Peer Support groups and Racialized Student Support, among other offerings and independent student groups.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Clubs, Services and ISGs – Students' Society of McGill University|url=https://ssmu.ca/student-life/clubs-services-isg/|access-date=2021-03-08|website=ssmu.ca}}</ref> Unions also generally offer health and dental plans, termly bus passes at costs negotiated with the local transit authority, and other student assistance programs.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web|date=2017-09-22|title=Fees|url=https://uwaterloo.ca/waterloo-undergraduate-student-association/fees|access-date=2021-03-08|website=Waterloo Undergraduate Student Association|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=SUNSCAD – The Student Union of NSCAD University|url=https://sunscad.org/|access-date=2021-03-08|language=en-US}}</ref> Funding options are also a part of many student unions' including endowment funds, funding for student clubs and for orientation.<ref name=":3" /> Students' unions are also programmers for the beginning of term events such as Welcome Week, Frost Week and other events throughout the term that provide social connections and wellness for students. Advocacy is also a main portion of what a students' union does including connecting with the university or College to advocate for changes to programs, co-op, and affordability. They also advocate for housing and tenant rights, safety, quality of education, academic rights, transportation concerns, accessibility, diversity and equity and health and wellness.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2017-09-21|title=Student Advocacy|url=https://uwaterloo.ca/waterloo-undergraduate-student-association/advocacy|access-date=2021-03-08|website=Waterloo Undergraduate Student Association|language=en}}</ref>