↓
 

University of Leeds UCU

  • Home
  • Join UCU
  • My UCU
  • Support
  • About UCU
    • Joining the union
    • Branch office contacts
    • Committee members 2020-2021
    • Department representatives
    • Working groups and action group
    • Calendar
    • Local rules
    • Standing for election to the UCU committee
    • Useful resources and agreements
    • Other campus unions
    • Making UCU branch general meetings work better
    • Dashboard
    • Mobile Dashboard
  • Campaigns
    • Anti-casualisation
    • Gender pay gap
    • Pensions
    • Casualisation, equal pay, workload and fair pay negotiations
    • Workloads
    • Migrant members
  • Calendar
join today online or by phone 0333 207 0719

Post navigation

<< 1 2 3 4 5 6 … 22 23 >>

Extraordinary general meeting 22 January: disputes + organisational change policy

Posted on 7 January 2020 by Alan Smith8 January 2020

The branch committee has called an extraordinary general meeting to discuss a number of urgent issues which won’t wait until the next scheduled general meeting. The meeting will be: 12pm – 1pm on Wednesday 22 January Roger Stevens lecture theatre 16 (which is on level 12). Members are invited to submit motions on the subjects on the agenda. These should be received by 2pm on Tuesday 14 January, after which the motions received will be circulated to members. The agenda will be: Disputes USS pensions dispute ‘Four fights’ dispute (pay, anti-casualisation, equal pay, workloads) Organisational change policy Please send any relevant motions to the branch administrator Alan Smith using ucu@leeds.ac.uk. (The next scheduled general meeting, open to motions on any subject, is Monday 2 March.)

continue reading
Posted in Anticasualisation, Consultations and negotiations, Dispute, Equality, General Meetings, Pay, Pensions, Workload

A response to the second JEP report

Posted on 18 December 2019 by admin19 December 2019

The second report of the JEP arrived last Friday, and it’s a crucial document within the context of the current dispute over the USS pension scheme. Again, it vindicates the positions that UCU has adopted in relation to both the governance of the scheme and the valuation methodology. You can read the document here, and it contains a useful executive summary (pp. 7-12) and a summary of their conclusions (pp. 120-1). The JEP was established last year as part of an agreement between Universities UK (UUK) and UCU to pause the dispute after a historic fourteen days of strikes across the country. Its first report of September last year addressed the 2017 valuation that was central to the onset of the industrial action. It offered a series of recommendations for adjustments to that valuation. The panel now state that ‘the failure to collectively go forward with these recommendations was […] a missed opportunity to resolve the dispute’. This second report focusses on the scheme governance and key principles that should inform future valuations. The panel urge both UCU, UUK and USS to work together swiftly to embed these recommendations into the 2020 valuation process, which begins in a matter of weeks. On … continue reading

Posted in Pensions

News on negotiations, the digital picket line, hot breakfasts and more

Posted on 27 November 2019 by editor128 November 2019

Text from branch president Ben Plumpton’s email to members 27th November Negotiations The most important thing to tell you is that our UCU negotiators on pay and conditions met with UCEA, the employers organization, on Tuesday. See UCU’s statement about that meeting.  This is really important, because it shows it only took one day of solid striking and record breaking pickets to get UCEA to do what they should have done weeks ago; sit down and talk. However, they are still not willing to talk about pay. We need to push them harder on this, because stopping pay erosion is central to our claim and low pay is one of the issues which creates pay gaps and which exacerbates the already impossible position of casualised staff.  UCEA are now consulting with university leaders. We need to send our Vice-Chancellor a clear message that our claims are urgent and that we won’t settle for anything other than substantial change.  For those striking, please stand firm. We need to sustain our action. We want to make our pickets (physical and digital) bigger, louder and clearer, so help us make some noise over the next few days. If you are not yet striking, please come … continue reading

Posted in Anticasualisation, Dispute, Equality, Gender pay gap, Members emails, Pay, Pensions, Workload

Photos from our strike 25 & 26 Nov

Posted on 26 November 2019 by editor127 November 2019

Amazing picketing on the first two days of our strikes – more pickets than we’ve ever had, brilliant support from students, and much determination despite the wet weather. Thank you everyone! Here’s a small selection of photos.

continue reading
Posted in Anticasualisation, Dispute, Equality, Pay, Pensions, Uncategorized, Workload

Brilliant picketing today, and come to our fantastic fundraiser gig

Posted on 25 November 2019 by editor128 November 2019

Text from branch president Ben Plumpton’s email to members 25th November It was great to see so many of you picketing today, thank you!  I think it was the most pickets we’ve had round our campus, and special thanks to those who were picketing for the first time, hope you enjoyed it despite the rain…  We were blown away by the support and enthusiasm from students at the Parkinson steps rally, it was brilliant. Check out some photos from today tweeted by the branch account at https://twitter.com/leedsucu  Keep on tweeting and Facebooking and everything (use #UCUstrikes and tag @leedsucu) – we love seeing your photos.   Hope to see you all back again tomorrow.  If you havent picketed before, no need to feel nervous, come along to the pink gazebo near the main entrance as early as you can in the morning and we’ll find you a buddy to stand with.Remember, every day picketing is happening from 7:30 am (come as early as you can manage) and a rally on the Parkinson steps at 11:30. The ever-growing Leeds UCU songbook is here:  https://tinyurl.com/t7vsy8e – bookmark it on your phone so you can sing along at the rallies.  We might have to do ‘Striking in … continue reading

Posted in Anticasualisation, Dispute, Equality, Gender pay gap, Pay, Pensions, Workload

Post navigation

<< 1 2 3 4 5 6 … 22 23 >>

Jeremy Toner

Posted on 20 January 2021 by Alan Smith20 January 2021

With great sadness I’m writing to inform you of the awful news that Jeremy Toner has died of cancer after a short illness. Jeremy was our first openly-gay local president, then our treasurer; he was one of the activists who transformed Leeds AUT/UCU into a branch that actively fought back against managerialism, marketisation, casualisation and injustice. Above all, Jeremy was a truly kind and considerate person, loved and respected by many and he will be greatly missed. In sadness, Ben PlumptonBranch PresidentUCU University of Leeds Branch We have opened this post for comments in case you wish to leave a message or memory. (There will be a delay before your comment appears.)

continue reading
Posted in Branch | 13 Replies

Formal dispute lodged over Medicine and Biological Sciences potential redundancies

Posted on 18 January 2021 by Alan Smith18 January 2021

UCU has formally lodged a dispute with University of Leeds over potential redundancies in the Faculty of Biological Sciences and the School of Medicine. Full text of the dispute letter: Declaration of dispute Professor Simone BuitendijkVice ChancellorThe University of LeedsLS2 9JT 15th January 2021 Dear Professor Buitendijk Re: Declaration of dispute – Risk of Potential Redundancies in the School of Medicine & Faculty of Biological Sciences I wrote to you on 7th January registering a failure to agree on the following issue(s): Failure to rule out the need for compulsory redundancies. Failure to provide full financial transparency and disclosure regarding the need for financial cuts in the School of Medicine and Faculty of Biological Sciences and opportunities to consult about alternative strategies that could protect jobs. Failure to provide information about roles/areas that may be in scope of redundancy and the proposals that are being considered for the future work and operation of the two areas.   In order to resolve this failure to Agree, UCU are requesting the following immediate action: That the University commits to no compulsory redundancies That after the outcomes of the current VLS exercise are communicated no further action is taken by the University during the … continue reading

Posted in Dispute information, Redundancy

Petition against redundancies in Biological Sciences and Medicine

Posted on 13 January 2021 by Alan Smith18 January 2021

Please sign and share this petition link with your contacts in Leeds and beyond. Anyone can sign – universities are for the whole community. University of Leeds senior management are insisting on reducing staff to cut costs in the School of Medicine and the Faculty of Biological Sciences, and they refuse to rule out compulsory redundancies. UCU reps have argued the widespread belief that the university’s opaque funding allocation model under-funds many STEM* subjects which are more expensive to research and teach, and called upon the senior management to be more open about the funding model and improve its approach, to properly fund all subjects instead of cutting jobs. Update: UCU has sent a formal letter to the VC to register a dispute with the university. You can read the full text of the letter here. More details (*Science, technology, engineering and mathematics)

continue reading
Posted in Redundancy

No to all job cuts at the university!

Posted on 13 January 2021 by Alan Smith13 January 2021

Email sent to branch members 11 January 2021 As you are probably aware, the university started a voluntary redundancy scheme in the Faculty of Biological Science and the School of Medicine last semester and the deadline for applications to the scheme has now passed.  For more on the history of this, see the leeds.ucu.org.uk article: http://www.leedsucu.org.uk/vls-in-fbs-and-medicine/    Here is what has happened since we wrote that article:  Our regional UCU officer wrote to the VC to ask that compulsory redundancies are ruled out  The VC replied to say that she was unable to rule out compulsory redundancies   Our regional UCU officer replied with a ‘failure to agree letter’ saying we will not accept compulsory redundancies and asking to pause the consideration of any further voluntary redundancies until we are out of the current COVID crisis and until we’ve been properly consulted with full financial information.  If an assurance cannot be given by the end of Monday, the regional officer will send a letter, entering into dispute with the university.  We’re planning a press release to make public that the university is planning to get rid of staff in some of the areas that might be considered most essential at this time.    We’ve also … continue reading

Posted in Redundancy

Supporting schoolteachers by reducing university workloads

Posted on 12 January 2021 by Alan Smith12 January 2021

The UCU branch committee sends our thanks and support to schoolteachers in the National Education Union whose refusal to work in dangerous conditions forced the government to move more quickly in moving most school teaching online. Their action has made us all more safe. The government has left continuing confusion about who should be working and who should be able to send their children to school, and what should happen when people who shouldn’t send their children to school are required to work. As a result, school attendance has been much higher than during the first lockdown meaning that teachers are less safe and the curb on the spread of the virus will be less effective, placing all our communities at further risk. It is vital that university staff with school-age children can play our part in keeping school attendance low. Therefore, the UCU committee has written to the vice-chancellor and spoken to senior HR managers about the need to reduce workloads and extend the availability of special leave for staff whose role is not critical for the health or wellbeing of students, staff or society. We have impressed upon HR that it is not enough to say, “Do what … continue reading

Posted in Covid19, Solidarity, Workload
Four years free membership for research students who teach
Sexual harassment helpline 0800 138 8724

Campaign updates

  • Anti-casualisation
  • Workloads
  • Pensions
  • Gender pay gap
  • UCU national website

Latest updates

  • Jeremy Toner
  • Formal dispute lodged over Medicine and Biological Sciences potential redundancies
  • Petition against redundancies in Biological Sciences and Medicine
  • No to all job cuts at the university!
  • Supporting schoolteachers by reducing university workloads

Updates by subject

  • Branch
    • Administration
    • Dispute information
    • Elections
    • General Meetings
    • Getting involved
    • Members emails
    • Minutes
    • Newsletter
    • Open meetings and events
    • Solidarity
  • Campaigns
    • Anticasualisation
    • Equality
      • Black members / BME
      • Disability
      • Gender equality
      • Gender pay gap
      • LGBT+
      • Mental health
      • Migrant members
    • Government
    • HE green paper
    • Health and safety
      • Covid19
    • Opposing privatisation
    • Pay
    • Pensions
    • Postgraduate
    • Prevent
    • University operational issues
      • Annual leave
      • Capability
      • Conduct and disciplinary
      • Grievances
      • Lecture capture
      • Working from home
    • Wider campaigning
      • Brexit
      • Environment
      • Migration and refugees
    • Workload
  • Consultations and negotiations
    • Car parking
    • Feedback
    • IT
    • Recruitment
    • Redundancy
    • REF
    • Statutes
  • Dispute
    • Dispute advice
  • Joining UCU
  • Support
    • Sexual harassment
  • UCU democracy
  • UCU levy
  • Uncategorized
  • University Democracy
  • Website archive
    • University of the Year

Search this site

Follow @leedsucu
find us on Facebook
Four years' free membership for postgraduate research students who teach
Four years' free membership for research students who teach - join the academic trade union
Four years' free membership for research students who teach - join the academic trade union

Meta

  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.org
©2021 - - Weaver Xtreme Theme
↑