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Why you really do need to vote – from a reluctant striker

UCU University of Leeds Branch Posted on by
Chloe and colleagues outside the School of Law during the USS pension strike

A personal post from new UCU committee member Chloe Wallace

When I look back over our strike action in February and March, I have a lot of good memories: standing with friends old and new; the support of my colleagues and students; the feeling of empowerment and hope for the future. But all in all, it wasn’t much fun. Quite apart from the snow, the rain, and the pay deduction, there was disruption to the job I love and the students I’m committed to, anxiety in such an uncertain situation, and an ever-present feeling of guilt. When it was over, I breathed a sigh of relief; back to normal at least for a while. 

So my heart sank when it became clear that we would have to ballot on striking yet again for a fairer deal on equality, casualization and pay. We, individually and collectively, have too much to do, and university staff and students don’t deserve more disruption after what we dealt with this year. We talked about fairness, equality and casualisation on the pickets and on #striketwitter throughout and beyond the action. We know they matter and that we have to fight for them, but the memory of the difficulties of that fight make being pushed to disruptive strike action (by employers who, it turns out, still aren’t listening) difficult to contemplate. 

The problem is, we have to do this. Above all, we all have to vote in the ballot. The Trade Union Act 2016 requires, for a ballot on industrial action to be valid, that at least 50% of eligible members vote in the ballot, as well as that a majority of those voting vote for the proposed action. This is quite clearly, and explicitly, intended to make it harder for unions to strike. In January this year, UCU branches defied the legislation, with a 58% turnout across affected branches. We need to do it again, to prove that that was not a fluke and that we remain a force to be reckoned with. Abstaining the ballot is not sitting on the fence. It undermines the strength of the union across the board, not only on pay, equality and casualization, but in the many local issues, disputes and negotiations on which UCU works for its members, and all university staff, around the country. It also undermines us on pensions. The JEP report was a massive vindication and felt like a moral victory, but it isn’t a victory. We need UUK to stand with us to push its recommendations through to the trustees and regulator, and I don’t believe they will do that if we show weakness at this point. We need to beat the turnout threshold to show that we are still engaged and we still care; if we don’t, we risk undoing all the good we did earlier this year. 

Voting “no” in the ballot is better than abstaining. But voting yes/yes is even better, and I think it’s the strongest way to maintain pressure and show we mean business. Universities are now expecting to be able to get away with below inflation pay-rises for ever more, and that has to stop. Most university staff, particularly support staff and academics who can’t, or won’t, work long hours to fast track to promotion, can’t rely on incremental pay-rises – and increments are supposed to recognise professional advancement, not increased cost of living. The gender pay gap in the sector is simply unacceptable, and recent reports confirming that over half of all academic staff are on insecure contracts ought to be pushing university management into action – but they aren’t. And, given that the size of the pension fund is dependent on contributions, which are dependent on salary, the further our salaries fall behind inflation, the less money goes into the fund to pay out later on. I am privileged in academic terms: full time, permanent contract, senior and well paid. It’s easy for me to say that a percentage point or two on the pay scale isn’t worth the challenge of another strike. But the stakes are much higher than that, for my colleagues (present and future) and for the health and success of the sector I’ve spent my whole life in. 

So please dig out your ballot paper and vote in the ballot, to show that we are a united and active union. And please make that vote Yes/Yes, to show that there’s fight in us yet, and we’re not giving in. 


This page was last updated on 9 October 2018

Vote! Pay + Equality Claim (UCU consultative ballot)

UCU University of Leeds Branch Posted on by

(Text of email sent to all Leeds UCU members on 8 June 2018)

You will have had (or should shortly receive) a very important email from UCU entitled “UCU Pay and equality consultation”. (If you have not received it, please click [here] for a replacement). This is a vital UCU internal consultative ballot (the stage before an ‘official’ ballot which, by law, would need to be conducted by post). As ever, we ask all members to vote by the 27 June deadline. Turnout matters and is a way of showing and building strength in itself. We are also asking members to observe the recommendations on which the national negotiators, the Higher Education Committee, and the annual Higher Education Sector Conference last week are united…

Key Information (in brief): 

Even conservative assessments (including [Michael Otsuka’s]) show declining real-terms pay, and that’s before you factor in casualisation, discrimination, the effect of workload inflation, etc. Therefore:

  • Please vote to REJECT the pay offer in question 1
  • Please vote YES to taking sustained industrial action if that is needed in question 2

(See attached picture)

The proportion of university expenditure spent on staff has fallen to just 54.7%, while reserves held by institutions have increased by 259% and capital expenditure by 34.9%. It’s about time money was invested in staff – which will also benefit our students.

Further Details (longer explanatory content!): 

What is the pay claim?

Every year, the trade unions recognised to represent various categories of staff in Higher Education come together to work out if a “joint claim” is possible for negotiating with employers, who are represented in pay negotiations by the Universities and Colleges Employers Association (UCEA). That’s a different body to pension negotiations where we deal with Universities UK (though astute members may notice the membership of both UCEA and UUK can overlap!). UCEA and the trade unions meet at “JNCHES” – the Joint Negotiating Committee for Higher Education Staff.

This year all five trade unions have agreed a joint pay and equality claim which you can read in full [here] – scroll down to page 3 for the details and background to the joint claim. The headlines are as follows:

New JNCHES claim 2018/19

The Higher Education trade unions national claim for 2018/19 is:

    • An increase to all spine points on the 50 point national pay scale of 7.5% or £1,500 whichever is greater
    • £10 per hour minimum wage with all HEIs to become foundation living wage employers ensuring all campus staff are paid at least the foundation living wage rate.
    • Nationally agreed framework for action to close the gender pay gap by 2020.
    • Nationally-agreed framework for action on precarious contracts
    • Nationally-agreed payment to recognise excessive workloads
    • To establish the Scottish Sub-Committee of New JNCHES as set out under the New JNCHES


Why does this matter?

It’s really important to note how united the five unions are about this claim. We believe that meeting these criteria would mean universities begin to meaningfully address a range of issues that to date, they have failed to adequately recognise or to tackle. This is in a context of reduced spending on staff, higher spending on things like new building projects, and concern over the eye watering salaries and pension pots of Vice Chancellors and other senior managers in the sector.

What’s this about frameworks for action on precarious contracts and gender pay?

For years, UCU has been at the forefront of pushing for meaningful action from our employers on casualisation. The UCU Anti-Casualisation committee (representing grass-roots members on precarious, casualised contracts) has pressed hard to firmly entrench anti-casualisation objectives into all pay negotiations, recognising also how the effects of casualisation intersect with oppression and pay gaps related to gender, race, disability, and sexual orientation. There is a significant problem here: the employers’ body (UCEA) has repeatedly stated that it has no mandate from its members (employers) to negotiate anything firm to tackle casualisation. Instead, we have been offered “JNCHES working groups” which have been incredibly frustrating exercises for all involved, as the most they have left to are sets of non-enforceable and fairly lukewarm recommendations. We, and the other trade unions alongside us, are fed up with this. We have therefore insisted on the inclusion of a tangible, nationally agreed frameworks in the pay and equality claim, to tackle the scourge of casualisation and gender pay gaps in our sector.

Once again, UCEA has only made an offer of limited work on fixed term contracts and variable hours contracts, focusing on data and with no commitment to the action urgently needed to address the growing problems of precarity. The “offer” on gender pay is similarly nondescript with little to no tangible action agreed to address pay gaps. We want to be able to hold our employers to account, so it is essential that we fight for national frameworks in addition to our important local anti-casualisation and gender pay claims at branch level. The lukewarm responses from our employers on these important issues are further reasons to REJECT this pay offer and fight for equality as part of this claim.

Should we turn down 2%? What is “catch up and keep up”?

We need to think about how much our pay has been eroded over time, and how much it will continue to erode the longer we continue with sub-inflationary pay “offers”. Thus we need to “catch up” on the cumulative loss in our real-terms pay, and make sure that universities “keep up” too.

The initial Universities and Colleges Employers Association (UCEA) pay offer was 1.7% (or £350, whichever was greater). This was obviously somewhat below the unions’ pay claim of 7.5% (or £1500, whichever is the greater). Following the last negotiation meeting at the 10 May, UCEA’s final offer is now 2% for staff on spIne point 16 and above, and £425 for staff on spine point 15 and below. This does not match inflation by any measure. In the context of large surpluses in university bank accounts, and huge spending on building projects, any pay offer that falls short of inflation feels rather insulting.

We have already seen employers attempt to characterise their offer as “generous”. We have seen employers (such as the University of Leeds) conflate the incremental rises that staff who have not yet become “stuck” at the top of a grade receive each year with the idea of a pay rise applied to the scale as a whole. Our pay scale increments are in place to reflect the additional expertise and experience accrued each year by staff on a particular grade: we need to defend our incremental pay spine *and* make sure we are not duped by the notion that their figure should be included in any calculations of pay awards made to the overall scale.

We (UCU and the other trade unions) argue that existing salaries should at least be increased in line with inflation. In March, the RPI measure of inflation (traditionally used to examine salary costs) stood at 3.3%. However, in view of the erosion to our pay over the last decade, we also argue that our inflation-adjusted salaries have fallen cumulatively since 2009. Looking at the picture since 2010, UCU has calculated that our salaries have also fallen by an estimated 21% in that period. Therefore the pay and equality claim includes an additional increase to at least begin to recoup this cumulative loss of inflation-adjusted pay. UCEA’s “final” offer of 2% is outrageously low.

What about UCEA’s criticism of the unions’ calculations?

In 2016, UCEA criticised UCU for using the RPI (Retail Prices Index) measure of inflation, though they were perfectly happy to use it when trying to justify hikes in tuition fees (see [Mike Otsuka’s piece in the Times Higher] for an analysis of this). There are different ways to measure inflation, and when new measures are introduced it is important to track how we make comparisons over time – it’s easiest to understand when we make ‘like for like’ comparisons.

The traditional measure when looking at wages is the Retail Prices Index (RPI), which dates back longer, and thus allows us to track changes over longer periods of time. RPI has been traditionally used when comparing wage costs, because it accounts for changes in council tax, rents and mortgages (integral parts of most people’s living costs), which the newer CPI (Consumer Prices Index) doesn’t. CPI is also calculated differently to RPI: the former [is worked out using an arithmetical mean between the old and new prices, but CPI uses a geometric, or ‘weighted’, mean]. A geometric mean is better at taking account of the disproportionate influence that a few outliers might have on the total average – see [here] for further explanation of the difference.

CPI does not account for any proportional difference incurred in housing costs such as council tax, mortgage rates, or insurance – it uses rent prices as a proxy measure. However RPI does include housing costs including mortgage payments, rent, and council tax.

The Office for National Statistics also publishes two other measures of inflation:

  • [CPIH] (CPI-with-H-for-Housing) which adjusts to reflect changes in average residential rents and council tax, though not changes in house prices.
  • [RPIJ] (RPI-Jevons formula, using a geometric, or weighted mean) and is adjusted to take account of changes in housing costs, but using a geometric mean based formula. It is not in widespread use.


So, is the pay offer still bad when using other measures of inflation?

Yes! This is why UCU recommends members rejects the current pay offer from UCEA.

Even if we were to use alternative measures of inflation, the current offer from UCEA falls well short of matching inflation, and further short of addressing the erosion of pay over the last ten years. Whichever inflation measure we use, we still see a cumulative loss in income continue if we accept the current offer.

UCU’s calculations show that our inflation-adjusted salaries have fallen dramatically when using RPI as a measure of inflation and 2010 as a benchmark. Even if we calculate the loss in value of our pay using more conservative measures of inflation, and taking 2008 as a benchmark, we see this sustained and serious loss. For example, Michael Otsuka has tracked the real terms (loss in) value of pay at spine point 38 on the pay scale, which is roughly at the level of the (mean) average pay in the sector according to the latest Times Higher [survey]. His workings are [here]. Spine point 38 currently stands at £40, 212 per annum. Looking at the three measures of inflation routinely reported by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), we find:

Rates of inflation-adjusted salary at spine point 38, by measure of inflation

RPI RPIJ CPI CPIH
Jan 08 £46,413 £43,526 £44,531 £43,672
Present  £41,212 £41,212 £41,212 £41,212
% drop 11.2% 5.3% 7.5% 5.6%

 

Therefore, even taking CPIH as a measure of inflation, and even using a baseline of 2008, to match  inflation and to recoup the cumulative loss of inflation-adjusted pay over the last 10 years, note:

  • We would need a 5.6% rise to account for losses in real-terms pay since January 2008
  • The rate of CPIH reported [by the ONS] for April 2018 is 2.2%
  • To take home pay in 2018-19 with the same real-terms value as in 2008, our pay would need to increase by 7.8%.

Anyone looking at the numbers ought also to bear in mind the risk of elevated pension contributions in the future which will also see a loss in take-home pay for many.

What about workload?

Workload is part of the pay claim because we are working harder and longer hours, which means our average hourly pay is effectively falling even faster than our annual pay rate. We know workload is a huge problem across the sector; UCU campaigns about this at a local and national level. We are not always taken seriously by our employers, and we all-too-often hear attempts to “explain away” or even justify workloads which make people ill, as if they are merely a “character trait” of the person affected by the stress they cause. A UCU survey conducted in 2016, [Workload is an Education Issue], found that the average academic is working unpaid for the equivalent of two days every week. Women academics have also been held back by typically greater administrative loads than their male colleagues as reported [here], which is likely to factor further into the gender pay gap. Think of the amount of unpaid hours we know staff typically undertake in higher education – time which is more likely to go unpaid for those on casualised, especially hourly paid contracts (especially those with “rolled up” rates for administration and marking, or even rolled up holiday pay). This situation is not ok, it is not safe, and it is therefore this is part of the national pay and equality claim. However, the offer received from our employers does not involve any action to deal with excessive workloads, to compensate members for excessive hours worked or to address the contribution of ridiculous workloads to further declines in rates for the job. It certainly does not take account of the countless unpaid hours contributed to universities by hourly paid and many part-time staff.

Turn out matters! Please VOTE! The internal consultative e-ballot closes on 27 June.

A strong turnout is needed in both any internal consultative ballot and any official ballot – strong results for both of these do strengthen the hand of negotiators.

  • Please vote to REJECT the pay offer in question 1
  • Please vote YES to taking sustained industrial action if that is needed in question 2

(See attached picture)

In Solidarity, 

Vicky and the Committee

 

 

This page was last updated on 8 June 2018

The Precarious Postdoc: Interdisciplinary Research and Casualised Labour in the Humanities and Social Sciences

UCU University of Leeds Branch Posted on by

This important piece of work by Catherine Oakley, UCU University of Leeds member, and Sophie A Jones shows the mess of precarity facing postdocs, specifically in Humanities and Social Sciences but notes many of these bad practices started in Stem subjects, and proposes how faculty research leads, funding bodies and university senior management teams can fix these problems.

The local UCU committee and UCU anticasualisation reps will work hard to try to get these recommendations implemented at the University of Leeds.

We all deserve job security.

http://www.workingknowledgeps.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/WKPS_PrecariousPostdoc_PDF_Interactive.pdf

 

This page was last updated on 10 May 2018

Anti-casualisation update

UCU University of Leeds Branch Posted on by

PGR open meeting

Monday 9 April, 9–11am, 28 University Rd, LT G.23

This meeting is for all postgraduates (members and non-members) and is an important step in building the campaign for fair pay, terms and conditions for all postgraduates who teach or who work in paid research and related roles at the university. It will cover three main areas:
  • Focus on postgrad elements of the Uni of Leeds UCU branch anticasualisation claim: what do postgrads want and need?
  • Building on the energy of the recent strikes (and what the strikes tell us about casualisation!)
  • Recruitment and the free postgrad membership (reminder: www.ucu.org.uk/free)

There will be vegan cake too! Members are asked to let all postgrads know about this meeting and the free postgraduate membership offer. Please email with suggestions for agenda items/questions about the meeting (k.l.zezulka@leeds.ac.uk) and please share with PGRs in your school.

Anticasualisation campaign and roadshow planning

As part of the open meeting on 9 April, we will be discussing organising a UCU anticasualisation roadshow. We will be organising a local event to discuss, debate and explore issues related to casualisation and precarity in HE and FE. There is lots of information on the UCU Stamp Out webpages here. If you are interested in helping to organise this event or in running a workshop or giving a seminar, please let us know.

Being a PGR/anticas rep

You can be part of a network of UCU reps across the university to help us supercharge our campaigns for secure jobs, for lower workloads, and for equality.

In addition to department reps, we’d like to have an anticasualisation rep (a member not on a permanent contract) and a postgraduate rep in each school/area across the university. To join our new massive network of reps, ask two colleagues in your workplace (UCU members) to email ucu@leeds.ac.uk by 10 April to nominate you for one of these roles.

See the current list of reps. If you are interested in either role, feel free to email k.l.zezulka@leeds.ac.uk or speak to Kelli at the open meeting on 9 April.

This page was last updated on 5 April 2018

Capturing the energy and strength of the strikes – new UCU reps for your workplace

UCU University of Leeds Branch Posted on by

Let’s capture this energy and strength and take it back to our offices. When we’ve won this dispute (and we will win), let’s create a network of UCU reps across the university so we can supercharge our campaigns for secure jobs, for lower workloads, and for equality.

For each workplace let’s get:

  • a UCU department rep
  • a UCU anti-casualisation rep (a member not on a permanent contract)
  • a UCU postgraduate rep
  • a UCU health and safety rep (this network of new health and safety reps will work to show how excessive workloads are a a matter of health which the university must take more seriously)

 

To join our new massive network of reps, ask two colleagues in your workplace (UCU members) to email ucu@leeds.ac.uk by 10 April* nominating you for one of these roles.  

 

You can see from the list below that there are workplaces with no UCU rep, so let’s get all those gaps filled and more!

UCU members and student supporters in celebratory rally on Parkinson step

 

The list below includes current UCU department reps and members of the elected UCU committee), and reps who are covering other workplaces as well as their own, such as in the school of languages, cultures and societies, which is broken down into separate subject areas because it’s so big, where it would be good to have reps in each workplace. We know one or two reps are looking to pass the role on to someone else, so don’t not volunteer just because there’s someone already listed for your workplace (you can always ask them).

 

*After 10 April, email anyway if there’s still a vacancy!

 

Current UCU department reps by workplace

Alumni and Development
Arabic, Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies Andy Stafford (French), Christopher Dent (East Asian Studies)
Arts, Humanities and Cultures Faculty Office
Arts, Humanities and Cultures Faculty Office (Clothworkers South)
Biological Sciences, Faculty of Tim Goodall, Neil Maughan, Andy West, Elwyn Isaac
Biology, School of Tim Goodall, Neil Maughan, Andy West, Elwyn Isaac
Biomedical Sciences, School of Tim Goodall, Neil Maughan, Andy West, Elwyn Isaac
Careers Centre
Central Biomedical Services Tim Goodall, Neil Maughan, Andy West, Elwyn Isaac
Chemical and Process Engineering, School of Rik Drummond-Brydson, (Paul Steenson, Electronic and Electrical Engineering)
Chemistry, School of Gavin Reid
Civil Engineering, School of Terry Cousens, (Paul Steenson, Electronic and Electrical Engineering)
Classics Andy Stafford (French), Christopher Dent (East Asian Studies)
Computing, School Of Mark Walkley, Lydia Lau, Nick Efford
Dentistry, School of Nigel Bubb, Stella Kwan
Design, School Of
Digital Education Service
Disabled Students’ Assessment and Support
Earth and Environment, School
East Asian Studies Andy Stafford (French), Christopher Dent (East Asian Studies)
Education, School Of Martin Wedell
Education, Social Sciences and Law, Faculty of
Educational Engagement Vicky Blake
Electronic and Electrical Engineering, School of Paul Steenson
Engineering, Faculty of (Paul Steenson)
English, School Of Brendon Nicholls, Alaric Hall, Mark Taylor-Batty
Environment, Faculty of
ES Languages for All Andy Stafford (French), Christopher Dent (East Asian Studies)
Estates and Campus Support Services
Finance
Fine Art, History of Art and Cultural Studies, School of Gail Day, Mark Westgarth
Food Science and Nutrition, School of Malcolm Povey, Mahmood Akhtar
French Andy Stafford (French), Christopher Dent (East Asian Studies)
Geography, School of Stuart Hodkinson
German Andy Stafford (French), Christopher Dent (East Asian Studies)
Health and Safety Services
Healthcare, School of Jill Edwards, Ros Day
History, School of Jonathan Saha
Human Resources
Iibfs
Inter-Disciplinary Ethics Applied Steven French, Simon Hewitt
International Student Office
IT – Information Technology Andi Rylands
IT, SAP Team Andi Rylands
Italian Andy Stafford (French), Christopher Dent (East Asian Studies)
Language Centre Andy Stafford (French), Christopher Dent (East Asian Studies)
Languages, Cultures and Societies, School of Andy Stafford (French), Christopher Dent (East Asian Studies)
Law, School of Chloe Wallace
Leeds Institute for Data Analytics George Ellison
Leeds Institute of Biomedical & Clinical Sciences (LIBACS) Aruna Asipu
Leeds Institute of Cancer and Pathology (Bexley Wing) Deborah Clarke
Leeds Institute of Cancer and Pathology (Cancer Genetics Building) Deborah Clar
ke
Leeds Institute of Cancer and Pathology (Cancer Research Building) Deborah Clarke
Leeds Institute of Cancer and Pathology (Clinical Sciences Building) Deborah Clarke
Leeds Institute of Cancer and Pathology (Wellcome Trust Brenner Building) Deborah Clarke
Leeds Institute of Cardiovascular and Metabolic Medicine (LICAMM) George Ellison, David Miller
Leeds Institute of Clinical Trials Research (LICTR)
Leeds Institute of Health Sciences (LIHS) Reinhard Huss
Leeds Institute of Medical Education (LIME)
Leeds Institute of Rheumatic and Musculoskeletal Medicine (LIRMM)
Leeds University Business School Gabriella Alberti, Charles Umney, Kyle Griffith, Quentin Outram
Leeds University Union
Library Ben Plumpton, Jodie Double, Rachel Proudfoot
Lifelong Learning Centre Rachel Walls
Logik Centre, The
Mathematics, School of Steven Tobias
Maths and Physical Sciences, Faculty of
Mechanical Engineering, School of Hau Hing Chau, (Paul Steenson, Electronic and Electrical Engineering)
Media and Communication, School of Stephen Lax
Medicine and Health, Faculty of
Medicine and Health, Faculty Office
Molecular and Cellular Biology, School of Tim Goodall, Neil Maughan, Andy West, Elwyn Isaac
Music, School of Ewan Stefani
National Institute for Health Research
Organisational Development and Professional Learning
Performance and Cultural Industries, School of Kelli Zezulka, Anna Fenemore
Philosophy, Religion and the History of Science, School of Steven French, Simon Hewitt
Physics and Astronomy, School of Hugh Hubbard
Politics and International Studies, School of Jonathan Dean
Postgraduate Research and Operations
Programmes and Assessments
Psychology, School of Lesley McGorrigan
Pure Mathematics Steven Tobias
Research and Innovation Service Hugh Hubbard
Residential Services
Russian and Slavonic Studies Andy Stafford (French), Christopher Dent (East Asian Studies)
Secretariat
Sociology and Social Policy, School of Nick Emmel
Spanish and Portuguese Andy Stafford (French), Christopher Dent (East Asian Studies)
Sport & Physical Activity
Strategic Marketing
Strategy and Planning
Student Counselling Julie Hopkins
Student Operations
Study Abroad Office
Theatre Studies Brendon Nicholls, Alaric Hall, Mark Taylor-Batty
Translation Studies Andy Stafford (French), Christopher Dent (East Asian Studies)
Transport Studies, Institute for Jeremy Toner

 

 

This page was last updated on 22 March 2018

Open meeting: casualisation and gender pay gap

UCU University of Leeds Branch Posted on by

Wednesday 8 November, 1pm – 2pm
Baines wing 1.13

As part of our work putting together a claim on the gender pay gap at the University of Leeds and tackling the casualisation of jobs at the University of Leeds we’d like to invite you and any other staff to a meeting on Wednesday to discuss these issues.

Please pass this on to any colleagues who may have an interest in these issues (and who doesn’t have an interest in equal pay and permanent jobs?!).

This meeting is open to non-members as well as members.

Concerned about the gender pay gap? Fixed term? Hourly paid? Agency? Variable or Zero hours? All of the above?
We want to hear about the experiences of staff at Leeds on these kinds of contracts.

Permanent, salaried member of staff?
This meeting is also for you to learn more about issues facing your colleagues & to share ideas.

UCU is committed to equal pay and to fighting the abuses faced by staff on casualised contracts within further and higher education. We hope that all members will support these campaigns and stand with colleagues on casual contracts to put an end to such abuse.

Casualisation + Gender Pay = key issues for UCU
These are issues for all staff.
Be part of the UCU campaign!

Poster for this meeting available to download so you can let more people know: UCU pay gap and anticasualisation meeting

This page was last updated on 30 November 2017

Valentine’s day report

UCU University of Leeds Branch Posted on by

Many staff enthusiastically joined in writing their valentine messages on heart shaped stickers for the Vice Chancellor on Friday 12th February. Here’s the inside of the Valentine’s card towards the end of the lunchtime session:

SigningVCcard800
The card, and a lovely chocolate heart inscribed with the words “We’d love a pay rise” were taken to the VC on Friday afternoon. Sadly, he was too busy to see us, but we understand he likes chocolate, and we hope he enjoyed reading your messages.

VCpresentation800

The serious point of course is that university staff have suffered real terms pay cuts for some years, and it’s time we caught up. It’s been in the news recently that many Vice Chancellors have seen considerable pay rises, so it seems only fair their staff are treated similarly. UCU hopes that university employers, including our own university management, will see the sense of this and agree to a fair pay rise in the imminent 2016 pay negotiations.

For more about pay, read our short leaflet Fair pay in 2016.

This page was last updated on 1 August 2017

Meeting of all members on fixed-term or casual contracts

UCU University of Leeds Branch Posted on by

permanentcontract1

UCU is holding a meeting of all staff on casualised contracts on:

Friday 19 February
2pm – 3pm
Baines Wing SR 1.13.

Casualised contracts include fixed term contracts, hourly paid, zero hours, agency contracts – essentially if you are not on a permanent, salaried contract this means you!

If you are already on a permanent, salaried contract, please do feel free to pass the word on and encourage members whose working conditions have been casualised to attend.

There will be two main areas of linked discussion:

  1. Leeds UCU campaign for secure employment for all staff: UCU has recently written to the university demanding more progress on job security and adding weight to our local requests for improvements.
  2. UCU’s national Annual Meeting of Staff on Casualised Contracts, 11 March, UCU head office (London): delegates, self-registration, and motions.

The Annual Meeting is convened by the UCU anti-casualisation committee. It a very important opportunity for the voices of casualised staff at the grassroots level to be heard. Motions passed by this meeting will inform the priorities of the UCU anti-casualisation committee (ACC) for the coming year, and will also direct the ACC on the content of motions that should be sent to Congress and the Higher Education Sector Conference, where UCU policy is formed. It is also a brilliant chance to discuss issues relating to the national campaign for secure employment and to take part in a choice of excellent workshops. More information will be available at the Leeds meeting, but you can also email branch vice-president Vicky Blake if you wish to know more.

Delegates: We need to elect two members attend this meeting as delegates from Leeds UCU. We don’t need nominations in advance for that, you can put your name in at the meeting, but if you would like to be a delegate to but you can’t make this meeting on the 19th please email me.

Self-registration: It is also possible to register yourself to attend the Annual Meeting if you are not elected as a formal delegate, and you will be able to participate fully in the meeting. Places for self-registrants will be confirmed after the branch delegates registration deadline, but you must also apply for a place by 26 February.

Motions: UoL UCU can also send a motion from the meeting on 19 February to the UCU Annual Meeting of Staff on Casualised Contracts. If you have a motion you would like to propose, please email a copy of your proposed motion (or details of ideas for one if you would like to discuss) to me before the start of the meeting. This will help us to plan the agenda timings for the 19 Feb, and will also help us to file the motions on time as the deadline is very shortly after our meeting will finish.

We hope to see lots of staff on casualised contracts at the meeting on 19 Feb, and we hope there will also be plenty of interest in attending the Annual Meeting on 11 March. All travel costs for 11 March will be reimbursed by UCU, and lunch will be provided. If buying a ticket in advance for the meeting and waiting for expenses to be returned would make your financial situation difficult, it is very easy for us to arrange your travel to be purchased in advance by UCU directly, so long as we have enough notice – so please do not let purchasing travel tickets / logistics put you off!

This page was last updated on 1 August 2017

Christmas carolling and guerilla baubling

UCU University of Leeds Branch Posted on by

The UCU anti-casualisation ‘choir’ has been out carolling on several occasions, despite the weather. Our alternative wordings seem to ring a bell with passing staff and students! Try singing along to your favourite Christmas CD with these splendid lyrics.

job security guerilla bauble at the wavy lines tree

job security guerilla bauble at the wavy lines tree

Our DIY anti-casualisation baubles have also been unexpectedly appearing on Christmas trees all over campus.

job securty Christmas bauble on Parkinson Court Christmas tree

Parkinson Court Christmas tree

If you’d like some for your own tree, here’s the template to download (best printed onto thin coloured card): job security baubles

Read more

This page was last updated on 1 August 2017

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