In today’s episode, recorded 5 December 2024: Pay and grading review; relocation expenses; hourly pay; the branch’s X/Twitter account (and our other social media platforms); equality working group; and Christmas carols on Thursday 12th December!

With Jenny Rivas Perez, Rachel Walls and Alan Smith. 

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Intro 

Rachel 

Welcome to the LeedsUCU podcast for members of the University of Leeds branch of the University and College Union. I’m Rachel Walls, one of your podcast hosts. I’m also a UCU department rep for Lifelong Learning Centre, branch committee member and saxophone or clarinet player in our occasional picket line band Orchestrike! 

Alan 

And I’m Alan Smith, co-host for this podcast, and the branch’s administrator and organiser. We thought it would be useful for members of the branch to have an alternative channel for getting your local news because reading long emails or website posts is not everyone’s first choice. 

Rachel 

So we’re here to be a friendly voice from the UCU University of Leeds branch to keep you in better touch with what is going on, such as what the elected officers are working on and what opportunities there are for you to get involved in UCU discussions, socialising, activism and decision making. 

[Brief music] 

Rachel  

Hi everyone for today’s branch news, which we’re recording on the 5th of December 2024, we have Jenny Rivas Perez to give us an update on what’s been going on in the branch. 

Alan 

Hi, Jenny. 

Jenny 

Hi there. 

Alan 

So the first thing I wanted to ask you about is, a while back we had the paying grading review, which looked at where the pay for people in grades two to nine sat on the pay spine and a lot of members have been asking what about members on grade 10. What about staff on grade 10? What’s been happening with that? 

Jenny 

Well, we’ve been, we’ve asked about that. And what we’ve discovered is, is that the university has started working on it and what they’re doing at the moment is they’re gathering together all the market information just to make sure that pay is fair and competitive compared to the professional roles and for the professorial roles compared to where it’s at, at other places. And and they did this when they were looking at grades 2 to 9 before. So once this work finishes, we expect them to follow a similar sort of process that they went through on working on grades 2 to 9 and they should be working at that point, bringing it to the unions and working in partnership with us. So essentially negotiating with us on that. 

Alan 

So when the university has looked at all this data, and assuming that they find that with grade 10, as with the grades 2:00 to 9:00 they are underpaying in effect, have we got any indication of when the well when the negotiations will start on sorting that out? And I suppose consequently when pay might improve, assuming it would be an improvement. 

Jenny 

Well, we’re told it’s quite a complicated piece of work looking at the market, that there are a lot of things to actually look at there for grade 10s. So they have a rough idea of when it’s going to happen and I think we should start to see it coming to the unions next summer. It’s also running alongside the Career Pathways project. So it’s aligned to that and so there’s discussion in there also about career pathways to be had as well at that point. One thing to say is that phase three of the two to nine regrading project will be coming in next September that will have some impact on those at the bottom of grade 10. And so I do know that HR are talking about looking at those at the bottom of grade 10 and making sure that at that point that they are not disadvantaged compared to those at the top of grade 9. 

Alan 

We’ll get more information. As things progressed then. 

Jenny 

As things progress, yes. 

Alan 

OK, So what else has been going on in the negotiations and consultations with the university? 

Jenny 

So we’ve been talking to university management about problems that. Some researchers, particularly at Grade 7, have been having with relocation expenses, so it’s been a bit patchy about whether or not people who come to work at the university have been able to actually or have been offered relocation expenses when they’ve started working. And so we’re talking to management about why this is so patchy and whether we can do something about that. So watch this space I think is the message at the moment about this, but it is on the agenda.  

The other thing that’s been happening is we’ve been. Once again, part of the ongoing conversation about employment terms for hourly pay, and we’ve raised this again at our latest joint negotiating meeting with the university as well. So just to, you know, let members know that you know this isn’t slipping off the agenda that we are still talking about this to manage. 

Alan 

So away from the negotiation stuff the branches for a while has been putting stuff out on various social media platforms and there has been a kind of catastrophic decline of ex or Twitter under its current ownership and that was discussed at the all members meeting this week or last week, probably as you listen to this. 

Jenny 

Yeah, absolutely. I mean, and the motion that came forward, I mean it made some really good points about how not only is X an unpleasant place to be, but actually it’s an unsafe place for people to actually interact with, and should we really be encouraging people to engage on Twitter? With all the sorts of dialogue that goes on there, and the sorts of things that are you are confronted with, if you have to go onto Twitter. That has opened up the space to think about that, and the committee are thinking about now whether to leave Twitter. So the the motion came forward and it was an indicative vote because unfortunately, the meeting wasn’t quorate, but it was I think, virtually 100% backing. To to leave Twitter, committee has to consider that indicative vote and and also think about an exit strategy from X. I think we’re calling it TweXit! How do we leave gracefully from Twitter and still retain rights over our branch names on Twitter and the like. So, we need to give it some consideration. But but yes, it’s on the the committees agenda to discuss this indicative vote. 

Alan 

And so we’re already on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/ucuatleeds and we’re on. Blue sky. 

Jenny 

Blue sky, yeah. 

Alan 

@leedsucu, which is a bit unfortunate for all the other branches in Leeds, but we’ve been using leedsucu for a long time anyway, so that’s what we are on that. We are also on Mastodon, but with Mastodon, you’ve got loads of different servers. We’re on one called Union.Place, so it’s leedsucu@Union.place 

Jenny 

Yeah, well, I’ve joined the branch on Blue Sky. I’ve yet to work out how to work Mastodon. But then I’m not really an early adopter of such things. 

Alan 

That’s where it where it should be (Mastodon). It’ll be better. Everyone should go on there. But anyway.  

Rachel… 

Rachel 

So Jenny, we wanted to ask you what is coming up over the next couple of weeks; the branch has various working groups that any member can join. There’s information on our website https://www.leedsucu.org.uk/ if anyone wants to get involved. Are any of those meetings soon? Is there any news? 

Jenny 

Well, I’m quite excited because we’ve just rebooted, this year, the Equalities working group. We’ve had a lot of people come forward wanting to join the working group, so many, in fact, that I had to split the initial meeting in order to when, when using Doodle Poll, it was just really impossible to get everybody in the same room at the same time. So I’ve had a meeting a couple of weeks ago for an initial meeting with some members and I’ve got the second initial meeting tomorrow with the rest of the members so that everybody gets to come to the first meeting. So two chances at that.  

But just to say it’s not static on the working group. Some people will have quite a lot to contribute on certain topics. Others will will be able to sort of dip in and out when it’s when things are of most interest to them and and if anybody else wants to come and join the equalities working group just get in touch with me (ucu@leeds.ac.uk) because I’m really keen that we get as many people on board as possible.  

It’s really important actually in this year because we have this huge amount of work that HR is sort of putting towards us in terms of the policy renewal. Equalities really is the thread that runs through all of that, all the renewal, and we really do need people’s expertise in this as well. So members come from right across the university with lots of different expertise, lots of different experience in equalities. And we can use that you know and it would really help us with this, and there are lots of things that are you know.  

For example, I talked in the last podcast when I was here about the the motions that were passed on maternity leave and partner leave. These particular policies are coming up for renewal soon. And so that’s something that I’m personally really keen for the equalities working group to look at. There are other things that are coming up as well. So we’re hearing things about reasonable adjustments passports and things like that, and this is the sort of thing that the equalities working group really help with, advising officers and committee. When we’re doing work on that, those sorts of issues in, in, in the branch and of the university. 

Rachel 

Great. So it’s a good time to get involved and have an impact while this policy review is going on. Are there any more events in the calendar this year? 

Jenny 

Well, there’s Christmas carols. So there’s lunchtime Christmas carols on Thursday the 12th of December. I believe we want people to meet up at the Wavy bacon statue (Beech Grove Plaza) at midday. And it will be special versions of Christmas carols so please do come home and this soon. We’re going to have some musicians there as well, Rachel. 

Rachel 

Yes, I believe so. I’ll be one of those. But I think there are others and there is a songbook on Wikipedia. You may have the link from previous strike singalongs. So do you look that up and come along with a mobile or something so you can learn the words well, not learn the words, just join in with the words. All right.  

Well, thank you very much Jenny, for coming along to tell us the branch news. 

Jenny 

Oh no problem. 

Rachel 

And this is probably the last podcast before the end of the year. So, we hope all members have a restful and enjoyable Christmas break. Thanks both. 

[Everyone saying thanks and bye]. 

[Brief music] 

Outro 

Rachel 

That’s all for today’s Leeds UCU podcast. Thank you for listening. Please subscribe on whatever platform you’re listening to us on, so you’ll know as soon as we publish our next episode. 

Alan 

If you’re not yet a member of UCU, head to ucu.org.uk/join to find out more if you work at the University of Leeds in an academic or academic related, professional or managerial role, or as a postgraduate student doing paid teaching. Wherever you work, make sure you join the union for your workplace. 

Rachel 

This podcast is made on behalf of the committee of the University and College Union, University of Leeds Branch. If you have any questions or concerns, please e-mail our branch offices at ucu@leeds.ac.uk. See our website leedsucu.org.uk for alternative contact details and for a transcript of this episode. 

This page was last updated on 9 December 2024