At a general meeting on 15 September 2020 members voted to support the following motions:

Emergency motion 1 – On-line teaching: health & safety and jobs

This meeting notes:

the call by our GS and iSAGE for all teaching to be held online
UCU’s five tests
pressures on all staff for face-to-face teaching
that iSAGE/WHO believe social distancing, test, track and isolate and PPE are central in controlling pandemics
a potential second wave of Covid-19 with high R-rates in Yorkshire/Humberside
lives, health, safety and jobs should take priority over the financial ‘bottom line’
The University sits on over £70 million of reserves which must be utilised if necessary to meet demands during this period.

This meeting requests:

Leeds UCU to campaign for and negotiate agreements on:

no face-to-face teaching and student support in at least the first semester of 2020/21 and continued into the second semester (to be reviewed in December 2020) other than where there are no other options, e.g. some practical work
all on-line teaching to be accessible
provision of IT and safe quiet study spaces for all students and staff as required
continuing with high levels of support and training for staff in online teaching, and ensuring that workload allocation models and other means of allocating work recognise the time needed to undertake this training
no staff, casualised or permanent, to risk losing jobs if they do not deliver face-to-face teaching or support
additional government funding to cover shortfalls and additional costs.

Emergency motion 3 – Local organising on return to campus in the context of Covid-19

This branch notes:

That the rates of Covid contagion are rising steadily across the Europe, the UK and Leeds
That there are currently problems and delays accessing tests and test results
That at this rate of contagion and without mass testing, the WHO predicts a rise in the deaths in October and November 2020
That health and safety guidance has been developed on our campus in dialogue with the unions on improving existing measures, but inconsitency of approach as emerged across faculties, with some opting almost entirely for online teaching and others for a hybrid approach
That institutional pressure to offer some face to face teaching on the basis of a commercial argument affects different colleagues differently with regard to their teaching
That students’ experience will also be unequal as a result, especially for those unable to come back to campus
That the ‘Return to campus’ survey does not include individual health and safety measures
That local H&S reps are not consistently consulted on local arrangements for reopening building “in good time” as required by the law
That organising and negotiating in favour of online teaching have provided arguments to successfully retain fixed term staff in some faculties

This branch resolves:

that nobody should be forced to deliver teaching and other non-essential activities on campus in semester 1, and that this should be reviewed in semester 2.
that the union has clear messages and support especially for colleagues most isolated and precarious who may be coerced to teaching
to develop out our own conditions for f2f teaching at the branch level (e.g. conditions attached to the local r-number; room cleaning between classes; wearing of masks; availability of testing)
that the branch faciliates ongoing dialogue between local reps and the committee that is effective in influencing negotiation with management
that the branch actively contributes to the UCU developing of a national strategy such as walk outs or sick outs in the case COVID-19 rates increase and the University campus continues with the current plans of face to face teaching delivery

On-line teaching: health & safety and jobs

HESC notes:

the call by our GS and iSAGE for all teaching to be held online
UCU’s five tests
pressures on all staff for face-to-face teaching
that iSAGE/WHO believe social distancing, test, track and isolate and PPE are central in controlling pandemics
a potential second wave of Covid-19

HESC requests:

branches and the national union campaign for and negotiate agreements on:

no face-to-face teaching and student support in 2020/21 (reviewed in December) other than where there are no other options, e.g. some practical work
all on-line teaching to be accessible
provision of IT and safe quiet study spaces for all students and staff as required
support and training for staff in online teaching
no staff, casualised or permanent, to risk losing jobs if they do not teach face-to-face
additional government funding to cover shortfalls and additional costs.

(150 words)

This page was last updated on 5 July 2021