TUC march

Final Pay Offer

Branches will now be aware that the AOC (Association of Colleges – our sector’s official government body) at the last negotiating meeting withdrew its demands for an end to automatic incremental pay rises and made a final pay offer for 2012/13 of 0.7%.

The FEC met on 29 June and agreed to consult members in   branch meetings during September and to make decisions on the next steps at its meeting on 5 October.  

The committee recognised that the removal of the conditions was an important achievement allowing UCU to make it clear that any employers who attempt to end incremental progression do so without the recommendation from the AoC. The agreement to recommend colleges adopt minimum rather than zero hours for part time staff, the promotion  of the national workloads agreement and a willingness to discuss best practice on lesson observation are  also very  welcome.   

FEC however is recommending that the offer is rejected because it far below the claim for 5% and with current inflation rates is an effective pay cut. 

In line with a decision of the national annual sector conference in June, branches are therefore being asked to support the position that members should be balloted for a programme of escalating strike action in pursuit of an improved offer.

As a branch we have to decide on our position before September which is basically;

1.    Rejection  or acceptance of  the final pay offer

2.    A ballot of members for a programme of escalating strike action in pursuit of an improved pay offer.

Rally & March for the future – in Oxford & Sheffield on Saturday 14th July 2012

 

Demonstrations are being organised in Sheffield and Oxfordshire to highlight concerns about the impact of the Government's cuts and to help mobilise teachers and other public sector workers in the run up to the TUC demonstration on 20th October 2012.
These demonstrations are supported by the local Trades Councils, and the local and national NUT and NASUWT. The theme of the demonstration is Rally for our Future: Defend Education, Defend Public Services, Defend Pensions, Pay & Jobs. See Oxford and Sheffield fliers for contact details and more information.

UCU CONGRESS REPORT - 2012

UCU CONGRESS REPORT - 2012

FROM UCU REGIONAL SECRETARIES AND NEC REGIONAL-RELATED LONDON MEMBERS

This was one of the most critical Congresses of recent years. The mood was serious, but positive and determined. Almost certainly as direct reflection of this, this was also an extremely well attended Congress with many ‘first time’ delegates from Local Associations and Branches in both sectors that previously had been under-represented or not represented at all at Congress. This should be seen also as a credit to everyone including the General Secretary, the National Campaigns team, Regional Officials and Organisers and lay Officers who did so much to promote Congress attendance this year.

From a regional perspective the Thursday night pre-Congress meeting called by Regions was absolutely packed with an attendance of well over two hundred.  Motions on the Congress floor that spoke of and stressed the significance of developing regional organisation, Regional Committees and regional initiatives over the last year and into the next were passed with full support of everyone.

All constituencies and interests groups at Congress engaged in informed, animated debate over the maximization of democratic governance within UCU and how best to meet the many challenges we face in the year ahead. Motions and debate considered NEC structures, election of national negotiators and the value, and timing of consultation with and balloting members.

In the light of the critical imperative to defend pensions, pay and job security all delegates committed to a review of UCU national structures to maximise effective leadership to activate the fullest possible involvement of membership.

It was agreed that a Commission will be created comprising equal numbers of HE and FE membership (5 per sector). Voting will take place amongst Congress delegates and be completed by Friday July 13th. UCU officials confirmed that this was a manageable and achievable time line. All delegates acknowledged that equality issues must be respected and visible within the voting process. The Commission will report back to Congress as sovereign body of the union in 2013.

All delegates were committed to a united UCU that can and will lead a positive defence against the ‘austerity’ agenda of the Con-Dem government. All delegates had examples from Local Associations, Branches and Regions as to how that agenda was already causing institutional havoc. All reported how that agenda was already reducing and narrowing student opportunity, threatening established policy and practices on work-place equality and work-life balance, putting at risk job security, putting back attempts to improve terms and conditions for disadvantaged workers including most critically ‘casual’ ‘hourly-paid’ staff and causing misery for individual members. Threats of privatisation, outsourcing and ‘shared services’

were a common concern across both sectors as, unfortunately, were related threats to academic freedom and security of academic ownership and intellectual property rights to research and teaching materials arising directly from opportunist ‘market-led’ initiatives of Vice Chancellors and Principals.

All delegates were committed to a UCU that continues with and intensifies our leading role in the defence of positive educational and social values alongside all sister Trades Unionists within the public sector and beyond. September can and will see a re-engagement in the collective struggle to defend pensions, pay and job security by all public sector unions. Reflecting frustration with lack of progress in both pension campaigns over USS and TPS, Congress passed motions by clear majority to continue the TPS campaign in September and to end the suspension of current industrial action over the USS dispute. The TUC have organised a demonstration for 20th October. Our message from Congress is that UCU is now united, ready and capable of playing a winning part in that struggle.

Pura Ariza UCU North West Regional Secretary Mick Dawson UCU South East Regional Secretary Veronica Killen UCU North East Regional Secretary Liz Lawrence UCU Yorkshire & Humberside Regional Secretary Jeannie Robinson UCU East Midlands Regional Secretary.

Cliff Snaith UCU London Regional Secretary Mandy Brown UCU London Regional FE Secretary Sean Wallis UCU London Regional HE Secretary Mark Campbell NEC (London Region) Richard McEwan NEC (London Region) Sean Vernell NEC (London Region) Ben Boydell NEC rep for the South constituency (FE).

New TPS Portal

There is a new UCU portal focussing on the threats to TPS.

http://tps.web.ucu.org.uk/

Wakefield Strike Picket Line in Pictures

There was a successful picket line at Thornes Park Campus this morning. We managed to stay for 3 hours despite the rain and we attracted a lot of supportive hoots from passing cars.

The umbrellas went down as the sun came out briefly and our branch banner took pride of place.

Like any proper picket line things wouldn't be right without at least one copy of Socialist Worker

May 10th Hardship Funds

Solidarity Hardship Fund

The committee appreciates that some members may experience hardship as a result of striking on May 10^th. With this in mind, we have put a hardship fund into place for members to access should they need to. Some members for instance are single parents or the sole breadwinner, others have two members of the same family striking or may experience other financial difficulties. We have a small fund available to help and will do our best to support you. In order to apply, please contact Lesley Kimber or Peter Korn Morris in the first instance stating that you would like to make a hardship application. The process is completely confidential. We would also encourage members to contribute to the fund. A collection will be coming to your staff room soon or give donations to any member of the committee!

 Wakefield College UCU are now ‘twinned’ with Wakefield and District NUT. The NUT voted unanimously to twin with us at a recent committee meeting where a member of the committee was a guest speaker. The twinning process was borne out of the frustrations felt by many NUT members at not being called out with London Teachers on the 28^th March. NUT members made collections and sent ‘solidarity’ cards and 44 boxes of cup cakes to picket lines across central London.

Wakefield and District NUT have sent collection sheets to schools in Wakefield area and plan to donate the proceeds to our hardship fund. They also voted to donate the remaining collection money from the London Cup Cake collection to our hardship fund. The committee would like to express our gratitude on behalf of the membership for this.