*** Come to the joint rally with Sheffield Hallam on Thursday, with guest speakers including UCU General Secretary Jo Grady. And do keep coming to our teach outs - every single day after picketing at the Students' Union (more details below)***
Dear SUCU members,
*This is a long email - you might find our short twitter thread about the outcome of Monday’s meeting with the University easier to digest*
Our pickets on Monday and Tuesday were extraordinary - thank you so much to everyone who came out, held a placard, offered a leaflet, had a conversation and danced.
We had a lunchtime rally on Monday with speakers from our branch committee and the SU, followed by really successful teachouts on both Monday and Tuesday - it was wonderful to see so many of you there.
<h3>Local and national negotiations </h3>
After the rally, we went along with three of the SU Officers to a meeting with the Vice-Chancellor and other members of the University’s management team. This was a productive and positive meeting and all parties agreed to keep lines of communication open. We are likely to be meeting again on Monday next week.
One of the items covered during the meeting was the timeline of strike pay deductions. The Vice-Chancellor has agreed that no pay will be deducted in December, and that for all members, the deductions will be split between January and February. We will continue to be in discussion with university management about the details of these deductions, and to advocate for an approach that supports our most precarious members. We are hoping that the progress we have made thus far will support members in accessing the central fighting fund.
We also discussed Action Short of a Strike (ASOS), in light of the email which was sent to all staff last week. University management have clarified their intentions and assured us that they do not intend to seek deductions for action short of a strike (ASOS). They have indicated that they will be monitoring the progress of the dispute, and that if, at a point in the future they change their position on ASOS deductions, they will be in communication with staff in advance.
We’d like to reiterate our advice from last week, which is that we are not aware of any deductions being made for action short of a strike for any of our members in recent memory. If you have any concerns or questions around ASOS, please do email us.
When we return to work next week you do not need to confirm that you are undertaking action short of a strike by completing a form, but you should answer truthfully if your manager asks you. You will need to complete a strike notification form, and we will send a separate email about that on Monday or Tuesday next week.
We were pleased to hear that the University is committed to ensuring that our salary deductions will be used for the benefit of students, who will be directly involved in the allocation of funds.
We had a long discussion with the VC about the current disputes on Monday and he assured us that he will continue to do everything he can to try to resolve the disputes. Our Vice President, Robyn Orfitelli, met with UCEA yesterday alongside the rest of the pay and conditions negotiating team from UCU. Based on this discussion, UCEA have agreed to return to their member institutions, and have committed to a written response early next week. It is very clear that it was UCU's strong ballot result and the prospect of solid industrial action which have brought UCEA to the table. Our continued show of strength and commitment to all four areas of the pay, casualisation, equalities, and workload dispute is having an impact, and we need to keep it up.
Upcoming events
Our teach out continues today and Thursday - please have a look at the sessions and go along if you can, and follow us on twitter @sheffielducu for images and descriptions of the events. We will also be circulating the Teach Out schedule for next week.
Tomorrow, Thursday 28th, we will gathering at the SU Concourse and making our way to Barker’s Pool for a rally hosted with Sheffield Hallam UCU. We’re delighted that Jo Grady and local MPs will be speaking there and we’d love to see as many of you as possible get involved - bring an umbrella!
On Friday we will be joining the city-wide climate strike. We will set off at 11:30 from the SU Concourse down to Devonshire Green, to join the students for a 12:30 march to Barker’s Pool, followed by a rally at 1pm Please come along and help us demonstrate that Sheffield is taking the climate emergency seriously.
We’d also like to give you some advance notice that the branch will be hosting a party on the evening of Wednesday 4th December. Come along to DINA on Cambridge Street for food, music, karaoke and some well-earned relaxation after all your efforts. We’ll circulate an eventbrite link for that soon - please register for yourself and any other friends, family or supporters as you choose.
Thank you once again for all your efforts and for continuing to keep our pickets creative and good humoured. As ever, if you have any questions please get in touch with us and we hope to see you soon.
Picketing Day 1
Published on
On Monday, we will be taking strike action over our pensions, our pay, and our working conditions. No one in UCU is undertaking this action lightly. Our branch president, Sam Marsh, and vice-president, Robyn Orfitelli, are part of UCU’s national negotiating teams and have been working tirelessly to try to find solutions with the employers’ representatives. We deeply regret that the employers have so far been unwilling to make serious efforts to resolve these disputes.
Since it seems very likely that the action next week is going ahead, we want to ensure that as many of you as possible are able to participate. The information below covers what we hope is useful and accessible information about events that will be taking place this week. As ever, if you have any questions about any of this information, please email us and we will do our very best to get back to you as soon as we can. We also have made an overall SUCU industrial action guidance document which covers all of this information in one place, as well as a version of this document which is tailored for PGRs and GTAs.
Picketing
We’d like to ask all members to consider joining a picket line on as many days of the strike action as possible. Picketing is the visible symbol of a strike; it is the way in which we make visible what the withdrawal of our labour looks like. Our pickets in 2018 were sites of fun, creativity, music and fancy-dress and home baking and banners and conversations that it’s impossible to have in any other context. Please join us.
A picket line is a group of striking workers who stand near the entrance to their workplace and ask fellow union members not to cross. UCU’s guidance on picketing makes explicit that no one on a picket line should use threatening, abusive or intimidatory language or behaviour and we want to emphasise this as strongly as we can. You can ask people whether they will support the strike and offer them further information while you’re picketing but it’s hugely important that you respect people who don’t want to engage with the picketers and you must not block anyone’s access to work. Picketing should be fun! Please read the full guidance document before you join a picket.
All pickets need a ‘lead picket’, who will be responsible for collecting placards, armbands and flyers about the dispute from our office on 2 Hounsfield Road from 7.30am on each day of the strike action. If you don’t know who the lead picket from your building is, don’t worry - just come along to the office and we’ll let you know and talk it through. If you have any problems on a picket, the lead picket should call the picket supervisor’s mobile phone number and someone will be there within minutes.
Our pickets will run between 7.30 and 11.30am, but please do take a break at any point if you need to do so. You can picket where you like - many of our members like to picket the buildings they work in but this is not obligatory and we might ask people to attend pickets that have lower numbers on them during the day, or to relieve other picketers who need a break.
If you’re picketing, you can collect a free sandwich from John’s Van every day of the strike action to provide vital sustenance. And please dress up as warmly as possible!
You can use toilets at nearly cafes and the Students’ Union while you’re picketing. There’s more information on how to make picketing more accessible in our guidance document here.
Other events
On Monday there will also be a rally at 11.45am at Firth Court, with our SU, who have declared their support for our fight. Please come along to that as well if you can - the bigger the crowds, the more obvious our resistance to the erosion of our terms and conditions and the more likely it is that we will be able to negotiate productively with our local management.
We’re running a teach out on every day of the action. The teach outs in 2018 were a truly transformative space and the programme this year is just as varied and exciting. We’re so grateful to all the teach out presenters for agreeing to speak. Here is the Week 1 programme - please come along and ask questions, learn something and enjoy the possibilities of learning in a radical space.
Keeping in touch
Many of you use work email as your contact address for UCU and for that reason we ask that you check it periodically when you’re on strike specifically to see any email updates from us - please ignore the rest of your work email while you’re taking action. You can also follow us on twitter (or just read our twitter feed if you don’t have an account yourself) and on Facebook. Please get in touch with any problems, questions or concerns that you have - we know this is hard and we’re here to support you.
November Newsletter
Published on
Upcoming Industrial Action for Pay and Pensions Disputes
As you are no doubt aware by now, Sheffield UCU is preparing to join branches at 59 institutions across the country in strike action from November 25 - December 4 if agreement is not reached before then with our employers. In addition to joining the daily pickets at your building, we are developing an exciting program of teach-outs to be held at the Student Union, as well as rallies and other activities.
This week, we will be holding a number of activities in the lead up to the strike (further information below). Please come along to get involved!
In the meantime, if you have questions about the upcoming strike action, please review the branch guidance document here and the FAQ’s put together by our national union here.
Pre-Strike Roadshows: In addition to any department meetings your SUCU departmental rep might be organising, we are holding two ‘Roadshows’ aimed at addressing concerns and queries from staff and students, members and non-members on what the strike action will involve
Monday, 18 November 1-2 Dainton LT1
Friday, 22 November 1-2 Alfred Denny LT2
SUCU branch General Meeting: In addition to discussing any updates on the imminent industrial action, there are several important motions that have been tabled by our members. Please attend, and bring a colleague!
Thursday, 21 November 1-2 Council Room Firth Court
Banner making event and student-staff solidarity meeting: We will be meeting on Wednesday in the Red Deer pub at 4:00 pm to make banners for next week’s industrial action, and on Thursday, we will be meeting from 4:00 pm - 6:00 pm in the University Arms for banner making.
On Wednesday, from 6-7pm the SU have organised a student-staff solidarity meeting in Hicks Lecture Theatre 9.
Financial Support for SUCU Members Taking Industrial Action
The Sheffield UCU Committee recognises the financial difficulties posed by taking part in industrial action. To help mitigate this, there are two sources of support members can apply to: UCU’s national Fighting Fund and the local SUCU Hardship Fund.
UCU Fighting Fund
Members earning below £30,000 p.a. will be able to claim up to £75 per day from their second day of strike action onwards. Members earning more will be able to claim up to £50 from their third day of strike action onwards. We are awaiting updated guidance from UCU nationally, but applications to the Fighting Fund for the 2018 industrial action were made via an online form and required proof of loss of income e.g. payslip showing strike deductions. We will update you if there are any changes to this process.
Your first port of call should be the Fighting Fund: UCU nationally has vastly more resources than we do locally. However, we recognise that the Fighting Fund may still leave individuals in hardship, and our local SUCU Hardship Fund can then assist.
SUCU Hardship Fund
The SUCU Hardship Fund is for members who are disproportionately hit financially by taking part in industrial action, e.g. sole-income households, members on hourly-paid, part-time or fixed-term contracts, or due to other personal circumstances. Claims from lower paid members and those on insecure contracts will be prioritised.
To apply to the SUCU Hardship fund, please fill out this form. All information will be treated as strictly confidential. It will be seen only by the SUCU administrator and the SUCU Committee members responsible for agreeing payments.
Donating to the SUCU Hardship Fund
The SUCU Hardship Fund is made up of solidarity donations and branch funds. We ask members who have a dispensation not to strike to donate their earnings for the strike day/s to this fund. If you want to donate to the fund, you can do so using these details:
Account name: UCU Sheffield 70 Hardship Fund
Sort code: 60-83-01
Account number: 20391171
Please get in touch if you have any questions.
New Monthly Meetings for Professional Services Members
Current UCU members, as well as interested non-members, are invited to attend the first monthly meeting of Professional Services members. This will be an informal meeting to specifically address this group's needs and concerns. The meeting will be held on Tuesday, 19 November from 12-1pm in Jessop Building Room 117.
Trans Day of Remembrance
On Wednesday, November 20, from 5:30-6:30 pm, there will be a vigil held at Hallam Square to remember and honour the lives of trans and gender-diverse people whose lives were lost in acts of anti-transgender violence in the past 12 months. A range of speakers including members of the trans community and representatives of local trans and LGBT+ organisations will speak, followed by a minutes silence to mark those we have lost this year.
For further information, please visit: https://www.facebook.com/events/509465946563378/
New SUCU Officers
Jess Meacham and Themesa Neckles have been co-opted to the branch committee as ordinary members. As a result of the vacant Vice President role and lack of candidates for the position, the branch committee has co-opted former branch Secretary Sarah Staniland into the role. Former Policy and Governance officer Lauren Selfe has been co-opted into the branch Secretary role and former ordinary committee member Caroline Metz has been co-opted into the Policy and Governance officer role.
Report Back on Democracy Commission Meeting
In preparation for the upcoming special congress in December, Sheffield UCU held an extraordinary general meeting on November 1 to discuss the findings of the national union’s Democracy Commission. The Democracy Commission was created as a result of a motion brought to Congress in 2018 by Sheffield UCU to improve democracy and transparency in the union. Though our meeting was inquorate, we had a positive discussion among the members present and the minutes from this meeting were referred to the branch committee.
Report Back on Anti-Casualisation Workshop
On the 2nd of October, the SUCU anti-cas team had its first casuals workshop. We were delighted to be joined by UCU members from across the North as well as members from our own branch. The workshop covered maternity rights for casual staff, pensions rights for casual staff and a taster training on organising in the workplace. We also ran a zine making workshop with @antiprecarityCymru.
If you’re interested in taking a look at some of the materials from the event, you can access them here: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1C_vIGMxLv3BAGL9XAl-_L0U-TcF5ULZr?usp=sharing
We will be publishing our zine collaboration soon so do keep your eyes peeled. Over the next few months we’ll also be arranging open meetings for casuals so watch this space!
Maternity Action
Kate Moran from Maternity Action is hoping to interview some UCU members who are on casualised contracts (such as zero hours or very short term, low hours contracts) who are either pregnant and due to go on maternity leave, currently on maternity leave or about to return to work after maternity leave - including those having problems returning to work. Research has shown that many women are afraid of raising concerns with their employer such as health and safety risks, rights to time off to attend ante-natal appointments, requests for flexible working on their return, access to suitable facilities for those breastfeeding and expressing. Women on casual contracts are particularly susceptible fearing that their employer may offer them fewer or no hours or shifts if they raise concerns - which in turn may impact on the amount of maternity pay that they receive. Maternity Action would like to cover these types of issues and any others that women in this situation are facing by discussing them with volunteer interviewees on a one to one basis.
We are hoping to recruit UCU members who are in this situation and would be willing to be interviewees. The interviews would be used in the report but would be anonymised and kept confidential. Interviews will take place over the phone at a time that suits you. If you’re interested contact Kate: katemoran@maternityaction.org.uk
Petition in Support of Professor Jane Hutton
Last month, UCU-nominated USS trustee and whistleblower Professor Jane Hutton was sacked from her role in USS in a totally non-transparent process. Professor Hutton, who is an internationally recognised expert and professional statistician, brought to light significant failures in the governance of USS and the 2017 valuation process that led to an overestimation of the projected scheme deficit. Mike Otsuka covered some important work Jane has done for USS members, available here. Our national union has raised concerns about the process of removing Professor Hutton, calling for the evidence for her removal to be released and for USS members to support her. Sheffield UCU President and national pensions negotiator Sam Marsh has suggested a reason for dismissal may have been her emailing the Joint Negotiating Committee in relation to 'three occurrences of problems in board papers intended to inform decisions on the valuation’. Professor Hutton stated that “I do not accept the validity of either the process or the decision. I will be taking a number of actions to address the process, the decisions, and the accuracy of the assumptions and modeling which underlie the 2017 & 2018 valuations."
Please consider signing the petition in support of Jane Hutton here.
Hong Kong Motion
For the last few months there have been massive protests for democracy in Hong Kong which have been met with serious repression by the Chinese state and Hong Kong's administration. The were sparked by a proposed extradition agreement with China, but are also for Universal Suffrage, an inquiry into police brutality, the resignation of Carrie Lam, Hong Kong's Chief Executive, and more. There have also been significant protests in Sheffield in support of those in Hong Kong, and on October 2nd these protesters were aggressively intimidated by people defending the Chinese state's actions.
As a result, our UCU branch has passed a motion in full support of the democracy protests in Hong Kong and in Sheffield, and we encourage members to come out for demonstrations and events both in solidarity, but also to ensure the safety of the protests. At the same time, we do not support British intervention in Hong Kong or the expression of any anti-Chinese sentiment.
The motion also called on the University of Sheffield to publicly support democracy in Hong Kong, as well as taking seriously any cases of harassment or intimidation of staff and students participating in the protests.
IHRA Motion
It has been the policy of our national union since its 2017 Congress to oppose adoption of the International Holocaust Remembrance Association (IHRA) definition of antisemitism. In conflating criticism of Israel with anti-Jewish racism, the definition constitutes a threat to open debate and free discussion about the future and past of the Middle East and Palestine. The UK Government has adopted this definition of ‘antisemitism’ and urged Universities UK to advise all UK HE institutions that they should prevent meetings or events about Palestine that fall foul of the definition. Some universities have already complied with this instruction, and have banned campus events. Others have explicitly refused to adopt the definition, and have resisted outside pressure to comply. The University of Sheffield’s Equalities, Diversity and Inclusion Committee was asked to consider making a recommendation on the definition over the summer.
In our first general meeting of the school year in October, UCU members voted to support a motion opposing the university’s adoption of the definition; educating members of the campus community about antisemitism and other forms of racism; and supporting staff and students working for justice for the Palestinian people.
Solidarity Statement with Kurdish People
The Sheffield UCU committee condemns recent attacks on the Kurdish people in the Rojava region in northern Syria. Considering that Turkish and Kurdish colleagues may not be able to speak out due to threats and widespread repression of academics, journalists, activists and dissident voices on the part of the Turkish government, the Sheffield UCU committee wishes to express its solidarity with the Kurdish people, who have so often shown the way in terms of democracy, feminism and environmental activism. The Sheffield UCU committee opposes the persecution of Kurds and other ethnic minorities in Turkey, Syria, and elsewhere. We call on the UK and EU to accept far more Syrian and Kurdish refugees and resolve to support the work of ASSIST Sheffield and South Yorkshire Migration and Asylum Action Group (SYMAAG) with a donation of £200 each.
October 2019 Newsletter
Published on
Welcome back to a new school year! In this bulletin, you can find updates on the pay and pensions disputes, the Climate Strike, support for international students and scholars, the Equality Groups conference, earlier deadlines for module and programme changes and more.
But first, please mark your calendars for next Tuesday, October 8, when UCU General Secretary Jo Grady will be returning to Sheffield for a visit on as part of her national speaking tour! She will be giving a talk from 5:30-7:30 pm in Diamond LT4. Please register to attend here and follow the event Facebook page for any updates here.
October General Meeting
Our first membership meeting of the new school year will be Thursday, October 17 from 1-2 pm in Firth Court.
Updates on Pay and Pensions Disputes
We held a briefing at the end of September for all staff on the disputes over USS and pay and equalities.
With a sharp step up in USS rates due in October and the methodology for the next valuation currently being formed, our branch president and national USS negotiator Sam Marsh explained how crucial the next few months are to the future of the scheme and why we must take a stand now. You can watch his short presentation here.
Our branch VP and national pay negotiator Robyn Orfitelli demonstrated how below inflation pay rises interact with precarity and unequal promotion pathways to create generational pay inequality, and how a strong ballot result can help us fight back. You can watch her short presentation here.
For further information, please see the poster below.
Our next organising committee meeting will be Thursday, October 3 from 1:00-2:00 in Hicks F28. All members are welcome to attend.
We will also be holding a special Ballot Day event from 1-3 on October 8, the same day as Jo Grady’s visit (see information above) in the Council Chamber of the Octagon. Please bring your ballots to post and stay for some pizza. For those who are able to stick around, we will be doing GTVO activities after lunch. Please help us get the vote out!
If you have any questions or would like to get involved, please contact Communications Officer Katy Fox-Hodess: katy.fox-hodess@sheffield.ac.uk.
Report back from Climate Strike
A big thank you to everyone that participated in the Climate Strike on September 20. We had a fantastic turn out from UCU Sheffield. We were part of the largest action against climate change ever to have taken place, and got to hear from a couple of youth strikers themselves! Importantly, we also demonstrated that there is strong support amongst staff for urgent action on climate change. If you are interested in getting involved with future organising on this issue, please contact UCU Sheffield Climate Strike working group coordinator George Coiley at ggcoiley1@sheffield.ac.uk.
Get Involved with UCU in the New School Year (Even on a Busy Schedule. . .)
You don’t have to be a branch rep or officer to be involved with UCU! 2000 members contributing just 15 minutes per week to UCU is 500 hours per week of union support, which makes a huge difference in our local and national activism!
We've designed three posters (below) showing 8 ways you can get involved in Sheffield UCU: one if you have 15 minutes a week to spare, one if you have an hour in a week, and one if you want to get a bit more involved (although still not with a huge time commitment). Print out one (or more) of these posters to help you stay involved even during the busy term time!
And remember, right now, the number one way you can help UCU is to send in your ballot papers!
Unis Resist Border Controls
Sheffield branch has been active on issues related to migrant members for some time, including working collaboratively with Unis Resist Border Controls in the #LetAhmedStay campaign. URBC have brought another awful case to our attention - you can read about Adriana Ortega-Zeifert’s situation here. We have sent a message of solidarity and a donation to Adriana’s legal fund on behalf of the branch, but encourage all Sheffield members to also do what they can to support. Details of how you can do so can be found here.
Stop the Repression in Egypt - No More Academic Collusion with the Dictatorship
According to the Egyptian Centre for Economic and Social Rights, more than 2000 people, including prominent academics, have been arrested since 20 September, in response to peaceful protests criticising current president Abdel Fattah al-Sisi. We are alarmed that Boris Johnson believes that the UK can make "positive progress in our bilateral relationship" with the Egyptian regime in such circumstances. We are also deeply concerned that once again, UK universities are showing their willingness to put potential revenue from student fees before commitment to human rights and academic freedoms, by pursuing partnerships with private educational firms running "branch campuses" or offering UK degrees in Egypt.
Please consider adding your name to the public statement calling on UK universities operating in or planning to open for business in Egypt to suspend these projects until the human rights situation improves enough to ensure that academic freedoms are protected and calling on the regime to release political prisoners, respect human rights and protect freedom of expression.
UCU Equality Groups Conference
UCU's various Equality Groups will gather in Birmingham in November for their annual meetings. These cover the four areas of disabled members, black members, LGBT+ members and women members. People who are active (or wish to be more active) in any equality work of our union and identify with any of these categories are welcome to sign up to attend these conferences. More details here. Last year's Congress also created a migrant members committee, which will meet in a stand-alone conference in early 2020 - we'll update you on how you can be involved in that conference closer to the date.
As a branch, we also have the right to move motions and nominate a candidate for election to each of the various standing committees mentioned above. If you have a particular policy area you would like to move a motion about, or are interested in serving on one of these UK-wide committees, please get in contact with our E&D Officer, Mark Pendleton at m.pendleton@sheffield.ac.uk
Update on Earlier Deadlines for Module and Programme Changes
We've been hearing from members who are extremely worried about the sudden announcement that the deadlines for making changes to modules and programmes for 2020/21 have been moved forward this year, from late January to late November. These earlier deadlines are already driving up academic and professional services staff workloads during the first months of the academic year, which for many of us are already some of the busiest in the calendar.
Staff are dismayed at the short notice they've been given, with the announcement coming just a couple of weeks before the start of the new semester. Not only that, the move threatens to derail carefully laid PLA plans in many departments, where colleagues have been working hard to plan curriculum changes for 2020/21, as dictated by the university's PLA strategy. The earlier deadlines are linked to delivering the new student system, and SUCU is concerned that the university is driving forward two contradictory initiatives - the Student Lifecycle Project and PLA - with little thought to their coherence or their impact on staff workloads and wellbeing.
The earlier deadlines will also make it hard for departments to respond to student feedback on learning and teaching. Once the November deadline passes improvements to teaching can only be made for September 2021, which may leave staff delivering courses that they know need to be improved but can't do anything about. With the university's increasing and unwelcome reliance on metrics, including for learning and teaching (in ACP and the module evaluation process, for example), we're worried about the impact this will have on student satisfaction, course evaluation, and promotion cases for teaching staff.
With the HE Pay and Equality ballot open, now's the time to take a stand against escalating workloads and stress levels, and the complacency of HE senior leadership towards the detrimental impact of their decisions on staff.
Have Your Say on the University's Vision and Strategic Plan
It’s been a busy summer for Sheffield UCU as we’ve worked to settle a claim facing a large number of casualised members and have campaigned on career pathways for academic and professional staff. But it will be an even busier autumn as prepare for the possibility of a new round of industrial action and support this month’s Youth Strike 4 Climate! In this summer's edition of the newsletter, you can learn about all of this and more.
Pay and Pensions Dispute
Beginning this month on September 9, our national union will be balloting for industrial action on both our pay and pensions disputes.
Deadlock at the last meeting of the USS Joint Negotiating Committee resulted in the independent chair once again siding with employers on how to divide up increased costs arising from the 2018 valuation. The latest valuation, a response to the report of the Joint Expert Panel, has landed on significantly higher rates than those proposed by the panel, with member contributions rising to 9.6% of salary this October, then 11% in October 2021. The first step up will cost members hundreds of pounds more per year than the pre-strike rate of 8%. By October 2021, many will be paying over £1,000 more for the same benefits. With no sign of USS listening to anyone but themselves, and employers allowing them to ignore the findings of the JEP, we are once again forced to resort to strike action to defend the future of the scheme. For further information and updates on pensions negotiations, please follow Sheffield UCU president and national pensions negotiator Sam Marsh on Twitter.
Unfortunately, the employers have been unwilling to make substantial revisions to their offer on pay. The final offer they have presented does not substantially address a number of the priorities UCU members have identified, including reducing equalities pay gaps and taking adequate steps to remedy the workload-related health crisis and reliance on precarious labour that we see across the sector. In addition, the employers have proposed allowing institutions with ‘extenuating circumstances’ to delay pay increases for 11 months with no backdating! For further information and updates on pay negotiations, please follow Sheffield UCU Vice President and national pay negotiator Robyn Orfitelli on Twitter.
In order to prepare for the possibility of industrial action later this term and to recruit new members, Sheffield UCU has formed an organising committee that has begun to meet over the summer. All members are welcome to participate -- the more the merrier! We will be holding an organising training on Wednesday, September 11 from 2-3 in B19, 301 Glossop Road. If you are not able to attend but would like to get involved, please email branch Communications Officer Katy Fox-Hodess at katy.fox-hodess@sheffield.ac.uk.
Local SUCU news
September 20 Climate Strike
For the past year, young people around the world have demonstrated leadership on the climate crisis. At Sheffield UCU, we’re organising to show solidarity to the Sheffield Youth Strikers on their next international Earth Day, as they have asked that 10,000 Sheffield workers show support. We will meet at the Students Union at 12.00 and hold a short rally for those who can't take a longer lunch break. For those that are able to take more time out, we will walk down to join the students in the town centre, returning to campus by 13.30.
We've written to Prof. Koen Lamberts asking that he not impose any sanctions on any staff participating, and that he join us in person. Updates to come shortly, but for now please talk to your colleagues about the event and sign up for updates here. If you have ideas about how to encourage or enable more people to attend, or have any questions, please email George ggcoiley1@sheffield.ac.uk.
Casualisation Claim
In March 2017, we filed a claim with the university around casualised teaching, demanding the university take action to improve pay and conditions for precariously employed GTAs. That built on several years of action by our branch and resulted in extended negotiations with management. The principles underpinning our claim can be found here. While casualisation remains a major problem across the sector, and here at Sheffield, we have made significant progress locally, with the university agreeing that all scheduled teaching will be delivered by staff engaged on employment contracts.
This saw the creation of a new Graduate Teaching Assistant contract which saw GTAs (usually Postgraduate Research Students who teach) move from casual worker agreements (zero hour contracts) to more secure contracts of employment. These won GTAs the right to holiday pay, sick pay and maternity pay as well as access to the USS pension scheme. The new contract was agreed at Grade 6. In recognition that much GTA teaching requires more advanced skills, including design of teaching, we entered into further negotiations with HR this summer, which resulted in the creation of a new Grade 7 contract for Graduate Teaching Associates. This sets an exciting precedent for GTAs across the university to fight for pay at Grade 7 - a potential pay increase of £2.76 an hour for those currently on grade 6. Please get in touch with anti-casualisation officers Eda Yazici (eyazici1@sheffield.ac.uk) and Steffan Blayney (s.blayney@sheffield.ac.uk) if you want to fight for improvements in pay in your department!
These developments also largely address our claim in 2017 and we have agreed to settle that particular claim. We won’t be taking our eyes off the ball though, with casualisation rolling into our regular set of negotiations with management.
Career Pathways Survey
Many thanks to everyone who completed the online survey on promotions, which was sent out to all Sheffield UCU members early this month. We had over three hundred responses from both academic and professional staff, painting a clear picture of members’ views of the short-comings of the current promotions pathways. Please find the full summary of the survey results here: UCU Promotions Pathway Survey.
Vacant VP Position
Expressions of interest are sought for one of our two Vice President positions. Our outgoing VP Emma Nagouse is leaving soon to take up a national role for UCU. The VP position involves working closely with the President, and chairing Branch and SUCU Committee meetings in their absence. If you are interested please contact our Branch Administrator Jane Rodger (j.rodger@sheffield.ac.uk).