UCU Rising – Developing consultation questions: meeting for members

UCU Rising – Developing consultation questions: meeting for members

As we approach the next phase of the UCU Rising campaign, UCU need to develop clear strategies to win the pay and working conditions dispute. The higher education committee (HEC) will make the decisions as the appropriate body under the rules, and UCU will hold a branch delegate meeting (BDM) to help HEC formulate that strategy. 

UCU want to talk to and, more importantly, listen to as many members as possible to develop that strategy. One part of that will be a consultation of the whole membership and UCU want to engage members in developing the set of questions that will be used in that consultation. This mass consultation will inform the decisions which HEC and other democratic structures will take on the next steps in the HE dispute.

The meeting will be as open as possible, involving some breakout sessions, and members can share their suggestions and views. Please register for the meeting below by clicking the link.

Developing consultation questions: a meeting for all members in London, Eastern and Home Counties, West Midlands, East Midlands, and Yorkshire and Humberside regions. Wednesday 11 October, 16:30-18:00

Please help shape UCU’s next steps to winning our dispute by taking part in this meeting.

UCU Rising Campaign Update

UCU Rising Campaign Update

Pause in Strike Action

As you have probably already heard, due to the pressure created through your collective action and presence on picket lines, UCU have announced significant progress in negotiations with the employers in our HE pay and pension disputes. To allow ongoing negotiations to continue in a constructive environment UCU has agreed to pause strike action for the next two weeks. This means our scheduled pickets on the 22nd February and 1st March are suspended, as is all strike action until we recommence the pressure with our picket on the 16th March. For this period, during the pause in strike action, ASOS remains in place and the branch will focus on the re-ballot. We are looking to reschedule teach-outs which were planned for the 22nd Feb and the 1st March, and will update you with more details on these when we have finalised the new plans. The planned Creative Writing Social/Teach-out on the 28th February will still be taking place as it is outside of normal working hours.

Take a look at some of the creative works our members have produced with students in support of the dispute, on our YouTube channel.

Re-ballot

It is now more important than ever that we deliver a massive yes vote in our upcoming re-ballot of members for both our pay and conditions, and USS disputes. This will allow our negotiators to keep the pressure on and will leave the option for a Marking and Assessment Boycott and/or further strike action if the dispute is not resolved.  Ballot papers will start arriving from Wednesday 22nd February. Please complete and return your ballot, and encourage others to do the same.

We’d really appreciate help with the get the vote out effort. If you volunteer you will be given a list of names and will be asked to call members on their list encouraging them to vote. Please let the branch know if you can help by responding to this email.

UCU will be hosting our union’s biggest ever UCU Live event on the eve of ballots dropping. Please join our general secretary Jo Grady at 19:30 on Tuesday 21st February on YouTubeFacebook and Twitter

LUCU Committee

Picket in Loughborough on Wednesday – 22nd Feb

Picket in Loughborough on Wednesday – 22nd Feb

Next Week’s Picket

For next week the branch has organised a picket on Lboro campus taking place on Wednesday 22nd February. The picket will be at the Holywell Gate on Holywell Way (exact location) from 11:30am to 2pm. It will be followed by “Unions and the Media” an online teach-out from 2:30-5pm (Teams link). See the section on teach-outs at the end of this article for full details.

As always, we hope to see as many of you on the picket as possible. The longer the picket line, the shorter the dispute.

Future Picket Dates, Times & Locations

Strike DayPicket TimePicket Location
Wed 1st March11:30-14:00Holywell Gate
Thurs 16th March8:30-10:30Main Gate
Mon 20th March8:30-10:30Main Gate

Future London picket details will be communicated as and when they are arranged.

Although we are only picketing on the above dates, please remember that the following dates are also strike days.

February: Tues 21st, Thurs 23rd, Mon 27th & Tues 28th.

March: Thurs 2nd, Fri 17th, Tues 21st & Wed 22nd.

Resources for Staff

Please regularly check our website for updated versions of strike resources for staff such as out of office messages, email templates you can send to students or use on learn and slides for students.

Teach-Outs Updates

We’re delighted to announce a fourth teach-out on our schedule:

Mightier than the Sword? – a creative writing social at The Organ Grinder (4 Woodgate, Loughborough, LE11 2TY) on Tuesday February 28th, 6-8pm. Upstairs in The Hayloft, Barbara Cooke and Kerry Featherstone will be serving up creative exercises that will amuse and entertain. All are welcome. The room has limited capacity so come early to avoid having to sit downstairs playing board games and wondering what everyone is up to!

Full details of the teach-out this coming Wednesday:

Unions and the Media, an online teach-out: Wednesday February 22nd, 2:30-5pm (Teams link) We will start with a Trade Unions 101 by Anthony Kevins: Is a trade union like a student union? Are strikes just protests? And why are strikes even a thing? In this brief introduction to trade unions, we’ll cover everything you ever wanted to know about collective bargaining but were too afraid to ask. Bring your questions! Then John Downey will present a talk entitled ‘What about the workers? How do news media frame unions and what we can do about it’ discussing unions, inequality, and media representation, including reflections on how UCU does self-mediation and how it is being represented in the current dispute.

A reminder of the rest of our scheduled teach-outs:

  • Organising and Power, an online teach-out: Wednesday 1st March, 2:30-5pm (Teams link)
  • Memories of anti-racism, a hybrid teach-out:Thursday 16th March, 11am-12 noon in-person and online (Teams link) Charnwood Arts (address: 27 Rectory Pl, Loughborough LE11 1UW)

LUCU Committee

Picket in Loughborough on Thursday – 16th Feb

Picket in Loughborough on Thursday – 16th Feb

Thanks again to everyone who was involved in the busy and engaging UCU rising pickets we held on the 1st and 9th of February.

This Week’s Picket

This week the branch has organised a picket on Lboro campus. It will take place on Thursday 16th February. The picket will be at the Shirley Pearce Pedestrian Crossing (on Epinal Way – exact location) from 8:30am to 10:30am. We hope to see as many of you there as possible. The longer the picket line, the shorter the dispute.

Future Picket Dates, Times & Locations

Strike DayPicket TimePicket Location
Wed 22nd Feb11:30-14:00Holywell Gate
Wed 1st March11:30-14:00Holywell Gate
Thurs 16th March8:30-10:30Main Gate
Mon 20th March8:30-10:30Main Gate

Future London picket details will be communicated as and when they are arranged.

Although we are only picketing on the above dates, please remember that the following dates are also strike days.

February: Wed 15th, Tues 21st, Thurs 23rd, Mon 27th & Tues 28th.

March: Thurs 2nd, Fri 17th, Tues 21st & Wed 22nd.

Reminder of Teach Outs

We now have three teach outs planned during this period of industrial action. Please advertise these events to your colleagues, students and anyone else who may be interested in joining us. We have linked a poster and would love if you can print out and put up around campus to encourage people to attend these events.

Unions and the Media, an online teach-out: Wednesday February 22nd, 2:30-5pm (Teams link): We will start with a Trade Unions 101 by Anthony Kevins: Is a trade union like a student union? Are strikes just protests? And why are strikes even a thing? In this brief introduction to trade unions, we’ll cover everything you ever wanted to know about collective bargaining but were too afraid to ask. Bring your questions! Then John Downey will present a talk entitled ‘What about the workers? How do news media frame unions and what we can do about it’ discussing unions, inequality, and media representation, including reflections on how UCU does self-mediation and how it is being represented in the current dispute.

Organising and Power, an online teach-out: Wednesday 1st March, 2:30-5pm (Teams link): Ruth Kinna will give a talk (open to all staff and students) about Rose Pesotta (1896–1965), anarchist, feminist and labour organizer in the International Ladies’ Garment Workers’ Union, then Alexandre Christoyannopoulos will lead a workshop (for LUCU members only) introducing methods from the Organizing for Power workshops that some members attended last year, with time for discussion about how they could work within Loughborough UCU.

Memories of anti-racism, a hybrid teach-out: Thursday 16th March, 11am-12 noon in-person and online (Teams link): Emily Keightley will introduce the Migrant Memory and Postcolonial Imagination exhibition at Charnwood Arts (address: 27 Rectory Pl, Loughborough LE11 1UW), and will talk about histories and memories of anti-racist protest and experiences of racism in Loughborough and East London.

Resources for Staff

Please regularly check our website for updated versions of strike resources for staff such as out of office messages, email templates you can send to students or use on learn and slides for students.

Branch TikTok

With the aim of reaching out to more students the branch has set up a TikTok account and started releasing videos on that platform. Please take a look and give the videos a like and, if you use TikTok, follow our profile. Click the links for videos: TikTok1 and TikTok2. More TikTok videos coming soon. We have also released the same videos on all our existing social media (Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube ). Liking and sharing our social media posts helps boost awareness of the ucuRISING dispute and the issues we are facing, so all help with that is very much appreciated.

LUCU Committee

Pickets in Loughborough and London – 9th Feb

Pickets in Loughborough and London – 9th Feb

Thanks again to everyone who was involved in the busy and engaging UCU rising picket we held on the 1st February, and also to those who came to the planning meeting that followed.

This Week’s Pickets

This week the branch has organised pickets on both Lboro and London campuses. Both will take place on Thursday 9th February. The Loughborough picket will be at the Shirley Pearce Pedestrian Crossing (on Epinal Way – exact location) from 8:30am to 10:30am. The London picket will be at the main entrance of the London campus building from 9am – 11am. We hope to see as many of you there as possible. The longer the picket line, the shorter the dispute.

Future Picket Dates, Times & Locations

Strike DayPicket TimePicket Location
Thurs 16th Feb8:30-10:30Shirley Pearce Pedestrian Crossing
Wed 22nd Feb11:30-14:00Holywell Gate
Wed 1st March11:30-14:00Holywell Gate
Thurs 16th March8:30-10:30Main Gate
Mon 20th March8:30-10:30Main Gate

Future London picket details will be communicated as and when they are arranged.

Although we are only picketing on the above dates, please remember that the following dates are also strike days.

February: Fri 10th, Tues 14th, Wed 15th, Tues 21st, Thurs 23rd, Mon 27th & Tues 28th.

March: Thurs 2nd, Fri 17th, Tues 21st & Wed 22nd.

Update on Teach Outs

We now have three teach outs planned during this period of industrial action, unfortunately the ones we had hoped to hold in the LSU building will now have to be on-line only due to no rooms being available. Please advertise these events to your colleagues, students and anyone else who may be interested in joining us.

Unions and the Media, an online teach-out: Wednesday February 22nd, 2:30-5pm (Teams link): We will start with a Trade Unions 101 by Anthony Kevins: Is a trade union like a student union? Are strikes just protests? And why are strikes even a thing? In this brief introduction to trade unions, we’ll cover everything you ever wanted to know about collective bargaining but were too afraid to ask. Bring your questions! Then John Downey will present a talk entitled ‘What about the workers? How do news media frame unions and what we can do about it’ discussing unions, inequality, and media representation, including reflections on how UCU does self-mediation and how it is being represented in the current dispute.

Organising and Power, an online teach-out: Wednesday 1st March, 2:30-5pm (Teams link): Ruth Kinna will give a talk (open to all staff and students) about Rose Pesotta (1896–1965), anarchist, feminist and labour organizer in the International Ladies’ Garment Workers’ Union, then Alexandre Christoyannopoulos will lead a workshop (for LUCU members only) introducing methods from the Organizing for Power workshops that some members attended last year, with time for discussion about how they could work within Loughborough UCU.

Memories of anti-racism, a hybrid teach-out: Thursday 16th March, 11am-12 noon in-person and online (Teams link): Emily Keightley will introduce the Migrant Memory and Postcolonial Imagination exhibition at Charnwood Arts (address: 27 Rectory Pl, Loughborough LE11 1UW), and will talk about histories and memories of anti-racist protest and experiences of racism in Loughborough and East London.

Resources for Staff

Please regularly check our website for updated versions of strike resources for staff such as out of office messages, email templates you can send to students or use on learn and slides for students.

LUCU Committee

UCU Rising Picket Dates and More

UCU Rising Picket Dates and More

Firstly, thanks to all those who attended our picket on the 1st February. It was great to see so many people out in support of the UCU Rising dispute. Following on from the picket we held a productive meeting to plan the rest of our action where many members contributed to an engaging discussion. It was really inspiring to see so many members getting involved and volunteering to take actions. A summary of the outcomes agreed by members at the meeting is below.

Targeted Picketing

It was agreed that we would target picketing to 6 days (one per week of the strike action), please attend as many of these pickets as you can. As always friends, family and supporters are more than welcome on our pickets:

Strike DayPicket TimePicket Location
Thurs 9th Feb8:30-10:30Shirley Pearce Pedestrian Crossing
Thurs 16th Feb8:30-10:30Shirley Pearce Pedestrian Crossing
Wed 22nd Feb11:30-14:00Holywell Gate
Wed 1st March11:30-14:00Holywell Gate
Thurs 16th March8:30-10:30Main Gate
Mon 20th March8:30-10:30Main Gate

London picket details will be communicated in due course.

Although we are only picketing on the above dates, please remember that the following dates are also strike days.

February: Fri 10th, Tues 14th, Wed 15th, Tues 21st, Thurs 23rd, Mon 27th & Tues 28th.

March: Thurs 2nd, Fri 17th, Tues 21st & Wed 22nd.

Teach Outs

We have also had several people volunteer to host Teach Out sessions. We hope these sessions will be hybrid meetings and will confirm details nearer the time. Anyone else interested in hosting a teach out session on any of the strike days please get in touch with the branch. Presently this is our plan:

  1. 22nd Feb at 2:30pm at the LSU (tbc) – Two members will host a teach out on the subject of Unions and the Media.
  2. 16th March at 11am at Charnwood Arts (tbc) – A member will host a teach out on Colonialism and Anti-racism – followed by a members meeting.

Resources for Staff

Please regularly check our website for updated versions of strike resources for staff such as out of office messages, email templates you can send to students or use on learn and slides for students.

LUCU Committee

Winter Break Office Closure

Winter Break Office Closure

The LUCU office will be closed for the winter break from 4pm today (21st December). We will re-open (and respond to enquiries) from 10am on Wednesday 4th January 2023.

Have a great winter break!

LUCU will not be monitoring the main branch email inbox during the winter break so if an urgent response is required please email the branch secretary or relevant committee member directly. Please bear in mind they are also on their winter break so won’t be checking email daily. Their contact details can be found here: https://ucu.lboro.ac.uk/contacts/

In the meantime, should you need it, the Education Support Partnership is a free service for our members, active 24/7. They provide counselling, support, financial assistance and more.

Phone: 08000 562 561

Email: support@edsupport.org.uk

Website: https://www.educationsupport.org.uk/helping-you/

Drop in Meeting for Staff on Casual Contracts

Drop in Meeting for Staff on Casual Contracts

We inviting all Loughborough University staff on Fixed Term, Zero Hours, Hourly Paid or Variable Hours contracts to attend our first drop-in meeting for members of staff who are on casualised contracts.

We are keen to offer you a safe space to discuss any concerns or issues you are having in the workplace and an opportunity to build links between workers with similar employment terms. During the meeting there will be options for discussion as a group or one to one.

The meeting will take place on Wednesday 31st of August at 1-2pm please join at any time during the hour if you can’t make it from the start of the meeting.

Email the branch to get a login for the meeting: ucu@lboro.ac.uk

We plan to hold these meetings regularly going forward and will try to hold them at different times on different days to allow all members of staff to attend. These meetings are open to both UCU members and other members of staff at Loughborough University, so if you have any colleagues who also fit into the above-mentioned categories please invite them to come along.

We hope to see you at the meeting.

LUCU Committee

Extraordinary General Meeting – USS/FourFights

Extraordinary General Meeting – USS/FourFights

LUCU members are invited to attend an Extraordinary General Meeting to discuss the USS & Four Fights disputes on Friday 6th May at 1pm. The meeting will be held on Microsoft Teams. 

The Four Fights sector conference has voted to: 

•            call a marking and assessment boycott 

•            call 10 days of strike action 

•            keep the Four Fights and USS disputes, and action called in them, coupled

We have been asked by the UCU Higher Education committee to consult our members ahead of a branch delegates meeting on the 10th May and the HEC meeting later that week. A key question for consideration is:  

When does your branch believe would be the most effective start date for 10 days of strike action in your institution? 

A. Monday 6 June (this is the earliest possible date) 

B. Monday 13 June  

C. Other (please give more information – operational issues may make it impossible to accede to specific requests)  

The EGM offers members the opportunity to discuss how our branch can best manage the results of the HEC decisions and best manage the dispute at a local level.

The results of the Four Fights sector conference are available, and we should receive the results of the USS sector conference before our EGM so both can be discussed at the meeting. 

An agenda and minutes of our previous GM, a calendar invite and link to join have been emailed to all members.

LUCU Committee

General Assembly: Notice of Postponement

General Assembly: Notice of Postponement

We have received many messages from members about the timing of the meeting on Friday and about the lack of an option to attend online. We raised your concerns with management. Due to staff availability, we were informed that it was not possible to set up a hybrid meeting this week; hence, we have requested a postponement. We are in discussions with management about rescheduling the meeting at a more convenient time and in a hybrid format so that as many members as possible can attend.

However, developments in the USS dispute continue at a fast pace. LUCU will be using the time originally scheduled for the GA on Friday to meet with the Vice-Chancellor and Chief Operating Officer to discuss building consensus following the next valuation, which is likely to be more favourable than the valuation conducted at the height of the pandemic. LUCU will be pushing for the restoration of benefits. We will also ask management to respond to the issues raised in the two motions tabled for the GA. Depending on what arises from the discussion, and the response to the motions, there may not be a need to reschedule the GA.

We will feedback to members about the outcome of the meeting as soon as possible

LUCU Committee