LUCU News: September 2018
In this month’s newsletter
- Please vote in the 2018 Pay Ballot
- An update on negotiations with the University
- UCU National Recruitment Week
- UCU Caseworkers
- Forthcoming branch meetings in October and November
- Leicester and District TUC
2018 Pay Ballot
You should have by now received your postal ballot. Please make sure you complete and post it back in time for the ballot which closes 19th October. If you have any questions please contact the Officers of the branch, or click this link to read more.
Negotiations with the University
Last week UCU attended both the JNCC, where all unions meet with management, and ARSNC which is UCU’s own negotiating forum. Among the issues discussed were:
USS and Pay
Members will have noticed that the first JEP report reflects very closely the positions on USS adopted by LUCU and by Loughborough University following our discussions in January. It is of great frustration that so many Universities instead took a hard line position and forced us into the strike. We were however disappointed that the University had responded to a recent UUK consultation without discussing their response with us first despite their previous commitment to do so. We have exchanged comments on UUK’s latest consultation, in light of the JEP report, and hope that management will endorse the position of the JEP and challenge UUK to do the same.
PDR Review
Colleagues from HR shared the breakdown of ratings received in this year’s PDR round. It was noted that only Excellent and Requires Improvement numbers were commented on, which adds to our argument that the distinction between Good and Very Good adds no value. We remain concerned about the number of ratings downgraded by Senior Review Groups and about whether equality and diversity are being properly considered. The results of our survey suggest satisfaction with the PDR process has reduced since last year with 1/3 of respondents reporting their PDR was not constructive, half that it was not valuable and a shocking 2/3 that is was not motivational. Unions and management will be holding a meeting specifically about PDR in October.
Restructures
After pressure from the unions HR have produced guidelines on how schools and departments should communicate with both unions and staff during restructures. We hope that Deans and Directors of Service will follow them. We remain concerned by the number of restructure activities taking place at any one time but appreciate that this is Loughborough’s preferred approach to a challenging financial landscape which is prompting some Universities to instigate large rounds of redundancies.
Role changes
A number of members have contacted us in recent months to complain their Deans had taken large roles such as Directorships of Institutes away from them without due process. We were pleased that our new HR Director Adèle MacKinlay took this issue very seriously and will be looking into these cases.
UCU National Recruitment Week
As part of UCU National Recruitment Week next week, we will be holding a recruitment stall outside of the Edward Herbert Building on Thursday lunchtime from 12:30pm to 1:30pm. Please come along for a chat or to help out with recruiting new members.
Can you Recruit a Colleague?
By far the most effective form of recruitment is a personal invitation explaining the importance of the union for our pay, pensions, conditions and support when it’s needed. Could you recruit one colleague next week? If you have any questions or would like any leaflets please get in touch with Marc Gibson, Branch Admin Secretary.
Our Reps Working for You
Every day Loughborough case workers help members with problems arising at work. These can include disputes with managers, unwarranted changes in working patterns or roles and problems with due payments. We also assist members with processes such as Disciplinaries and Grievances. Colleagues in these positions often say “I never thought this would happen to me”, but when these situations arise they are glad not to have to face them alone. Casework is time consuming but can be a very rewarding part of being a rep. More on this in future newsletters.
Congress Mandate Meeting
UCU have called a one-day Congress on the 18th of October to complete the business not taken at this year’s summer Congress. We want to give you a chance to let your delegates know your views on the motions being discussed. To see the motions please click here.
All LUCU members are invited to attend the mandating meeting in room J001 in the Edward Herbert Building on Wednesday 10th October from 1pm-2pm. You will have an opportunity to discuss the motions with our delegates so that they can better represent the your views.
LUCU General Meeting
All LUCU members are invited to our first General Meeting of the academic year which will on the afternoon of Wednesday 28th November. Confirmation of the time and location, an agenda and a request for motions will be communicated nearer the time.
Leicester and District TUC
We still have two more delegate places to fill at Leicester and District TUC. If you are interested in finding out more, please contact the LUCU Branch Administrator.
Meetings of L&D TUC take place in the City Hall, Leicester on the 3rd Thursday of each month at 7pm.
To be Continued
Our next newsletter is scheduled to appear in October. In the meantime, please continue to contact us with your views and suggestions about LUCU activities on campus. The Committee’s contact details can be found here; we hope you will also follow us on both Facebook and Twitter.
LUCU Committee, 26th September 2018