Tag: Reps Network

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Reps’ Team – Two new Reps and a returning Rep

Reps’ Team – Two new Reps and a returning Rep

We are very pleased to announce two new department reps and welcome back a former department rep to the branch team. Mark Leaper has taken on the role of department rep for Chemical Engineering and Materials in the School of Aeronautical, Automotive, Chemical and Materials Engineering.

In the School of Social Sciences and Humanities. Siân Adiseshiah has returned to her previous role of department rep for English on a temporary basis, and we welcome members to come forward as a permanent rep for English from the start of August. Many thanks go to Barbara Cooke for her work in the role over the last year.

We are also delighted to welcome Hilary Robinson to the role of department rep in International Relations, Politics and History. Thanks go to Magnus Hamann for covering the role while the department was without a rep. We know these reps will do a great job in representing members in their departments.

Dr Mark Leaper (Rep for Chemical Engineering & Materials Departments in the School of Aeronautical, Automotive, Chemical and Materials Engineering)

I’m Dr Mark Leaper and I’ve been a Senior Lecturer in Chemical Engineering/AACME for 8 years at Loughborough, having seen quite a few changes to the University. I have been invited become the rep for Chemical Engineering and Materials for Loughborough UCU and hope that this will allow my colleagues to experience the full benefits of union membership.

Professor Hilary Robinson (Rep for International Relations, Politics and History in the School of Social Sciences and Humanities)

I joined Loughborough 2017 as Professor of Feminism, Art and History, in the old School of Arts, English and Drama; since its split, I’ve been in International Relations, Politics and History, in the School of Social Sciences and Humanities. I and describe myself as a recovering Dean, positions I held at Carnegie Mellon (USA), and at Middlesex. Before those posts I worked at U. Ulster; and before that in a number of precarious positions at different places. I was first involved in Union work in the 1970s, helping set up a branch of the T&GW at a bookshop where I worked for 18 months before being the first in my family to go to university. I am interested in all forms of real, intersectional, access and equity; and hold that this does not mean trying to get people to assimilate into institutions, but shifting the structures of power that kept some people out in the first place.

A few vacancies remain in our reps’ team!  At the time of writing and in addition to the role in English, our two other vacant roles are both in the School of Science, in the departments of Computer Science and Chemistry. If you have any interest in taking one of the vacant roles, please get in touch with our Branch Organiser, Callum Salfield, for an informal chat about what’s involved and how you can support members in your area. For an up-to-date list of our reps, please see this page of our website.

Reps Network Meeting

A meeting for Department Reps.

Committee members and departmental reps can attend.

Held online.

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Reps’ Team – Another Addition to the Team

Reps’ Team – Another Addition to the Team

We are extremely pleased to welcome back our former branch Chair and Pensions Officer, Matthew Inglis, to the branch team. Matthew has taken on the role of department rep in both Mathematical Sciences Department and the Department for Mathematics Education, in the School of Science.  We know Matthew will bring a wealth of experience to the role and will do a great job in representing members in these departments.

Matthew Inglis (Mathematical Sciences & Department for Mathematics Education Departments Rep in the School of Science)

I’m a Professor of Mathematical Cognition in the Department of Mathematics Education. My research focuses on the cognitive processes involved in doing mathematics. This includes studying young children’s behaviour when they start engaging with numbers for the first time, but also the behaviour of my colleagues in the Department of Mathematics when they’re doing their research. I’ve been at Loughborough since 2008, was a longstanding member of the LUCU Committee, and served as LUCU Branch Chair for a three-year term that included the 2018 USS dispute. Currently I continue to help out with individual casework and am an elected member of the University Council (thanks to everyone who voted for me!). 

We do still have a few vacancies in our reps’ team: please see this page of our website for an up-to-date list of positions available. If you have any interest in taking on one of the vacant roles, please get in touch with our Branch Organiser, Callum Salfield, for an informal chat about what it entails and what you might bring to it.

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Reps’ Team – Incomings and Outgoings

Reps’ Team – Incomings and Outgoings

Firstly, we want to say a massive thank-you to three of our departmental reps who are stepping back after years of brilliant dedication in the role. Members in their areas, and indeed across campus, will have benefited greatly from the work of Ian Jones (Maths Education), Ruth Kinna (International Relations, Politics and History) and Saul Albert (Communication and Media).

At the same time as saying goodbye to three of our reps, we also want to welcome two new members of the reps’ team: Magnus Hamann (Communication and Media) and Matyas Gutai (Architecture, Building and Civil Engineering). We know that Magnus and Matyas will do a great job in representing members in their departments. Magnus is also standing in as the rep for IRPH until a replacement for Ruth can be found.

Magnus Hamann (Communication and Media Department Rep in the School of Social Sciences and Humanities)
My day work is as a University Teacher in Communication and Media. Previous to becoming a permanent member of staff at Loughborough University, I worked various jobs as a research assistant. As such, I know that having a union that is serious about doing something about the casualisation of (academic) workers is vital. I became a Union rep as a way to do something proactively especially for members in precarious positions.

We do still have several vacancies in our reps’ team: please see this page of our website for an up-to-date list of positions available. If you have any interest in taking on one of the vacant roles, please get in touch with our Branch Organiser, Callum Salfield, for an informal chat about what it entails and what you might bring to it.

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November News

November News

UCU Rising Update/Casework Report/Reps Recruitment Campaign

UCU Rising – Update

LUCU was represented at the Branch Delegates’ Meeting on Monday, Oct. 31st where our delegate used their vote in line with members’ views as expressed at the Oct 26th GM and via the survey.

The GM vote combined with the survey feedback showed a clear majority among LUCU members for: 1) giving the employer a time limited period of negotiation to reach a settlement prior to calling strike action; 2) no action in November; 3) if action were to be called in November, it should be limited; 4) initiating a programme of phases of escalating action to cover the six-month lifetime of the ballot mandate; 5) an assessment and marking boycott beginning in Spring 2022; 6) prioritising action that members feel able to support and that will promote unity.

The BDM voted 72% in favour of offering the employers time to negotiate; 80% in favour of action in November, but with 70% voting for action in November to be limited; 87% in favour of escalating phases of action throughout the ballot period; 54% in favour of a December assessment and marking boycott, and in favour of prioritising action that members feel able to support and that will promote unity.

The HEC met on Thursday, Nov. 3rd and voted in line with the views expressed by the majority of branch delegates. The employers will be served notice for three days of strike action at the end of November, a marking and assessment boycott to begin in December, and to escalate action from February unless the employers enter into good faith negotiations.  We expect further details and strike dates to be announced the week of Nov. 7th. Once we know the details, we will invite members to a GM for a discussion about local strategy.

Personal casework

Compared with other of LUCU’s activities – negotiating local conditions with senior management, say, or planning for industrial action – the personal casework that we do is inconspicuous, even hidden. By its very nature, it takes place behind the scenes. However, it is one of the most vital things we do.

Since the beginning of the last academic year, our personal caseworkers have supported over thirty members. Some of this has been low-key and time-limited – offering advice by email, for instance, or via a brief meeting. The majority of the cases we take on, however, are more complex and demanding; they range from supporting members in preparing grievances through advising them when they are at risk of redundancy to representing them at disciplinary hearings and appeals.

Challenging as it is, however, this personal casework is highly rewarding, as we can make a difference to members in very difficult and stressful circumstances. It also gives caseworkers an opportunity to become familiar with other parts of the University – we don’t take on cases in our own School or section – and to identify issues that may have broader significance and connect to our campaigning and negotiating activities.

Our team of caseworkers is small – we need more. We would ask anyone interested in joining us to contact our Personal Casework Coordinator Andrew Dix (A.Dix@lboro.ac.uk) for an informal conversation about what the role entails. Training will be given, with the next course – delivered by the Union’s Regional Office and lasting only a few hours – to be delivered sometime in January. Do look out, in due course, for the exact date. As you begin your casework, you will also be supported by an experienced colleague. We hope to hear from interested members. 

Building LUCU: Your branch needs you to become a rep

There’s never been a greater need for members to step up to becoming a branch rep. The current committee is committed to facilitating a thriving branch reps’ network, empowering you to take an active role in guiding the branch in its negotiations with LU’s senior managers. Reps are our eyes and ears on the ground, the first port of call for members in need of assistance, and crucial to helping us recruit more members across campus.

The role will be what you make of it, though we are positive in encouraging you to help make Loughborough the best place to work that it can be. Though Reps are not eligible for facilities time, in keeping with the positive working relationship we have developed with management, most reps have been granted some remission in their workload by their managers who recognise the value of working with LUCU on matters of common concern (c. 10-15 hours). We can help facilitate a discussion with your manager about this should you wish to serve as a Rep.

Come and join the life of the branch and make a difference! Contact our Membership Secretary, Marc Gibson, for more information: M.A.Gibson1@lboro.ac.uk or via Teams.

LUCU Committee