Category Archives: On strike

Online Members’ Meeting Thursday 9 February

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There will be a members’ meeting tomorrow at 2.00pm via Zoom. Our guest speaker, Jackie Grant elected USS negotiator on the JNC, will provide an update on the USS dispute.

Details on how to join the meeting have been sent by email.

It is now time to put your out-of-office on and down tools for another 2 days of strike action. You can see some examples on the UCU website at https://www.ucu.org.uk/Out-of-office or roll your own. Here is one that we prepared earlier:

I will not be responding to work-related emails on Thursday 8 and Friday 9 February, because I will be on strike.

I am taking part in industrial action over pay, working conditions, and pensions. If you are a student, please be patient. I will respond to your email on my return. If you are a member of staff who is in the USS pension scheme but not on strike please note that under the current employer proposals you can expect to lose between 30 and 50% of the projected value of your pension in retirement, and that your pay has been reduced by more than 20% in real terms since 2009 on top of all the extra work which you are expected to do for free.

You can find further information about the disputes at https://www.ucu.org.uk/rising and you can support us by joining the UCU and taking part in the industrial action or by donating to our local hardship fund. 

Our Students Support the Strikes

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Students Support the Strikes

A great turn-out for this first day of the latest wave of strike action. Support and hot drinks provided by our amazing Heriot-Watt Student Union and the Society for Progressive Students. A big thank-you to all.

Last week, Universities and Colleges Employers Association (UCEA) made a new offer in pay negotiations. Unfortunately, it failed to meet our demand for fair pay and better working conditions. Our vice chancellors are getting rich by ripping off staff and students. The fight continues. Next week we will on strike on Thursay and Friday and this action will continue to escalate until our employers come back with a fair offer.

If you have been affected by the strike action please write to the Principal and ask that he use his considerable influence to ensure that we all get treated fairly.

Next wave of strike action announced

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The first day in the next wave of strike action will be Wednesday 1 February, timed to coincide with TUC day of action aimed at defending our right to strike.There will be a picket from 8-10.30 am at the main entrance to the campus.

Lets make it the biggest picket Heriot-Watt has ever seen. The longer the picket line, the shorter the dispute.

The full list strike days announced fall as follows:

  • Week 1 – Wednesday 1 February
  • Week 2 – Thursday 9 and Friday 10 February
  • Week 3 – Tuesday 14, Wednesday 15 and Thursday 16 February
  • Week 4 – Tuesday 21, Wednesday 22 and Thursday 23 February (paused during ACAS)
  • Week 5 – Monday 27 and Tuesday 28 February and Wednesday 1 and Thursday 2 March (paused during ACAS)
  • (No action week commencing Monday 6 March)
  • Week 6 – Wednesday 15 (new date), Thursday 16 and Friday 17 March
  • Week 7 – Monday 20, Tuesday 21 and Wednesday 22 March.

Some of the dates fall into our reading week but there are always plenty of additional tasks landed on our hardworking staff during this week, and professional services work as usual.

Taking Part in Strike Action

You do not have to tell your line manager or anyone else in advance whether you will participate in strike action. Heriot-Watt will circulate details on how and when to record strike action in the ERP system in due course.

Whether you tell your students that you will be on strike is up to you. The purpose of strikes is to create maximum disruption so that the employer returns to the negotiating table with an acceptable offer. Please encourage students to make their views about cancelled lectures known to the Principal. The Student Union supports our action.

We don’t want to strike, we don’t want to lose part of our salary. But we are forced to fight for our pay, pensions and better working conditions. There is a solution but our leadership are unwilling to make a fair offer. They are failing our staff and our students.

The Cost of Striking and Strike Pay

If you think you can’t afford to strike, as yourself whether you can afford the reduction in your pension, the year on year erosion of your pay adjusted for inflation, and all of the extra work which you effectively do for free.

The net cost of striking is often lower than you think and financial support is available from the national fighting fund and the local hardship fund.

Action Short of Strike (ASOS)

We remain in ASOS in the form of working to contract. Members should:

  • only fulfil the duties explicitly expressed in your contract
  • not undertake voluntary activities
  • not cover for absent colleagues
  • refuse to reschedule classes missed due to industrial action
  • remove materials for classes that would have taken place on strike days from online learning platforms

As things stand there will be no deductions for this form of ASOS at Heriot-Watt.

 

 

 

Book swap on Day 3 of the picket

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It was marvellous to see such well attended pickets on all days of the strike actions so far. Of course, those who are able to attend pickets are only a fraction of those taking action. It is the withdrawal of labour that counts. I hope the strike days also afforded members the opportunity for some rest.

Reporting your participation in strike action

The union has complied with all the cumbersome bureaucracy of properly notifying employers in advance of our intention to take action collectively and in which areas.

For this round of strikes, you will be asked to enter the information in ERP after the 6 December. You should fill in ERP accurately as this signals to the employer that our members did indeed take action in high numbers.

You do not need to supply any further information. The union has complied already with its duty to provide information.

Should UCEA and UUK require any further data on strike actio n- this was supplied to them in person by a *very large* data set flowing past both their offices and the negotiations giving both quantitative and qualitative feedback on the strength of feeling.

We look forwards to employers representatives redoubling their efforts to reach a settlement.

Deductions and hardship funds

Deductions will come out of wages in January and you can make applications to the national fighting fund and local hardship fund as soon as you have a payslip showing deductions. Further information can be found at the cost of striking and strike pay page on our website and we will continue to send out reminders.

If you are hourly paid and have already lost pay due to action please apply to the fighting fund now and contact ucu@hw.ac.uk if you require further assistance on what information to provide.

Power in a union, the workers united!

Each and every one of you taking action has an impact on the employer, the Branch and the union. All the action we have taken in the past has had an effect:

  • saving our pension from closure
  • preventing even greater pay erosion
  • winning local disputes and local statements.

It has also brought us to where we are today when we have pulled the whole sector out and sent a loud and clear message to UCEA and UUK.

We need to continue to show how vital our work is and how overworked we are by maintaining strong Action Short of a Strike- take back your evenings and your weekends, do not volunteer for extra tasks, do not make up for lectures missed on strike days and do not cover for absent colleagues.

This sector has for too long been reliant on more work for less pay. Enough is enough. Things cannot go on as they are, together we are fighting for change.

 

Day 2 on the picket with Sarah Boyack MSP and in Glasgow to represent our branch at the joint EIS-ULA / UCU rally

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Striking staff and visiting students with Sarah Boyack MSP and Daisy the dog

 

Another busy picket at HWU this morning. Visits from Daisy the dog and Sarah Boyack MSP. We tried a bit of cooking on the brasier before the amazing students from @hwunion and The Society of Progressive Students came to our rescue again with hot drinks and coffee. After this group photo it was straight over to Glasgow for some of our committee members who were taking part in the joint EIS-ULA / UCU rally in Glasgow.

The next strike day will be Wednesday 30 November and we need every member to take part in order to encourage our employers to settle this dispute and end the disruption. The longer the picket lines, the shorter the dispute.

The average hourly rate of university worker is just over £20 per hour while the average hourly rate of a VC is over £250 per hour. Quite staggering when you consider just how badly some universities are being run. We deserve better. It is time that our employers started to invest in staff instead of expensive IT systems which don’t deliver, shiny new validity projects while the rest of our campuses fall into a state of dilapidation and disrepair, and generous executive salaries and perks.

So far, we have seen the biggest and most widespread picket lines in the history of higher education. If you can’t make the picket, please use this draft letter template to contact your local MP/MSP and ask for their help to end this dispute.

On Wednesday there will also be a national rally in London and UCU Scotland rally in Edinburgh. Speakers at the Scottish rally will include UCU Scotland, STUC general secretary Roz Foyer, NUS Scotland president Ellie Gomersall, and MSPs. Assemble at 12:30 for 13:00 start at the Scottish Parliament concourse.

Huge picket turnout for Day 1 of strike action and visit by Richard Leonard MSP

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UCU picket line with Richard Leonard MSP (centre), the Student Progressive Society, and visitors from some of local schools.

A big thank-you to Richard Leonard MSP, the Society for Progressive Students, and all of hardy souls who braved a chilly start and heavy traffic to make their way to the picket lines this morning. A huge turnout of nearly 100 staff, students, and visitors.

It was a rare treat to be able to welcome some junior supporters whose teachers are also on strike for fair pay and secure work.

It is not rocket science Professor Richard A Williams, as a cub reporter discovered. All we want is equal pay for the same work and a secure future where we can afford to pay our bills and feed our families. While spending on vanity projects and Vice Chancellor pay has soared, our pay and pensions have been slashed.

The longer the picket line, the shorter the dispute

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Noticed has been served that strike action will be taking place in November as follows:

  • Thursday 24 November
  • Friday 25 November
  • Wednesday 30 November (with a national demonstration at Kings Cross in London)

We will also be commencing Action Short of Strike (ASOS) from Wednesday 23 November. This means:

  • work to contract (meaning that you only fulfil the duties explicitly expressed in your contract)
  • not undertake voluntary activities
  • not cover for absent colleagues
  • refuse to reschedule classes missed due to industrial action
  • remove materials for classes that would have taken place on strike days from online learning platforms.

Our message to the employers is clear, and this is just the start. If negotiations are not heading in the right direction by the new year, then we will commence escalating action including a marking and assessment boycott.

Financial support will be available for those who need it, and more information will be circulated shortly.

We need to deliver the kind of action that makes our employers, led by vice-chancellors with huge pay packets, sit up and listen.

Posties vote to walk out over pay award

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Royal Mail postal workers have voted overwhelmingly yes for strike action in support of demands for a dignified, proper pay rise.

Members of the Communication Workers Union voted by 97.6% on a 77% turnout, the biggest mandate for strike action since the implementation of the 2016 Trade Union Act.

While inflation has soared to over 10% management at the Royal Mail Group have imposed a 2% pay award on workers. In effect, a dramatic reduction. CWU are demanding an adequate pay award which covers the current cost of living increases for its members.

UCU stands with CWU members and members of every trade union undertaking industrial action. You can show your support by putting up this poster to request no deliveries on strike days.

Please support our colleagues in QMUL who are facing 100% deduction of pay for taking part in ASOS

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Update: We are deeply saddened to learn today that staff at QMUL have been deducted 100% and received payslips indicating £0.00 for a month’s work with pension contribution not paid either meaning among other things that death in service benefit is paused. We absolutely deplore the succession of attacks on his own staff and students by bullying millionaire Vice Chancellor Colin Bailey at QMUL who is also a board member at UCEA. It is time that he outsourced himself. In the meantime you can help by giving what you can to support affected staff.

Update: Not content with wanting to withhold 100% pay we hear that Principal Colin Baily is threatening to close down QMUL’s Film degree programmes to further punish staff over industrial action. Please read and sign this Open Letter from the Film Department at QMUL to show your support in face of this vindictive intimidation.

We are appalled to hear that the management at Queen Mary University of London has published guidance to line managers on how to enforce deductions of 100% pay indefinitely from members taking part in ASOS while asking non-striking staff to cover for absent colleagues under threat of disciplinary action.

We stand with our sister branch in resisting this needlessly vicious attack by QMUL management on their employees.

A crowd-funder has been established to provide financial support for staff affected. Please give what you can to help QMUL branch build sufficient hardship reserves at this difficult time.