Please do not reply to this newsletter, as your email will bounce. Contact your Departmental Rep or uonucubranch@gmail.com if you need any assistance.
Dear members,
Happy Shavuot and Eid Mubarak to our members observing these holidays. Thank you to all those members who attended the Branch Meeting on Monday afternoon, and to everyone who has confirmed they have received and already posted their ballot. To help us get the vote en masse, please print off some copies of this poster and post it around your school or department, to help remind people of the need to vote!
You can support your colleagues and strengthen the branch by joining the Redundancy or Workload working groups, as well as becoming a Departmental Rep or Caseworker – please email uonucubranch@gmail.com. Additionally, you can make a donation here to help bolster our strike fund.
Read on for the following topics:
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- No compulsory redundancies – strike ballot opens!
- Branch meeting report
- Branch Committee meeting summary
- Workload Campaign ‘Just say NO!’
- Protect University jobs here and across the country
- Local and national campaigning
- Joining link and further information
No compulsory redundancies – strike ballot opens!
On Friday 30th May our strike ballot formally began as ballot papers began to be posted, some members have already reported receiving, completing and posting ballots on Saturday as soon as they arrived!
To gain a mandate for strike action and action short of a strike – and so strengthen our collective hand in discussions with management to prevent compulsory redundancies in 2025 and 2026 – at least 50% of members are required to vote.
Workers at Cardiff and Dundee Universities have already forced their management to cancel compulsory redundancies by winning their respective industrial action ballots. Winning our own ballot would give us leverage to convince management that there is a better way forward.
Once your ballot is complete and in the post please let the branch know, by informing your Departmental Rep.
Branch meeting report
A very well attended branch meeting was held yesterday afternoon, Monday 2nd June with over 120 members. Many thanks to everyone who made the time to attend. The meeting discussed Branch Committee updates and members questions, comments and views on:
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- Phase 1 of Future Nottingham,
- The ballot,
- Next steps and actions for all members of the branch.
See the branch website for a more detailed summary of the discussion.
Branch Committee meeting summary
Your Branch Committee met on Wednesday 28th May and discussed:
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- Updates from consultations with management,
- Industrial action strategy,
- Membership and capacity building,
- Arrangements for open meetings with APM staff,
- The ongoing collective grievance for staff at Sir Clive Granger Building,
- Arrangements for the members’ meeting on Monday 2nd June.
The Branch Committee meets weekly. If you would like Committee to discuss a particular topic please email the details to: uonucubranch@gmail.com
Workload Campaign ‘Just say NO!’
UCU national has organised a Saying No with Confidence webinar tomorrow, Wednesday 4th June at 4:00-5:00 pm which has been developed to support us in taking a collective approach to pushing back on workloads. We will look at workplace culture and how we can change workplace practices by using Health & Safety Legislation to empower members to take a stand and say ‘NO!’, whilst maintaining professional standards.
The full aims of the interactive workshop are to:
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- Identify assertiveness techniques and strategies for saying “no” at work,
- Learn to use Health and Safety legislation to push back to protect us against workplace stress and health risks due to excessive workloads,
- Understand the role of collective action in changing workplace culture through union campaigning.
To register please email eastmidlands@ucu.org.uk
Protect University jobs here and across the country
Workers at our institution and others in the UK are threatened with redundancies. Our strength is in our collective solidarity.
Please find the details and petitions/letters to sign using the links below:
Local and national campaigning
60 Years of the Tricontinental Conference: Context, Impact, Legacy, and Future
Parvathi Kumaraswami, an academic at the University is crowdfunding for travel grants for scholars, artists and activists from the Global South to attend the above January 2026 conference at the University of Havana. This will celebrate the original event and prioritize contributions from the Global South and stimulate important debates about the original event and its relevance to anti-colonialism, anti-imperialism, and decolonisation.
Please consider making a donation if you’re able. More information and donation link here.
Call on Nottinghamshire County Council to divest from apartheid
Nottingham Palestine Solidarity Campaign is leading a movement to demand Nottinghamshire County Council (NCC) divests its Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) from companies and organisations complicit in the genocide in Palestine. Currently the LGPS holds £170 million in shares in genocide-complicit companies. In line with the branch’s BDS motion and solidarity with Palestine motion the branch has given official support to the campaign.
We encourage all members resident in Nottingham City and Nottinghamshire County to sign the petition here.
Notts Trans Pride
The second ever Notts Trans Pride will take place on Saturday 21st June, with the march starting from Broadway Cinema. With the current political climate, it is essential that we have maximum visible Trade Union support for trans rights so please save the date. In addition, if you are interested in helping to contribute to the running of the event please sign up here.
Report anti-trans discrimination
Have you been questioned, stopped or challenged using a single-sex space? Fill in this form to help Transactual advocate on this issue at a national level.
Joining link and further information
Remember to pass on the online joining link to your colleagues.
Having trouble at work? Please log a case with our large, competent casework team!
Need to talk to your Departmental Rep? Find the full list of UoN UCU reps here. If you are interested in becoming a departmental rep, get in touch!
Struggling with your mental health or wellbeing? UCU members get free access to confidential support service educationsupport.org.uk who can be called 24/7 on 08000 562 561.
Yours sincerely,
L Scott Blankenship and Will Paterson-Bassett, Branch Communications Officers, on behalf of UoN UCU Branch Committee
Branch website: https://uonucu.org/