Tag: local newsletter

Dear members,

Welcome to your regular UoN UCU newsletter. If you have any comments or suggestions on the formatting of this newsletter and/or information you would like to see included then please contact the branch committee at uonucubranch@gmail.com. This email contains the following topics:

GTVO working group
Call for Reps
Reminder of branch meeting
Vote in UCU national elections!
Branch Committee meeting summary
Local and national campaigns
Joining link and further information

GTVO working group

We will soon be balloting for further industrial action towards the four fights campaign. There will be more updates over the coming months about what to expect and what you are voting on. Ahead of the balloting period, a Get The Vote Out (GTVO) working group will meet to ensure a strong turnout and that we run this process in a way that works best for our members. If you would like to be involved in preparations for the ballot, please email uonucubranch@gmail.com.

Call for Reps

In our branch we aim to have a representative for each department or school to represent members needs to the branch Committee and support members with local matters or accessing help from UCU. At the moment we have a number of areas without a representative. If you would like to become a Rep with support and training from UCU and our experienced group of existing reps, or learn more about what the role can involve, please get in touch with our Rep Development Officers Michaela Collard (REDACTED) and Ella Guerin ](REDACTED).

In addition, we are still looking for a Social Media Rep – this position comes with facility time, i.e. time off work to complete your duties (for more information, see the ACAS website).

Reminder of branch meeting 

Don’t forget about our hybrid branch meeting tomorrow Wednesday 5th February, 1-2 pm. We will be discussing the upcoming national industrial action ballot and the ongoing local workload campaign. Democracy only works if everyone participates!

Use the Zoom link below if you intend to attend online. In-person attendance will be in Monica Partridge E07.

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Vote in UCU national elections!

If you have not already, you should soon receive your ballot for the UCU National Executive Committee (NEC) elections, which includes election of members to the Higher Education Committee (HEC). It is important that the leadership of our union is endorsed by as much of the membership as possible. Voting closes 3rd March. Replacement ballot form is now open.

Online hustings for UCU Vice President and Treasurer take place at 4:30 pm on Wednesday 5th February (tomorrow). Register here.

Branch Committee meeting summary

Your Branch Committee met on Wednesday 29th January and discussed;

• • Arrangements for the branch meeting,
  • Preparations for the upcoming industrial action ballot,
  • Proactive strategies and arrangements for countering potential future redundancies,
  • The state, nature, and development of the relationship of campus unions with HR.

The Branch Committee meets weekly, if you would like Committee to discuss a particular topic please email the details to: uonucubranch@gmail.com

Local and national campaigns

Workload Campaign: 

The University has still not completed the legally required documentation for stress prevention, showing a blatant disregard for our wellbeing at work. We are now supporting a number of members to ‘just say no’ to workloads over 100%. 

National day of action for Palestine: 

The declaration of a ceasefire in Gaza does not mean that Israel’s brutality and violence has stopped. University and College Workers for Palestine have declared a workplace day of action on Thursday 13th of February. At 1:00 pm UoN UCU, in collaboration with the Nottingham Camp for the Liberation of Palestine will hold a demonstration in Trent Courtyard to demand the University ends its connection with companies and Universities facilitating the ongoing genocide. This will be followed by a series of online talks from 3:30 to 5:00 pm. Zoom link to follow.

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 UCU reps here. If you are interested in becoming a departmental rep, get in touch! 

Yours sincerely,

Lopa Leach, Branch President, on behalf of UoN UCU Branch Committee

Branch website: https://uonucu.org/

Dear members,

We hope you are settling well into the new semester, and extend seasonal greetings to all celebrating the Spring Festival this week. Thank you to all members who have written to us following our previous newsletter. We are still evaluating how best to deliver you these updates, so if you have any further comments, do not hesitate to contact us.

Reminder of branch meeting 

As announced in the email from the branch Secretary on Wednesday 22nd January, we will be having our first branch meeting of the year on Wednesday 5th February, 1-2 pm. We will be discussing the upcoming national industrial action ballot and the ongoing local workload campaign.

The meeting will be hybrid. Use the Zoom link below if you intend to attend online, in-person attendance in Monica Partridge E07.

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Call for a social media rep – with facility time

Are you someone who is good with social media, whether it’s Bluesky or Facebook or Insta or the one owned by the weirdo? 

UoN UCU needs someone to help run our social media accounts and we are looking to our wonderful members. We are now able to provide facility time, up to 0.1 FTE for anyone taking on this role. This means that you will be given paid time off work in order to complete the requirements of the role (for more information, see the ACAS website).

You don’t need to be a committee member or a rep, just someone who is good with words. If you’re interested please contact uonucubranch@gmail.com.

Branch Committee meeting summary

Your Branch Committee met on Thursday 16th and Wednesday 22nd January. Meetings included discussion of:

• • This newsletter,
  • The Agnes Flues Memorial lecture,
  • Collective grievance concerning unsafe working conditions in the Sir Clive Granger Building,
  • Joint working with NTU UCU,
  • Future Nottingham and UEB challenges,
  • Get the Vote Out capacity and tactics for the upcoming industrial action ballot,
  • Arrangements for the upcoming (hybrid) branch meeting,
  • Climate Change lecture series.

The committee also heard updates from the workload campaign.

The Branch Committee meets most weeks, if you would like Committee to discuss a particular topic please email the details to: uonucubranch@gmail.com

Updates on ongoing UoN UCU struggles

• • Following the submission of the collective grievance concerning unsafe working conditions in Sir Clive Granger, the Branch Secretary (Nick Clare), Health and Safety officer (Cyril Rauch), and Silvia Sonderegger (Departmental Rep, Economics) with management to discuss next steps.
  • The Branch President (Lopa Leach) and Vice President (Andreas Bieler) attended the Joint Negotiation and Consultation Committee (JNCC) and discussed University Finances, Future Nottingham, Health and Safety issues in the University, and Facility Time for branch officers.
  • The plethora of compounding issues with Unicore have been raised to Research and Knowledge Exchange.

Local and national campaigns 

Democracy at the Crossroads – Alan Simpson lecture series, hosted by UoN UCU in cooperation with the University of Nottingham Students Union.

Alan is a climate campaigner and former MP for Nottingham South. The lectures will detail the political and economic challenges we face in the era of the climate crisis with the first, titled ‘Welcome to servitude: the slide from democracy into (corporate) feudalism’, being scheduled for Wednesday 12th February, 2 to 4 p.m in A40 Sir Clive Granger Building.

Full details of the lecture series can be found here.

The first ever Palestine Film Festival will take place this weekend, Sunday 2nd February, at Nottingham Contemporary.

Arranged by the Nottingham Palestine Solidarity Campaign, the profits from the film festival will be split between Freedom Theater and Defense for Children International – Palestine.

Stand Up to Racism

Nottingham Stand Up To Racism have asked us to encourage members to attend their local monthly meetings to help shape the fight against racism, Islamophobia, and antisemitism in our City and County. They meet on the third Tuesday of each month at 6.30pm at The Global Lounge, Nottingham Trent University, Goldsmith St, NG1 5JT and all are welcome. 

Stand Up To Racism are also organising a protest on Saturday 1st February to stop the far right and oppose Tommy Robinson supporters. Nottingham SUTR are organising coach trips to London for the demonstration. 

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 UCU reps here. If you are interested in becoming a departmental rep, get in touch!

Yours sincerely,

Nick Clare, Branch Secretary, on behalf of UoN UCU Branch Committee

Branch website: https://uonucu.org/ 

Dear members,

Happy New Year from University of Nottingham UCU Branch. In this email, we are trialing a newsletter format that we anticipate will make some of the work of UCU reps, caseworkers, and committee members more visible to members, and our email communications more concise. The newsletter also serves to highlight how any members can get more involved with current UoN UCU work.

Future Nottingham 

Branch Committee, in particular the Branch Committee Executive (Lopa Leach as President, Andreas Bieler as Vice-President, Nick Clare as Branch Secretary and Tony Padilla as Branch Treasurer), continue to scrutinise the details of plans relating to Future Nottingham, as these are made available. This includes confidential material, the details of which we will share with members when we are able to. 

In the meantime we encourage all members to continue paying close attention to information relating to Future Nottingham as it becomes available, and to write to Lopa (REDACTED) or Andreas (REDACTED) if you have particular concerns or comments here.

The Workload Health & Safety campaign: 95 so we can thrive

The workload campaign continues, with the members of the ‘95 so we can thrive’ campaign group meeting in the week starting 6th January. At the time of writing, the University has yet to complete the legally required Business Unit Stress Risk Assessments (see November email to members re ‘UCU Workload Group Campaign’). Until these risk assessments are completed, any workload exceeding 100% constitutes a Stress Health and Safety Hazard. 

Discussions are ongoing with HR on this matter, but in the meantime, members are encouraged to refuse any additional work if it takes their workload above 100% and to request an individual stress risk assessment if it is the case. 

Further information and support for members will follow in the upcoming weeks. In the meantime, the working group is always looking for new members so if you are interested, please email Mel Bhend (REDACTED) or Jenny Elliot (REDACTED)

UoN UCU Boycott Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) pledge

With Israel’s relentless onslaught on Gaza continuing, please remember to sign the UoN UCU Boycott Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) pledge. As well as committing signatories to the academic boycott, this pledge asks the University to cut all ties with Israeli Higher Education institutions and to divest from arms manufacturing companies. 

If you would like to join the work of members in the Palestine Solidarity Group, please email uonucubranch@gmail.com.

Branch Committee meeting summary

Finally, our first Branch Committee meeting of the year on Thursday 9th January welcomed Nick Clare as the new Branch Secretary, taking over from Tony Simmonds. The meeting covered a range of topics including some of the above, the agenda included updates about and discussions of:

• • The impact of MARS and Future Nottingham,
  • The rollout of Unicore (and the unnecessary workload implications therein),
  • The Workload Health & Safety campaign,
  • The work of the Alternate Finance Strategy Group,
  • Joint Negotiation and Consultation Committee (JNCC) subcommittees,
  • A quarterly meeting of the three campus unions (UCU, Unite and Unison),
  • The Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions Pledge.

The committee also heard updates from the Branch Executive and various Branch Officers, including the APM Officer, the Anti-Cas Officer, and the Communications Officer. 

The Branch Committee meets most weeks, if you would like Committee to discuss a particular topic please email the details to: uonucubranch@gmail.com

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 UCU reps here. If you are interested in becoming a departmental rep, get in touch!

Yours sincerely,

Kitty Howarth, Branch Administrator on behalf of UoN UCU Branch Committee

Branch website: https://uonucu.org/