Welcome

             DEFEND USS

  Work to Contract continues

Following the strike on 30 November the work to contract, which has been in place since 10th October continues.  Members are expected to work to contract. This is in response to the imposition of changes to USS and does not involve any breach of contract. For further information please see http://defenduss.web.ucu.org.uk/  

If you are in any doubt whether a particular action is legitimately part of the work-to-contract strategy, contact our local UCU secretary Angela Lees (Angela.Lees@nottingham.ac.uk) who will be able to help, seeking appropriate advice from the national UCU for more difficult circumstances.

Various briefing and publicity materials, including a poster for your door, are online at: http://defenduss.web.ucu.org.uk/resources/

The wide range of duties members are doing at the university means that we have to be creative on how to implement the work-to-contract action. We need to collect ideas of action, share them among us and monitor their impact, in effect devising a ‘best practice guide’ for everyone.

• Send us any suggestion arising from your own situation, particularly if it has an impact, to ucu@nottingham.ac.uk

• Please copy us in any email correspondence between you and management regarding your involvement in work-to-contract.

USS Dispute: industrial action ballot - RESULTS!

UCU members have voted to take industrial action in defence of the USS pension scheme.

The ballot result is as follows:

• Are you prepared to take industrial action consisting of action short of a strike?
  YES: 12,510 (76.69%)
  NO: 3,802 (23.31%)
• Are you prepared to take industrial action consisting of strike action?
  YES: 9,494 (58.06%)
  NO: 6,857 (41.94%)

The turnout at 42% is up substantially from the last ballot.

You can read the full press release here:
http://www.ucu.org.uk/5736

Hopefully the employers will take a message from this result and now resume negotiations with us. But we know that we can’t count on that.

The union is now putting in place a sustained programme of escalating action short of a strike to begin on or around 10 October. We may call one day strikes too as part of the campaign to defend pensions.

Both the national union and your branch will provide detailed advice about what this entails over the next couple of weeks.

Our aim is simple: to persuade the employers to resume negotiations and to secure an agreement which protects both our members and our fund.

Officers & Committee for 2011/12

At the AGM on 22 June the nominated members were confirmed in post for the forthcoming academic year.  The full list can be found on the "Contact us" page.

Newsletter for Academic-Related members ("... and related")

The latest edition of this twice-yearly newsletter can be found on the national UCU page via this link: ... and related

University proposals for changes to Statutes (March - June 2010)

UCU recently became aware of plans for amendment to the University’s Statutes and Ordinances.  Statutes have an important role in legal protection of academic freedom, and regulation of many aspects of the contractual employment relationship.

The background to the proposals, including links to more detailed sources of information, and information on subsequent developments can be found on this page. (Latest update 9 June)

Who are UCU?

With almost 120,000 members nationwide we have a powerful voice when representing our members: in parliament, with the national employers’ body and with funding councils. We represent all academic and research staff; all staff at Level 4 and above in the APM job family (Administrative, Professional & Managerial staff, previously called “academic related”) and postgraduates who work for the University in roles analogous to the above, such as demonstrating, teaching and tutoring. We represent full-time and part-time staff, people on fixed-term and “permanent” contracts, and hourly paid staff.

Membership Benefits: Advice is available from a team of experienced Nottingham UCU officers. If you encounter any difficulty in your employment -- for example, if you wish to raise a grievance, or if you become the subject of a complaint or disciplinary action -- we can provide support and advice. If you wish us to, we can accompany and/or represent you in any hearings related to such matters; or if you prefer we can simply provide background assistance. See How can we help? for more information.  UCU also provides an excellent legal protection scheme which gives you access to professional legal advice, subject to scheme rules. Details are available on the national website.

We can provide support only if your problem occurs after you join us. Join us today and get protection for you and your career. If you would like to join us or discuss a problem you are experiencing, please contact us.

Training events: UCU runs a programme of training events which any member may attend. For further details of any events currently on offer, please contact us, or see the national web site.

Please find below a link to information about a new UCU training course, 'Green Reps':   http://www.ucu.org.uk/index.cfm?articleid=3998  

This is a two day course (held in London) designed for UCU members who wish to develop their understanding of climate change and ways to protect the environment through change at work.