The Friday email: 7 June 2024

Strike action at University of Winchester

University of Winchester staff took part in strike action on Tuesday 4 June over brutal job cuts. They then began action short of strike (ASOS) on Wednesday 5 June, including working to rule and refusing to cover for absent colleagues.

The action follows an overwhelming 79% of UCU members voting to strike on a turnout of 59% in a fight against plans to cut around 40 academic staff and increase workloads. UCU fears the changes will lead to unmanageable working hours. Click here for the full story.

UCU declares academic boycott of Goldsmiths over job cuts

This week UCU announced a global academic boycott of Goldsmiths, University of London over the institution's confirmed plans to cut one in six academic jobs. Staff at Goldsmiths are already undertaking a marking boycott and will be striking for two weeks later in the month in a dispute over management's attempt to sack these staff. 

This means the union is calling on members, university workers, trade unionists, and supporters worldwide NOT to:

• apply for any advertised jobs at Goldsmiths
• speak at or organise academic or other conferences at Goldsmiths
• give lectures at Goldsmiths
• accept positions as visiting professors or researchers at Goldsmiths
• accept new contracts as external examiners for taught courses at Goldsmiths.

You can click here for further information and show your support by donating to Goldsmiths UCU's local strike fund.

UK general election 2024

The UK general election will take place on Thursday 4 July. Make sure that your voice is heard by:

• registering to vote on the UK government website (deadline is Tuesday 18 June at 23:59)
• applying for a postal vote if you cannot cast your vote in person (deadline is Wednesday 19 June at 17:00)
• applying for a free voter ID document ('voter authority certificate') if you do not have a photo ID (deadline is Wednesday 26 June; note that this is not accepted in Northern Ireland).

UCU also encourages members to remind their students to register to vote. The 'Turn Up' campaign, led by the National Union of Students (NUS), is providing a suite of resources that you can point your students towards:

• voter registration information for students
• free CitizenCard as voter ID for students (note that the 'voter authority certificate' and CitizenCard are not accepted in Northern Ireland)
• UK general election FAQ for students.

UCU Congress 2024

The union's supreme policy-making body is its annual Congress, which has taken place in Bournemouth this year from Wednesday 29 to Friday 31 May:

• click here for more information including motions which were debated
• watch a post-Congress interview with UCU general secretary Jo Grady
• watch a video message with new UCU president Maxine Looby.

Cambridge college supervisors win 15% pay rise

University of Cambridge college supervisors have won an average pay rise worth 15%. The bumper pay jump follows Cambridge UCU's multi-year 'Justice for College Supervisors' campaign. College supervisors lead undergraduate tutorials, or 'supervisions' as they are known, yet many are precariously employed by colleges and paid an hourly rate. The campaign demanded that supervisors' training be paid, that pay packets properly reflect the full number of hours spent on preparation, and that supervisors be moved from gig-economy style hourly paid contracts into secure employment.

Cambridge's colleges and Cambridge UCU have now agreed new rates for college supervisors that peg pay to the university's salary spine and include multipliers to account for the number of students being supervised. The changes will result in a pay rise worth 15% on average and over 20% for some supervisors.

Reclaim Higher Education updates

The UK higher education sector is facing unprecedented threats and attacks; last month UCU launched its Reclaim Higher Education (Reclaim HE) campaign. You can view a recording of the live launch event here and the campaign video here.

The next online Reclaim HE live event will take place on Wednesday 19 June, 18:30-19:45. Please look out for more information regarding special guests soon.

Please support the following university branches where UCU members are continuing to defend jobs and education:

• Edge Hill University: Edge Hill UCU is leading a campaign to stop job cuts in the Department of English and Creative Arts. The employer has confirmed that 11 out of 29 academic staff will be sacked, and that formal redundancy notices will be issued in June. Please sign this petition which has already attracted over 2,000 signatures
• University of Lincoln: Lincoln UCU members have voted to take industrial action over drastic cuts to over 200 jobs. 80% of members who voted supported industrial action, on a turnout of 55%. Dates for strikes will be announced in due course, but may be as soon as next month which could impact clearing and open days
• University of Portsmouth: in its ongoing campaign to defend job and education at the university, Portsmouth UCU has launched an online petition asking for the withdrawal of compulsory redundancies. Please show your support by signing the petition here
• Sheffield Hallam University: UCU members at Sheffield Hallam have voted to strike over drastic cuts and erosion of terms and conditions. Dates for strikes will be announced in due course
• University of Surrey: in a ballot organised by UCU and other campus unions, Surrey staff and students have overwhelmingly voted (97%) that they have no confidence in the vice-chancellor, provost and executive board. The vote was initiated because of a threat of large scale job losses.

UCU continuing professional development workshops

Join us for the following 90-minute online interactive workshops that are free and open to all UCU members:

• Recognising LGBT+ exclusion: Thursday 20 June, 14:00-15:30
• Challenging sexual harassment and sexual violence: Tuesday 2 July, 10:30-12:00
• Challenging casualisation in education: Wednesday 3 July, 10:30-12:00.

Please look out for our Monday CPD email with details of all the online workshops running this term.

London Pride 2024

UCU has a few wristbands available for joining the UCU walking group at London Pride on Saturday 29 June. If you are available that day and are interested to join, please click here for more information and complete the form.

TUC project on Black women's experiences of workplace sexual harassment

UCU is working alongside sister unions to identify and tackle sexual harassment, misconduct and violence in our individual unions, and across the wider trade union movement. Any woman who self-identifies as Black is invited to participate in this survey (deadline: Saturday 15 June), which will bring Black women union members together to share experiences.

Ceasefire NOW!

UCU joins with many others in Palestine, the UK, and beyond to reiterate the demands for an immediate ceasefire, the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages, unrestricted access to humanitarian aid, and the lifting of the siege of Gaza. 

We are very concerned by the sharp rise in antisemitism and Islamophobia across the UK and beyond since October. We restate our unwavering opposition to all forms of antisemitism and Islamophobia--hate has no place on our campuses or in our society.

UCU also has a dedicated 'Ceasefire Now' web area where you can find downloads, information and resources. Members are encouraged to read a new open letter by Gaza academics and university administrators. It calls on international friends and colleagues to help them resist the Israeli campaign of 'scholasticide' and to assist them in rebuilding their universities.