Congress business section 7: Membership organisation and campaigning

Organisation

45 - Organisation of retired members (Transitional Arrangements Committee)

Congress acknowledges the concerns expressed by some retired members over retired members' organisation in UCU. Congress instructs the NEC to undertake a wide-ranging consultation of retired members with a view to making a report and recommendations to 2008 Congress including, if necessary, rule changes.

CARRIED

46 - Organisation of distance learning and other home-based staff (Open University)

Congress notes that staff in tertiary education are increasingly involved in distance learning, and there now exists a general trend towards home-based work for some employees. The transfer of work from the office or classroom to the home can cause a weakening of union links and diminished recruitment possibilities for unions.

Home-based workers have historically well-documented vulnerabilities, which arise from isolation from colleagues and remoteness from the workplace. Many distance learning staff are fixed-term or hourly-paid, and distance learning is particularly vulnerable to increased marketisation at a global level.

Home-based staff, including those who support distance learning, face particular problems that can differ those faced by an 'on-site' academic workforce.

The problem of organizing home-based employees within the democratic structures of UCU should be looked at as a issue in its own right and we call upon the National Executive Committee to establish an advisory committee to look into this.

CARRIED

47 - Creation of academic related structures (London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine)

Congress notes with concern the limited involvement of Academic Related staff in union structures during the transitional year.

This has coincided with the continuing implementation of the Pay Framework Agreement, a process which has disproportionately disadvantaged AR staff, who have been red-circled in large numbers.

Congress calls on the NEC to reconstitute the Academic Related committee, applying statutory standing orders based on those in operation for other specialist groups, and to provide substantial support to this committee, particularly to enable investigation of the inequitable implementation of the PFA, and to challenge institutions to improve.

We further call for another general meeting of AR staff to be organised in 2007-08, to take place as soon as possible after Congress, part of its remit being to reform the AR Committee. A further meeting should take place before Congress in 2008, and this should be the first Annual Meeting of Academic Related Staff.

CARRIED

Privatisation

48 - Composite: Education privatisation - national fightback needed (Lambeth College; University of Brighton, Falmer; Nottingham Trent University, Clifton; London Metropolitan University, Tower Hill)

Congress notes:

1. That privatisation, whether in the form of out-sourcing, PFI-style deals, or outright transfers to private industry, is part of an ideological and political project that denigrates public service and undermines democratic accountability.
2. The devastating effects on society, as individual self-interest interest is championed to the detriment of social bonds and community identity. In education this means an overemphasis on students' vocational qualifications to the detriment of personal growth and development.
3. That where universities have sought private involvement, redundancies have been threatened as have pay and conditions and quality of education has been put at risk, and that for UCU members in both FE and HE it seriously threatens pay and conditions, increased casualisation, and massively increased workloads, leading to a long-term fall in the quality of education

Congress condemns the creeping privatisation and marketisation of further and higher education, and resolves to fight to reverse this process by

1. supporting branches resisting privatisation (including the use of strike action)
2. organising a national demonstration against the threat of privatisation across both HE and FE
3. building a campaign in liaison with all unions and organisations fighting marketisation of the public sector
4. balloting for industrial action against sector employers (such as UCEA and LSC) if they refuse to support the anti-privatisation moves demanded of them by UCU.

CARRIED AS AMENDED

48A.1 - Transitional Arrangements Committee

Delete point numbered 4.

CARRIED

49 - Composite: Privatisation in FE and HE (Bradford College ACE; Transitional Arrangements Committee)

Congress expresses its complete opposition to the privatisation of university language centres and the threat of agency assessors being used to undercut negotiated lecturer pay and conditions in FE. Such privatisation will lower standards and endanger staff rights.

Congress expresses its disappointment that it took several months before a high profile campaign was launched, not least because many of the staff employed in such centres are female and the privatisation will therefore adversely affect women staff.

Congress believes that as part of a campaign to protect pay, jobs and conditions we should put maximum pressure on the government through a high profile publicity campaign to safeguard the quality of educational provision and Lecturers' conditions in FE and HE.

Congress pledges to make equality central to its campaign against this and other possible privatisation threats across both sectors.

CARRIED AS AMENDED

49A.1 - York College

Delete:

'put maximum pressure on the government through a high profile publicity campaign' from paragraph 3

and insert:

'show total opposition to the government's policy of privatisation. We should garner the damning evidence of the destruction to the NHS and other public services that PFI has caused, and use this in a national campaign to win all branches to the demand "our education is not for sale". We condemn the government's anti-democratic tactics of "creeping privatisation" and instruct our national officers to lead a convincing battle of ideas against them ...'

CARRIED

50 - Composite: Supporting and Developing Branches (Composite: Park Lane College; City College Birmingham; Cornwall College; London Metropolitan University, Calcutta House)

Congress notes the growing threat of privatisation and undermining of national bargaining and the inherent dangers for our members.

Many branches and local associations have relatively low levels of union membership, especially amongst hourly-paid and fixed-term staff, suffer low levels of involvement with poorly attended meetings and unfilled posts, and need more dedicated support to build organisation and increase membership density.

Congress believes that as part of a campaign to protect pay, jobs and conditions of members we must:

1. strengthen our organisation at branch/LA and regional level through the development of strong branch committees and increased membership
2. increase Regional Office support to branches and representatives
3. encourage maximum lay member participation, including in regional committees.

   To this end we instruct the NEC to increase the ability of Regional Offices to support branches by ensuring that all regional teams contain an RO/RAGS, RSO, Branch Organiser and Administrator.

FALLS - out of time

50A.1 - Transitional Arrangements Committee

Final paragraph, delete from 'by ensuring that...' to end of sentence.

50A.2 - North West Kent College

Para 2: after 'membership', insert 'as reflected in recent NEC electoral turnout'.

At end insert 4th bullet point, insert 'mount a sustained media campaign to draw attention to the appalling terms and conditions of service of FE lecturers and the deteriorating employment conditions of HE lecturers and restore confidence in the present and future membership that trade union membership is not increasingly becoming an irrelevance in 21st Century Britain.'

51 - Regional support (Northumberland College, Ashington)

Congress re-affirms its commitment to support and encourage the development of strong workplace branches/local associations to ensure the best possible service to the union's members and recognises the crucial role that regional officials and regional staff play in delivering this objective. Congress therefore calls on the NEC to prioritise resources in order to strengthen and, where appropriate, increase the regional network of offices and officials.

FALLS - out of time

Cuts and closures

52 - Composite: Public Sector Pay Freeze (Chesterfield College, RNIB Redhill College, Wakefield College, Barnsley College, New College Nottingham, Manchester Metropolitan University)

Congress notes Gordon Brown's budgetary announcement to cap public sector pay awards at 1.9% while inflation is nearly 4% and rising.

Congress welcomes NUT, RCN and NAS/UWT resolutions calling for a public sector campaign of opposition.

Congress resolves to:

1. invite representatives of other public sector unions to discuss the building of a joint campaign at the first post-Congress NEC
2. publicise to members the threats to pay and standards of living
3. seek to involve members actively in an immediate campaign with other public sector unions against the pay freeze, including actions such as joint meetings locally and nationally
4. send solidarity greetings to PCS members striking against privatisation, job losses and the pay freeze, and to UNISON Health members shortly to be balloted for action on pay.

CARRIED AS AMENDED

52A.1 - Composite (Barnsley College, Chesterfield College, RNIB Redhill College, Wakefield College)

Add new point 5:

'prepare to ballot members for an initial one-day strike in cooperation with other public sector unions to protect lecturers' standards of living.'

CARRIED

52A.2 - Composite (New College Nottingham)

Delete 1st point and replace with:

'invite representatives of other public sector unions to discuss, at the first post-Congress NEC, the building of a joint campaign which may include taking appropriate industrial action such as a nationally coordinated one-day strike.'

WITHDRAWN

53 - Composite: Harlow College (Harlow College, Barnet College, University College London)

Congress deplores Principal Colin Hindmarch's plans to sack 205 Lecturers and force them to re-apply for their jobs at vastly inferior terms and conditions. This represents a huge attempt to deskill the workforce and undervalue the staff, students and the (largely working class) local community.

Lecturers stand to:

• Lose about £10,000-£13,000 annual salary
• Lose 18 days annual leave
• Be required to work a minimum of 37 hours and up to a maximum of 56 hours weekly 
• Be required to work up to a maximum of 10 hours work per day 
• Have no weekly or annual maximum teaching hours
• No longer be entitled to overtime or time off in lieu

whilst 35% of lecturers will be re-employed on support staff contracts.

Meanwhile staff disciplinaries and victimisation have mushroomed. Courses and staff have been appraised without consent and secretly red-zoned as unsatisfactory.

Congress instructs UCU Officers and Officials to mount a massive campaign of action and publicity in order to halt this disastrous situation.

Congress further notes that Harlow FE College management is attempting to impose these new draconian contracts on staff by threatening them with redundancy if they refuse to sign and that members of the UCU Executive at Harlow have been disciplined for basic trade union activity, including communicating with members.

Congress also notes previous policies such as AUT's of 'greylisting' HE institutions in dispute, used at universities from London Metropolitan to Hull.

Congress therefore calls on the NEC to support Harlow UCU in every way possible, including greylisting Harlow FE College if the branch so demands it.

CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY

L3 - National collection in support of Harlow (Richmond upon Thames College, Hammersmith and West London College, City and Islington College, Hackney Community College, Barking College, Westminster Kingsway College, Tower Hamlets College, Richmond ACE, College of North East London, London Metropolitan University)

This Congress agrees to organise an emergency national collection to support Harlow UCU members in the fight against the vicious assault upon their terms and conditions.

This collection will be organised by branch officers in all UCU branches, with an appeal to all members to donate £10 or as much as they can afford.

PASSED BY ACCLAMATION

54 - Redundancies at Leeds Metropolitan University (Leeds Metropolitan University, City and Beckett Park branches)

Congress notes recent announcements of redundancies at Leeds Metropolitan University in the School of Film and TV, English Language teaching and 'Innovation North' (Faculty of Information and Technology). It supports the UCU branches at Leeds Met in opposing these redundancies and in their call for a ballot for industrial action should any be made compulsory.

CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY

55 - Save ESOL and Adult Education (Tower Hamlets College, Arbour Square and Bethnal Green)

This union notes the Govt intentions to end universal free ESOL provision from October this year.

This union resolves:

1. To organise an UK-wide demonstration to take place outside the Dfes in defence of Adult Education and ESOL and against job cuts, course closures.
2. This Conference (of elected branch delegates) to discuss, debate and plan a co-ordinated strategy of resistance to the cuts in ESOL funding that could lead to job losses, course and site closures, including all-out indefinite national strike action.
3. For the NEC to offer full support, including sustentation, to all branches/associations who resolve to take individual strike action in opposition to adult education cuts, in defence of free ESOL provision and in defence of jobs.
4. Organise local forums to campaign for and organise the national demonstration.

CARRIED AS AMENDED UNANIMOUSLY

55A.1 - Transitional Arrangements Committee

Point number 2, delete 'This Conference (of elected branch delegates)'.

Delete 'including all out indefinite strike action'; replace with 'including consideration of industrial action'.

CARRIED

56 - Closure of RNIB Redhill College (RNIB Redhill College)

Congress is outraged at the proposed closure of RNIB Redhill College in Surrey and will support the UCU branch along with UNISON members in their fightback against this closure.

The decision by Management at RNIB is part of a much greater attack on adult education.

The college and its staff teach blind and partially sighted students as well as those with other learning impairments. No one can gain from this ill thought out decision. Congress condemns RNIB's decision.

CARRIED

57 - Crichton Campus Crisis (University of Glasgow)

Congress deplores the collective failure of the Scottish Funding Council, the University of Glasgow, and the Scottish Executive to support and fund effectively the ground-breaking initiative of Crichton Campus. To move to the premature closure of a widely admired, cutting edge widening access initiative across the FE/HE boundary in a clearly deprived area of Scotland is a reprehensible prioritising of short-term financial exigency at the expense of dedicated staff and students.

Congress calls on the University of Glasgow, the Scottish Funding Council, and the Scottish Executive to work together to ensure the viable future of Crichton Campus, its staff and its students.

Congress further agrees to continue and step up the campaign of action to save Crichton and to protect the jobs of members and instructs Executive to investigate all possible actions in support of these objectives.

CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY

58 - Dundee University Cuts (University of Dundee)

Union states that:

• Dundee University management's attempt to introduce cuts of £4.3 million has been met with a massive response of opposition by students, staff and the general public
• These cuts are the latest of a range of cuts taking place across higher education, including Glasgow, Strathclyde and Newcastle universities.

Union resolves:

• To reaffirm its opposition to the proposed cuts and opposition to compulsory redundancies
• To re-iterate its concerns over the financial reliability of the University's financial reporting and call for an independent examination of the financial position
• To call upon UCU to act upon DUCU's previous call for a national campaign against redundancies and privatisation and to send a motion to UCU Scotland and UCU Congresses to this effect

CARRIED AS AMENDED

58A.1 - Kings College London

Delete rest of last sentence from 'and to ...' and add:

'UCU commits itself to encourage and facilitate the balloting of members for strike action to stop job losses and privatisation and to call a national demonstration against privatisation and job losses.'

CARRIED

L4 - Strike action in London colleges (Richmond upon Thames College, Hammersmith and West London College, City and Islington College, Hackney Community College, Barking College, Richmond ACE, College of North East London, South Thames College, Chesterfield College, Barnet College)

This conference agrees to give the support of the whole UCU to our members who have voted or are currently balloting to take strike action in London colleges to resist redundancies and swingeing cuts in adult education.This attack is part of the series of attacks our members are fighting across FE and HE.

To show our support for these members, we agree to mobilise nationally across UCU branches for the march organised by the London region on 30 June in defence of ESOL, adult and further education.

CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY

Constitutional matters

59 - Promoting active membership involvement (University of Aberdeen)

Aberdeen UCU notes that, although endorsed by national ballot, the outcomes of last year's industrial action were disappointing. The lack of members' engagement with their union was highlighted by the very low response rate in the recent national leadership ballot. Taking into account the problems of trade unionism internationally under market-led globalisation, AUCU calls on UCU executive to promote and facilitate the widest possible discussion about the practices and structures of the new union, with a view to maximising active membership involvement, and striving collectively for meaningful participation in the governance of educational institutions. This meeting instructs executive to report back to Congress next year on the positive steps they have taken is this regard.

FALLS - out of time

60 - (Guernsey College)

Congress calls upon the NEC to formulate a set of Rules by which Regions might better operate and bring them to the 2008 Congress for ratification. The Rules must include the following:

i) Branches to send Motions to Congress via the Regional Council

ii) Regions to introduce and operate Ratification Committees

iii) Branches to be organised via Regions for the purpose of Congress delegations

FALLS - out of time

61 - Sectoralisation (Brooklands College)

Congress recognises that the new larger union of UCU can be a greater defence against the threats to all sectors of post-16 education but also recognises that large organisations can disenfranchise smaller groupings within their structures. Congress therefore instructs its officers to carry out a thorough review of the effectiveness of existing structures and to report back to the NEC by the end of the year and to establish mechanisms so that structures can be reviewed regularly.

FALLS - out of time

Other matters: Training

62 - Union learning representatives (Tyne Metropolitan College)

Congress recognises the valuable work being carried out by Union Learning Representatives in both the FE and HE Sectors, particularly in their role of increasing the union's influence in professional development, negotiation of joint union/management learning agreements and support to members in developing and achieving their personal as well as professional learning objectives. Congress recognises the excellent work carried out by the UCU staff involved in this work to lay the foundations of ULRs in branches/local associations. Congress therefore calls on the NEC to continue this valuable work by incorporating ULR training into the union's core training programme.

FALLS - out of time