Staff protest at University of Sheffield in row over 'two-tier' contracts

The demonstration, which has been organised by members of UCU, UNISON, UNITE and the National of Union of Students (NUS), will begin at 12.30pm outside the students' union.
 
The unions have accused the university of trying to create a two-tier workforce after they informed 850 hourly-paid staff that they will not be given full employee status, and will therefore not be entitled to a notice period or to join the university's pension scheme.
 
Staff were left astonished this week when the university was nominated for a HR excellence award at the annual Times Higher Education Leadership and Management Awards, in which they were praised for 'taking the issue of integrating them (hourly-paid staff) into departments and faculties so seriously'.
 
The union said the new contracts made a mockery of such claims and were a cynical attempt by management to try and deliver 'education on the cheap'.  The unions have been backed in their fight by the students' union with many post-graduate students who carry out teaching and research duties, likely to be affected by the contracts.
 
Student union president, Paul Tobin, said: 'We are deeply concerned about the levels of support received by postgraduate students who teach. It is vital that students who teach are given the recognition they deserve.'
 
UCU branch president, Mick Ashman, said: 'I find it laughable that the university is being nominated for a prestigious award for its treatment of hourly-paid staff at the same time as it is looking to leave hundreds of them out in the cold. This group of workers stands to lose the most by the introduction of these contracts which will pave the way for a two-tier workforce.
 
'Hourly-paid staff deserve the same working conditions as everybody else and shouldn't be treated like second class citizens. The unions have worked long and hard to try and negotiate a fair deal and we are very disappointed that management is not acting in the long-term interests of the university by trying to deliver education on the cheap. It is inevitable that this will at some point have a detrimental impact on the standard of teaching students receive across the campus.'