Field Leader Issue

Your help is required for the  demonstration planned at Water Lane (Stratford Campus) on Wednesday 18th July between 11.00-12.00 midday. We ask all UCU members to attend this demonstration. UCU negotiators have explored every possibility of resolving the dispute with UeL management particularly over workload allocation but it is clear that the management position is not moving and is unacceptable to UCU members.  The only way left to persuade management of the need to alter the university’s negotiating position is for members to take action. (more…)

You will have seen today an all staff email from the Vice Chancellor about the dispute. UCU members heard from negotiators that the negotiations have not just ‘paused’ for UCU members to be consulted.  UCU negotiators reported that they have explored every possibility of resolving the dispute particularly over workload allocation but it was clear that the management position was not moving despite what the VC’s message today says and is unacceptable to UCU negotiators.  Negotiators made clear at the meeting that if members agree with their negotiators they must take action (demonstrative and industrial) to persuade management of the need to alter the university’s negotiating position. (more…)

Negotiations are continuing and on Wednesday the 6^th of June, UCU Branch negotiators and the UCU Regional Official met with management for a seventh time. The issue that is posing the most difficulty and requiring detailed attention is Workload Allocation. Discussions continue and we are scheduled to meet again next Thursday the 14^th of June. This meeting will be pivotal. We remain hopeful of a satisfactory resolution. We will send a further report following that meeting so please check your email regularly for that report and any subsequent notice of a Branch Meeting.

Please add the following text to your signature and put at the top of your emails

UCU members at the University of East London are involved in an official dispute with our employer over workload and other issues. We are currently working to contract and as a result you may experience delays in receiving a response to emails.

UCU national officers have agreed that we need to serve notice of industrial action on the employer. UCU members will be asked to work to contract from Thursday 24th May as an initial stage in that action. A briefing on what that means in practice will be sent to members by the end of the week.  UCU national officers have also agreed that, if the dispute is still not resolved, then notice of strike action to commence at the end of the month may be served.  (more…)

Your UCU branch officers and regional official have met with UEL management three times since the close of the UCU ballot to seek a negotiated resolution to the current dispute. Issues under discussion have been a new agreed academic workload allocation process and the management proposals to remove line management responsibilities from the PL grade and end the inappropriate use of the £3k special responsibility allowance. There has been no discussion yet regarding changes to the University appeals procedures. Overall, while there has been some progress, progress towards a resolution of the dispute is not as clear as we would have liked. (more…)

UCU Officers will, of course, make representation about all these issues.  We are meeting on Friday to discuss motions passed at the last Branch meeting about AWAM and changes to the Field Leader role.  The branch wants action on both these issues.  Members will remember that at the end of last year we were almost at the point of declaring a dispute but then sat down with management and produced a joint statement that bound us to better relations
and set out what the issues were and how they were going to be discussed.  (more…)