UCU Congress and MAB
1) The Marking and Assessment Boycott is a national response to failures to negotiate substantive commitments to improve the working conditions and pay of Higher Education sector employees. All of them.
UCU calls for talks with the employers representative body (UCEA) to make progress on issues like the use of casual contracts, job insecurity, a workload that typically results in staff working extra days unpaid every week, and systemic pay gaps affecting the options and future of employees in the sector.
There have already been talks at Acas that resulted in some positive proposals put forward that were ultimately rejected by a majority of UCU members. This was partly because of the low pay offer way way way below inflation, but largely because the proposals were considered to non-committal or non-binding on employers to result in the sort of genuine and meaningful change the sector needs to return to being a vibrant and desirable place of work.
2) This weekend (26th – 29th May) UCU delegates meet for the annual National Congress in Glasgow.
As well as debates and votes on an array of issues (including industrial action and union policy) there should be a fair amount of media coverage and fringe events on issues affecting further and higher education.
You can read more about the Congress : >>> HERE
3) Industrial action is not a preference and costs us personally to participate in – but it is sometimes necessary.
We want to join with other UCU members in acknowledging our collective efforts to restore pensions decimated by the employers over the past five years.
The ‘USS campaign’ run by UCU has been remarkably successful – the video below shows you why.
We have come so far in the USS dispute – and we are on course for full restoration
In this special video, former and current negotiators, UCU members and our president reflect on an incredible campaign
Please watch and share
History makers ✊#ucuTOGETHER pic.twitter.com/c8IqIAoY41
— UCU (@ucu) May 25, 2023
