Our regional rep., Mike Moran, has today sent the following notice of failure to agree to Karen Cox. It is the preliminary stage of a ballot for industrial action in our defence of jobs and working conditions, although we sincerely hope to get these reassurances without the need to go to ballot.

 

Dear Professor Cox,

Re: Notice of Failure to Agree

UCU hereby give notice of a ‘Failure to Agree’ on the following issues, having requested a positive response by no later than 5pm on the 13th October to the letter from the branch committee to you on 7th October 2021.

1. We seek a commitment from you that no one within the UCU bargaining group will be made compulsory redundant in the calendar years 2022 and 2023.
2. In consultation with UCU, an urgent review of PS and academic workloads under the new OFS structures must be undertaken in 2021, and published by March 2022. This review must include a survey to all staff and consider all options in improving working conditions, including hiring more staff and reverting back to previous School/ Department specific PS roles. This review must also take into account the different workload capacities of staff from different marginalised groups. 
3. No detriment to the WAM of academics under the new standardised Divisional WAM structures, in the calendar years 2022 and 2023.
4. All staff workloads are affected by how many precarious staff the university employs. We therefore require a commitment that, in the academic year 22-23, the University will preserve 100% of the budgets for precarious teaching staff within each School/ area compared to the academic year 2019/20 (pre-pandemic). If the budgets have increased in some areas in the academic year 21/22, the higher figure should be maintained.

We sincerely hope you are able to provide the assurances we have requested and there is no need to enter into a formal trade dispute. Please formally respond by 5pm on Wednesday 20th October 2021.

Yours sincerely,

Michael Moran
Regional Official HE & FE South East Region