The Open University branch of the University and College Union
This Branch utterly condemns the heavy-handed and unacceptable policing of respectable republican protests surrounding the recent monarchical events.
The use of state repression to punish dissenting views is totally unacceptable and a threat to pluralist democracy in the UK
Motion 1
This branch believes:
That good communications are essential in supporting any strategy to bring in new activist members.
Therefore resolves:
In order to support the work of the newly formed Communications Group, we should trial the role of Communications Lead on the Executive Committee. In this period, their role would be to work with the Comms Group and to support other Exec Committee officers, particularly the President and Honorary Secretary, and the Branch Administrator, in issuing timely internal and external communication to members, and managing the production of appropriate newsletters to staff groups, and social media for the branch. This role will be reviewed after a year.
Motion 2 - Stress, Workload, and Wellbeing at the OU
This branch notes the recent results of the Staff Barometer Survey, the impact of stress on all staff categories, and the fact that excessive workload and associated problems have not improved since this branch’s Workload Survey in 2018.
We call upon the Open University to:
This branch notes that the employers’ organisation UCEA and the OU have refused to make a pay offer in line with inflation, after real-terms pay losses since 2009. At present the pay offer stands at 3% for 2022-2023 while inflation is 9.1% CPI at June 2022 as prices continue to rise. This branch notes that the VC highlights fairness and staff wellbeing as key university values. We note further that other universities have agreed to make one-off payments in 2021/22 to help staff with the rise in energy and living costs.
We call upon the university to:
Donations and solidarity for UCU branches taking action
This branch notes that a number of HE and FE branches will be taking action in the coming months and authorises the Branch Committee to make appropriate donations to local hardship funds.
This branch also notes that some HE branches will soon be taking action over the Four Fights and (depending on HESC decisions) over USS. These branches will be taking action over national disputes on behalf of branches which cannot take action this time as a result of anti-trade union legislation.
This meeting asks the branch executive committee to consider making donations up to a total amount similar to that we would expect to spend if the OU UCU branch were taking action.
This meeting also asks the executive committee to organise support for branches taking action by publicising and supporting their rallies and other events, fund raising, and other practical support.
Higher Education Careers Services: informing students and supporting the low carbon economy - for the HE Sector Conference
HE conference notes:
HE conference resolves:
This General Meeting agrees to the setting up of a local hardship fund to supplement the national UCU fighting fund during any industrial action over USS pensions or over pay this academic year. The purpose of the fund will be to support branch members who face hardship, as a result of lost pay during the industrial action.
This meeting authorises:
The transfer of an initial sum of £50,000 from local branch funds into the hardship fund and asks the branch executive to set up a process for members to access the fund in accordance with national UCU guidance.
The branch committee to seek to increase the hardship fund further by asking for donations, to the extent that this is practically possible.
Any money remaining in the hardship fund at the end of the action should be transferred back into our local branch funds, leaving a token amount to keep the account active.
Motion 2
This meeting notes:
That like the OU, Goldsmiths has in the past prided itself on a commitment to lifelong learning and to broaden access to higher education.
The ongoing threat of redundancies amongst academic and professional services staff at Goldsmiths.
That this is one of several ongoing attacks on arts and humanities funding by British universities.
That by denying the Goldsmiths UCU branch (GUCU) officers proper payment for facility time, Goldsmiths management are undermining the legally-recognised collective consultation process.
That GUCU has just secured an overwhelming mandate for industrial action in an informal ballot.
That other institutions, notably Chester and Liverpool, have fought off schemes for compulsory redundancies via the threat of industrial action.
It resolves:
To declare publicly our solidarity with our comrades at Goldsmiths.
To ask our members to support GUCU’s online #NoJobCuts campaign and
to approve the donation of £500 from OUBUCU branch funds to support their campaigning.
Motion on ALCCP briefing
This meeting notes the proposed misuse of AL Academic Currency time, and low overall pay for new ALs starting this October and considers these to be unacceptable.
Proposed amendment to the motion
This meeting notes the proposed misuse of AL Academic Currency and Professional Development time, and low overall pay for new ALs starting this October and considers these to be unacceptable.
Overwriting the self-directed part of AL Academic Currency time with other work is equivalent to the cancellation of study leave for academic staff. Overwriting the agreed Professional Development and Academic Currency time is equivalent to asking ALs not to read course materials that they are about to teach. Crucially, overwriting either the AL-led Academic Currency time or the Agreed Professional Development and Academic Currency time with Mandatory training is contrary to the purpose of the former two and directly contrary to the negotiated policy on 'AL Professional Development and Academic Currency' which states that neither the 6 days pro-rata for AL-led AC time nor the 1 + 5 days pro rata for Agreed PD and AC time are to be used for Mandatory training (e.g., IT training, Prevent, etc.)
The OU made a commitment that no AL would be financially worse off due to the delay in implementing the new AL contract. This is breached by overwriting Professional Development and Academic Currency time with other work. This especially applies to new ALs in 21J since three half days' induction are for IT training which they should be paid for since they are unlikely to have any spare FTE.
When it comes to module briefings, if these are taken to be included in the 1+ 5 days of Agreed PD and AC time, it would entail that the majority of ALs have no time left for the rest of the year to engage in further professional development. If anything further is needed (attending SD days, getting up to speed on a new module, etc.), this would need to be paid for over and above their FTE unless they have other unused FTE. As things stand, there is no indicated intention to cover this with additional payments.
This branch supports the negotiators in pursuing this matter through negotiation, arbitration, or by lodging a dispute if necessary.
View the ALCCP briefing.
View the agreed policy balloted on in 2019.
This policy is cited in Section 19 of the new AL Terms and Conditions, and the current AL Terms and Conditions also have caveats on the use of staff development time in Section 9c.
This branch notes the ongoing dispute over the USS valuation, plans developed by UUK for unjustified and substantial cuts to pension benefits, and the refusal of USS to divest from fossil fuels.
Kings College London UCU and other branches are fundraising to explore legal action against the USS Trustees on several potential grounds (see: Save university pensions, and save the planet (crowdjustice.com). This initiative has support from UCU negotiators and is intended to complement any action undertaken by national UCU.
The branch calls upon the Executive Committee to publicise this fundraising effort to members and to make an initial contribution of £500 to this fund.
Motion
Motion - Staff Tutor's/Student Experience Manager's Claim
This meeting endorses the claim for Staff Tutors and Student Experience Managers in the appendix to the EGM agenda, and asks our Executive committee and ST/SEM negotiators to negotiate with the university on the basis of this claim, and to do what is necessary to pursue it.
Motion 1 - Proceed with claim
The meeting endorses the attached claim for mitigation and compensation for Associate Lecturers following the decision by VCE to delay implementation of the new AL contract.
This meeting authorises the OU UCU negotiators and executive committee to negotiate with management on the basis of this claim, to make any necessary additions, and to enter a dispute with the university in the event of failure to agree, and if necessary to take the initial steps required to organise legal industrial action.
This meeting also authorises the OU UCU executive committee and ST/SEM negotiators to draft a claim on behalf of staff tutors, addressing workload and related stress, and the need for proper systems and support, and to take any necessary measures to pursue it.
This meeting authorises the executive committee to use up to £20,000 of OU branch funds in support of the claims referred to in this motion.
Motion 2 - Support for AL Members in Case of Strike Action
This meeting notes there is massive support for the ongoing decasualisation process among all categories of OU staff. OUBUCU members in all roles are dismayed at the news that the timetable towards the new contract is being abandoned, with often severe financial consequences to individuals. Members wish to demonstrate practical solidarity with those who are forced to threaten industrial action in response. An injury to one is an injury to all.
This meeting asks the Branch Committee to establish an active appeal for the Hardship Fund, in order to make it clear to AL members that they will receive financial support to compensate for hardship resulting from any industrial action, should this be necessary in support of the new contract and the 'no detriment' principle.
This appeal will be aimed at non-AL members in the branch and could involve pledges to the branch Hardship Fund that will be activated only should industrial action prove necessary over this issue.
This meeting notes that the University Secretary of the Open University, as chair of the AL Contract Delivery Board, on Monday 21 March 2021 announced a delay to the implementation of the AL Contract after more than two years of work. As context this meeting notes:
Given these failures this meeting states that it has no confidence in the University Secretary. There must be a formal review of VCE actions and decision-making that have led to this situation.
This branch notes:
We offer our solidarity to members at UEL and other branches in dispute, we also ask the branch executive to agree appropriate donations or other practical support that branches may need.
Donation to National Fighting Fund in Relation to the UCU Levy
Following the recent strike action, national UCU has been forced to implement a levy of £15 from all members (except retired members and those on free subscriptions) to cover a shortfall in the National Fighting Fund. UCU is seeking at least £76,000 in additional donations in order to be able to exempt those on lower salary bands (under £15,000 p.a.) from the levy. The branch has already passed a motion that it will if necessary, provide support from the local Hardship Fund for any OU member who is not able to afford the levy.
Each UCU branch with local reserves has been asked to donate what it can in order to reduce the shortfall before 28 July, when the arrangements for the levy must be made. A donation is a meaningful gesture of solidarity with precarious and low-paid members at institutions who went on strike earlier this year, and who now depend on the Fighting Fund for assistance.
The OU branch holds substantial reserves. A recent branch investment has matured which means that the proposed amount of £30,000 can be donated without incurring any financial penalties or impinging on the funds dedicated to the branch’s Hardship Fund. The proposed donation amount, while substantial, will not constrain future activities and campaigns of the OU branch or hamper its ability to support members.
Given this, the branch resolves to:
OUBUCU notes and endorses the following statement:
“UCU Solidarity Movement Statement: Defend Higher Education. Fight for jobs now.
University managements have responded to the Coronavirus crisis by attacking their staff. After rejecting UCU’s claims for a pay rise and action on casualisation and inequality earlier in the year, once Covid hit, they expected staff to rapidly switch to working from home, shouldering the increased demands of developing online teaching and administration, often without suitable equipment or expenses.
It is a disgrace that in institution after institution, they are preparing to repay that flexibility and goodwill by slashing jobs, cutting courses, and even imposing pay cuts.
Boris Johnson’s government is contributing to the crisis by defending a broken funding model based on student fees, refusing a bailout for the sector, and sitting back to watch the devastation as universities fight each other to maintain their student numbers. Not only are tens of thousands of livelihoods at stake, but the future of the Higher Education sector is under threat at the very moment that it is most needed to help the recovery.
The pandemic has not caused this crisis. It has merely provided an excuse for university managements to accelerate the shrinking of their wage bills to pay for the reckless borrowing and capital expenditure they have made in recent years.
As Higher Education workers we need to organise a fightback now. The situation is urgent. Casualised staff are losing their jobs right now and permanent positions are at risk with redundancies threatened before next academic year. The existence of long established institutions is under threat.
This battle cannot be waged branch by branch, institution by institution. We cannot wait for our employers to play us off against each other. We need a UK-wide campaign to resist the attacks and to back up the UCU Fund the Future campaign’s goal of putting HE at the centre of the political agenda. We commit ourselves to continue to organise maximum solidarity for all branches fighting to defend jobs and education.”
This branch notes with alarm and dismay:
the section 188 notices issued en masse for staff at Reading University, and the intention to make staff apply for jobs on inferior terms and conditions.
the timing of the announcement just after the mass solidarity rally on Tuesday 16th June
This branch condemns the destructive and dictatorial behaviour of the Reading University management. We offer solidarity to the staff and to the UCU branch at Reading, and trust that national UCU will do everything it can to support them. We also ask national UCU and the Reading University UCU branch to note that we are willing to take part in grey-listing Reading University if such action is called for.
This branch notes with dismay the decision by NEC to enact a flat levy of £15 for the Fighting Fund on all full UCU members. It observes that the May 2019 Congress enacted a plan to lessen the cost of UCU membership for lower paid members, which is undermined by this action. It also notes many members are suffering financial stress in the pandemic.
This branch:
asks the NEC to reconsider the application of a flat levy and to attempt a fund-raising campaign in advance of any levy
agrees to open the Hardship Fund to cover the £15 levy for those OUBUCU members who cannot afford to pay it, should the flat levy still be required, and
directs the Branch Committee to write to the General Secretary to deplore this decision and the manner in which it was communicated to members.
AMENDMENT TO MOTION 1
Add at the end of point 5 as follows:
5. Support and publicise the statement, 'Time for a New Future for Higher Education', https://heconvention2.wordpress.com/2020/05/25/new-future-for-he/#more-9316
Motion 1
This branch notes, with respect, admiration, and gratitude that many of our members have, in common with other OU staff, students, alumni, and hundreds of thousands of people across the nation, returned to, or volunteered to undertake, service in the NHS and other key worker roles at this time of national crisis. We wish to extend to them our heartfelt support and solidarity.
This branch further notes the following specific issues regarding gaps in provision of PPE to key workers in the NHS and elsewhere, as highlighted by a recent edition of BBC’s ‘Panorama’ program: ‘Has the Government Failed the NHS?’:
Which have resulted in an increased risk of infection being borne by our most critical workers and patients. We call for a public enquiry into this failure of provision, and the wider governmental response, which early indicators suggest may lead to the highest death toll per capita in Europe. We condemn the mismanagement of this crisis, and call upon the government to take all necessary steps to protect the health and wellbeing of those on the front line.”
Amendment to the PPE motion above
Add at the end of the motion:
Additionally we call upon UCU to initiate and/or contribute to a serious discussion about potential environmental causes that may be increasing the incidence of pandemics, including (but not limited to) the destruction of natural habitats of animal species, exploitation of hitherto untouched environments, climate change, insufficient care and respect for indigenous peoples and their way of life, wildlife markets and agricultural practices.
This union notes with dismay that the response of many university managements to the crisis in Higher Education has been a punitive attack on academic, academic-related and teaching staff.
This union believes:
This union resolves therefore
Motion 1 - call for suspension of performance management
This meeting notes that university is functioning in historically unprecedented circumstances. We believe OU staff of all categories care about students and can be trusted to do their best.
Many staff are adjusting to homeworking as well as lockdown, and of those who normally work at home many are now doing so in very abnormal conditions due to the closure of schools, day centres, and lockdown.
In these circumstances it is inappropriate, and indeed a waste of effort and resources, for the university to continue with normal processes of performance management, and this meeting asks the UCU branch executive committee and negotiators to seek:
And to report back to branch members. Within the context of the above, we encourage line managers to continue to support staff via team and/or 1-2-1 meetings as appropriate, as part of their duty of care.
Amendment to Motion 1 (wording is currently being amended by our Exec committee)
Delete current text of item 3 "the pausing of CDSAs during lockdown" and replace with "CDSAs to go ahead only with the express backing of the line manager and staff member, with no detriment to any staff in either role who decide that they are best paused."
Motion 2 - Disciplinary cases and lockdown
This meeting affirms that staff involved in disciplinary cases have a right to a face-to-face hearing if they wish it. We therefore ask that disciplinary cases should be paused until the end of lockdown if the staff involved want to wait until a face-to-face hearing can take place.
The Open University Branch of UCU notes that Israeli settlements in occupied territory constitute a breach of international law, as is affirmed by (among many others) the British Government, the United Nations (Security Council and General Assembly), the International Court of Justice, the International Committee of the Red Cross, and the High Contracting Parties to the Geneva Convention.
The UCU OU Branch notes therefore that, because Ariel University is built in a settlement, for the Open University to recognise degrees from Ariel University, or to collaborate with Ariel University in any way, would be complicity in the breaking of international law.
UCU should hold recorded hustings for the posts of General Secretary (and Deputies) and the Presidential team in order to increase voter engagement, ensure parity and meet accessibility obligations.
The NEC should create a small election group of 5 to oversee the hustings events and choose chairs.
In advance of the election several dates should be provided to candidates to find one that all can attend, if necessary, via remote participation. Expenses should be paid to candidates including for travel, childcare or other caring cover.
The election group should agree a contingency plan for illness or other non-attendance - for example by allowing a recording of timed answers.
Members should be made aware of this source of information before the ballot opens. They should be able to submit questions in advance, anonymously. The event should be live-streamed and recorded. The recording should be available on the UCU website with a transcript.
UCU should hold recorded hustings for the posts of General Secretary (and Deputies) and the Presidential team in order to increase voter engagement, ensure parity and meet accessibility obligations.
The NEC should create a small election group of 5 to oversee the hustings events and choose chairs. In advance of the election several dates should be provided to candidates to find one that all can attend, if necessary, via remote participation. Expenses should be paid to candidates including for travel, childcare or other caring cover.
The election group should agree a contingency plan for illness or other non-attendance - for example by allowing a recording of timed answers.
Members should be made aware of this source of information before the ballot opens. They should be able to submit questions in advance, anonymously. The event should be live-streamed and recorded. The recording should be available on the UCU website with a transcript.
USS: strengthening UCU, gaining non-member support
Conference notes the JEP2 report stated concerns regarding USS (the ‘Scheme’), including:
Conference holds:
Conference resolves that UCU should investigate:
We ask the OU Branch of UCU to reaffirm the UCU statement on academic freedom (last updated 27 January 2017) ucu.org.uk/academicfreedom. In reaffirming the commitment to this statement and its underlying principles we ask colleagues to note that:
References:
OU Gender Identity Policy and Guidance: https://help.open.ac.uk/documents/policies/gender-identity/files/28/gender-identity-policy-and-guidance.pdf
Stonewall Diversity Champions programme: https://www.stonewall.org.uk/diversity-champions-programme
Gender Identity Research and Education Society (GIRES) https://www.gires.org.uk
Gendered Intelligence http://genderedintelligence.co.uk
Phone us on 01908 6(53069) or Deb Shann on Skype for Business or Teams
Call into Room 015, Wilson C block, Walton Hall