Sam ran through the PowerPoint (attached) and the context of the Industrial Action.
There has not been a sustained period of strike action before; The Education Zone has historically often looked at the impact on students.
Nationally the NUS is supporting the Action.
Sam ran through the 3 options with regard to supporting the strike (these were based on the previous actions of the Education Zone)
3 OPTIONS USED IN PREVIOUS ACTION(S)
1) SUPPORT the action in full
2) OPPOSE the action in full
3) SUPPORT academic staff in standing up for their pensions, but
COMMIT to mitigating the impact of industrial action on students
Sam proposed that we produce a FAQ document about the strike for students, it is important for people to understand the reasons behind the strike.
The group discussed how Option 3 would work, how would this be mitigated. Sam spoke about providing study space and hosting Teach Ins.
The discussion then went to the long and short-term effects of the strike and with regard to the VC. The long-term effect is the loss of jobs and the demoralisation of staff - which in turn effects the future students and the reputation of any graduates. The cuts could also spread to non-academic staff, as the VC is pushing for changes in pensions.
It was raised that mitigating, could be undermining to UCU, there is an open general meeting today at 1.15 where they will be going through the options, so perhaps make sure that the actions to mitigate are coordinated with UCU.
Sam read out Giles Howards response sent by proxy:
I’m choosing to vote in favour of full support as I represent postgraduate research students, many of whom are engaged in teaching activities across the University and are therefore often members of UCU in their own right. This change to pensions will affect any postgraduate research student progressing from their doctoral studies to an academic career and it’s in their interests that I urge consideration of full support for the strike. Ultimately, the University has many measures in the works that they can take to reduce the effect of the strikes on students directly and they will do so. In my 7 years here, I am yet to see a strike continue for the full planned duration due to negotiations between the trade unions and universities always resuming before the strikes really get underway, and this is something to bear in mind when considering our stance. Our voice can and will add to the chorus which will ultimately get a fairer deal for academics, some of whom will be drawn from our current membership into the future. While we do not represent staff, staff feeling fairly treated in issues such as pensions is important for their morale and ensures that the UK higher education remains internationally-relevant through retaining high quality staff, which is surely something we all care about.
Flora raised the point that this is a national issue, so we can lobby for UUK to come back around the table.
The point was raised that the effect on student experience may impact the NSS, Sam highlighted that all we can do is remind students that the NSS is on their whole experience at university. The NSS is about teaching staff, and not management, so a poor NSS may be used against staff.
The strike essentially means that there will be 14 days of no lectures, and the other days are working to contract – which means that staff will only do what their contract specifies. Out of 66% of the academic staff, 87% voted in favour of striking, this means that the majority of academic will be striking.
Non USU staff can also strike on those strike days, and they would only need to tell you on the morning of the 22nd Feb.
Another point to remember is that staff do not get paid for striking.
The group discussed the impact on Health Sciences students/medics who are on placement as the effect on them would be massive, however more staff may be in Union instead of UCU – Rebecca to investigate this.
The group discussed the loss of contact house and the impact on assessments, the point was also raised that many 3rd and 4th years are currently working on their dissertation. – deadline extensions are being looked at/asked for.
The opinion in the room was that after the first few days of striking UCU would go back to the table, so the strike would not last the fill 14 days.
The group also decided that a clear statement would accompany the decision of the zone, explaining the choice of action and the impact of that - alongside a FAQ document.
The voting members of the zone voted:
Evie – VP DCI counted the votes and announced:
8 votes for Option 1
9 votes for Option 3
Sam to announce the result ASAP along with the supporting statement.
