Our second OBU UCU information bulletin, advertising the upcoming AGM and ballot on fair pay. 
Category: News
Branch Update – March 2
Upcoming Meeting
Don’t miss our upcoming Branch meeting on Wednesday March 9th from 12 to 1, in JHB207.
Completed Recruitment Week 
Thank you to everyone who helped facilitate our recruitment week on Feb 22-26. We managed to reach out to a large number of non-members, some of whom are now in the process of joining the union.
We issued a special newsletter for the occasion, which you can access here: Newsletter_Feb2016
We hope to continue expanding our branch over the coming months. If you are a member and you would like to receive some flyers, posters, or informational booklets in your pigeon hole to distribute around your department, please get in touch with our Branch Administrator.
International Women’s Day (March 8)
Check out UCU’s video on the gender pay gap.
Update on your UCU subscriptions
The new Trade Union Bill means you will no longer be able to pay your UCU subscriptions through payroll (also known as check off). If you are still using this method, please transfer from check off to direct debit wherever possible.
National Updates
UCU campaigns update 12 February 2016
Branch Update – February 17
Revamped website
As you can see, we now have a more developed website, which we hope will serve as a useful resource for members (and to help attract new members) Feel free to leave comments directly on our pages or get in touch with the Branch Administrator if you have any suggestions for how to further improve this interface.
Upcoming recruitment week: Feb 22-26
February promises to be a busy month for trade unions, with the Trade Union Congress (TUC) launching a week of campaigning to oppose the Trade Union Bill and celebrate the positive impact of unions in workplaces and society. UCU will be playing a full role in supporting this week and will use it as a springboard for activism for national recruitment week 2. We at Oxford Brookes UCU will be joining these efforts and running a local recruitment week on our campuses.
Check your pay!
As part of its national campaign for fair pay within further and higher education, UCU has created an excellent new function on its website called ‘Rate for the Job’. You can use it to:
- Compare your salary to similar staff in your and other universities
- See how the value of your pay has been affected by recent below inflation pay rises
- Check how big the gender pay gap is in your institution
You can help the campaign for fair pay by letting others know you have used ‘Rate for the Job’, either by
using the social media buttons at the bottom of the ‘Rate for the Job’ page or by forwarding the link to colleagues who are not in the union together with the join UCU link https://www.ucu.org.uk/join.
Equality Officer position available on Oxford Brookes UCU Committee
UCU equality reps and officers work within branches to promote equality with the employer and union members. This could include looking at issues such as:
- flexible working
- absence management
- discriminatory practices
- equal pay
- equality impact assessments.
They also ensure that UCU’s national annual meetings, and any other relevant events and opportunities for women, black members, lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) members and disabled members are publicised locally, that members from all groups are encouraged to participate, and that the branch maximises the opportunities for recruitment and organisation amongst all groups.
Equality reps are key in developing and sustaining national and local equality networks.
The Equality Officer position for Oxford Brookes UCU has been open for nominations and remains open for co-option (until the annual nomination process for all posts takes place). Please get in touch with the Branch Administrator if you would like more information.
Next branch meetings:
Our next branch meetings will be on 9 March and 27 April (AGM).
National
The links below provide access to the regular updates sent to all UCU members by Justine Stephens, UCU’s head of campaigns. For further information on national campaigns, please refer to UCU’s main website: http://www.ucu.org.uk/.
First OBU UCU Newsletter – 22 February 2016
Workload Planning Report: Resourcing the Academic Experience – Feb/March 2015
Workload Planning Report: Resourcing the Academic Experience – Feb/March 2015
Resourcing the Academic Experience: Report 1 – SESE & WLP (Last amended Feb 2015)
150212-05 SESE & WLP – Resourcing the Academic Experience UCU paper (v2)
This document is the outcome of consultations with UCU members. The central argument is that the University’s ‘Strategy for Enhancing the Student Experience’ (SESE) needs to be resourced through its ‘Workload Planning Framework’ (WLP). UCU highlights below the need for more hours and for systematic calculations of the academic hours that are required to resource the whole academic experience, in the interests of students, academics and indeed the whole university.
Resourcing the Academic Experience: Report 2 – UCU Members’ Recommendations for Improving the University WLP Framework in 2015-2016 (4 March 2015)
WLPRG150317-05 UCU Members Recommendations for WLP 2015-2016
UCU is pleased to have a University Workload Planning Framework. We are also pleased to note that senior management agree the link between the academic experience and academic resourcing – and indeed recognise the need to review tariffs, given the implications of the ‘Strategy for the Student Experience’ for academic workloads. Following member consultations, UCU recommends that tariffs need to be clarified and increased. It is also recommended that the University ensures all faculties implement the whole Workload Planning Framework, in the interests of parity of the student experience and equity amongst all academic staff. This includes ensuring that staff have equal workloads.
This is a follow-up report to the one submitted to the University WLP Group on 12.02.15 and the two reports should be read in conjunction with each other. This report is based on further consultation with all OBU UCU members, it provides additional commentary on the 2014-2015 University WLP Framework, and makes specific recommendations to management for improving the 2015-2016 University WLP Framework, in order to enhance the academic experience.