Strike

You should all have received your ballot papers by now. Please return these as soon as possible. We strongly advise you vote YES.

Members of Branch Committee will be getting in touch to check if you’ve voted and whether you’ve had any problems with your ballot paper. Please get in touch with them and give them an update. They’ll stop chasing you once you contact them.

If you have not yet received your ballot pack, you can order a replacement ballot via this link until Friday 6th September 2024 at 12 noon. You will need your unique UCU membership number to do so. Please ask your school rep if you’re not sure what that is.

Ballot information:

At Leeds Beckett the senior management team is still talking about the need for compulsory redundancies as a means of making cost savings over the next 24 months. We were first informed about the £25 million savings earlier this year, and more recently the VC announced that a further cut up to £45 million will be necessary by 2026. Despite numerous requests by UCU, we have yet to see a full and comprehensive breakdown of the projected financial plans, or indeed a financial recovery plan.

In negotiations, UCU has repeatedly asked Senior Managers to rule out compulsory redundancies as a means of making cost savings, but this request has been refused. The lack of transparency, particularly over finances, leaves us with little choice about taking action. We are committed to meaningful negotiations with the University, but our demands are being ignored. Given the successful indicative ballot we conducted earlier in the year, the feeling of the members here at LBU is strong in support for strike action. On this basis we are calling for a YES vote to STRIKE and a YES vote to action short of a strike.

What is the dispute about?

This dispute is about saving jobs, and valuing the people that work at Leeds Beckett University. Cutting jobs and maintaining job vacancies where staff have left will pose a serious threat to staff well-being through the extra work, the student experience, and the overall reputation of the University. This process is already underway in some areas, notably Leeds School of Arts (LSA), Carnegie School of Education (CSE) and Carnegie School of Sport (CSS).

We can no longer ignore what is happening in the hope that our own jobs will be saved.

UCU needs to show our employer that our members oppose job cuts, and any attempts to worsen conditions of service, the most obvious being increased teaching loads, and less dedicated research time. A convincing ballot result with the threat of industrial action will send a powerful message that we are serious about protecting jobs and conditions.

Vote YES for strike action, and YES to action short of strike to show solidarity to all our colleagues under threat. We need a strong show of support to protect jobs, conditions of service and the service we provide to students.

The Higher Education Committee have decided to add an additional day, the 15^th March, of strike action to the existing ones we are planning on taking. Therefore, in the week commencing the 13^th March, we will be striking on the 15^th, 16^th and 17^th and the following week we will be striking on the 20^th, 21^st and 22^nd. The 15^th is also Budget Day and will coincide with several other unions also taking strike action. Don’t forget ASOS is also still in effect.

On Friday 17th Feburary at 6pm, Jo Grady announced that further UCU strike action is suspended for 2 weeks. This means that unless there is a change to strike days, the next strike day is scheduled to be Thursday the 16^th March. In other words, there will be no strike action weeks commencing 20th February or 27th February. Please note that ASOS is still in place.

On 1st February, UCU will be joining other unions around the country taking part in strike action. We’d like to see as many of you on the picket lines as possible. Please join us! 

There are a number of ways you can get involved in your union.

Tell us where you’ll be Wednesday 1st February.

Picket lines from 7.30am.

Complete the Google form to let us know how you plan to take action. 

Car Sharing

The train workers are striking too which might make travelling in difficult. If you need a lift, or if you can offer a lift to someone coming your way, complete our Car Sharing document. It’s a great way to get to know others in the union and to help each other out. 

Can’t get to Leeds?

Consider joining a local picket. Strike Map will help you locate the nearest site of industrial action. Get involved and show solidarity. 

Digital Picket Lines

If you can’t join the campus picket lines, please consider joining the digital picket line to show solidarity with other UCU members.

Wednesday 1st February – 10am-10:40am

Zoom Meeting Link

Meeting ID: 810 7340 5484

Passcode: 0gEHSV

Join the March & Rally to Defend the Right to Strike In Leeds

March:

Meet: Leeds Town Hall
Gather: 12.00pm
March: 12.30pm

Rally:

Meet: Leeds Town Hall
Time: 1.00pm

UCEA 23/24 Pay Offer Vote

VOTE REJECT

The UCEA 23/24 pay offer is a real terms pay cut and does nothing to address the original pay dispute regarding 22/23. This informal ballot allows UCU members to have their say. We strongly urge you to consider voting reject. We’re worth more.

UCU announced all 18 days of strike action that will be taking place before April.

As agreed by the HEC, across February, these days will be escalating – starting with one day next week and building up to 4 days at the end of Feb/start of March and then further days in March.

Such action is not taken lightly but is a response to UCEA failing to make an adequate pay offer or negotiate on our other disputes. We appreciate that this will be financially difficult for many members, but if you can’t afford to strike, then you can’t afford not to strike!