The Friday email: 29 September 2023

Respect FE: vote now!

We are entering the final stage of the Respect FE industrial action ballot over pay, workload and national bargaining. The last safe date to post is Thursday 5 October, so please return your ballot without delay.

• click here if you need a replacement ballot (you will need your UCU membership number; this form is strictly for FE members only and not for HE members)
• click here to let us know that you have voted (again this form is strictly for FE members only)
• during last week's negotiations, the Association of Colleges (AoC) made a conditional recommendation on pay of 6.5%; you can read the full update from UCU general secretary Jo Grady here
• on Wednesday 4 October (18:30-19:30), we are holding a UCU Live event for the final push for more votes; all UCU members can take part in this event via YouTube, Facebook or Twitter.

UCU Rising: replacement ballot form is now open

The higher education industrial action ballot over pay and working conditions opened on Tuesday 19 September; members are urged to vote YES now and to support the drive to 'get the vote out' and once again beat the anti-trade union turnout threshold:

• click here if you need a replacement ballot (you will need your UCU membership number; this form is strictly for HE members only and not for FE members)
• click here to let us know that you have voted (again this form is strictly for HE members only)
• read the comprehensive FAQs on the UCU Rising campaign
• watch and share the new campaign video here.

Build the Union month national briefing

October is recruitment month and the union is holding a national briefing on Monday 2 October (17:00-18:00) to discuss how you can build your branches. In this one-hour session we will look at why recruitment is fundamental to a growing union, recruitment trends, along with updating reps on recruitment materials and the branch development fund. You will have the chance to network with other branches, swap ideas, strategies, targets and generally talk over how to increase local membership. Click here for more information and click here to register.

Call out for new FE members for UCU's anti-casualisation committee

Due to a recent resignation, we are seeking new members to UCU's anti-casualisation committee from the further education sector--including prisons and adult education. The position is until the annual meeting next February and anyone interested or who would like more information should email committee secretary Jane Thompson.

Update on the Teachers' Pension Scheme

Our latest update on the Teachers' Pension Scheme (TPS) covers the changes that will be made from 1 October 2023 to all public service pension schemes including TPS in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

These changes are happening to remove the age discriminatory impact of schemes' transitional protection arrangements, often referred to as the 'McCloud Remedy'. You can view a presentation which explains the changes in greater detail.

For members in the Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS), the union provide another update shortly. For now you can read the USS September update and general secretary Jo Grady's email on employee consultation on changes to USS pensions.

Count me in: LGBT+ data now

Click here to register for this UCU LGBT+ webinar where we look at issues related to LGBT+ data collection including the lack of it and how it is done, if at all! The webinar will take place on Tuesday 24 October 16:00-17:30.

Annual equality groups conference 2023

This conference is an opportunity to discuss and agree strategies to progress UCU's equality work for Black, disabled, LGBT+, migrant and women members. The conference will be held from Thursday 16 to Saturday 18 November, in person in Manchester with the option to join plenary sessions online. You can find more information and register here by Tuesday 17 October.

UCU condemns Home Secretary's speech

UCU has condemned the Home Secretary's appalling speech this week calling for the United Nations Refugee Convention to be scrapped. Responding, UCU said the government's failure to offer safe routes and reduce the backlog of asylum claims had increased exploitation, and called for the government to end the hostile environment for all migrants. Read the full statement here.

Nominations for 2023-24 round of UCU UK elections

Nominations are now open in the 2023-24 round of UCU UK elections. Positions include general secretary, trustee, vice president (becoming president 2026-27) and a range of national executive committee (NEC) places. Closing date 9 November 2023. Full information, including formal calling notice, is available here.

With best wishes

UCU campaigns team