The Friday email: 6 December 2024

Support our campaign for a New Deal for FE

The £300m extra funding for FE announced in the Budget is welcome but this money must be used to pay staff fairly:

• sign our petition calling for a New Deal and national bargaining for FE
• ask your MP to make representations to the education secretary. 

Higher education: pay consultation results

Our consultative ballot on the higher education (HE) pay and working conditions offer for 2024/25 closed on Tuesday and thank you to everyone that participated. The results were as follows:

• Do you accept or reject the pay element of UCEA's final offer? Accept: 32% Reject: 68%
• Do you accept or reject the terms of reference on the pay related elements (contract types, pay spine review, workload, and equality pay gaps) as set out in UCEA's final offer? Accept: 86% Reject 14%
• Are you willing to participate in industrial action in pursuit of an improved offer? Yes: 53% No: 47%
• The turnout was 27%.

The union's higher education committee (HEC) will now meet to consider the results and decide on next steps. Please look out for further updates coming soon.

Celebrating diversity and challenging the far-right in FE

A themed learning week around the subject of 'celebrating diversity' took place with hundreds of staff and students taking part at the Capital City Group, which represents three London Colleges, City and Islington, Westminster Kingsway and the College of North-East London

Events ranging from dance, debate, singing, and spoken word performances took place with the aims of celebrating diversity, challenging the far-right and breaking down barriers between departments.

Yes we CAN! Support the climate and nature bill (CAN)

Please write to your MP requesting that they support the climate and nature bill (CAN) on 24 January. You can use the 'Zero Hour' campaign online tool here to contact your MP. UCU branches can use our template letter here.

UCU Congress 2024 and the annual meeting of our climate and ecological emergency committee have called for your support to help progress the climate and nature bill.

University of Glasgow UCU petition

University of Glasgow has placed more than 80 staff from its Social and Public Health Sciences Unit (SPHSU) in the School of Health and Wellbeing at risk of redundancy after the Medical Research Council (MRC) decided in early 2022 to close their research units. The branch has set up a petition and are asking members to sign it to show solidarity and call on the university to stop the redundancies.

Women and State Pension Inequality petition

Women and State Pension Inequality (WASPI) have launched a new petition calling on the UK government to urgently set up a compensation scheme for WASPI women. In March 2024, the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman's investigation concluded that women born in the 1950s were owed financial redress and an apology due to maladministration from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). 100,000 signatures are needed to secure a parliamentary debate; please sign and share.

Ceasefire NOW! End scholasticide in Gaza

As part of UCU's work to support our colleagues in Palestine, we encourage members to support Friends of Birzeit University's (Fobzu) new e-action campaign. Please email your MP to call for an immediate and permanent ceasefire and to end the scholasticide in Gaza.

16 Days in 16 Ways campaign

The international '16 days in 16 ways' campaign, led by the Centre for Women's Global Leadership, began on 25 November (International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women), and runs until 10 December (International Human Rights Day). All members are encouraged to show their support in a range of ways: from sharing information about domestic abuse and sexual harassment policies, to offering help to local gender-based violence organisations. More information is available here.

International news: protests in Pakistan

Pakistan's capital was put under a security lockdown ahead of protests by supporters of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan calling for his release. All the educational institutions in Islamabad and Rawalpindi were closed on Monday amid protest of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) in Islamabad. Gatherings of any sort have been banned under legal provisions. Find out more from Amnesty International here.