Adam Ozanne (University of Manchester)

Adam Ozanne (University of Manchester) 

Election address 

The role of the UCU Trustees is, essentially, to hold the assets of the union, in particular its funds and property, and ensure their "safe custody and preservation". It has concerned me in recent years that some on the extreme left exaggerate the resources available to the union, suggesting for example that an organisation with an annual income of a little over £20 million is holding up to £30 million in reserves which could be used to fund continuous all-out strikes for lengthy periods of time. In my view, this is irresponsible nonsense since such sums include the union's property holdings as well as all its investments which, if squandered, would wreck the union's future, including the jobs and livelihoods of the over 200 staff it employs. I am standing to resist such reckless, high-risk strategies and will, if elected, do my utmost to ensure the long-term financial security of UCU so that it is able to continue to defend jobs, pay, pensions, and improved terms of conditions in the post-16 education sector for many years to come.  

I retired from my position as a Senior Lecturer in Economics in 2022 but have remained actively involved in UCU, completing a two-year term on the Congress Business Committee in 2024.   

I have wide experience of UCU at all levels, having served on the union's National Executive Committee for four years during which time I sat on the Legal Support Panel, the Recruitment, Organising and Campaigning Committee, the USS Advisory Committee, and the Superannuation Working Group, which I chaired in 2020.  

Locally, I was at various times President, Vice-President, Secretary, and Committee Member in my branch, where I gained over twelve years' experience of personal casework, organising, and collective negotiation. In particular, I helped lead successful campaigns against compulsory redundancies in 2015, 2017 and 2020 - two of which involved ACAS, and one, in 2017, a two-day strike which resulted in Manchester University adopting sector-leading redeployment, security of employment, and voluntary severance policies, while in 2020 months of talks were necessary to prevent compulsory redundancies as management panicked in the face of the pandemic.  

As an economist I am numerate and understand the workings of the economy as well as basic financial matters. In addition, at various times I have acted as treasurer of local CND and World Development Movement groups and was a founding member and director of a campaigning organisation, World Basic Income (now Equal Right). I therefore have the knowledge and experience required for the role of Trustee.  

I will be voting for Dyfrig Jones for election as Vice-President, Andrew Feeney for Treasurer, and other candidates who support the aims of the Campaign for UCU Democracy.