Unite the Union – Sheffield University Branch Meeting

17/01/24

1pm – 2pm

Arts Tower 410 and online via Google Meets

Present:

Martin Bentley - Chair

Claire Healey - Secretary

Andrew Fairburn – Health and Safety rep

Ben Pollard – Heath and Safety rep

23 members online and in person

Minutes corrected on 23/01/24

Minutes

MB - updated on what has been happening in the branch.

Mentioned how the schools restructure is going. Unions have pushed back about the equality impact of the move – in particular, reducing the number of higher level professional services staff and the impact that this will have on women.

This year, the unions will enter discussion with the uni. About wages.

The uni. has raised the prospect of a bonus scheme and want the unions to be involved. At the moment, we haven’t got capacity as a union on top of issues such as wage increases as is and the schools restructure. We have asked them to defer it until a later date – if we have the capacity will talk about any renumerations that is offer. Some people may have noticed that UEB have increased their bonuses – it looks like they are throwing us crumbs.

CH – Clarified that UEB is the University Executive Board and makes the op level decisions. Clarified that the bonus scheme has been suggested by the Uni and a type of ‘reward’ almost in-between the Deal and an accelerated increment, for when a Deal rewards is not enough, but the performance doesn’t justify a long term accelerate increment.

Member question – Has there been discussion of grade boundaries?

MB – No surprise to anyone that there has been a compression of pay spine – in the pay offer of March 2023 there was paragraph that suggested working group be formed to find out why pay spine is so compressed – don’t need a working group – pay raise in middle of scale was so pathetic the bottom end has to move up to make sure uni. not in breach of legislation - Because uni. hasn’t given proper pay rises for 15 year – intend the uni. to talk with them again this year as we did in 2022. We will be more careful about what their intentions are, to make sure aren’t specific groups that do no do well out if it. After the last negation, staff on an exception contribution grade weren’t particular happy of last negotiations, we understand why. Those talks will take place through summer and I would imagine increase would be in pay packet in January next year.

BP - Minium wage is going to go up – is it going to make wages look worse?

MB – in April 2024, when changes need to be in place for Living Wage’s Foundations real living wage, uni. had already implemented that – when we had talks about making sure the uni. paid the real living wage, we made sure staff wouldn’t be t waiting until April. The Real Living Wage foundation announced their real living wage in October - the uni. is either in committed to make sure we are in live with that.

CH – The cleaners’ wages increased and this solved the problem of living wages for now. But it can’t go on, as the living wages increases, uni. wages get closer to it in general and the spines is compacting. Going to be a problem in future.

MB – The living wage did outstrip wages, but the uni. has got to make payment to the bottom people , or the increase wages in august. With the pay rises recommended by UCEA it is highly unlikely wages will keep place with real living wage foundation minimum wage – the uni. will have to keep making payments if they fall short of that – there is an agreement that uni. no longer pay poverty pay – if we had a salary scale we below the real living wage, uni. would pay a payment to make sure we matched it. This was a significant part of pay negotiations over changes in grade boundaries ain 2022

Member question – Have you been involved with the Technical career progression framework?

AF – The union has not been involved in any way, but Sam and Mel who leading it been invited to TULCRA to feedback about it. UEB is the level they will discuss it at next. It is going through the system – nothing written down or passing around yet.

MB – Initially when the uni. conceived it, they had very informal discussion about it with us. It was clear that technical staff would need a different career pathway as their roles tend to be more more specialised than administrative staff. We suggested it would need to be much more based on growing role than moving between roles. Technical staff tend to get to a certain level and other roles of category you are in don’t exist and to move between role would be far more difficult in technical structure than admin structure. So we would look to put in a separate career pathways for technicians, then the uni. decided not to go this route. After this, they had fairly superficial discussion with us again. Recently, the uni. has gone back to original thinking that maybe they do need something specific. Mel and Sam coming perhaps meeting with uni. next month to see what might look like, hopeful we will have some constructive discussion about how it works before it goes to UEB

CH – If members have any feedback/comments/suggestions about technical pathway, please forward these to reps so we can put it to Sam and Mel at TULCRA.

Member question – Are the union aware of recent disbandment of the staff disability network?

CH – We are aware of it, but not been given much information. Not sure how to respond.

Member read out extracts from disability networks resignation letter - Member read out extracts from disability networks resignation letter - the reasons cited for why they resigned – work not valued , not recognise or rewarded, not allowed for in their workload, not counted in SRDS, reasonable emails not been responded to and not taken serous, members taken addition workload on top of roles, and exhaustion – Uni mismanaging of this symptomatic of uni. problems in general.

CH – Agreed with member. The uni. relies on good will of people to work for them for free. See it in areas like sustainability or EDI. Terrible situation. Difficult to know where to put this/what to do with it - ultimately the uni. need to hire more people and pay people for doing these tasks, but it is hard to get the uni. to pay people on the bottom rung so don’t have minimum wage.

Member - Concerning that so many things happening in one go

CH - I will make a point of contacting other unions about disability staff network and seeing what we can do about it; at least we can stand in solidarity (ACTION – CH)

Would have financial report but Gary could not make it. Ask if anyone would like to be treasurer. (NOTE – a member volunteered to be treasurer on online chat. ACTION CH - make contact with member)

MB – We need strong unions. Some people talking about how trade unions not speak for them. The uni. tells us we don’t speak for staff. While we have a recognition agreement we do speak for all staff. The uni. should get people to join.

We asked again for new starts lists. The uni. told us it is against GDPR. But as staff you can just email people. We argue, trade union would is essential university work and we shouldn’t be stopped from seeing starters. If anyone sees new starters, please mention trade unions.

CE – Uni can be weirdly obstructive. They won’t invite us to inductions for example.

MB - In absence of the Student Union reps - will discuss issues of students union.

Union have got a mandate from industrial action for pay – served notice of strike action - CORRECTION SU are moving to a statuary ballot over pay. They have held and indicative ballot already. They do not yet have a mandate for industrial action - will talk to rep about that that entails – spoke to new regional officer yesterday – been in discussion with them about this strike action

CH – Reminder about the Government consultation about minimum service levels in Education. Explained it is mostly about schools and colleges but has implications for us to. It is not just about teaching staff, anyone is critical (so janitors, canteen staff) and teachers of parents who are front line workers. Undermine huge swathes of people’s ability to strike. Urged people to fill it in. [See people]

Member comment – Asked for posters and coffee morning at AMRC. A recruitment drive. Think recruitment drive would be a good idea and also would be good for existing member to see reps face to face drive – someone we can see – put our best foot forwards. In AMRC – Helen’s been organising. Noticed a drive by management to push out unions – management don’t want posters up, wearing logos

MB - A few years ago we did a day a week at AMRC for three weeks, set up a stall. Is a good idea to do again. Every so often we get regional officers for us to help organise, maybe ask it regional can give us some officers again (ACTION MB)

Member – Seen some posters up on NAMRC – not convinced they are on shop floor.

MB – Will the schools restructure impact AMRC?

Member – Been told we are not involved in any of it.

Member – Regarding recruitment. The uni. says they can’t share emails under GDPR is that the law? An stopping putting posters up – is that the law?

MB – It is not the case – we are able to put posters up in specified area. We are allowed to ask and where can we put these. If we don’t get acceptable answer – we can make complaints about that. We are entitled to communication and to visual representation, yes we are allowed to pout posters up. Ware allowed to send out communications – but depending on which way we read they law – yes they are right about GDPR – as your emails belong to you – not at liberty to give that out . Technically.

Member – Are there not exceptions to this? Isn’t union activity one of them? .

MB – Union activity is not directly an exception. The uni. says GDPR prohibits them from giving us staff contact details. W say that is not necessarily true – they can share it in certain circumstances but the unis still the law doesn’t allow them. The law says you don’t have to share if you don’t want to but they could sign an agreement with us to be data controller, that as a trade union body they trust us to use that information properly.

Member – The joint uni. petition about school restructure, that is a huge number of people. But the uni. will say it only represents some staff . The uni. will do everything to supress the voice of workers

CH – The uni. will take the voices of a very small about of staff as evidence for things they want to do, but when we present them with large numbers of other data, the uni. just hand wave us away.

Member – The uni. has very aggressive management. Never seen it like this. Schools restructure may have benefits, but the speed is too fast.

Member – Could we test GDPR? We could say to the uni., we will give you an email and you send it out a week after the new starters have started?

CH – We have asked them to do things like this in the past and they have refused.

MB – New starters get information that they can consult the trade unions if wish to. The uni. is no not hiding it, but they are not publicising either. The new starters have to opt in, to say the want the trade unions to contact them. We have asked if we can have it as an opt out – take it as a trade union can contact them. The uni. said no. They used to give us new starter information every month put say no.

Member - We should push back against the trade unions being discouraged

Member – The speed of the Faculty of Health restructure was shocking

Martin – Biosicences and Faculty of Health are being used as the shining examples for the schools restructure. We said Biosceinces haven’t had a proper review and it is to early to tell with the Faculty of Heath as the restructure is still ongoing.

CH – The uni. recently presented a review of the Biosciences restructure. I was not impressed but it – not a lot of evidence – not talked to a lot of people – mostly higher level and a small about of professional services staff.

During meeting some members requested posters for their area (ACTION CH – Posters for members)

Actions

CH - Contact other unions about disability staff network and seeing what we can do about it

CH – Make contact with member volunteering to do treasury role

CH – Posters to those who requested them

MB – Ask regional about organising officers for AMRC

Notes

Government Consultation

https://consult.education.gov.uk/industrial-action/minimum-service-levels-mls-in-education/consultation/subpage.2023-11-08.8512164202/

University of Sheffield Branch

Meeting Minutes Archive