Higher Education E Bulletin Issue 9-Aug05

Amicus Launches New Education Website
Gateways to the Professions Report
Age Discrimination Legislation
London Bombing near miss for UCEA and ECC Ltd
24-7 Work Life Balance Survey
UCEA to Launch Race Communication Project in Wales
London Senior Reps Reject London Weighting Offer
Leicester University Climbdown
New Regional Officers Join the HE Sector
Amicus Reps Survey Published
Greater ExpectationsAmicus Launches New Education Website

Work has been going on to improve the Amicus Education Sector website. The aim has been to post negotiation material that representatives can download directly. In particular information relating to Hay or HERA negotiations including some completed grade boundaries have been placed on the site. In addition to these items it is hoped to post HE Circulars to representatives, details of the Higher Education National Industry Committee and its delegates, as well as directing representatives to useful links. If your local university workplace group has it own link that you would like to arrange to be placed on the Amicus site then please forward details to Amicus researcher Janet Golds on janet.golds@amicustheunion.org

It is hoped that representatives will also use the sector discussion forum to alert each other on progress of negotiations at each university. To access the website go to the amicus website at http://www.amicustheunion.org and open Sector/Higher Education. Or try http://www.amicustheunion.org/Default.aspx?page=451

Gateways to the Professions Report

The Minister of State for Lifelong Learning, Further and Higher Education – Bill Rammell, informed the House that the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, Ruth Kelly, has received a copy of Sir Alan Langlands’ report examining the gateways to the professions. Sir Alan Langlands was appointed by the Secretary of State for Education and Skills – Charles Clarke last year, following the debate on the Higher Education Bill, to act as an independent person to oversee the report. Sir Alan was asked to examine how the public sector and the professions can sustain and improve recruitment opportunities for graduates, especially those who do not qualify for the full £3,000 support that will be available in grants and bursaries under our plans to introduce variable fees from 2006. He was asked to put forward recommendations on actions that can be taken by employing organisations to provide clear and accessible gateways for all graduates who want to pursue such careers and which will benefit the recruitment needs of these sectors. Sir Alan formally started his work on 1 July 2004 , following Royal Assent of the Higher Education Bill, and has agreed that his report should be published, along with the Government’s response, in the Autumn of 2005.

Age Discrimination Legislation

Under new measures to outlaw age discrimination in the workplace over 65’s are to get the same rights to unfair dismissal and redundancy payments as younger workers. The new measures – published in draft – are the final stage of implementing the European Employment Directive. With approval from Parliament the regulations are due to come into force on 1 st October 2006 . The draft regulations include a ban on age discrimination in terms of recruitment, promotion and training. A ban on all retirement ages below 65, except where objectively justified and the removal of the current upper age limit for unfair dismissal and redundancy rights. There will also be a duty for employers to consider an employee’s request to continue working beyond retirement, and a requirement for employers to give written notification to employees at least 6 months in advance of their intended retirement date. Allowing people to plan for their retirement. For further information on the new legislation please go to www.agepositive.gov.uk

London Bombing near miss for UCEA and ECC Ltd

Both UCEA and ECC Ltd premises were affected by the recent London Bombing. The office premises at Woburn House in Tavistock Square were across the road from the bus explosion that took place in London on July 7 th . No staff were directly injured in the blast but windows in the building were broken. It is understood that after staff were ordered to evacuate the building by Police on the day, some staff found it difficult to return to the building once permission was given to return the following week. A message of support from Amicus was sent to staff. Also Amicus staff and members including the HENIC delegates who were at Amicus HQ on the 14 th July stood in silence outside the Amicus building as a mark of respect for those who had died or been injured in the bombing that shook the Capitol.

24-7 Work Life Balance Survey

The survey is being jointly run by, the Work Life Balance Centre in Leicester, the Centre for Industrial Relations at Keele University and the School of Health and Related Research at Sheffield University. The survey is an internet-based questionnaire, which asks workers to highlight the problems they encounter with their work-life balance. The survey will run from September 8 th to October 31 st and the findings will be reported in January 2006. The researchers are particularly keen to ensure there is a broad range of responses from workers. Please do participate in the survey and complete the online questionnaire (from 8 September) at www.24-7survey.co.uk/

London Senior Reps Reject London Weighting Offer

As part of the JNCHES negotiations all unions submitted a claim for improved terms for London Weighting. In particular it was seen as a way to get an increase in London Weighting because some institutions LW allowances have not been increased for 10 years or more. In the JNCHES negotiations the employers tried to get agreement for an increase for post ’92 institutions only. The senior reps in London met in July and have unanimously rejected the post ’92 only offer. Mike Robinson National Officer has written to UCEA Chief Executive Jocelyn Prudence and advised her of Amicus position. The next step will be to see how many other unions also reject the offer.

UCEA to Launch Race Communications Project in Wales

UCEA, the HE employers association, in conjunction with Equality Challenge Unit, the HE equality body are to launch a new race relations communications project in Wales next month. Invitations to the event are being handled by UCEA with senior HR and trade union figures are expected to attend. The date for the launch is 23 rd September in Cardiff . Details of the Project will be released on the day and will figure in the next edition of ebulletin.

Leicester University Climbdown

Staff at University of Leicester were recently perturbed to discover that an announcement that the University was planning to extend the working hours of clerical and technical staff from 35 to 37 hours. To add insult to injury the HR Director also bypassed normal negotiating machinery to advise the workforce of the plans by email and notice to staff without the courtesy of discussing the issue in the normal trade union negotiations. The changes were to be part of the harmonisation of terms and conditions. In another affront the University Finance Director told a packed Amicus meeting that the changes were being made because the University Council wanted a surplus in its financial accounts. Mike Robinson National Officer who was at the Amicus meeting on the 4 th August told members the union would do everything to stop the implementation of the plans. He said ” Amicus will do all it can but we want members to stand by the union when it calls for support. We urge all non members not to sit on the fence but to join the union to present a united front to these draconian measures”.

Following the Amicus meeting a negotiating meeting pressed for the withdrawal of the plans. HR and management have now agreed to withdraw the plans and to put the matter into discussions on the Framework talks.

Mike Robinson said “It’s a retreat but it may only be a tactical one. Amicus will seek to ensure the plans for an increase in the working week are not implemented and that our member’s wages are not used to supplement the University’s financial strategy”

New Regional Officers Join the HE Sector

A host of Regional Officers have recently joined the team covering the HE sector. The changes come about as some staff have left. In London Region Sara Warburton comes in to cover the Capitol from Naomi Nicholson who has left. In the South West Jerry Packham takes over from Patrick Canavan who takes early retirement and in Liverpool Martin McKeown replaces Steve Power who moves over to look after Housing associations. In Eastern region Ian Maidlow extends his coverage and now not only covers Cambridge University but University of East Anglia and Essex University as well. Steve Syson now covers Lincoln University . Further changes are expected in the North East and South East due to VR departures and will be announced shortly.

Amicus Reps Survey Published

The results of the amicus reps survey into the progress of job evaluation and modernisation have now been complied. The survey gives a snapshot of progress on implementation of the Framework Agreement.

The survey reveals that a number of HE institutions have done little to implement the agreement made between the employers association (UCEA) and trade unions. (nearly 15% have done nothing). 14% of institutions have forced through the job evaluation without consulting the trade unions fully on the methodology. 48% of trade union reps surveyed have been denied access to job evaluation software or data by employers.

Only 18% of institutions are committed to an equal pay review after the job evaluation has been implemented.

On the plus side we have managed to negotiate good parity appeals process in 33% institutions who have commenced the process. 40% of Amicus reps surveyed are using joint steering committees. Over 62% are using our preferred evaluation method, HERA (Higher Education Role Analysis). Amicus is further ahead on negotiations in many institutions than other unions.

Commenting on the survey Mike Robinson National Officer said “Higher Education is a key sector of the economy. Amicus insists that full job evaluation and an equal pay review are carried out in partnership with unions, not as some antediluvian Vice-Chancellors believe, without us.

The stakes are high, because if pay does not recognise the value of workers skills, then there are many other growth sectors that will seek to employ these highly skilled workers.

Would you send you son or daughter to a University with no technical back up staff? That would be the prospect if this process goes wrong”.

Full details of the survey have already been sent out to representatives but if you want a copy contact Janet Golds the Amicus researcher who complied the results at janet.golds@amicustheunion.org

Greater Expectations

The Equal Opportunities Commission has concluded a two-year investigation into pregnancy related discrimination at work. What they have found out as a result of the investigation has proved to be much worse than they anticipated. For example, a million pregnant women are likely to experience discrimination at work if current trends continue. Women who lose their jobs miss out on £12m in Statutory Maternity Pay each year and on average return to hourly earnings that are 5% lower than they could have expected. This discrimination has serious far reaching implications for Government and employers. Women make up nearly half of the work force and are increasingly highly qualified. Unfair treatment at work means they will be unlikely to return to their old jobs after maternity leave and are six times more likely to consider not going back to work at all. Mike Robinson, National Officer said, and “The results of this investigation make for shocking reading. Employers should be seriously concerned about these results. Employers not only lose their workforce if someone leaves but also lose out on skills, knowledge and experience, and they also face extra costs for recruitment and training of new staff. If the Government wants the UK economy to continue growing, this situation must change and change for the better” For further information about the investigation and to download a copy of the summary report please go to www.eoc.org.uk/cseng/policyandcampaigns/suffer_summary.pdf

This bulletin has been produced by Janet Golds, Research Officer for the Higher Education Sector. If you have any news items you would like included in the e bulletin, please contact Janet Golds.

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