End of Semester A newsletter – calls to action
End of Semester A newsletter
Dear member
The branch has been very busy this semester addressing a set of very important issues. Here’s a summary of the key ones:
- Hardship payment claim
Following representations from UHUCU and UNISON, management agreed to meet to discuss making a hardship payment this academic year focused on the lowest paid. After taking into account the reduced UH surplus last year, we have now discussed and submitted a hardship claim for UH3-UH7 staff, which management is presently considering.
Members will recall this year’s pay rise of 1.4% was another real terms pay cut and the staff bonus was cut by 72% to £100. Meanwhile, UH holds cash and short-term deposits of £104.5 million, overseeing a 42% rise last year in the number of senior staff earning £100,000 and over. Unsurprisingly, in the recent staff survey, only 34% of staff agreed their pay and benefits compare favourably with similar employers. This is why our hardship payment claim is fair, just and reasonable.
- Formal failures to agree with management x3
UHUCU failed this semester to reach agreement with management on three important issues, namely:
(a) UH’s decision to increase parking charges by 50% in August;
(b) UH’s decision to remove confidentiality from the self-appraisal part of the appraisal process, breaching national and local agreements and our contracts; and
(c) UH’s decision to impose line manager teaching observations instead of ones by peers, breaching our contracts.
A branch meeting in October voted unanimously to authorise the UHUCU branch committee to register failures to agree on these issues. Following a specially convened Extraordinary JNCC (the forum for meeting senior managers), further discussions have been held to resolve (b). We are awaiting the outcome of these discussions before proceeding to declare failures to agree and to begin formal dispute negotiations, possibly with ACAS mediating.
- Our petition against parking charge increase of 50% surpasses 1000 signatures
Our campaign to reverse the 50% parking charge increase has gained huge support. Over 1000 staff, students and supporters have now signed our petition. When we leafleted campus car parks, the strength of feeling was unmistakeable. One member of staff described the increase as a “monstrous decision” while a student asked: “The University claims to listen to students, but why isn’t it listening to us now?” If you haven’t signed the petition, please do so here.
- UH refuses to disclose University expenses at THE Awards event in November
It has just come to our notice – via photographs shared on social media – that 20 predominantly senior UH staff, past and present, attended the Times Higher Education Awards dinner in Edinburgh on 13 November, including the ex-VC, Quintin McKellar, and the Chair of Governors, David Sproul. We requested details of the total cost to UH of attendance at the event from the Group Financial Officer, Alistair Moffat, and from the Deputy Vice Chancellor, Professor Mairi Watson but, disappointingly, our informal request was refused. We have now submitted a formal Freedom of Information request for the total aggregate cost to the University of 20 people attending the event.
- Two semester teaching confirmed
Following representations from UHUCU that national and local agreements must be adhered to, the Deputy Vice Chancellor, Professor Mairi Watson, has confirmed that staff should not be timetabled to teach more than two semesters, unless they expressly agree. Accordingly, staff timetabled to teach three semesters without their consent can have their timetabled teaching adjusted to two semesters. (This is subject to exceptions – see our advice email of 29 October 2025 for full details.)
- Check your new academic workload allocation carefully
Your new academic workload allocation is now available in WAMS or the Workload Allocation Management System here. We strongly urge all members to access their new workload allocation as soon as possible and to compare it very carefully to their existing workload allocation. You should look for errors but above all for any aspects of your new workload allocation which you consider to be unfair compared to your existing one, resulting in an excessive workload.
You should bring any such errors, unfairnesses and excesses directly to the attention of your line manager – but also to your local UHUCU School representative so these issues can be collated and analysed by us for generic problems requiring adjustment on the master Workload Allocation Framework. You can also email us confidentially at uhucuoffacc@outlook.com
This is important because workload is, of course, intimately linked to stress. On 11 December 2025, the Health and Safety Executive found that the University of Birmingham did “not have appropriate arrangements in place for managing work-related stress.” It found that its work allocation model was “used as a tool to manage work tasks for academic staff” but also that “staff are routinely working additional hours to complete work required, including evenings and weekends – there are no measures in place to monitor its effectiveness.” We need therefore to ensure workload allocations are as accurate and fair as possible so we can deploy them effectively as evidence of excessive stress-inducing workloads. As the Birmingham University case shows, we cannot rely on the employer to do so.
- Equate, Research, Redundancies and VL pay
Equate – UHUCU successfully negotiated a more user-friendly Equate application form and also for School Panels to determine applications rather than the School Dean. We contested the removal of UH9 from the Equate process but could not dissuade UH from doing so. We are currently concerned by inconsistencies in the use of the criteria for determining applications leading to potentially unfair refusals. Let us know if you’ve experienced such issues with the new Equate process by emailing us confidentially at uhucuoffacc@outlook.com
Research – UHUCU has been very concerned by the introduction of a new research policy which means that anyone in receipt of a minimum SRR-related research allocation (0.2FTE) could have this research time removed from them, at a 100% discount rate, for any external funding they subsequently receive. Let us know if you’ve experienced such issues with research by emailing us confidentially at uhucuoffacc@outlook.com
Redundancies – UHUCU has been representing members made redundant following the announced closure of CAFEM (Centre for Agriculture, Food and Environmental Management). We have been very concerned by the way the redundancies have been undertaken and are representing several members in their appeals.
Visiting lecturer pay – UHUCU is gathering information on the impact of recent changes in how VLs are being remunerated. Let us know if you’ve experienced issues with VL pay by emailing us confidentially at uhucuoffacc@outlook.com
- Staff survey results
Initial information from the staff survey reveals starkly contrasting but not altogether surprising results. On the one hand, it’s clear staff value their immediate working relationships and teams, with 94% saying they have good relationships with colleagues and 84% agreeing colleagues are willing to help each other, even beyond their usual responsibilities.
On the other hand, however, only 34% of respondents feel their pay and benefits compare favourably with similar employers. Only 29% think the University Leadership Team listens and responds to staff views. Only 29% think changes are usually for the better. Only 30% think change is well managed. Only 40% think it’s safe to speak up and challenge the way things are done. Only 41% think the research culture is supportive and inclusive.
These are significant issues. They stem from the perennial failure of universities to pay staff fairly, to address ever-intensifying workloads, and to redress a worsening top-down management culture. UH can begin to mitigate these issues by making good decisions – not bad ones such as the 50% parking charge increase.
- UCU national ballot result
Members will be aware that UCU’s national ballot – over pay, mass redundancies and attacks on national agreements – failed to reach the turnout threshold of 50% for the result to be legally valid, falling well short at 39%. At the same time, of those who voted, 70% voted for industrial action.
The result points to real discontent about pay and conditions but also to lack of belief in national UCU’s ability to lead a strike and win it. Given the depth of the higher education crisis – pay down in real terms by 20-30% since 2007-9 plus 10,000 or more redundancies – this is cause for concern. At the same time, the result adds force to the argument of some that UCU should consider merging with a stronger union such as the National Education Union (NEU) to help build its industrial strength in the higher education sector. These are issues for further discussion.
Finally, we take this opportunity to wish all our members a restful and peaceful Christmas and New Year break.
Dragan Plavsic
UHUCU President
On behalf of the UHUCU Branch Committee