In January this year, the University began the formal process of collective consultation with our local branch of the University and College Union (UCU), over proposed redundancies in our Faculty of Health and Life Sciences. The proposed redundancies are part of a wider restructure in the Faculty to enable re-investment in areas of specialism.
A recent ballot of UCU members indicated support for industrial action / action short of a strike (ASOS). We have been notified by UCU, that ASOS will take place from Monday, 10 May, until the dispute is settled or no later than six months after the close of the ballot. ASOS refers to members of UCU working to their contracts and not undertaking any ‘voluntary activities’
Professor Gavin Brown, Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Education, said: “We want to be clear that consultation over these proposals is ongoing. The consultation period has already been extended to allow for further discussion and is currently paused to enable detailed consideration of the concerns raised by the trade unions, including specifically the issues upon which UCU have balloted their members for industrial action.
“It is regrettable that UCU has now called for industrial action before the consultation process has even concluded and all of us at the University hope that a resolution to the current dispute will be found. We have explained the background to the issues in dispute here.
“We fully recognise that this is already a difficult and stressful time for students and the news of this action may be an additional cause of worry and concern for you. I would like to reassure you that we have well-established and robust mitigation measures that take account of a wide range of scenarios to minimise disruption.
“We will be asking colleagues to prioritise your teaching and marking of assessments within their workload and we will be in touch with you again shortly about other measures to mitigate the impact of this particular situation.
“We have been committed to supporting you during COVID-19 and will continue to do so during the period of action. If at any time you feel you might benefit from some extra support, please access our wellbeing drop-in, available online or by phone or you can book an appointment in the Alsop Building. Our teams are available via phone and email between 9am and 5pm, Monday to Friday. Information on all other support available can be accessed here.”