Members will be aware that UCU will be providing support through a package of strike pay from its Fighting Fund, aimed at partially offsetting lost income due to participation in this important period of industrial action.

UCU Bradford University Local Association is also pleased to report back on its appeal to management to reconsider their proposal to make strike deductions over two consecutive pay periods.

UCU’s alternative proposal that pay be spread as evenly as possible over three pay periods has now been accepted by management. 

The branch is aware that there will be a rally in Centenary Square in Bradford from 11 until 12 noon on 1st February.   The event is organised by the NEU but understand that a number of trade unions will be attending in a show of solidarity.

An invitation to attend that rally has been accepted by Bradford UCU LA; accordingly the picket will move on to that event following the stint at the Gt Horton Road entrance, and all are welcome to attend.

All other advice as detailed previously for those where it may be convenient to visit more local strike events still applies.

Following on from the first of two EGM’s this week, the branch confirms that there will be a picket on 1st February from 8:30 am until 11:00 am.

Recognising that this is a day of action across several sectors, including by rail staff unions, the branch is asking for volunteers who are able to travel or live locally to campus to commit in advance to attending the picket.   Please either let yourself be known to the Chair at Friday’s EGM or email ucusupport@bradford.ac.uk.

Those who are able will then move on to Leeds to take part in the TUC rally from 12:00 noon at Leeds Town Hall.

Members who are unable to travel to campus may prefer instead to visit other UCU picket lines or those of other trade unions more local to them as a demonstration of solidarity.   Alternatively you could go straight to the TUC even in Leeds.

Tweet photo’s of your visit to @ucubradford and let us know of your escapades.

Please remember that you are ‘just visiting’ and should not play an active role in the picket in such circumstances.

Any member who does in the event find they are able to attend the picket here on campus will be most welcome.

With the 1st February strike date looming, UCU HQ have now announced a full programme of dates through February and into March, the strategy agreed by HE Committee following consultation with branches.

Strike dates are as follows:

• 1st February,
• 9th & 10th February,
• 14th to 16th February,
• 21st to 23rd February
• 27th February to 2nd March,
• 16th to 22nd March (5 working days).

Please look out for branch email advice on plans for strike days, make every effort to attend EGM’s, and check here for further updates.

An assessment of the cost to you of a loss of a days pay can be viewed here*:

The net cost of striking. If you strike, you will be deducted… | by Sarahcjoss | Jan, 2023 | Medium

*This assessment should be regarded as a guide only – your actual deductions will depend upon your personal circumstances.

With ongoing developments in the programme of industrial action, Bradford LA Committee agreed to hold two Extraordinary General Meetings in advance of the next day of action, 1st February 2023.

Given the short notice, meetings will be held on both 25th and 27th January to enable as many members as possible to attend.

Meetings will be on-line and take place between 1pm and 2pm on both days.

Members should watch for an email invitation with Zoom links in the coming days.

Following deliberation by the HE Committee, and taking into account the views of branch delegates, UCU  have announced that the next strike day will be

Wednesday 1st February 2023.

A further 17 days of action are planned for the following weeks, dates of which are yet to be announced.

We recommend that members keep an eye on your mail and other branch channels for details of Bradford’s plans for the upcoming period of strike action.

The joint unions arrived at today’s meeting prepared to enter serious negotiations. We were disappointed that UCEA did not appear to share that approach.

We presented our joint union claim for pay, which was RPI + 2% or £4K
(whichever is higher) to address the need for a cost-of-living adjustment and begin to address the real terms decrease in salaries over the past decade.

In response, this claim was described as an “April Fool’s joke” by UCEA.

UCEA indicated that there was no prospect of significantly improving their offer. However, after an adjournment they informed us that they were willing to go away and remodel their offer with the possibility of a very modest increase in the quantum of funding.

We are meeting with UCEA next on Wednesday 25th January, and we hope that the employers will engage in serious negotiations with us

News reaches the branch that UCEA have tabled an improved offer in a meeting with UCU that took place on 11th January 2023.

The General Secretary Dr Jo Grady tweeted her pride in the  membership, who’s commitment to the latest round of industrial action has been instrumental in getting the employer back to the negotiating table.

The General Secretary is clear though that there is much more to do, that the new offer remains inadequate, but that the likelihood of further action will maintain pressure on our employer to come back with a realistic and respectful offer.

Two years on and the fight continues. Employers have not waited until the end of the pandemic to continue making things worse for staff. This has been an incredibly difficult period, but employers have picked this moment to attack staff pensions and impose another real-terms pay cut, while failing to make progress on casualisation, workload, or pay inequality – even though the sector’s income continues to increase.

• Vote YES to strike action and YES to action short of a strike
• Talk to at least 10 colleagues and remind them to vote (and get those 10 colleagues to pledge to do the same)
• Contact your branch and offer to become a departmental rep or help in some other way to get the vote out across your university
• Make your participation in the dispute(s) visible by changing your profile pictures on social media and using our other campaign resources
• Talk to non-union colleagues and students about why you are taking action. Employers will do their best to paint you as unreasonable, when they are the ones who are choosing to invest less in their staff and can afford to make an offer that would avoid industrial action.

The ballots close on Thursday 4 November at noon, so please post your papers as soon as possible.