Published: 25th February, 2020
Today was Shrove Tuesday. Having already practised our pancake-making skills during the last strike, one of our members suggested we picketed Mardi Gras [Fat Tuesday] style. Masks, beads and feathers were aplenty, we danced and sang, and one member turned up in beach gear – indeed, he seemed to bring the sunshine with him, which…
Published: 24th February, 2020
The current pattern of weather continued today. While we’re lucky enough not to be flooded in central Leicester, the constant rain and wind on this morning’s pickets made it challenging to keep our placards and ourselves dry. At least our loudspeaker is waterproof! Our theme for the day (before seeing the weather forecast) was #petsonpicketlines and…
Published: 21st February, 2020
Leicester UCU strikers were out again for the second of 14 days of strike action against cuts to pensions and pay. Today we were safe from yesterday’s heavy downpours, the only rain experienced was The Weather Girl’s ‘It’s Raining Men’ ringing out from the Victoria Park picket line. Every picket was full of striking staff…
Published: 20th February, 2020
Nice to see a photo from our Nov-Dec 2019 pickets adorning the BBC’s pre-strike story. But BBC, please, it’s not only lecturers who are now striking – also researchers, contract teachers and numerous professional services employees: counsellors, librarians, technicians, and others! Today it rained… but we were there. Sometimes the rain stopped… Then we got…
Published: 19th February, 2020
As you know our institution’s leadership team offered us a ‘deal’. If we agreed to refrain from campus demonstrations and agreed to report our strike action using their online form, then they would ‘generously’ spread pay deductions over three months. We consulted with all Leicester UCU members, via an e-ballot. That ballot closed at midday…
Published: 19th February, 2020
The following was issued to news media outlets in Leicester on Wednesday 19 Febuary. Tomorrow (February 20) lecturers, researchers and professional services staff at University of Leicester (members of the University and College Union) will walk out on the first of 14 days of strike action. They will be joined by colleagues at De Montfort,…
Published: 18th February, 2020
Why are we striking again? In a nutshell, because although UCU’s negotiators in both disputes have made progress, our employers have not shifted enough. As UCU’s general secretary Jo Grady has explained we have made considerable progress in the USS dispute – and Universities UK has the opportunity to end that dispute right now. The situation…
Published: 7th February, 2020
Email sent to all Leicester UCU members, 7 February You will have received – and hopefully read – the recent email from Jo Grady, UCU’s general secretary. You may also have seen the announcement on UCU’s website; or read newspaper reports, e.g. in the Financial Times or Times Higher. In a nutshell, our elected representatives on UCU’s higher education committee…
Published: 22nd January, 2020
Following the USS strikes of February and March 2018, Leicester UCU and University of Leicester’s leadership team established a joint pensions group. This group has met regularly since. Below and attached is a joint statement on the second report of the Joint Expert Panel, published in December. We are pleased that we have been able…
Published: 19th December, 2019
The Joint Expert Panel (JEP), which comprises nominees from UUK and UCU and which is chaired by Joanne Segars, chair of the Local Government Pension Scheme, has completed its second report on the USS pension scheme. This report looks in greater depth at how the scheme is run and how the dispute around the cost…
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