As you will know, our union has voted overwhelmingly to take strike action. We all understand that this is the last resort after every other avenue of influence has been exhausted. We believe there is no other way to make employers change their position on our demands.
This Is a very serious sanction and it is most effective when every member observes the strike. The longer the picket line, the shorter the strike. With this in mind, we’re asking all members to join us and take part in industrial action on the following days:
- Thursday 24 November
- Friday 25 November
- Wednesday 30 November (with a national demonstration at Kings Cross in London at 13.00)
KNOW YOUR RIGHTS
A post from our employer has now been uploaded to the intranet regarding the upcoming strikes. Please read the information below as it provides crucial information with regard to your rights.
You are under no obligation to inform your manager that you plan to strike before the first strike date.
The law states that employers can ask employees if they are planning to strike, but employees do not have to reveal these plans in advance. If you’re still not sure how to respond to a request from management, the following line will suffice: “My union advises me that I am not legally obliged to answer that question until after any strike action that has taken place“.
Non-members are eligible to take part in strike action. Please ensure you communicate this message to your colleagues who may not be UCU members, but do not wish to cross the picket line.
Once you are back to work following the strike action, you should respond truthfully to any query from your employer as to whether you have taken or are taking industrial action. You should not, however, respond to any such query while you are on strike.
‘Action short of strike’ means working to contract. It means you do not start early and do not work late. Make sure you take your full lunch break, every day. Do not check or respond to emails outside of working hours. Take the time you need to complete your work during any action short of a strike. Do not cover absent colleagues. Do not reschedule lectures or classes cancelled due to strike action. Do not undertake any voluntary activities. You can say NO to activities that do not form part of your formal roles and responsibilities.
UCU has provided an extensive FAQ for those who have questions about their rights, and more generally about taking industrial action. Please give them a look and become a source of reliable information for your colleagues!
TAKING ACTION & PICKETING
You might be asking: “When we take strike action, what am I expected to do?” Simply, UCU asks that members do not do any work for all of the days specified by the union: 24, 25, and 30 November.
This includes, for instance, time before 09.00 and after 17.00, and includes any activity which is part of your work such as teaching, administration, meetings, emails related to work, marking, research, or conferences where you are representing your employer. It also means not doing any preparation for work that you are due to do when you return to work after you strike.
More importantly, the best possible thing you can do is volunteer to help at the picket lines—and ask colleagues in your department to join you. Picketing is a vital opportunity to get support for your action from students and other colleagues.
Practically what that looks like is standing alongside colleagues outside of Senate and Stewart House, holding placards and sharing information about why we’re taking action. We’ll also visit neighboring picket lines to share our support.
JOIN THE MEMBERS MEETING THIS FRIDAY
We’ll be sending more details about an all-members meeting over Zoom on Friday morning from 10.00 – 11.00. We’re also planning an in-person meeting prior to the start of industrial action, so do keep up to date with local and national UCU communications, and make sure to follow UCU on Twitter for breaking news and information!
Lastly, let’s all hope that employers can negotiate with UCU and avoid strike action! As always, if you have any questions, please send them to ucu@london.ac.uk.
Sincerely,
UCU Senate House Branch Committee
Senate House UCU 