Latest figures from the Office for National Statistics show that, tragically, as at September 2021 almost 160,000 people across the UK have died in circumstances involving Covid-19 since the start of the pandemic. Statistics also show that low paid, black and disabled workers have been at particular risk and that this is heavily influenced by […]
Conference motions
The Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic which caused the lockdown from mid-March 2020 has had serious repercussions across the higher education sector. Prior to the pandemic, many universities in the UK were already facing serious financial situations with 47 Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) having posted a deficit in July 2019. In July 2020 63 HEIs posted […]
Conference condemns the ongoing attack on our defined benefit (DB) pension schemes. Pensions are deferred pay and any cut to our pension schemes is a direct attack on terms and conditions. Conference notes the variety in pension schemes in the Higher Education section. Multi-institution, large scale schemes such as Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS), Teachers […]
“Conference notes the now well-established practice of Universities utilising various spin-off companies, single purpose vehicles and wholly owned subsidiary companies (WHOs) for a variety of different purposes, including cost saving measures. For example, a University may use a nominally separate company for some of its activity on a small scale to exploit intellectual property, on […]
Conference notes that within the UK approximately a quarter of families with children are headed by a single parent and of those single parents 90 % are female. Historically single parents have been demonized and discriminated against in a systemic way. This has led to a situation where single parents will face difficulties in work, […]
The past few years have been turbulent for everyone working in higher education due to the precariousness and uncertainty caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and Britain’s withdrawal from the European Union. The past couple of years have seen an unprecedented attack on higher education pay – with the national higher education employers not making a […]
Currently in the UK, almost one in three women will experience domestic abuse in their lifetime, while two women a week are murdered by a partner or ex-partner, usually after a sustained period of suffering abuse. The vast majority of the victims and survivors of domestic abuse are women and children, and women are also […]
Conference acknowledges that there are four nations within the United Kingdom (England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland), with each legislature having autonomy over Higher Education. This has meant that our Higher Education (HE) committees in those nations are more often than not negotiating directly with relevant devolved governments on a range of issues such as […]
For many, many years New Joint Negotiating Committee for Higher Education Staff (New JNCHES) has failed to deliver pay outcomes that improve or protect our members’ living standards. The employers’ approach to this negotiating forum has not reflected a commitment to genuine negotiation or collective bargaining, and despite the best efforts of our negotiators, New […]
In 2019, the Equality and Human Rights Commission launched an enquiry into racial harassment into public funded universities in Britain to examine staff and student’s experiences of racial harassment and the effects they might have on their education careers and wellbeing. The report highlighted that racial harassment is a common occurrence for many students and […]
Conference recognises the immense contribution our members working on campus have made throughout the coronavirus crisis. These members are often the lowest paid and had little choice but to return to campus even if they felt anxiety about doing so. While branches worked hard to ensure workplaces were as safe as possible and Risk Assessments […]
“This Conference notes: Across the country there are services offering pregnancy advice and terminations. These types of medical centres attract protesters who hold vigils, hand out leaflets and intimidate those on their way to access services. This has an impact on the wellbeing of those women accessing this type of service and also has a […]
“This conference notes: That because of the pandemic and its subsequent lockdowns, home working increased in the UK from around 5% to around 30%. Research carried out in the US identified that women were three times more likely to be the main care giver in the pandemic and that only 37% of women had a […]
“This conference welcomes: The Government’s proposals to extend the right to request flexible working to workers from day one of their employment. This will benefit many women with caring responsibilities. The move of many employers to introduce hybrid working for many office-based staff allowing women to work from home and the office. However, this Conference […]
While women were already doing most of the world’s unpaid care work prior to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, research suggests that the crisis and its shutdown response have resulted in an increase in this burden. It is likely that the impacts for women and families will last for years without interventions. What we […]