UCU Strike
UCU Strike
Next week members of the University and College Union will be striking again.
That includes me so I thought I'd start a thread so that half the board can post in support and the other half can tell us we're a bunch of feckless, work shy c.nts.
That includes me so I thought I'd start a thread so that half the board can post in support and the other half can tell us we're a bunch of feckless, work shy c.nts.
briefly Stephanie's favourite user
- Bird on a Fire
- Princess POW
- Posts: 10142
- Joined: Fri Oct 11, 2019 5:05 pm
- Location: Portugal
Re: UCU Strike
I'll get in early with the support.
Last time I was around a UK university during a UCU strike they had really good messaging, too, in order to communicate to students what they were striking about and why. Try to convince as many of them as possible to direct their ire up the food chain to the bean-counters holding the purse-strings, etcetera.
It was a nice contrast from the strikes around here, which unfortunately tend to be antagonistic b.llsh.t mixed with chaos.
Last time I was around a UK university during a UCU strike they had really good messaging, too, in order to communicate to students what they were striking about and why. Try to convince as many of them as possible to direct their ire up the food chain to the bean-counters holding the purse-strings, etcetera.
It was a nice contrast from the strikes around here, which unfortunately tend to be antagonistic b.llsh.t mixed with chaos.
We have the right to a clean, healthy, sustainable environment.
Re: UCU Strike
More support from me. Good luck!
And remember that if you botch the exit, the carnival of reaction may be coming to a town near you.
Fintan O'Toole
Fintan O'Toole
- GeenDienst
- Dorkwood
- Posts: 1093
- Joined: Wed Nov 13, 2019 10:10 am
Re: UCU Strike
You're a bunch of feckless, work shy c.nts.
I support that.
I support that.
Just tell 'em I'm broke and don't come round here no more.
Re: UCU Strike
Speaking as a feckless workshy c.nt, I fully support you
"My interest is in the future, because I'm going to spend the rest of my life there"
-
- Stargoon
- Posts: 127
- Joined: Mon Nov 11, 2019 4:44 pm
- Location: Stourbridge
Re: UCU Strike
Beat me to it, You rotten swine, With appologies to Eccles.GeenDienst wrote: ↑Thu Nov 21, 2019 5:39 pmYou're a bunch of feckless, work shy c.nts.
I support that.
- Little waster
- After Pie
- Posts: 2385
- Joined: Tue Nov 12, 2019 12:35 am
- Location: About 1 inch behind my eyes
Re: UCU Strike
*LW dashes in*Blackcountryboy wrote: ↑Fri Nov 22, 2019 8:32 amBeat me to it, You rotten swine, With appologies to Eccles.GeenDienst wrote: ↑Thu Nov 21, 2019 5:39 pmYou're a bunch of feckless, work shy c.nts.
I support that.
"Speaking as a ..."
Oh nothing, nevermind, I'll just go back to skiving then.
This place is not a place of honor, no highly esteemed deed is commemorated here, nothing valued is here.
What is here was dangerous and repulsive to us.
This place is best shunned and left uninhabited.
What is here was dangerous and repulsive to us.
This place is best shunned and left uninhabited.
- Stephanie
- Stummy Beige
- Posts: 2902
- Joined: Wed Sep 25, 2019 4:38 pm
- Location: clinging tenaciously to your buttocks
Re: UCU Strike
I support Turdly in all they do.
"I got a flu virus named after me 'cause I kissed a bat on a dare."
- science_fox
- Snowbonk
- Posts: 512
- Joined: Mon Nov 11, 2019 1:34 pm
- Location: Manchester
Re: UCU Strike
I did strike last time, we had a clear (well eventually it was clear) goal and defined end point. It was reached and the strikes stopped.
It is much less clear this time. There's no threat to DB. All the numbers that UCU are arguing over will be re-evaluated in 2 years time. I've found https://twitter.com/MikeOtsuka persuasive, although as ever with twitter and the UCU I don't know any of the factional fighting details.
I'll probably not strike this time, but may ASOS, although as I don't teach I'm not sure anyone will notice.
It is much less clear this time. There's no threat to DB. All the numbers that UCU are arguing over will be re-evaluated in 2 years time. I've found https://twitter.com/MikeOtsuka persuasive, although as ever with twitter and the UCU I don't know any of the factional fighting details.
Ours didn't. In general the UCU's communications seem very poor. I had to join twitter just to find out what was happening.ast time I was around a UK university during a UCU strike they had really good messaging
I'll probably not strike this time, but may ASOS, although as I don't teach I'm not sure anyone will notice.
I'm not afraid of catching Covid, I'm afraid of catching idiot.
Re: UCU Strike
It's certainly less clear than last time. There's an interesting post about the HEC decision on what action should be taken herescience_fox wrote: ↑Fri Nov 22, 2019 9:46 amI did strike last time, we had a clear (well eventually it was clear) goal and defined end point. It was reached and the strikes stopped.
It is much less clear this time. There's no threat to DB. All the numbers that UCU are arguing over will be re-evaluated in 2 years time. I've found https://twitter.com/MikeOtsuka persuasive, although as ever with twitter and the UCU I don't know any of the factional fighting details.
Ours didn't. In general the UCU's communications seem very poor. I had to join twitter just to find out what was happening.ast time I was around a UK university during a UCU strike they had really good messaging
I'll probably not strike this time, but may ASOS, although as I don't teach I'm not sure anyone will notice.
Personally, I was undecided but we have recently had swathing cuts to support staff announced which will only make precarious working, deskilling etc worse so I've decided I will strike as some that would like to are less able to afford to.
briefly Stephanie's favourite user
Re: UCU Strike
Last time, I was a rank and file academic, didn’t like going on strike, felt it was worth it.
This time, I’m livid. UCU has been taken over by a bunch of folk who enjoyed so much the protest element of last time, that they have embraced protest for protest’s sake. On a vote with low turnout that’s frankly as marginal as the brexit vote in some HEIs, they’ve dragged us out, with no prior warning on an 8 day strike, that will lose staff nearly 1/3rd of a month’s pay, without asking us if that was sensible. And we are withdrawing our labour from institutions that don’t have any power to change the behaviour/effect of the things we are striking on.
And old fashioned lefties like me say that because we’ve been called out, principles of collectivism demand that we don’t cross pickets. So I feel obligated to take action because I think I can’t be seen to undermine that, even though I firmly believe it’s totally pointless.
And this time I’m in a dept management type job so I’m stuck on both sides of the fence anyway.
I’m really cross. Very conflicted. And also really, really cross.
This time, I’m livid. UCU has been taken over by a bunch of folk who enjoyed so much the protest element of last time, that they have embraced protest for protest’s sake. On a vote with low turnout that’s frankly as marginal as the brexit vote in some HEIs, they’ve dragged us out, with no prior warning on an 8 day strike, that will lose staff nearly 1/3rd of a month’s pay, without asking us if that was sensible. And we are withdrawing our labour from institutions that don’t have any power to change the behaviour/effect of the things we are striking on.
And old fashioned lefties like me say that because we’ve been called out, principles of collectivism demand that we don’t cross pickets. So I feel obligated to take action because I think I can’t be seen to undermine that, even though I firmly believe it’s totally pointless.
And this time I’m in a dept management type job so I’m stuck on both sides of the fence anyway.
I’m really cross. Very conflicted. And also really, really cross.
"The large print giveth, and the small print taketh away"
-
- Dorkwood
- Posts: 1513
- Joined: Mon Nov 11, 2019 1:22 pm
Re: UCU Strike
Somehow I've got no teaching next week. On the other hand, I've got visitors from an Australian research institute visiting to interview to select students to go on placement there next year and I'm the new placements tutor.
I'm also very much in agreement with DrTf.
I'm also very much in agreement with DrTf.
- snoozeofreason
- Snowbonk
- Posts: 495
- Joined: Fri Nov 15, 2019 1:22 pm
Re: UCU Strike
My place isn't on strike because we didn't get the requisite 50% turnout in the ballot, but apparently we might reballot in the new year. The rules on ballots, if I have interpreted them correctly, seem to have the perverse effect that by voting against strike action you can ensure that it happens. If 40% of members in an institution vote in favour of action and no one votes against then there is no strike. If opponents of strike action pull their finger out so that 15% of members vote against, and the same 40% vote in favour, then you do strike.
In six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them. The human body was knocked up pretty late on the Friday afternoon, with a deadline looming. How well do you expect it to work?
Re: UCU Strike
That is why I abstained, in an attempt to reduce the likelihood of quorum.snoozeofreason wrote: ↑Fri Nov 29, 2019 1:03 pmMy place isn't on strike because we didn't get the requisite 50% turnout in the ballot, but apparently we might reballot in the new year. The rules on ballots, if I have interpreted them correctly, seem to have the perverse effect that by voting against strike action you can ensure that it happens. If 40% of members in an institution vote in favour of action and no one votes against then there is no strike. If opponents of strike action pull their finger out so that 15% of members vote against, and the same 40% vote in favour, then you do strike.
I hate this strike, it’s making me feel a bit ill. It’s right to raise awareness of the issues, but a national strike isn’t the way, except for the pay claim, which no one is talking about (mainly because it’s preposterous)
Precarious jobs are a big issue, especially zero hours, but that a local decision made by each institution, dept even. So pressure there is already diluted. My dept for example doesn’t recruit to zero hrs contracts, others do. Surely these are local agendas.
Gender pay gap and equality by contrast is a national conversation, and one that needs to start at pre-school. I think it’s fascinating and frustrating in equal measure that HE is expected to solve inequality in education from adulthood, when the students and staff have all been through an education system a that has long since entrenched difficult difference in academic capital.
So it all seems a bit hand-wavy to me, really.
"The large print giveth, and the small print taketh away"
-
- Dorkwood
- Posts: 1513
- Joined: Mon Nov 11, 2019 1:22 pm
Re: UCU Strike
My institution opened a dialogue with the union on getting rid of zero-hours contacts after the last strike, which the union emailed to update everyone about just a few weeks ago: so the strikes feel somewhat unnecessary on that front.
- snoozeofreason
- Snowbonk
- Posts: 495
- Joined: Fri Nov 15, 2019 1:22 pm
Re: UCU Strike
I also have a bit of a nerd-grudge about with the UCU over the process by which the current General Secretary was elected. The reverse of the ballot paper had an explanation of the ranked voting system being used, and the explanation was pretty obviously wrong, because it referred to redistribution of "surplus" votes, which can't happen if only one candidate is to be elected. I would be the first to admit that this is a bit of an academic point, but we are a union of academics, so we ought to get academic points right (and it's no excuse either to try and blame Electoral Reform Services - they ran the election, but it was still our election).
I did write to the Union about it, and was disgruntled to get no response at all, not even a "Thank you for your email which ̶h̶a̶s̶ ̶b̶e̶e̶n̶ ̶t̶h̶r̶o̶w̶n̶ ̶i̶n̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶b̶i̶n̶ is receiving our attention".
I did write to the Union about it, and was disgruntled to get no response at all, not even a "Thank you for your email which ̶h̶a̶s̶ ̶b̶e̶e̶n̶ ̶t̶h̶r̶o̶w̶n̶ ̶i̶n̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶b̶i̶n̶ is receiving our attention".
In six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them. The human body was knocked up pretty late on the Friday afternoon, with a deadline looming. How well do you expect it to work?