Report of Special HEC, 19th February 2025

By UCU Commons HEC members

This was convened by a majority of HEC members requesting a meeting to: ‘Discuss matters and make decisions arising from the HEC meeting of 12 December 2024’. UCU Commons members on HEC were not part of this call; in fact, we had a HEC timetabled for a few weeks later on 7 March, and some of us raised the legitimacy of it being arranged, both in advance of and at the start of the meeting. To our minds, the business to be discussed was neither urgent nor timely (as per Rule 2.1 of our standing orders). Vivek Thuppil made an official challenge to the remit of the meeting, but the Chair decided not to take a vote on this, because she felt it was important for the meeting to happen to get clarity, and appropriate under the rules.

Additionally, in advance of this meeting (and anticipating that it would go ahead regardless of our concerns), UCU Commons Thuppil and Mark Pendleton submitted the following motion:

Focus on defending jobs & reforming UK HE

HEC notes:

1. Launch of Stop the Cuts HE campaign by UCU
2. Continued announcement of HE redundancies across the UK
3. UK-wide strike ballot costs upwards of £200,000

HEC believes:

1. Branches need to direct member energy to fight disputes over jobs
2. A pay rise is worthless for a member that does not have a job
3. To stem the rot, wholesale reform of HE is needed by reforming the broken funding model, achieving equitable student distribution, and ending the hostile environment
4. There is no appetite from lay members for a UK-wide ballot on last year’s pay
5. Union resources in the amount of £200,000+ should not be wasted on a futile ballot

HEC resolves:

1. To call off plans for a UK-wide industrial action ballot
2. To focus energies on root-and-branch reform of UK HE
3. To preserve union resources for supporting branches in local disputes

The motion was shared widely along with our open letter for members to sign. This received over 250 signatures by the time it closed on 18 February, and the link to the open letter was shared with HEC members in advance.

The first set of decisions to make were the recommendations in the Committee Secretary’s report:

1. That any new Campaign considers and, where appropriate, seeks to incorporate the motions passed previously at HESC and HEC in 2024 relating to campaigning activity, as well as outstanding motions from HESC 2023 which remain relevant (such as HE29, ii).

2. That any new Campaign takes into account our asks in upcoming national negotiations and seeks to complement these asks.

3. That a date for the knowledge sharing hybrid event on redundancies for HE branches which emerged from HE1 in May 2024 is agreed as soon as possible and scheduled prior to the May 2025 Congress.

These are uncontroversial and passed 27 in favour, 0 against, 5 abstentions.

We were also presented with a document from the Campaigns team, which outlined the logistics of conducting an immediate ballot and the ability to take meaningful action. This made it very clear that the time needed (both baked in and necessary in terms of the time needed for us to make threshold) would not allow us to do this, as it would take at least 15 weeks from calling the ballot to the first day of action. The paper included this illustrative example to show that strike action could not happen during the teaching term:

“If letters went to individual JNCHES employers on Tuesday 25 February 2025, then

• notices of ballot could go to employers on 18 March

• ballot could open on 25 March

• ballot close on 13 May (7 weeks)

• notices of action to employers on 20 May

• industrial action could commence from Tuesday 3 June

In summary: If letters to employers were sent in w/c 24 February (week 1) then the earliest action could commence would be w/c 2 June (week 15).”

Past experience of successful national ballots show that 7 weeks is the minimum time needed to make the necessary threshold (50%). There is no wiggle room on any of this. Nevertheless, members of UCU Left and Rank and File Revolution insisted on questioning the veracity of the information in the document, repeatedly questioning the expertise and competence of the Head of Bargaining, Organising, Representation and Operations, who was the attending official.

The remainder of the motions and amendments submitted to the meeting are below as an appendix. In terms of the ballot, essentially, the choice in front of us was to call off the ballot on last year’s pay claim (Motion 1, above); press on with an immediate ballot (Motions 3 and 4, below), or a compromise position between the two (Motion 2, below), moved by members of Rank and File Revolution.

As the meeting was only two hours long, the Chair decided to take a debate on all motions as one, with the vote from the most extreme option (i.e. immediate ballot) first. In moving Motion 1, Thuppil did not give a traditional moving speech, instead noting that as HEC were not going to listen to anything he had to say, they might listen to members, proceeding to read out as many of the comments that had been submitted by signatories to our open letter as time allowed. At the end of the debate, the votes were as follows:

Motion 3: 15 for, 19 against, 1 abstention

Motion 4: 16 for, 18 against, 1 abstention

Motion 2: 20 for, 15 against, 0 abstentions

Motion 1: 16 for, 19 against, 0 abstentions

Motion 5 amendment 1: 24 for, 4 against, 6 absentions

Motion 5 amendment 2: 21 for, 9 against, 3 abstentions

Motion 5 as amended: 21 for, 10 against, 1 abstention

Motion 6: 21 for, 10 against, 2 abstentions

Motion 7: not voted on due to lack of time

Therefore, our motion (1) to call off the ballot fell, but so did the motion for an immediate reballot, HEC instead choosing a compromise position (Motion 2) which to our minds simply kicks the can down the road. In terms of the call for a rally in Motion 6, we were advised by the attending official that there was already such a rally planned for 10 May, and therefore holding the same event a few days earlier was unnecessary. As things stand, the rally on 10 May is the only one being arranged and this seems to have been accepted by the motion’s mover, as far as we can tell.

We welcome the lack of an immediate ballot, as this is not something we can practicably do in order to take meaningful action, as outlined by the campaigns update. We also remain extremely concerned about ongoing member disengagement and distrust in our union’s national decision making bodies, which was further damaged by the reckless decision to call a ballot on 12 December 2024.

****

Motions and Amendments to 19 February HEC

2   Fighting for our sector: tackling the crisis in UKHE

Grant Buttars

Vicky Blake

HEC notes:

• Extensive programme of support for branches in dispute agreed at HEC December 2024 albeit balloting before Easter no longer possible (M1)
• Multiple branches balloting over redundancy
• JNCHES 2025/6 round imminent
• HE9 from SHESC, May 2024: “UK-wide action”

HEC believes:

• Widespread threats to job security, pay and conditions
• Branches facing redundancy urgently require collective, coordinated support
• Current crisis necessitates robust political and industrial responses

HEC resolves to:

1. Execute a strong campaign addressing destruction of UKHE, including:

a.   Emergency job protection measures in joint unions’ claim

b.   Undertake pre-emptive planning for potential IA ballot (for IA early in Semester 1, 2025/6), for consideration at a BDM, informing decisions at a special HEC called at appropriate point to take final decision on balloting.

c.   Call sectoral days of action to align with branches taking local strike action.

2. Implement actions agreed in M1&2 (December 2024 HEC), ensuring connected political-industrial strategy.  

3   Defend HE – Action on Jobs and Pay

Marion Hersh

Christina Paine

HEC deplores
1.  Threats of massive redundancies and department/unit closures and condemns the many institutions trying to force through redundancies and  "voluntary" severance.

2.  Continuing job insecurity and redundancies of casualised workers
3.  Massive pay erosion.
4.  Decline in HE funding
5.  Workload intensification.

HEC congratulates branches taking action against redundancies and closures

HEC believes that action on pay supports action on jobs.  Taking action
makes us stronger, avoiding action makes us appear weak and encourages employers.

HEC agrees to:
1.  Call a ballot asap, with a long ballot period and strike action starting on May 1
2.  Encourage other unions to join our action and students to take supporting actions.
3.  Link strike action to a massive political and media campaign for a massive increase in HE funding and the abolition of tuition fees with these costs covered by government.

4   Defending HE at the crossroads

Carlo Morelli

Saira Weiner and Matt Perry

HEC notes

1. The crisis in Higher Education funding continues to intensify. OFS predicts 70% of universities will operate at a loss next academic year.
2. Phillipson’s review of HE funding is expected in June.
3. Successful ballots for strike action over redundancies on short timescales in Dundee, Newcastle and Brunel.
4. December HEC Motion 1 outlined a political campaign for a fully-funded sector alongside a ballot for a fully-funded pay rise, i.e. government should pick up the shortfall.
5. UNISON is balloting branches over pay.
6. A pay fight can boost a fight against redundancies.

HEC resolves to

1. hold an IA ballot permitting focused strike action in the Summer Term before Phillipson’s review reports;
2. ensure a national redundancy avoidance programme is included in the current JNCHES claim;
3. plan a second ballot over the summer to allow further action at the start of 2025-26 academic year.

5   Spreading the Fightback

Matt Perry

HEC notes:

1. The current employers’ offensive that began shortly after our failure of the reballot in autumn 2023.

2.   The waves of job cuts that coincide with the absence of a national mandates for industrial action (mid-2020-21, spring 2022-autumn, late 2023-present).

3.   The scale of redundancies—900 a month— is historic and unprecedented.

4.   Branch (Dundee, Newcastle, Brunel) resistance through industrial action is welcome.

HEC resolves:

1.   To circulate to all branches with Northern Region’s Open Letter to Bridget Phillipson, weekly updates on branches with redundancies, balloting and taking action.

2.   To organise speaking tours in all branches of strikers from a branch taking action.

3.   To delete the ‘notes’ at end of ballot authorisation form.

4.   To minimize timelines to industrial action (eg combine ballot, dispute and pay-strike authorisations).

5.   To advise branches to insist on ‘no CR guarantees’ and combine action against job losses and their workload implications.

Amendment 5A.1

Grant Buttars

HEC resolves/1: replace with, "To circulate to all branches in England the Open Letter from Northern Region to Bridget Phillipson. Devolved nations should be encouraged to do something similar and appropriate to put pressure on devolved governments. All branches should be sent weekly updates on branches with redundancies, balloting and taking action."

Amendment 5A.2

Carlo Morelli

Add in HEC resolves:

6. Authorise maximum levels of hardship payments for Newcastle, Dundee, Brunel and other branches taking industrial action.

7. Organise weekly online campaign meetings, led by branches taking action, to share advice and experiences.

8. Ensure raising solidarity with branches taking industrial action is showcased on the UCU website and in the weekly communications.

6   Mobilise for HE day of action

Cecilia Wee

HEC notes:

-       Rally of Parliament by UCU Scotland in January calling for a budget for HE

-       The Strathclyde VC was persuaded to give staff time to attend rally

-   The alarming number of HE institutions announcing redundancies and course closures throughout the UK

HEC believes:

-       HE is in crisis

-       We require a visible, collective response bringing together HE staff, students and communities

HEC resolves to:

1. Organise a national day of action on May Day, with rallies organised in regions & nations and lobby of Parliament
2. GS to write to all VCs/principals of HE institutions in advance to request staff and students time off to attend
3. Mobilise with student groups (including NUS), building on networks and methods developed through Palestine campaigning
4. Provide suitable materials highlighting TPS pensions, crisis in HE, high costs of student loans, and tertiary education as a public good.

7   Making a calendar of key dates to assist timing of industrial action for maximum effect

Grant Buttars

HEC notes:

1. term times and exam periods vary
2. timing industrial action to suit all branches is tricky.

HEC believes:

1. a readily available matrix of key dates for each institution, arranged by nation or region, would assist in making decisions related to industrial action (IA)

HEC resolves:

1. to arrange a form to be sent annually to branches to allow the compilation of a matrix of teaching term, exam, and other key dates for their institutions for the coming year.
2. that this matrix be made available to branches online such that it can be seen by branches, and by delegates to any meetings discussing IA, including but not limited to HEC, Congress, Conference and BDMs
3. the time required to collect this data does not provide justification for delaying implementation of decisions by democratic bodies of the union on IA.