We are writing to invite all members to an Extraordinary General Meeting to discuss last weeks Congress and the upcoming HE Sector Conference (HESC) on the USS Pensions dispute.
The EGM will be held on Wednesday June 13, 12pm-1:30pm in H0.60 and will focus on two topics – Congress and HESC.
Please note that if members wish to submit branch motions for approval at the EGM, in accordance with our local rules, these must be received by the end of the working day on Friday June 8.
- Congress 2018 Debrief
The UCU’s annual congress took place last week in Manchester and, as you may have heard, it was an unusually fraught event. Whilst a number of important motions were passed, and both FE and HE Sector Conferences were successful, Congress was ultimately suspended on Friday following disputes over the admissibility of 2 motions (the text of which are pasted below): motion 10, which called for a vote of no confidence in, and resignation of, the General Secretary and motion 11 which called for the censure of the General Secretary.
We will be given brief reports by Craig Gent, one of our Branch Delegates, and by Justine Mercer, Branch President, who also sits on the NEC. As background, please see the General Secretary’s statement received via email on Monday June 4th and responses from KCL and Exeter UCU Branches.
There will be time for questions and discussion.
- Special HESC on the USS Dispute on Thursday June 21, 2018 in Manchester
At our previous EGM on Thursday April 19th, Warwick UCU (alongside over 20 other branches) passed a motion calling for a special HE Sector Conference on the recent pension dispute. This has been called for June 21 in Manchester and will provide a much-needed opportunity to debrief the dispute, query and extend motions passed at Congress, and continue to build on the remarkable engagement of the union’s grassroots members with UCU’s democracy.
More information here.
Warwick is able to send 3 delegates to the meeting – if you would like to be a delegate, please email our Branch Secretary, Myka Tucker-Abramson at m.abramson@warwick.ac.uk by Tuesday June 12 at 5pm. If we get more than 3 applicants, Branch members will be able to choose our representatives from the list at the EGM on Wednesday.
We will also have a chance to submit motions to the HESC. If you would like to submit a motion, please send them to m.abramson@warwick.ac.uk by the end of the working day on Friday June 8. Standard rules apply – motions should be no more than 150 words in length (not including title). For more information on how to submit motions and motion rules, see UCU’s Standing Orders.
- AOB
If time permits, we will welcome AOB.
In solidarity,
Warwick UCU