As you’ll know, we took strike action on 2nd and 3rd October to pressurise the University and UCEA, the employers’ organisation to which the University is affiliated, to re-open negotiations over the 2023-24 pay round. Thanks to our pressure, we were given between 5% and 7% in August, depending on spinal point, but with inflation very high at the time and prices still rising, this represents yet another real-terms pay cut.
We all know that the University of Brighton is not cash-rich but that doesn’t mean we should accept working more for less, as prices continue to go up. Some of our members are clearly struggling to afford the basics, and that’s without worrying about the cost of energy bills this winter.
Our current strike mandate runs out at the end of January 2024, so this ballot, if we win it, gives us the option to act, if we feel we need to, between March and August. Having a strike mandate allows us to put pressure on UCEA and indirectly, on this or the next government, to fund universities properly and pay university workers a wage we can all live on.
Your ballot paper should be delivered to your home address.
If you don’t get yours soon, you can call 0800 0 857 857 and ask for a replacement.
Please make sure you respond by returning your ballot paper in the envelope provided. It’s important that we hit the 50%+ turnout, or the vote won’t count, but perhaps more importantly, we need to know if our members are prepared to take action ahead of any decisions we make locally and nationally.
We’ll be asking members if they’ve voted, so you can help by letting me know when you have done. Just email unisonhelp@brighton.ac.uk or message us on Teams.