Ballots have now gone out to members to elect a new General Secretary of the union (as well as a trustee and other national executive committee members including vice-president for FE). Further information about the ballot is on UCU’s website here, but if you don’t receive your ballot by Monday, 5th Feb you should request new ballot papers. Online hustings for the position of General Secretary will occur Thursday, 1st Feb at 12:30, and you can register here. There will also be hustings in person and online hosted by UCU Scotland at the University of the West of Scotland in Paisley on 13th February at 14:30. The ballot closes on Friday, 1st March at midday, but we encourage you to vote as soon as you’ve made up your mind.
Below we provide an election statement provided by all of the GS candidates to UCUG and a manifesto or other document (linked below). As we’ve seen over the last 10 years (and whether you believe this is a good thing or something that should change) the General Secretary has had an enormous influence on how the union has operated and the positions it has taken, so it is critical that you vote. Please do – turnout in previous elections has been around 20%, which is too low for such an important vote that only happens every 5 years!
UCU General Secretary candidate messages
From Vicky Blake (Vicky Blake – manifesto):
To learn more about my campaign or to contact me directly, please see my website and my detailed manifesto: https://vickyblakeucu.uk. My website also hosts my blog, with commentary on previous and ongoing union business. Further links to social media and my mailing list are below.
Twitter: https://twitter.com/zenscaraBluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/vickyblake.bsky.socialMastodon: https://mastodon.social/@zenscaraFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/VickyBlakeUCUMailing list: https://tinyurl.com/VBUCU24
Email: VickyBlakeUCU24@gmail.com
From Jo Grady (Jo Grady – manifesto):
This month you will get 3.7% more in your pay packet because of lower USS contributions. Next month, on February 15, the union will take part in the final process which will see your USS pension fully restored on 1 April. But I know, because I have heard from so many of you that we could do better, and I know we must do more. Not only are many members are struggling with threats to their jobs, such as we are witnessing at Aberdeen, but we haven’t yet won everything that you deserve when it comes to things like pay, workload, and job security. You deserve candidates in this election who will lay out a plan for how that changes over the next five years, and I do this here, in my strategy for HE. I can’t deliver change on my own. If you believe, like I do, in the potential of our incredible union, then I ask you to read my manifesto and to vote for me, and for all the candidates standing for election who support me.
From Ewan McGaughey (Ewan McGaughey – manifesto):
Thanks so much to all Glasgow colleagues for taking the time to look at this election – just 20.5% of members voted in 2019, so everything that you do to vote, and get all colleagues to as well, really matters. My name is Ewan McGaughey, I’m a professor of law at King’s College, London, specialising in labour law and public services, I’ve served as KCL UCU branch president, and I’m asking for your #1 vote to rebuild UCU to win, and transform UK education. We need a strategy above all – where there’s been a void – to actually win ballots, take legal action to defend workers’ rights, and be both respectful and coherent in our discourse. Please check out the support for this campaign, and sign up too! We have to have clear goals, and I’m pledging (1) to reverse the real pay cuts over 20% since 2009, (2) workplace democracy, with majority staff-elected governing bodies, (3) structural reform to end the pay gaps, including at least 26 weeks’ paid parental leave, (4) job security in written collective agreements (5) a two-thirds elected board at USS, (6) boosting our legal department at UCU, (7) 100% clean energy at UCU, and all universities and investments, (8) restoring public education funding. With clear strategy and goals, we’ll win back the over 6000 members lost since 2019, and go far further. When I was KCL UCU branch president, we got among the highest ballot turnouts in the UK, conducted two local ballots and won the highest London Weighting pay, among the highest paid parental leave, more staff elected to council, a written collective agreement enshrining job security, and we reversed at least three discriminatory dismissals. I know UCU can change – stop the infighting – and have a positive agenda to win. Check out www.ewanmg.uk for much more. And vote, because together, we will succeed.
From Saira Weiner (Saira Weiner – manifesto):
Members can email me on saira4UCUGS@gmail.com and visit my website saira4GS.wordpress.com.