March Work confer11а.л.-бр.т., article headed 'Higher Education workers must reject de. grading offer' in February's P"The offer, which has bees recThe offer, which has been recfar formally accepted by unions representing non-teaching staff, Kives c.y7 to non-manual stall. and 3.9% to manuals for this bargaining year, backdated to the various settlement dates for cach bargaining group.
ror tc next barsaining ycal. starting very soon, the offer is 2.9% for non-manuals, and 3.4% for non-manuals - or the March RPI (plus .5% for manuals) -This is nearly double the original "final" offer, and is entirely calls the 'historic' national strike by all the unions last November It is much better than the stupid offer made just before Xmas which was also a 2-ycar deal, but forgot about backdating!
WHAT'S ON Sat 22 Dockers' demonstration (Liverpool)
April Sat 5 Campaign Groups steering committee, Ip.m. Calthorpe Arms, Grays Inn Road, London WCI Sat 12 March for Justice, 12 noon, Central London May 10-14 British legs of EuroSat 31 Labour Left conference, London Weish Centre, 157 Grays Inn Road, London WC1, 10.30a.m.5p.m. June Sat 14 - Amsterdam constration maintain the national negotiating machinery on conditions of service, which the employers had said they intended to scrap.
The offer represents a victory. for staff, the vast majority of whom either have agreed or will is weighted towards the low-paid is also a victory.
It would be absurd to scriously propose rejecting it. Obviously huge amount required to restore the value of the pay of many sections of staff to what it was 10 years ago and more. agenda, and would need massive injections of cash from government. as would endine the deterioration of higher education in general.
The offer allows staff to move on to campaigning for better funding and against attempts to step up the rate of exploitation, with the confidence gained from a pages monthly. £1.50) for just £10. £.... plus a donation of £... Name Address Post Code The attitude expressed in the ar acie coura not unite activists, and would leave them and us standing on the sidelines. Other criticisms of the article are that it seems to be written from a purely teaching angle, with no idea of what was going on amongst nonteaching staff. The article does not spell out a goal to struggle for - what offer would be acceptable to Paul Urwin? And crucially, though it should not necessarily be mentioned publicly, there was no relish among the collective membership for more strike action. It may have been possible to have had another united strike, but not to plan an escalating program. Localised actions were increasingly being discussed; but across large groups of staff these have a de. mobilising effect, are long-term, and do not involve all members. Mike Pixton and Andy Kilmister, Oxford.
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