Tag Archives: UCU
Pensions and Pornstar Martinis
Question ; what have pensions and pornstar martinis got to do with each other Answer; after announcing they would have a day off from negotiating, the UUK pension team appear to have deferred to the bar for some of these … Continue reading
“Universities accept a small amount of increased risk” – Mike Otsuka’s USS update
What this UCU proposal involves and why it is justified In a meeting with Universities UK (UUK) employers on Tuesday 27 February, the University and College Union (UCU) proposed that “Universities accept a small amount of increased risk through a … Continue reading
UUK – you cannot dictate the terms on which you break your promises.
“Pension promises” are difficult. Lawyers tell me that the members of the University Superannuation Scheme (USS) do not have a contractual right to it. It could be argued that cutting off the oxygen of future accrual (as UUK are threatening … Continue reading
Could this letter have opened the lecture- room door to a pension settlement?
This letter needs to be read carefully. CDC is carefully positioned as one of a number of options available to improve benefits to staff. It would be in practice an upgrade to the existing DC scheme in place and … Continue reading
Posted in pensions
Tagged Alastair Jarvis, CDC, Dame Janet Beer, pensions, strike, UCU, USS
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The rotten boroughs of the Isis and the Fens – Mike Otsuka
On the implausibility of the Registrar’s denial of disproportionate Oxbridge influence In an article in the Guardian entitled ‘Universities strike blamed on vote by Oxbridge colleges’, Richard Adams reports that “the employers’ backing” of “policies resulting in the harsh cuts” … Continue reading
As Universities prepare for a strike, teachers try to limit the damage
This morning I’m publishing two blogs, one from Mike Otsuka which looks at tomorrow’s strike by University Staff from an economic perspective, mine looking at the human aspects of the strike. . Here are two emails from teachers in the … Continue reading
The role of Cambridge Colleges in the University teacher’s strike
This article by Mike Otsuka, is designed to be read together with my blog on the emotional intelligence of the teaching staff at Girton College Cambridge. Mike’s article has been widely read and quoted around Cambridge (this is how the … Continue reading
Why are university staff going on strike?
My son has started sending me the announcements he’s been getting from his University about impending strike. He’s at one of two Universities who have been leading the charge amongst employers calling for an end to DB accrual in … Continue reading
Posted in pensions, Royal Mail, USS
Tagged pensions, Royal Mail, Stuart Croft, UCU, USS, UUK, Warwick
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Pensions: universities could learn lessons from Royal Mail
David Pitt-Watson and Hari Mann believe there could be a way to settle the ongoing pensions row amicably University employers and university staff are locked in a dispute about pensions. Both have reasonable positions. The employers say that the cost … Continue reading
Posted in pensions, Royal Mail, USS
Tagged CWU, pensions, Royal Mail, trade unions, UCU, USS
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The magnitude of the challenge facing University staff – Mike Otsuka
Normally, an employers closing a DB plan for future accrual wouldn’t be that controversial, but our universities aren’t normal employers and these are not normal times, Mike Otsuka gives the background to the impending dispute between the Universities, its staff … Continue reading