Overview 

The University has introduced a Voluntary Severance Scheme (VSS) to support deficit reductions and achieve a financially sustainable position. This scheme is available to all qualifying employees who wish to voluntarily resign in return for a severance payment. 

Key Points of the Scheme 

• Eligibility: All employees with at least one year of service, except those on fixed-term contracts ending before January 31, 2025, or those who have already accepted another job offer. Adjunct Faculty are ineligible. 

• Application Period: From October 3, 2024, to October 31, 2024. 

• Severance Payment: One month’s basic salary for each year of service, capped at 12 months and a maximum of £50,000. 

• Notice Period: Employees will work their full notice period, with faculty expected to teach until the end of the Spring semester. 

• Settlement Agreement: Required for the severance payment,we pushed for the fee to be aligned with UCU costings and the University have agreed to cover up to £400 plus VAT for independent legal advice. Settlement agreements must be reviewed by a solicitor or other independent legal adviser before they are legally binding in the UK. 

• Re-employment Restrictions: Employees leaving under the scheme cannot return to work for the University in any capacity for two years. 

Financial Considerations 

• Tax Implications: Payments over £30,000 will be taxed, potentially at a higher rate, which could be refunded at the end of the tax year. Higher National Insurance contributions and student loan repayments will also apply. 

• Payment Timing: The lump sum will be paid in your final month’s pay. 

• Benefits eligibility: You may not be eligible for benefits you may wish to use a benefits calculator 

Leave Entitlement 

The Branch has raised concerns that faculty members, who are contractually obliged to take leave out of term time, will lose their annual leave if they take up the scheme. Faculty will be expected to teach until the end of the Spring semester, providing time to seek alternative employment while being paid until the end of May.  The University has responded to our concern as follows:  

“…whilst we do appreciate the majority of Faculty would not take leave during the semester, the employment contract does not completely rule this out (see extract 9.2 below). This means that some colleagues may take some leave during a semester”. They have also agreed that accrued leave may be paid but would be subject to tax.  

We advocated for payment of annual leave for all, rather than leaving individuals to negotiate on this issue in the terms of their settlement, as annual leave is a statutory right. We advise all those approved for VS to apply for their full remaining annual leave entitlement (calculated from September to the end of May; approximately 25 days) in writing to ensure there is written evidence in case of any dispute over this issue.

Independent Advice 

• Financial Advice: MoneyHelper 

• Legal Advice on Rights: ACAS 

• Career advice: National career advice 

UCU Support 

While your UCU Branch cannot offer financial or legal advice, members have access to UCU national legal advice through their membership (please contact the Branch for a referral and view UCU Legal information). We are here to support you and to fight for fair terms and conditions. 

For further details, please refer to the full Voluntary Severance Scheme document or contact HR. 

Richmond UCU Branch Executive Committee 

Summary of Key Feedback from the UCU Working Space Survey, Jan/Feb 2024 

General overall feedback on the proposals indicated a breakdown in communication and concerns over functionality of the space (currently and in the future): 

Around half of employees are not satisfied with the current working space at Chiswick.  

Figure 1: Satisfaction with current working space 

A minority of respondents are very satisfied with the current lay out and the improvements in conditions over the former campuses in Richmond and Kensington  

Figure 2: Satisfaction with future working space 

When asked about the future plans for working space only 7% were very satisfied, 10% satisfied. The majority of respondents were dissatisfied with the proposed working space arrangements. 

The majority of respondents felt they were not adequately informed about the future plans for the reconfiguration of the ground and first floor (indicating communication has been ineffective). 

People are concerned about the reduction in desk space for faculty and staff.  

Worries over hot-desking and the practicalities of finding a space to work. It was pointed out that the room booking system is not easily accessed as it is, and it is not practicable to book a desk to work on when ad hoc spaces are what is needed. 

Most participants voiced concerns about storage, especially storage on dedicated desks, as is the practice for some faculty and staff. 

Others mentioned issues related to access to natural light and a consistent temperature.  

The importance of having a space that was separate from students was raised by the majority of employees due to concerns over: confidentiality, noise, and security of possessions and food. 

Currently, space is being managed poorly; students using meeting spaces to eat in, using classrooms as social spaces and the laptops in classrooms to play games on etc. Lecturers are going into classrooms to find students having disconnected cables on the main laptop and food left in the room. 

Dedicated spaces with clear demarcation and adequate sound-proofing were cited as critically important to colleagues’ ability to carry out basic functions of their roles: 

The lack of any quiet working spaces currently and the need for availability of specific quiet spaces, with natural lighting, were cited as essential for carrying out work requiring concentration, and for colleagues who are unable to work effectively with distractions. 

The availability of specific collaborative spaces in which colleagues can talk without the worry of disturbing others. 

The availability of meeting spaces which are faculty/staff only (i.e., not available for students to book) for meeting with colleagues or students, or participating in Teams meetings. 

Clear areas that are faculty/staff only are needed. 

Working from home was welcomed by some but was raised as an issue by many: 

Mandatory home-working is not viable for everyone as home circumstances vary widely; this is a major worry for those without the space to easily work from home. 

If faculty and staff are required to work from home they raised the issue of increased personal costs of utilities (heating, electricity, etc.) 

Summary and Recommendations 

Open and clear regular communication and consultation throughout the process is needed. HoDs are not generally cognisant of individual personal circumstances. Dedicated spaces to suit all aspects of operations are needed. Storage, including lockable storage for personal items, is essential, as well as space for materials used in teaching.  

Adequate management of the space currently and in the future is essential to the smooth running of the university. Home working needs to be addressed by the UET and assessed via the University policy. In addition, all employees need to be canvassed to determine the viability of homeworking for everyone. Tax relief guidelines for home working need to be reviewed to see if the university can accommodate claims.  

There was also concern whether the University has a long-term plan for the use of space as expensive, temporary changes seem to be undertaken. Moving forward, the future strategy for the management of space at the Chiswick Campus needs to be transparent, shared with all stakeholders (faculty, staff and students) and clearly defined. 

The UCU met with members of the University Executive Team on 15 December to discuss the findings of our 2023 Stress Survey. Following up on the UCU’s 2021 survey, we reported that unacceptable levels of stress have continued for faculty and staff at Richmond. The main causes are increased workload and poorly managed changes (ie. last minute deadlines, information requests, etc).

See here for the UCU Stress Survey Preliminary Findings Report 2023.

The University has a legal duty to address unacceptable levels of stress. UCU have called on the University to make this a priority. Workloads need to decrease. More faculty are needed to redistribute the load and responsibilities. UCU has argued that unacceptable levels of stress should be solved by moving Adjunct Faculty to permanent contracts, and stopping the use of zero-hour contracts!

We also agreed that we all need to work together to destigmatise mental health. Mental health is a workplace issue. As the UCU reports, “One in four people will experience some kind of mental health condition in the course of a year.” While there are a number of factors involved, economic recession, workplace uncertainty, and stress exacerbate the issue.

Don’t suffer alone. Report your unacceptable levels of stress. Tell the Union.

To find out more or to get involved, email the UCU branch. You can also attend the UCU course, Mental Health is a Trade Union Issue, online 10 May.

https://www.ucu.org.uk/workloadcampaign#resources

This Halloween RAUL UCU will reveal the horror story of pay at Richmond and listen to the haunted tales of insecure contracts from our ghost adjunct faculty!

Join us for our action in Chiswick on October 30th and Leeds on October 31st.

Help us end our nightmare…

Welcome back to another academic year at Richmond!

For an update on what the Branch was up to over the summer and campaigns for the fall, see our more recent newsletter.

We have also launched a second Occupation Stress and Workload Survey. All employees at Richmond can complete it and the information is vital to ensure a reasonable workload. The survey closes Friday October 6^th. Please complete it if you can. Click here to start the UCU Occupational Stress Survey 2023.

We are also continuing pay negotiations. We will keep you up to date, but please reach out if you would like more information or want to get involved!

We have received the results from the consultative ballot on industrial action that the RAUL-UCU conducted in July in response to pay at Richmond.

The votes were:

74% said yes, they were prepared to take industrial action consisting of a strike in response to pay.

82% said yes, they were prepared to take industrial action consisting of action short of a strike.

There was a 64% turnout for the ballot.

While this is only a consultative ballot, and does not commitment the Branch to any industrial action, it does indicates that members are overwhelmingly willing to take action to improve pay at Richmond.

The Branch will discuss these results, and actions members want to take coming out of them, throughout this semester, starting at the next Branch Meeting on 13 September, 12-1:30pm.

The Richmond UCU Branch received nominations for the following Committee Officers:

• Chair – Sue Pell
• Secretary – Samantha Bracey
• Treasurer – Emmanuel Okyere
• Membership/Recruitment – Shuna Neilson
• Health and Safety – Martin Brown
• Staff – Anita Amies
• Green – Catherine Dille
• Equalities – Lucia Morawska

At the close of the nomination period, no nominations were received for the RIASA Officer or the Adjunct Faculty Officer.

Please read the candidate statements here. Nominations will be ratified at the Annual General Meeting on 5 May, 10am.

The RAIUL UCU Branch has upcoming election for UCU Committee Officers, which will be held online May 4th. A nomination period for Committee Officers will run between March 23rd and April 6th. See here for full information.

All UCU committee officer roles are open for election with the successful candidates serving for a period of one year and will receive workload points (Union Facilities Time) to carry out their duties. Anyone who is a UCU member can stand for office. We would encourage anyone who is interested to do so, or to enquire for more information. 

If you wish to stand for election, please provide a short candidate statement (approximately 200 words) explaining why our members should vote for you. 

Please email nominations to the Returning Officer, Paul Rekret (p.rekret@richmond.ac.uk) by 12pm on Thursday April 6th. As per our Constitution, all nominations must be accompanied by written consent of the nominee and supported by two members. Nominations and confirmation will be accepted via email and will forego the requirement of a signature. 

Once nominations are received, any contested positions will go to a vote to be held online (anonymously via Microsoft Forms) prior to the Annual General Meeting at 10:00am on Monday May 5th. Results will be announced during the AGM. 

We encourage you to consider putting yourselves forward for a position to help support your union. We would be pleased to discuss any questions you have at richmonducubranch@richmond.ac.uk