Monthly Archives: June 2019

Cardiff UCU Motions to UCU Congress 2019: “Protect LBGT+ studies/protect LBT+ staff”, “Workload, Mental Health, Health & Safety, and Workplace Suicide”

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Two super-important motions were moved on our behalf at the UCU Congress a few weeks back by our branch President Ryan Prout;

  • The first, on LGBT+ studies and protection of LGBT+ colleagues was passed; and
  • The second, which called on UCU to campaign for a new law to force employers to record workplace suicides (in light of the tragic loss of more than one of our Cardiff colleagues in recent years), was remitted to the UCU National Executive Committee because time ran out. We hope it will be passed soon.

Work-related mental health crisis in Universities:

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Research by Liz Morrish (who spoke recently at Cardiff in an event supported by us) identifies widespread structural issues with workplace stress in UK HE.

UCU Congress in 2019 also saw an important fringe event (co-organised by Cardiff UCU branch President Ryan Prout) about the epidemic of stress and bullying in the workplace. Among other things, stats were shared form the UK’s Education Support Partnership charity.

Counsellors at Education Support Partnership, the only charity dedicated to improving the wellbeing and mental health of the whole education workforce throughout the UK, dealt with a record 9,615 cases between April 2018 and the end of March 2019, the largest number in the charity’s history. At the same time, its counsellors continue to report that more calls are coming from those already experiencing a crisis. Read more here.

Cardiff UCU continues to campaign on unmanageable workloads at Cardiff University, and along with the Union nationally is seeking to use Health and Safety legislation to pursue its claims and force recognition and changes. To find out more or get involved, or want help negotiating unrealistic workload demands, email ucu@cardiff.ac.uk.

If you are experiencing mental health difficulties and need someone to listen now, please, please, please ring the Samaritans on 116123, call the University’s outsourced and confidential employee assistance programme Care First on 0800 174319.

Here is more info on support provided by the University to staff.

Your views on the effects of your savings and investments:

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The Ethics for USS campaign have made us aware of this survey being run by the Department for Work and Pensions.

If you could all fill it in and ask your friends (whatever pension scheme they are in) to do so, that would be great!

Background: Pension schemes like USS constantly use a definition of Fiduciary Duty which *only* takes into account monetary return and ignores ethical and environmental concerns. If the legislation were clearer, they would have to take members views into account.