MAB strategy and Late Summer Assessments

At our Emergency General Meeting last week, UCL UCU voted in favour of a motion on the UCL MAB for the next few weeks, while we wait to hear about the long term UCU strategy decisions on the future of our dispute. This motion adopted some key points for us at UCL:

1. We advise UCL UCU members not to boycott the marking of new assessments such as the Late Summer Assessments, Postgraduate Taught marking, and other incoming work.

UCL have told us that they will deduct 2 weeks’ wages for boycotting LSAs and, given that our mandate for industrial action is due to expire at the end of September, there is little to be gained by off postgraduate marking that will still have to anyway be completed by the normal deadline.

2. That any marking and assessment that has not been carried out due to MAB action will not be marked unless and until UCL management withdraw their threat of punitive pay deductions. Please also note that the new 2 week deductions threatened by UCL for the boycotting of Late Summer Assessments (LSA) do not apply to already-boycotted work, but for failure to submit LSA marks by the 15 September deadline. 

If you have not set a LSA as part of the MAB, it is possible that you may be asked to do so now, and we advise co-operation to avoid further punitive deductions being applied.

3. If UCL management continues to demand completion of previously boycotted marking without removing the threat of punitive pay deductions, we will use our existing legal mandate to call for strike action during Induction Week (25-30 September).

We have written to UCL to ask to convene an emergency negotiation meeting to discuss UCL’s ongoing threats of deductions and we will report back as soon as we have more information from that.

Please also remember that if you have participated in the MAB or are able to pledge to support others, we need you to complete our secure webform so that we have up-to-date information. MAB deductions have not yet been made as UCL proposes to deduct in Nov, Dec, & Jan, so we are only asking for pledges not donations at this time.

We have also created a MAB calculator spreadsheet which estimates the impact of tax and national insurance contributions (NICs) on pay deductions.

So please:

1. Download the MAB calculator spreadsheet

2. Complete the webform to tell us whether you have declared your MAB participation, or are willing to make a Pledge or one-off donation.

UCL UCU Executive
www.ucl.ac.uk
@ucl_ucu  

Appendix: Full motion passed at EGM on 8 August 2023

UCL UCU notes:

• The intransigence of UCEA, who have not improved their 15 March final offer for the 2023-2024 pay dispute.

• The serious disruption caused by the MAB to management, students, and workers throughout the sector.

• The punitive pay deductions that have been applied to members participating in MAB, nationally and at UCL.

• That employers have disregarded academic standards in order to bypass the MAB, and progress or graduate students, thereby damaging the reputation of UK HE.

• That the delay by the General Secretary and officers of the union in authorising a new ballot for industrial action means there will be a break in the current legal mandate for industrial action, which expires at the end of September.

• That management can instruct members participating in MAB to carry out marking and assessment from 1 Oct when the mandate expires.

• UCL management’s threat of further punitive deductions for 14 days for MAB mid-September during the Late Summer Assessment period.

• The statements from the General Secretary on 1 August and UCEA indicating that the 2023-2024 pay dispute is deadlocked.

UCL UCU resolves:

1. To advise UCL UCU members not to boycott the marking of new assessments such as the Late Summer Assessments, Postgraduate Taught marking, and other incoming work.

2. That existing marking and assessment which has not been carried out due to MAB will not be marked unless and until UCL management withdraw their threat of punitive pay deductions.

3. That (if UCL management continues to demand completion of previously-boycotted marking) without removing the threat of punitive pay deductions, we will use our existing legal mandate to call for strike action during Induction Week (25-30 September).

4. To continue to challenge the legality of punitive pay deductions at UCL.

5. If the threat of punitive deductions is not withdrawn, to ask members who have not yet made a pledge to contribute to the UCL Fighting Fund, to help cover all members participating in MAB so that none suffer the loss of more than 7 days’ pay.

6. To call a further all-members general meeting next week to review the situation.