UCL/UNISON Consultative Meetings

UCL and UNISON have termly consultative meetings. Report of most recent meeting is below:-

Report of meeting held on 15 May 2003

Attendance:-

1. Manual New Starters

UCL agreed to look into the possibility that Manual Staff were not receiving invites to induction meetings and starter packs which would include an introduction to UNISON along with a UNISON membership form and recruitment newsletter.

2. HR website link to trade unions’ websites

UCL UNISON web site is now on the A-Z list of departments. There continues not to be a direct link from the HR site- this is to be actioned by HR.

3. Facility arrangements

UCL UNISON Branch Secretary is being monitored for time-off, having to complete daily monitoring sheets plus attendance of review meetings (next meeting 17 July). UNISON stated its disquiet at the implied level of mistrust that such monitoring intimates

4. Financial situation - an update

UCL reported that the financial situation had significantly improved with a savings of £1m in administration. UNISON requested information about where and how these savings were made. HR agreed to supply this information. Total Deficit is now forecast to be £2m.

5. Recognition for A/R staff - UNISON

UNISON raised the issue again with UCL about UNISON recognition for A/R staff in the context of proposed contract changes for MSD/ISD staff as UCL had raised some concerns that UNISON were involved in negotiations for a section of staff for which it wasn’t the recognised trade union. It was agreed that UNISON should continue to represent those staff on the condition that UCL AUT were in agreement.

6. Capability Procedure

At a previous Consultative meeting UNISON had indicated that the Capability Procedure may well be illegal under the Health and Safety legislation of the early 1990s as the job should fit the person and not the person fit the job.

Agreed: UNISON (action:- Mr Lehm UNISON Health & Safety Officer) e-mail HR the relevant Health & Safety information to which they are referring.

7. London Weighting

UCL reported that they wished to add nothing to what had already been said in the past.

UNISON raised the issue of the formula used to calculate loss of pay which when used resulted in higher deductions when the month was shorter (e.g. February 1/28 of take home pay). UCL stated that the present formula would not change.

UNISON raised the issue of overtime payments being included within the deduction formula. UCL stated that if any member of staff was being deducted overtime which they would not usually get on a day of strike action they would need to inform payroll and the appropriate re-compensation would be authorised.

8. Breast Cancer Screening

Following on from last consultative meeting UNISON asked whether there was any scope for a breast cancer screening to be made available to staff via our links with the local NHS Trust.

Agreed: UCL undertook to ask the Occupational Health Services Manager if that might be possible.

9. Review of Pay of Porters at ICH & HERA

Meeting was being arranged about these subjects with HR. HR stated that on conducting HERA amongst porters at ICH and main site that they scored the same points. The discrepancy in pay was due to a shift allowance enjoyed by Porters on UCL site which was specified in their contract. UNISON raised some concern that HERA had been applied in this case when the pilot had not been completed at EDI. However, UNISON did state its commitment to working with UCL on implementation of HERA, the preferred UNISON job evaluation scheme

10. Time off for HE UNISON Conference

UCL raised some concern over a previous request for time-off for HE UNISON conference by a UNISON member along with a request for time-off in-lieu. UNISON explained some of the background to this request and UNISON’s commitment to proportionality in terms of grade, gender and race of UNISON delegations to conferences. UCL made a suggestion that one option could have been for the member to swap shifts.

11. Sickness Absence (SAP) & Capability Procedure (CP)

UNISON raised a number of inconsistencies and problem areas in the current SAP & CP which included the following:-

• Unfair targeting of specific departments. Inconsistent implementation across UCL
• The use of absences included within trigger days as workplace accidents
• Including absences due to pregnancy related illnesses in the trigger days
• Policy being disadvantageous to A/R, clerical and manual staff as compared to academics, who can often “stay at home” when sick on the pretext of working. Such absences would not be recorded

UCL was currently collecting statistics on Sickness Absence and agreed a review with UNISON when these statistics were available. It was hopeful that this would be next month (June)

12. Flexible Working Policy

UNISON raised some concern over the consultation on the above policy where UNISON had raised a number of amendments, which on the face of it had been accepted by UCL, but on publication of policy very few had been taken into account. UNISON raised concern as to the meaningfulness of such consultation. UCL stated that it was their intention initially to fulfil their legal requirements thus the need to publish some kind of policy. However they were in the throws of elaborating this policy which would go beyond the minimum statutory obligations and take into account some of UNISON’s views. UCL assured UNISON that they would be fully involved in the process of consultation.

13. AOB

UNISON invited UCL Director of Human Resources, Sarah Brant to address a meeting of all Library staff on the SAP and London Weighting.

DATES OF FUTURE MEETINGS

Dates of next meeting ( at 2 to 4 pm) is:-
Tuesday 29 July 2003

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