Emergency General Meeting
Thursday 4 March, 1PM, RHB 307

Agenda
1. Speaker from Leeds University
2. Report back from HE Special Sector Conference
3. Report back from JNCC
4. Cuts at Goldsmiths - how do we respond?
5. Building branch involvement

At the HE Special Sector Conference on 11 February, delegates voted to pursue nationally co-ordinated action linking the 2010 pay claim to the
pursuit of an agreement in defence of jobs and educational provision. At
Goldsmiths, we have been informed of a minimum 2.5% cut in budgets ahead of any further cuts that may await us in forthcoming  Hefce allocation letters and pre- or post-election Budgets. However, we have also been assured that management has no current plans for compulsory redundancies.

What this means is that we have two important two tasks at hand: first, to
inform ourselves and others about the local and national issues as much as possible, and second, to begin to prepare a strategy to defend jobs and conditions as a branch, rather than simply reacting to bad news when it arrives. We need a co-ordinated and measured response to a very difficult economic situation and we would welcome all suggestions as to how to proceed. Come to discuss our strategy over the forthcoming months and hear a speaker from Leeds, where staff and students have organised a bold, impressive and highly successful anti-cuts campaign (for more information, go to http://leedsucu.wordpress.com/).

Leaflet explaining the national and local situation, and how we can respond

Please download it here.

Update on USS pensions negotiations

You can read the March 2010 update here. We will update you on any further developments.

top

Report from the 10 Feb
Open Meeting with the Warden

You can read it here, and you can also download the letter we received from HR detailing cost reductions at Goldsmiths. The GUCU exec will be considering a response to the announced 2.5% cut. We will NOT accept any cuts that will undermine staff conditions or education quality.

Minutes of the 8 Feb Open Public Meeting to Oppose the Points-Based System for Immigration

You can see them here.

For more information, check out the blog and the Facebook group for the Students Not Suspects campaign, or email studentsnotsuspects@gmail.com

PBSI Campaign t-shirts

Get your t-shirts! They're £5 for staff and free for students. The ones for staff read 'we are not border agents', and for students read 'students, not suspects'. To order a t-shirt, email Kirsten at gucu-admin@gold.ac.uk with your size and let her know how you would like to pay.

More details about the campaign, including minutes from the public meeting here.

top