Defend NATFHE members, safeguard union democracy

NATFHE conference: Defend the members, safeguard union democracy

THIS YEAR’S conference of the lecturers’ union NATFHE takes place at
the same time as the continuing employers’ offensive in both further and
higher education (FE and HE).

Andrew Price, national executive (NEC) member FE Wales and a Welsh
lay pay negotiator

In Wales talks between the employers and trade unions in FE recently
broke down as a result of the employers walking from the negotiating
table. NATFHE in Wales is a left-led union and the employers were
angered at the union’s position on its proposals on part-time teaching
staff and the union’s opposition to employer proposals on progression on
the new pay scales.

In England, a full two years after a national pay agreement on pay,
only 25% of FE colleges have implemented it in full.

In Southampton College the management response is to produce a new
contract based on performance-related pay, and threaten members with the
sack if they do not sign up to it! In HE similar bullying has been
employed in London Metropolitan University.

In Wales NATFHE has given the employers a deadline of 1 August to
return to the negotiating table and implement the part-timers’
agreement, otherwise members will be balloted for industrial action from
September.

In both FE and HE when our members strike, employers usually deduct
pay at more than one day for each day out, with the ridiculous outcome
of a NATFHE member being on strike for three weeks actually owing the
employer money! Conference motions and emergency motions committing the
union to sustentation (strike pay) of £50 per day must be supported.

More than this, Conference must unequivocally support any section of
our membership that takes strike action to confront the employers’
offensive. For far too long NATFHE has allowed its members to be picked
off college by college and university by university.

Conference must find a way around the obstacles placed by the
incorporation (privatisation) of colleges and universities and the
anti-union laws to ensure a united struggle against the employers.

Conference will, however, be dominated by an internal issue, the
proposed merger with the Association of University Teachers. In
principle, nobody can actually oppose the merger or the prospect of one
union representing all who teach in post-school education. However, it
would seem that some supporters are so intent on merger, at the expense
of a proper discussion on the proposed constitution and safeguarding
democracy and accountability, that they are not even prepared to have
the issue properly aired at this Conference.

Conference must oppose this and support the emergency motions on
these matters from Wales, Yorkshire and Humberside and Northern Regions.