Free Membership for Postgraduate Research Students
Free student membership of UCU is open to all postgraduate students who are not teaching or in other qualifying employment at their institution while studying. Student members are not balloted for elections or industrial action, and UCU cannot represent Student members in relation to issues arising from their studies.
UCU has adopted a policy to campaign for postgraduate researchers (PGRs) to be recognised as members of staff and we have published our postgraduate researchers as staff manifesto.
Proposals in the manifesto include:
- PGRs being provided access to comparable terms and conditions as employees
- PGRs being provided with adequate facilities to complete their research
- PGRs granted access to regular feedback and support
- Ending any requirement to deliver unpaid teaching duties as part of a scholarship, bursary or stipend
- PGRs being included in staff meetings, mailing lists, projects and events.
Free Full Membership for Research Students who teach
Postgraduate research students who have a contract of employment delivering or supporting education (e.g. teaching, lab, or research assistants) at their institution should apply for Full membership. If you are working on a part-time basis alongside your studies (but do not have a permanent contract) you may be eligible for free full membership for one year under the Future of the profession scheme. Full membership means that you will be balloted over elections and industrial action.
In many cases the UCU fighting fund will cover the entirety of lost wages for PGRs who teach.
Cost of striking and strike pay
The thought of striking and losing pay can be daunting, especially for hourly paid staff. Here is what you can be deducted (it is often less than people think), where you can get help, and how to claim from the strike fund.
How much money is deducted per day?
For hourly paid, casualised staff, you will not be paid for the work that was scheduled. So if e.g. you normally get paid for two hours work on one day per week and that day falls on a strike day you will receive no pay for that week. (see details on claiming strike pay)
For staff on other contracts, net deductions are less than 1/365th of your salary per day of action. FT staff – gross deductions 1/365th of your salary per day of action. PT staff, are deducted based on 365th of their Full Time Equivalent (FTE) e.g. a half day strike will normally be deducted a half day. This comes out of your gross salary.
USS pension deductions are taken as if you had earned your full salary, but if you pay tax taking this into account the total deduction ends up being less than 1/365th per day.
I am hourly paid what evidence do I need to claim?
Not everyone will have deductions shown on their payslip, as many hourly paid staff still do not receive payslips. In other cases, payments may vary from month to month. Do not let this put you off applying. You only need to provide evidence of your hourly rate, some evidence that you either declared strike days or your work was cancelled and some evidence of your normal work pattern e.g. correspondence with an offer of hours or a timetable, an invoice or a previous payslip. UCU are happy to help you with the evidence required and are not looking to make this process difficult.
How should I check my payslip?
If you do receive a payslip, deductions will appear on this. The deductions should = (gross salary (top right)/365) * number of days action on that payslip – deductions may be spread over more than one payslip depending on when you report them.
If this is incorrect contact payroll to have it checked. You can also contact the Branch to discuss it first if you wish.
When can I apply to the fighting fund / local fund?
There is a UCU national fighting fund and a local hardship fund. If you are paid a salary, you can claim as soon as you have a payslip showing deductions have been taken. Hourly paid and casualised staff who are paid e.g. weekly can claim as soon as they have lost pay. Claims will be expedited.
Can I apply to both funds?
Yes (both funds) but you must apply to National Fund first. Once you have a national fund reference number then you can apply to the local fund.
* if the national fund runs short we will consider larger claims from local fund and we may consider small daily tops ups where the strike pay is not enough as long as they do not amount to greater than lost pay.
How much does the strike fund pay?
For staff earning >30k gross, the fund pays up to £50 per day.
For staff earning <30K, the fund pays up to £75 per day.
This relates to the national fund: the local fund will then pay any claim costing more than this and endeavour to ensure PGR/GTA are fully reimbursed all deductions for strike action.
If you earned less than £75 in any day e.g. if you are a part-time worker who should have earned £40 then the strike fund will cover your full loss.
Do I have to wait until all deduction have been taken? Do I have to claim for all days?
You can either wait until all your strike days are deducted and claim for all at once, or you can make multiple claims. You can also choose to claim only for a portion of the days taken.
Is it means tested and what do I have to do to qualify?
It is not means tested, other than a higher amount being paid to lower paid members. You will be asked for evidence of pay (payslip or evidence of your hourly rate and agreed hours) as the union is required to check this to prove we have made reasonable efforts to assure you are not being paid more than your lost wages and to determine whether you qualify for the higher amount. To qualify you have to have taken strike action and had wages deducted/not been paid for work you would normally have undertaken on strike days. Your union subscriptions must be the correct rate for your salary and paid up to date – if you’re unsure whether you are on the correct rate, please contact ucu@strath.ac.uk.