Brighton looks to redraw trade union agreements and close campus

The University of Brighton is looking to redraw its trade union agreements, sparking outrage among staff, as it announces plans to close one of its campuses.

Brighton informed its University and College Union (UCU) branch on Monday (14 September) that it intends to terminate its current trade union recognition agreement and all collective agreements on terms and conditions from next June. 

UCU claimed this would “effectively rip up contracts that have been negotiated over recent years” and could lead to full union derecognition and worsening terms and conditions for staff.

Brighton has given notice of termination of collective agreements made in areas such as occupational sick pay, maternity and paternity pay, parental leave, annual leave, working time, workload allocation and trade union facilities. 

Meanwhile, the university has also informed staff that it is exploring plans to close its Falmer campus, which is home to its education, sport, health and medical schools and is one of three of its campuses.

Jo Grady, UCU general secretary, who called an emergency rally in Brighton on Tuesday over the plans, said: “For the University of Brighton to even consider removing the rights of its staff to join a recognised union is scandalous.  

“Rather than disenfranchising staff just as the new academic year begins, management should be working with staff and trade unions to ensure a more secure future for staff and students across Sussex,” she added.

Currently, the university has 28 collective agreements alongside its main union recognition agreement, some of which date back 30 years, a university spokesperson said. 

Such arrangements have impacted its ability to introduce institutional changes, the spokesperson added, impacting its ability to introduce new teaching-only roles, offer academic promotions and alter its workload arrangements – including a lack of flexibility to offer more contracted research time to research-intensive colleagues.

But Andrea Egan, Unison general secretary, said staff members at Brighton are “bewildered” by the university’s move, and feel “undermined and undervalued”.

“This is a terrible way to treat staff,” she said. “Ripping up longstanding agreements will harm industrial relations and ultimately means letting down students.”

A Brighton spokesperson said: “We have begun discussions with our recognised trade unions about a future framework for employment arrangements and a new recognition agreement that better supports colleagues, students and the university’s long-term ambitions.

“We greatly value the role our trade unions play in representing colleagues and contributing to university life, and we look forward to engaging constructively with them throughout the process.”

The spokesperson added that “no decision” had been made on the future of the Falmer campus, but said it was exploring options to bring the university “together on to two world-class campuses from 2030, supported by significant investment in our City and Moulsecoomb campuses”.

“We believe this could create a more connected, more sustainable university, with world-class facilities, modern technology and outstanding spaces for learning, research, collaboration and innovation. It would also deepen our relationship with our city, its communities and employers.”

The spokesperson stressed that the university is looking to work with staff and students to develop plans further before putting a recommendation to its board of governors later this year.

juliette.rowsell@timeshighereducation.com