Anti-Casualisation

2024-25 Anti-Casualisation Officers:

Cecile Menard & Adam Farquhar

Anti-Casualisation Subcommittee

The anti-cas subcommittee coordinates campaigning on improving the working conditions of members on fixed term, open-ended with review date, fractional, and/or hourly paid contracts.  More broadly it seeks to combat the increasing reliance on casualised labour in academia. The subcommittee is chaired by our Anti-Casualisation Officers.

Key Issues

These include:

  • Staff employed on fixed term contracts and open-ended with review date contracts

  • Staff doing pro rata/informal work or PhD students working as tutors

  • Improving working conditions for guaranteed hours/fixed term contract staff.

  • Ensuring adherence to the 2019 Collective Agreement between UCUE and our employer on guaranteed hours and fixed-term academic staff

Anti-Casualisation Officers

Anti-Casualisation Officers are elected members of branch committee of UCU Edinburgh with a specific remit to represent casualised members who work under precarious conditions. Current officers are listed under Officers and Committee and can be contacted via ucu@ed.ac.uk

Campaigning and Success

We aim to address issues faced by casualised workers and improve job security for staff. Anti-Cas Officers sit on committees with university management such as the Joint Consultative & Negotiating Committee where we zealously represent the interests of UCU members. Recently, UCU Edinburgh has both driven and supported several initiatives to reduce job insecurity, including: 

  • Campaigning for all casualised staff with 5+ years on fixed-term contracts to be moved onto open-ended contracts with review date.

  • Ensuring compliance with the Researcher Development Concordat and exploring best practice around the 10-day professional development that all researchers are entitled to.

  • Advocating for the recognition and support of long-term casualised academics on research-only or teaching-only contracts.

  • Supporting the creation of a career researchers’ pool.

  • Ensuring transparency and equal opportunities around promotion for staff on casualised contracts.

  • Addressing late pay for casualised staff.

  • Addressing guaranteed hours staff being offered vouchers instead of money for paid work.

  • Preventing junior staff from being overlooked in the Contribution Reward Scheme.

  • Formalising a ban on unpaid teaching being a part of scholarships.

  • Analysing data from the university about the extent of casualisation.

  • Raising complaints with management about pay inequality across Schools and grades.

In 2019, UCUE signed a Collective Agreement with our employer at the University of Edinburgh regarding the employment of guaranteed minimum hours teaching staff and fixed-term academic staff. Read it and related Joint Statements on the UoE website. A 5-year review will take place in the academic year 2024/25.

Get Involved

All UCU members are invited to join the anti-casualisation subcommittee meetings, which take place at least twice a year, and to participate in the anti-casualisation subcommittee’s work. Look out for the next meeting date in the weekly UCU Edinburgh email.