Four years of struggle
Over the last 4 years UNITE Clerkenwell and St Pancras branch members at the Workers' Educational Association in London have challenged every restructure, and have successfully protected jobs and grades. The on-going process of restructure of the core staff at WEA's London Region has now reached its final stage.
Through UNITE the majority of regional organisers opposed the way the restructure was handled from the outset. WEA and London Region Senior Management have:
Seven of the current nine organisers did not apply for the new posts and are being made compulsorily redundant, along with three further regional posts, resulting in a total of 83% of core staff identified as at risk of redundancy in London Region leaving WEA.
Support from RMT Conference
RMT have enjoyed a long and fruitful relationship with the trade union studies unit at WEA London Region. At their recent national conference, the following emergency motion was carried:
Job Cuts at WEA London
This union notes that the Workers’ Educational Association (WEA) has provided education for working-class people for over a century. It works in co-operation with trade unions and runs courses for trade union reps, which many of our representatives have attended and benefited from.
We are very disappointed by the decision of WEA London Region to cut staffing and make redundancies, including among staff who play a key role in delivering trade union education.
We instruct the General Secretary to contact Unite the Union and its Clerkenwell & St Pancras branch to offer our support in their resistance to these cuts, and to contact WEA London as a matter of urgency to express this union’s profound opposition to its decision.
We would like to thank RMT for their support.
Over the last 4 years UNITE Clerkenwell and St Pancras branch members at the Workers' Educational Association in London have challenged every restructure, and have successfully protected jobs and grades. The on-going process of restructure of the core staff at WEA's London Region has now reached its final stage.
Through UNITE the majority of regional organisers opposed the way the restructure was handled from the outset. WEA and London Region Senior Management have:
- created circumstances which have resulted in a lack of agreement in the evaluation of the job descriptions for the new posts,
- reduced regional organiser (grade D) posts to five (where currently there are nine) and implemented an arduous application process for these remaining roles
- continued mismanagement of the region and of the restructure process
- failed to address serious HR concerns raised in individual consultations
Seven of the current nine organisers did not apply for the new posts and are being made compulsorily redundant, along with three further regional posts, resulting in a total of 83% of core staff identified as at risk of redundancy in London Region leaving WEA.
Support from RMT Conference
RMT have enjoyed a long and fruitful relationship with the trade union studies unit at WEA London Region. At their recent national conference, the following emergency motion was carried:
Job Cuts at WEA London
This union notes that the Workers’ Educational Association (WEA) has provided education for working-class people for over a century. It works in co-operation with trade unions and runs courses for trade union reps, which many of our representatives have attended and benefited from.
We are very disappointed by the decision of WEA London Region to cut staffing and make redundancies, including among staff who play a key role in delivering trade union education.
We instruct the General Secretary to contact Unite the Union and its Clerkenwell & St Pancras branch to offer our support in their resistance to these cuts, and to contact WEA London as a matter of urgency to express this union’s profound opposition to its decision.
We would like to thank RMT for their support.
RSS Feed
