The Bank of England interest rate rise and the submission of a pre-dispute letter to the employers provide opportunities for submitting late/emergency motions to the USS conference on 9 November. They should be submitted by the deadline for amendments of 12 noon on November 7. However, if you cannot make this deadline, try to submit them anyway and put in a challenge.
We are suggesting the following late motion and amendment. A brief explanation is given below them.
Emergency motion: judicial review
Conference notes the Bank of England interest rate rise and the pre-dispute letter from UCU to the employers (2 November).
Conference considers that even under USS’s distorted and perverse technical provisions, this interest rate rise makes current benefits affordable at current contributation rates and totally removes the need for any reductions in benefits or increases in contributions.
Conference calls on the USS Trustees and UUK to recognise that this is the case and to withdraw the threat of benefit reductions or contribution increases.
Failing this Conference calls on UCU to obtain legal advice on judicial review and, if appropriate, to initiate it as soon as possible.
Conference notes that the call for judicial review is in addition to and not instead of industrial action.
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Amendment to Composite 5 Winning the Dispute
Add a further bullet point to conference resolves
- to organise a loud and visually exciting event outside the Institutions meeting of USS employers in London on 7 December and encourage members to participate and branches to send banners and their strike cabarets.
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The Bank of England interest rate rise means that even in terms of the USS trustee company’s flat earth and perverse technical provisions there is no need to make negative changes to USS pensions. A more reasonable approach e.g. put forward by First Actuarial and numerous UCU members shows that there is an artificially created crisis. We also have the very positive move of a pre-dispute letter from Paul Bridge to the employers. This provides scope for emergency motions and this one is suggesting a judicial review to complement industrial and other forms of action. Emergency motions related to Bank of England or pre-dispute letter need to be submitted by amendment date of November.
Every year the USS trustee company organises what is called an Institutions meeting in London which iall the USS employers. can attend. The amendment is proposing a lively action outside the event.