The latest activity report (2020)

1 The association, the board and the office

The Saco-S Association represents about 3 800 members in 18 independent Saco unions. The ordinary annual meeting was held on November 26, 2019, and an extra annual meeting was held on March 3, 2020. The following Board was elected for 19/20:

Kirsi Höglund (Chairperson), Johanna Norberg Hägglund (Vice Chairperson), Robert Malmgren (Secretary, Deputy Vice Chairperson 2020-10-27 –), Cajsa Bartusch (Deputy Secretary 2020-10-27 –), Petra Eriksson, Claes Thorén, Anders Lagerstrand (until 2020-06-03), Gunilla Ransbo (2020-06-03 –), Mats Målqvist (2020-06-03 –).

The Board meets every week during the semester. Meeting records were available to read on the Saco-S Association's website.

The Saco-S Association's Board can appoint union representatives for particular tasks, such as representatives on boards and committees or to handle a particular task. Those who have a particular task are called the office and these have during the year been:

Anna Eklund, Jezzica Israelsson, Charlotte Leyser, Fabian Engel, Mahbubur Rahman and Maria Grahn Farley. Per Sundman and Tina Hedmo participated in the work on the salary negotiations in 2019.

The University also has nine so-called local-local Saco-S Associations.

2 People with union trustee's time

The following people are on leave without salary deduction for union work. The union trustee's time varies between 1 % and 100 % for different people. It can also vary during the year. The union trustee's time is negotiated with the HR Director at Uppsala University before each academic year and also, if the need arises, sometimes during the academic year. During the business year, the total time for the Saco-S Association's union trustee work has varied between 620 % and 690 % of the approximately 700 % that we have at our disposal.

3 Negotiations

Recruitments, salaries for new employees and notice of termination

What was previously gathered in the negotiation tool EDGAR now takes place via various tools and platforms.

Information about recruitments with titles, work content and employment requirements comes in an Excel list once a week. In cases where the Saco-S Association has comments on the content, we send an email with questions. We rarely get answers on whether or how the employer utilises our questions and views.

The recruitment of managers and adjunct lecturers takes place in separately.

Salaries for new employees are not compiled anywhere, but the Saco-S Association is referred to look up the information via Primula. It gives us no opportunity to follow up that the employer follows the agreement that exists on the 10th percentile.

Notice of termination is handled via Primula and during the business year it has been transferred from a pilot scheme to cover the entire University. There are still some transitional problems with the handling of notice of termination among business close HR (VHR). The Saco-S Association has good contact with VHR in these matters.

Redundancy/lack of work

Every week, redundancies and relocations are negotiated in connection with the so-called Thursday negotiations. The most common redundancy concerns researchers, which is based on a practice at Uppsala University of employing research staff in permanent positions from day one if there are research funds that lasts for more than two years. When the funds in the project run out, a lack of work arises in the project, which means that lack of work is common within this group. Often the tasks are so specific when it comes to research that circling (Swedish: kretsning) will only include the current researchers. In connection with early relocation trials, the researchers are tested for advertised and not yet announced positions at the University. The Saco-S Association's role in this is to be there to support the member and review the process to 1) establish that there is a lack of work, 2) circle and 3) doing a relocation investigation.

New organisational placement (NOP)

Negotiations regarding a change of position and salary are negotiated separately. The Saco-S Association contacts the person concerned in cases where it concerns a member to hear that everything is in order. These are handled on an ongoing basis by the Board.

Salary review 2019

The Saco-S Association concluded an agreement on the 2019 salary review on December 2, 2019 and the new salaries were paid with the December salary. The doctoral student salary ladder were completed before the summer and their new salaries will be revised in connection with the review date October 1, 2019.

Salary review 2020

Agreement negotiations at the national level are delayed due to Covid-19 and may be further delayed due to the LAS issue. At best, the negotiations at the national level can be completed by the end of November and then we could be done with the local negotiations in early March. This in itself means that the new salaries could be ready in March/April. The doctoral student salary ladder is negotiated separately.

Business plans 2021

The Saco-S Association has negotiated the University's business plans. In this year's business plans, we have particularly highlighted work environment issues due to the Covid-19 pandemic for teachers, researchers, doctoral students as well as technical and administrative staff.

Collective agreement negotiations

• New time-limited local collective agreement for the cleaning unit (Swedish: lokalvården) due to Covid-19.
• Proposal for a new local collective agreement regarding working hours at Central service and administration.
• Proposal for a new Travel time agreement.
• Proposal for a new Working hours agreement for teachers.

Other negotiations during the year (Thursday negotiations)

• Information about the situation due to Covid-19.
• Negotiation of the negotiation procedure at Uppsala University.
• Decision on the possibility of taking an already approved grade, so-called "plussning".
• New organisation: University IT Services (UUIT).
• Reorganisation of the Division for central service and administration.
• Reorganisation of the Human Resources Division.
• Reorganisation within the Faculty of Pharmacy.
• Reorganisation at the Department of Sociology.
• Reorganisation at the Department of Informatics and Media.
• Reconstruction of the Segerstedt building.
• Reconstruction and new construction of the new Ångström.
• Reconstruction of the Tandem Hall in the English Park Campus.
• The Appointment Regulations, MBL, Section 19 and comments on the suggestion.
• Rules of procedure at Uppsala University Library.
• Rules of procedure for the Department of Immunology, Genetics and Pathology.
• Center instruction for WoMHeR.
• Guidelines for third-cycle education at Uppsala University.
• Guidelines for third-cycle education in the Disciplinary Domain of Medicine and Pharmacy.
• Guidelines for center formations at Uppsala University.
• Guidelines for employment at Uppsala University after the age of 68.
• Guidelines for harassment.
• Information about the project Career paths within the academy.
• Information about the work with the role head of department.
• Information on the proposed gender mainstreaming plan.
• Information regarding Local collective agreement on protection areas.
• Information about common processes for student matters at Medicine and Pharmacy.
• Information regarding review of IP guidelines.
• Discontinuation of SWEDESD at the Faculty of Educational Sciences.
• Establishment of SWEDESD at the Department of Women's and Children's Health.
• Information about establishing the Uppsala Diabetes Center (UDC).
• Information about planned organisational change at the Department of Organismal Biology.
• Information about planned organisational change at the Department of Chemistry, Ångström.
• Regarding proposals for shutdown of course due to large financial losses.

4 Other activities

Advice and support for individual members

An important part of the Saco-S Association's work consists of giving members advice and support in issues that are important to them. A large part of the issues are of a labor law or work environment law nature. Some of these conversations stop at confidential conversations. A small part is transferred to so-called members matters where the Saco-S Association is there to support or ultimately negotiate the working conditions for our members.

The Saco-S Association also provides advice and support in connection with the salary setting of new salaries and in connection with the salary review.

Information for all members

The Saco-S Association has sent out five newsletters since the annual meeting in 2019. These newsletters are also available on the Saco-S Association's website. The language in the newsletters is Swedish and English so that our non-Swedish-speaking members also can take part in important information.

The Saco-S Association has arranged three digital seminars for members regarding the salary review 2020 (two in Swedish and one in English), as well as three digital seminars on doctoral students' rights and obligations (in English). Work is underway to make videos of the salary review process based on what was presented at the seminars.

The Saco-S Association has a new website as of October 1, 2020. All information on the website is available in both Swedish and English to increase accessibility for our members.

The Saco-S Association has participated in information for new employees during the year, both in Swedish and in English (for international employees).

Participation in various bodies at Uppsala University

The Saco-S Association has representatives with the right to attend and free speech in the University Board, the Electoral College and the Boards of the Disciplinary Domains and Faculties. The Association is also represented in the Equal Opportunities Advisory Board, the Central Collaboration group (CSAM) and the Joint Committee on Work Environment (SVAM). Furthermore, the Association receives continuous information about the matters that are dealt with at the Vice-Chancellor's meetings.

Salary surveys

Uppsala University, like all major workplaces in Sweden, is required to carry out an annual salary survey. During the business year, the Saco-S Association participated in the joint work between the parties. The 2019 salary survey was completed at the end of 2019. The work on the 2020 salary survey is still ongoing.

Investigations

• Member survey on salary-setting discussions at the University Administration and the University Library within the framework of the Salary review 2019.
• Investigation of which safety representative training our safety representatives have done.
• Investigation of what safety representative training that the various independent Saco-S unions have to offer.
• Continuous follow-ups of late and missed notices of termination.
• Continuous follow-up of which departments have submitted service plans.
• Preparation of evaluation of the chief safety representative organisation.

Skills development of elected representatives

• 11/3 Training on the legal space for trade union activities at UU (contact union SULF). All elected representatives were offered an opportunity to participate.
• 14/5 Theme course on salary (contact union SULF). Several people on the Board and in the office participated.
• 12-14/5 The employer's rehabilitation responsibility (Metodicum). Robert Malmgren participated.
• Step 4 union training. Jezzica Israelsson and Anders Lagerstrand attended it in the spring of 2020.
• 9-10/6 Basic training course in Infoglue CMS (UU). Charlotte Leyser attended.
• 18/11 Step 2 union training. Charlotte Leyser attended.
• 19/11 Theme course "The difficult conversation". Several people on the Board and in the office participated.
• Step 1 in the union training is digital. All new Board members and employees at the office go through it when they begin their appointment.

Dialogues and collaborations

• 3/3 Vice-Chancellor's seminar: How free is the word within the academy? Kirsi Höglund attended.
• 17/3 (SULF) Agreement conference on Working hours for teachers. Johanna Norberg Hägglund and Kirsi Höglund attended.
• 1/9 Vice-Chancellor's seminar: Proposal for new appointment regulations. Kirsi Höglund and Charlotte Leyser attended.
• 1/10 How do we protect the freedom of education? Collaboration with SULF. Several people on the Board and in the office attended.
• 9/10 Conference on #metoo in Växjö. Robert Malmgren participated.
• SULF's Negotiating Delegation. Cajsa Bartusch participates.
• SULF's Association Council. Cajsa Bartusch and Kirsi Höglund attends.
• The Central Government Social Partners’ Council. During the business year, representatives of the Saco-S Association participated in th Central Government Social Partners’ Council's activities, but without a joint party participation.

Other during the business year

Covid-19

What overshadowed the business year from February 2020 onwards is the Covid-19 pandemic. The questions from the business have been many and we face new challenges all the time. Only after while, into late spring, did we manage to establish weekly information sessions with the University.

The Saco-S Association has held a meeting with all elected representatives in the spring of 2020, written about the situation in newsletters and held a seminar for doctoral students on their rights in the current situation.

Work task plans

Work plans are a planning tool, both for the individual employee but also for the employer, and act as a kind of protection for both parties. It is also a tool for retrospectively seeing how the semester/school year's work has progressed and if there is something that needs to be addressed when planning ahead. The service plans are a prerequisite for us to show that we have done what can be expected of us as teachers. The service plans are also needed if we want to show the employer that we have taken on more than our annual working hours allow. This is especially important in times of a pandemic, such as this year (2020).

A pilot project done by Saco-S at Uppsala University in 2018 showed major shortcomings at large parts of the University. During the business year, we have worked to get service plans in place at all departments. The Saco-S Association has assisted the Human Resources Division in the work of producing template documents and manuals for the plans. The biggest work is, and has been, to have a dialogue with the departments about the local working hours agreement and the content of the plans.

Safety representative

The Board of the Saco-S Association appoints the safety representatives who are members of an independent Saco-S union. During the business year, we worked to update the University's list of safety representatives. In connection with this, the Saco-S Association has produced the completely new document "How to elect a safety representative" - ​​a "who-does-what" that the trade unions agreed on May 12, 2020.

Recruitment of a new Vice-Chancellor

The University's new rules of procedure amount to that trade unions no longer have the right to vote in the election of a Vice-Chancellor. This has led to concerns that trade union issues would lose focus. In connection with the election of a Vice-Chancellor, UNT wrote an article in which chairperson Kirsi Höglund was interviewed. Due to insufficient proofreading, the article gave the impression that the Saco-S Association did not have confidence in one of the candidates. Kirsi Höglund sent an apology to all members and also explained what happened to both the members of the University Board and the members of the Electoral College. The focus of the Saco-S Association is, and should, be the union work and influence.

5 Representation in various committees and boards