樱花动漫579

樱花动漫/579听听 4 April 2014听听

University and College Union

Carlow Street, London NW1 7LH, Tel. 020 7756 2500, www.ucu.org.uk

To听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听 Branch and local association secretaries

Topic听听听听听听听听听听听听听 Call for nominations to the Appeal Panel (Conduct of members)

Action听听听听听听听听听听听听 Nominations to be returned by 12 noon on Thursday 22 May 2014

Summary 听听听听听听 Members of the Appeal Panel will be elected at Congress 2014; details of how nominations can be made are given here.听听听听听听听听听听听听听听

Contact听听听听听听听听听听 Kay Metcalfe, Administrator, Constitution and Committees, kmetcalfe@ucu.org.uk

Dear Colleagues

Call for nominations: members of the Appeal Panel (Conduct of members)

Nominations for members of the Appeal Panel are now called for.

Under 樱花动漫 rule 13.1, the NEC must establish a procedure for regulating the conduct of members, where this conduct is in breach of the rules or detrimental to the interests of the union.听 That procedure is appended here (as revised by the NEC on 30 March 2012).

Under the procedure, cases are heard by a panel drawn from the NEC, which may impose sanctions. Appeals against sanctions are heard by an Appeal Panel appointed from a pool of fifteen members elected by Congress.

The following vacancies currently exist:

听听听听听听听听听 five three-year vacancies

four two-year vacancies

听听听听听听听听听 four one-year vacancies

To be eligible for membership of the panel, members must, by the date of election (30 May 2014) have been in membership of 樱花动漫 or one of its predecessor unions for at least five years, with experience of holding elected union office at branch, local association, regional or national level.

Any ballots required at Congress to determine who is elected to the Panel and/or for what term, will be conducted by Single Transferable Vote.

A form for the submission of nominations is set out overleaf. Self-nominations are called for. (Support from other members does not need to be collected.) Nominations must be received at 樱花动漫 head office no later than 12 noon on Thursday 22 May 2014, in accordance with the instructions set out on the nomination form.

If a ballot is required, ballot material will be distributed to voting delegates at Congress, with instructions for return.

Yours sincerely

Sally Hunt 听听听

General secretary

ucu_colour

Appeal Panel (Conduct of members) nomination 鈥� page 1 of 2

This form must be returned no later than 12 noon on Thursday 22 May 2014 to Kay Metcalfe, Constitution and Committees, University and College Union, Carlow Street, London NW1 7LH. Nominations can be sent by email to kmetcalfe@ucu.org.uk. All nominations will be acknowledged. If you do not receive acknowledgement please telephone Kay Metcalfe on 020 7756 2500 BEFORE the deadline.

1. Details of nominee

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Email address鈥︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€�.

Telephone number鈥︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€�.

I have the following experience of elected office within 樱花动漫 or its predecessor unions:

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Experience of elected union office at local, regional or national level is a requirement of Appeal Panel members.

Appeal Panel nomination 鈥� page 2

2. Supporting statement

You may submit a statement in support of your nomination of up to 100 words. Statements must be received by the deadline for receipt of nominations, 12 noon on Thursday 22 May 2014. Supporting statements will be made available with ballot papers for the election at Congress of Appeal Panel members.

3. Declaration

I confirm that the information I have given about my elected service in the union, and the factual information included in my supporting statement, is accurate.

I confirm that, on 30 May 2014, I will have been a member of 樱花动漫 or one of its predecessor unions for at least five years.

I confirm that I wish to be nominated as an Appeal Panel member.

Signed 鈥︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€︹€�..

This form must be returned no later than 12 noon on Thursday 22 May 2014, in accordance with the instructions on the first page of this form.

PROCEDURES FOR THE REGULATION OF THE CONDUCT OF MEMBERS

Preamble

The Rules of the University and College Union require the National Executive Committee to establish a procedure to regulate the conduct of members:

听听听听听听听听听 The National Executive Committee shall (by the same procedure as it establishes its own Standing Orders) establish a procedure to censure or bar a member from holding any office for a specified period not exceeding three years or suspend from membership for a period not exceeding one year or expel a member from membership if it finds their conduct to be in breach of the Rules or is deemed to be a matter of significant detriment to the interests of the Union. The procedure, inter alia, shall include an appeals process.听 (Rule 13.1)

All members are required to abide by the Rules of the Union:

听听听听听听听听听 All members and student members have an obligation to abide by the Rules of the University and College Union, and shall refrain from conduct detrimental to the interests of the Union, from any breach of these Rules, Standing Orders or directions (properly made in accordance with these Rules or Standing Orders) and from all forms of harassment, prejudice and unfair discrimination whether on the grounds of sex, race, ethnic or national origin, religion, colour, class, caring responsibilities, marital status, sexuality, disability, age, or other status or personal characteristic.听 (Rule 6.1)

樱花动漫 will鈥xpel from existing membership, any person who is a known member or activist of any extreme right wing political organisation, including the BNP and National Front, where the organisation鈥檚 aims, objectives and principles are contrary to those of 樱花动漫 as outlined in 6.1 above.听 (Rule 6.1.1)

The Procedure

1听听听听听听听 Scope

1.1听听听听 Complaints under Rule 13.1 may be brought by any member or employee of 樱花动漫.

1.2听听听听 The Procedure does not apply to disagreements or disputes between members, unless there is evidence of conduct which comes under Rule 13.1, namely, conduct in breach of the Rules or of significant detriment to the interests of the Union.

1.3听听听听 The Procedure shall not be applied where the matters complained of concern members in capacities unrelated to their 樱花动漫 membership.

1.4听听听听 The Procedure does not cover complaints about the provision of union services by 樱花动漫 employees. Such complaints are covered by the Membership Complaints Procedure. This can be accessed by members on the 樱花动漫 website ().

1.5听听听听 The Procedure deals with complaints against individual members. If the complainant believes that more than one member has infringed Rule 13.1, separate complaints must be lodged.

2听听听听听听听 Lodging a Complaint

2.1听听听听 Complaints should be addressed to the General Secretary at 樱花动漫 head office in the form set out in section 3 below.

2.2听听听听 No complaint shall be considered for investigation if it relates to an event occurring more than three months before the date on which it is received by the General Secretary. Where the issue relates to a series of events which are all part of the same matter the three months period shall commence from the date of the last such event.

2.3听听听听 It is the responsibility of complainants to ensure that they have familiarised themselves with this Procedure.

3听听听听听听听 Documentation

3.1听听听听 Documentation must be provided in support of the complaint and must include:

3.1.1听 A clear statement of the complaint and how exactly it relates to misconduct under Rule 13.1.

3.1.2听 Supporting evidence with a clear explanation of how each item of evidence relates to the complaint.

3.1.3听 A chronology of the events associated with the complaint.

3.2听听听听 It is incumbent on the complainant to ensure that documentation is set out in an accessible and organised manner, with minimal repetition, and with clear cross-referencing to the substance of the complaint.

3.3听听听听 Documentation should not exceed 50 pages of A4 in total, of at least 10 point font.

4听听听听听听听 Confidentiality

4.1听听听听 This is an internal 樱花动漫 procedure and is strictly confidential. All members and employees must respect this. No documents or information arising from the Procedure should under any circumstances be shared with third parties.

4.2听听听听 Evidence that confidentiality has been breached by the complainant at any stage in the Procedure shall constitute sufficient grounds for the General Secretary to dismiss the complaint with no further action.

4.3听听听听 Breaches of confidentiality may be sufficient grounds to trigger the application of the Procedure to those responsible.

4.4听听听听 It should be noted that defamation is excluded from the areas of support available to members under the Union鈥檚 Legal Scheme.

5听听听听听听听 Appointment of Investigating Officer

5.1听听听听 When a complaint is received the General Secretary shall appoint a senior officer of the Union (鈥渢he Investigating Officer鈥�) to carry out a preliminary investigation. Suitable officers are: the Immediate Past President, the President-Elect, and the Vice-President. Should none of these be available, the General Secretary shall appoint an experienced member of the National Executive Committee (NEC), preferably with previous presidential experience.

5.2听听听听 The General Secretary may delegate the above duty to another senior official of the Union.

5.3听听听听 The General Secretary shall appoint an official to administer the application of this Procedure. The duties of the official shall be to provide administrative support to the Investigation, to act as secretary to the NEC Panel and Appeals Panel and to provide professional advice and guidance on the application of the Procedure. The official shall also ensure that the complainant is kept informed of the progress of the complaint through the various stages of the Procedure.

6听听听听听听听 Preliminary investigation

6.1听听听听 The Investigating Officer shall, upon referral of the complaint, and normally within seven working days, first determine:

6.1.1听 Whether it has been received in time.

6.1.2听 Whether it is set out in the correct form.

6.1.3听 Whether the subject matter is within the scope of Rule 13.1.

6.2听听听听 If the Investigating Officer determines that the complaint is not in time, or in the correct form, or outside the scope of Rule 13.1 s/he shall recommend to the General Secretary that the complaint be dismissed. If the General Secretary decides to accept this recommendation, the complainant shall be informed.

6.3听听听听 The complainant may appeal the decision to the President. Appeals must be submitted within seven working days of the receipt of the General Secretary鈥檚 decision. The President shall rule on the appeal within two working weeks of its receipt on the basis of the appeal and the documentation considered by the Investigating Officer. The decision of the President shall be final.

7听听听听听听听 Substantive investigation

7.1听听听听 If a complaint proceeds to a full investigation, the Investigating Officer shall conduct such enquiries as s/he considers fit. Such investigation may include interviewing potential witnesses and the consideration of documents. The investigation shall normally take no longer than eight working weeks from the date the issue is first referred to the Investigating Officer (but excluding the period required for any appeal under paragraph 6.3).

7.2听听听听 The complainant and the member whose conduct is alleged to be in breach of Rule 13.1 (鈥渢he respondent鈥�) shall be notified at the start of the investigation by the Investigating Officer. Respondents shall be entitled to know details of the case against them, and shall be sent the documents submitted by the complainant, together with a copy of this Procedure.

7.3听听听听 The respondent shall be invited to submit a written response to the complaint, which must normally be submitted to the Investigating Officer within two working weeks of the receipt of the invitation. The Investigating Officer may allow a longer period for responses in exceptional circumstances.

7.4听听听听 The Investigating Officer may invite either or both parties to meet separately with him/her for the purpose of clarifying any points in the complaint or response. A note of any such meetings shall be taken by a member of staff.听

7.5听听听听 No audio recording of these meetings, or of any other meetings under this Procedure, shall be made (subject to requirements relating to disability).

7.6听听听听 Should meetings with the Investigating Officer take place, the complainant or the respondent may, if they wish, be accompanied by a friend who must be a member of the Union. Legal representation is not permitted at any stage of this Procedure.听

7.7听听听听 Members attending meetings at the request of the Investigating Officer shall be entitled to receive payment of standard travelling, subsistence and child care costs incurred.

7.8听听听听 If the complainant or respondent acts at any point in the course of the investigation in a manner which in the opinion of the Investigating Officer will seriously inhibit the investigation, the Investigating Officer is empowered to proceed on the basis of the documentary evidence available.

8听听听听听听听 Outcome of investigation

8.1听听听听 After the completion of the investigation, the Investigating Officer shall decide either:

8.1.1听 That there is no case to answer and that the matter should therefore proceed no further; or

8.1.2听 That there is prima facie a case of breach of rule and that the matter should proceed to the next stage of the Procedure.

8.2听听听听 In either case, the Investigating Officer shall send the decision and supporting reasons in writing to the complainant, respondent and General Secretary.

9听听听听听听听 Appeal against decision of Investigating Officer

9.1听听听听 Either party may appeal against the decision of the Investigating Officer. An appeal must be lodged with the General Secretary within seven working days of receipt of the decision.

9.2听听听听 In the event of an appeal, the General Secretary shall ask the President to review the Investigating Officer鈥檚 decision. If the President is not available the General Secretary shall appoint one of those named in paragraph 5.1 who has not previously been involved in the case.

9.3听听听听 The General Secretary may delegate the above duty (paragraph 9.2) to another senior official of the Union.

9.4听听听听 The person considering the appeal shall be provided with the appeal, the original submission, the respondent鈥檚 response, and the notes of any meetings carried out by the Investigating Officer, together with his/her decision and reasons.

9.5听听听听 S/he shall rule on the appeal within three working weeks of its receipt and on the basis of the above documentation.

9.6听听听听 His/her decision shall be final.

10听听听听听 National Executive Committee Panel: appointment

10.1听听 If the matter is to proceed to the next stage, the Investigating Officer shall report accordingly to the Officers, who shall establish a panel of three ordinary members of the NEC to hear and decide upon the complaint. No member of the panel shall have played any previous part in the procedure.

10.2听听 The panel shall normally complete its work within six working weeks of its appointment.

11听听听听听 Preparation for NEC Panel hearing

11.1听听 The parties will be consulted about dates for the hearing and their availability taken into consideration. The final decision on the date of the Panel hearing will be made by the Panel Chair.

11.2听听 The respondent shall be informed of the date, time and place of the Panel hearing at least three working weeks in advance.

11.3听听 At the same time, the respondent shall receive confirmation of the papers to be considered at the hearing, which at this stage shall normally consist of the original complaint and supporting documentation, the respondent鈥檚 response to the complaint, the notes of any interviews conducted by the Investigating Officer and a copy of the Investigating Officer鈥檚 report.

11.4听听 If the respondent or the Investigating Officer wishes to call witnesses at the hearing, they must inform the Secretary to the Panel and submit witness statements at least 8 working days in advance of the hearing. Witness statements shall be exchanged between the parties by the Secretary to the Panel as soon as possible following their submission. The same deadline and procedure shall apply to any additional documents that the respondent or the Investigating Officer may wish to submit.

11.5听听 The Panel reserves the right to refuse attendance by witnesses where it is clear to the Panel from the witness statements that their evidence is irrelevant, repetitive or otherwise unnecessary to the Panel鈥檚 deliberations.

11.6听听 All those attending a Panel hearing shall be entitled to receive payment of standard travelling, subsistence and child care costs incurred.

11.7听听 The panel hearing shall normally be concluded within one day. The Panel will expect the parties to have read the witness statements and supporting documents before the hearing. A note of the meeting shall be taken by a member of staff for the sole purpose of assisting the Panel in the preparation of its report. The Panel鈥檚 report shall form the written record of the hearing.

11.8听听 In accordance with section 4 above, all proceedings before the Panel are confidential and no party or witness may repeat any matter or allegation outside of this Procedure or use for any other purpose any document produced for the investigation or hearing.听

12听听听听听 NEC Panel hearing

12.1听听 At the panel hearing the Investigating Officer shall present his/her report on behalf of the Union, and call agreed witnesses and refer to pre-submitted documentary evidence as necessary. This is the central feature of any hearing, to which the respondent and the witnesses, if any, shall be expected to address themselves.

12.2听听 The respondent shall also be entitled to call agreed witnesses and refer to pre-submitted documentary evidence as necessary in response to the charges against him/her. Neither the Investigating Officer nor the respondent shall be represented by a lawyer, but the respondent may call upon a member of the Union to assist him/her. The respondent may be present throughout the hearing.

12.3听听 The Investigating Officer and the respondent, with the agreement of the Panel, may question the witnesses.

12.4听听 If the respondent acts at any point in the course of the preparation for the hearing or at the hearing in a manner which in the opinion of the Panel will seriously inhibit the hearing, the Panel is empowered to proceed on the basis of the documentary evidence available. The Panel may determine the matter in the absence of the respondent.

13听听听听听 NEC Panel decision

13.1听听 At the conclusion of the hearing the Panel shall produce a written report of the hearing and its deliberations, setting out its reasoned decision and the relation of that decision to the evidence considered.

13.2听听 If on the balance of probabilities, a breach of Rule 13.1 is found to have occurred, the panel may impose a sanction as permitted by Rule 13.1. In deciding on an appropriate sanction the Panel may take into account any previous Rule 13.1 breaches by the member which remain on the member鈥檚 record, but shall not consider any that have been expunged in accordance with paragraph 18.2 below.听

13.3听听 The Panel鈥檚 report shall be sent to the respondent, complainant, Investigating Officer, President and General Secretary within 21 working days of the Panel hearing.

13.4听听 The sanction shall not be put into effect until the period of notice for an appeal has elapsed without an appeal having been lodged or until an appeal has been lodged and the appeal process concluded.

14听听听听听 Appeals: submission

14.1听听 The respondent may appeal against the decision of the Panel, and any sanction imposed on the following grounds:

14.1.1 Evidence of procedural irregularity or bias in the conduct of the Panel hearing.

14.1.2 That the decision of the Panel was so unreasonable that no reasonable panel would have reached such a decision.

14.1.3 That the level of any sanction imposed is disproportionate in relation to the conduct found.

14.2听听 Appeals must be received by the General Secretary within 10 working days of the date on which the written decision of the panel was sent to the parties and must set out clearly the grounds of the appeal and include any supporting evidence.

15听听听听听 Appeals Panel

15.1听听 The membership of the Appeals Panel shall be drawn from a pool of 15 members of the Union elected for this purpose every three years by National Congress. Members so elected shall have been members of 樱花动漫 for at least five years, with experience of elected office at branch, regional or national level. The Appeals Panel shall consist of three people selected from that pool by the President or, in the event that the President has ruled on an appeal at an earlier stage in the Procedure, by another national officer of the Union who has had no previous involvement with the case.

15.2听听 If there is an insufficient or no elected pool of members, the President or other officer may appoint to the Appeals Panel members of the NEC not previously involved with the case.

16听听听听听 Appeals Panel procedure

16.1听听 The Appeals Panel shall not conduct a re-hearing of the original allegations. The Panel shall restrict itself to the review of the NEC Panel鈥檚 decision in relation to the Appellant鈥檚 grounds of appeal and supporting argument and evidence.

16.2听听 Appellants may address the Appeal Panel in support of their appeal statements and may be asked questions by the Panel. A maximum of one hour shall be allocated for this purpose.

16.3听听 Appellants attending an Appeal Panel hearing shall be entitled to receive payment of standard travelling, subsistence and child care costs incurred.

17听听听听听 Appeals Panel decision

17.1听听 The Appeals Panel may uphold or overturn the decision of the NEC Panel that a member has been guilty of a breach of rule 13.1.听 If the Appeals Panel upholds the decision of the NEC Panel it may confirm the sanction imposed or substitute a lesser sanction or no sanction at all.听 The Appeals Panel may not under any circumstances increase the sanction imposed by the NEC Panel.听 The Appeals Panel shall give reasons for its decision.

17.2听听 The decision of the Appeals Panel shall be sent to the complainant, respondent, President and General Secretary. The decision of the Appeals Panel shall be final.

17.3听听 The report of the Appeals Panel containing its decision shall remain strictly confidential to the parties, but any sanction shall be promulgated to the membership, as below.

18听听听听听 Promulgation of sanctions

18.1听听 Any sanction imposed on a member under this Procedure shall be promulgated to the membership of the Union by being published in the Union鈥檚 magazine, or other appropriate medium of membership communication, in the form:

听听听听听听听听听 Following the application of the Union鈥檚 Procedure for the Regulation of the Conduct of Members the following sanction has been imposed on [name of member]: [sanction as expressed in Rule 13].

18.2听听 Expulsion from the Union is permanent.听 Other sanctions shall remain on the member鈥檚 record for a period of five years, after which they shall be expunged.

19听听听听听 Approval of Procedure

19.1听听 This Procedure was approved by the National Executive Committee on 30 March 2012.