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Academic Association | Principles & Procedures for the Relationship between the Academics' Association (AA) and the Executive | EU | NEHAWU | Substantive Agreements

There are three representative staff bodies at UCT:
  • The National Education, Health and Allied Workers Union (NEHAWU)

  • The UCT Employees Union

  • The Academics' Association
NEHAWU and the UCT Employees Union are recognised trade unions and the University negotiates with these trade unions in line with recognition agreements (the full agreements are in Section 7.4). At present NEHAWU is the bargaining agent for administrative and support staff in payclasses 1 to 4, and the UCT Employees Union is the bargaining agent for administrative and support staff in payclasses 5 to 12.

The Academics Association represents its members in consultations with the administration and the executive on all matters of interest to academic staff. The principles and procedures for the relationship between the Academics' Association and the executive is detailed in Section 6.11.

Academics' Association

At the University of Cape Town, relations between the executive (acting for Senate and Council) and the Academics' Association (acting for its members) have long been characterised by a spirit of collegiality and a common commitment to open and frank dialogue and co-operation. This document seeks to clarify the process by which consultation will occur on matters where academic staff have particular rights and interests as academic employees of the University. Nothing in this document should be interpreted as pre-empting the authority of faculty boards, Senate and Council to make decisions on matters within their jurisdiction. The following paragraphs set out the agreed principles.

  1. The executive recognises the AA's right to represent its members on matters of mutual interest between its members (in their capacity as employees) and the University (in its capacity as employer). The executive recognises the right of the AA to be consulted timeously on behalf of its members in respect to the issues listed in paragraph 3 as long as the AA is sufficiently representative of the academic staff employed at the University. (Note: if permanent staff AA membership drops below 40% of permanent staff numbers, the issue of "sufficiently representative" will be revisited by the AA and the executive.)

  2. Consultations shall be conducted in good faith and shall involve full disclosure of relevant information

  3. Issues for consultation have been broadly categorised into two groups, the rationale for the division being that issues in group 1 are those that do not generally go to faculty boards and Senate for decision, whereas those in group 2 are matters that are generally taken to faculty boards and/or Senate.

    Group 1 Issues Include:

    • Salary scales
    • General salary increases
    • Staff benefits (retirement provision, medical aid, housing allowance/subsidy, flexible remuneration)
    • Conditions of service (including annual leave, maternity leave, paternity leave, study and research leave)
    • Collective funding for ad hominem promotions and merit awards, travel grants, contact leave and conference funding, allowances for deans and HODs

    Group 2 Issues Include:

    New procedures, or revised procedures, that apply to academic staff, for example procedures for addressing

    • discipline
    • poor performance
    • staff development
    • performance reviews
    • grievances
    • organisational restructuring, the dis-establishment of occupied posts and retrenchment
    • ad hominem promotion
    • awards for merit

  4. If the AA and the executive fail to reach agreement following a process of consultation on the issues in group 1, an external mediator will be employed before any action on the matter is taken. In the event that agreement cannot be reached with regard to a mediator, IMSSA will be asked to appoint a mediator. The cost of the mediator will be shared on a 50/50 basis by the executive and the AA. In the event of a failed mediation, the AA's proposals and the University management proposals will be forwarded to the Council sub-committee for remuneration, or to Council (whichever is applicable) for a decision.

  5. The AA shall be represented on University structures and committees where such representation is agreed.

  6. The AA shall have the right to represent a member, where the member requests this, in grievance, disciplinary and poor performance hearings, and other individual matters.

  7. This agreement may be amended by agreement or may be cancelled by either the AA or the executive giving three months notice to this effect.

    The document was formally agreed by the Academics' Association and the University Executive on 11 December 1997.

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