LEEDS STUDENT NEEDS Tetley Bittennen. STAFF URGENTI,Y AT THE POLY Join em. APPLY TO TIIE EDITOR No. 75 Friday, 1st February, 1974 SECOND EDITION 3p . Union staff not· New Executive post created on I iving wage University Union Deputy President for Comm~ica­ tions, Jim Be,vsher, this week lashed out at the Uruon~ attitude to the payment of its staff members, some o~ whom are only receiving "It would cotst £16,925 to £13 per week. increase all their wages to His attack followed comp- 62! pence an hour, which would mean that some of lain ts from bookshop manager, Mr. Derek Perry, about the them would be receiving more low wages being received by than the permanent staff". many of the staff in the "The Union is sympathetic Union's three shops. to the permanent staff's Mr. Bewsher said, "I think claim," commented Mr. Perry, it is scandalous that in a but they aren't doing anything Union which sympathises about it. It is up to the Union . olt to agitate fc:Jc reasonable wage CK WI with so many socia 1ist m • scales for their staff from the by Nt TCHEU ions, we cannot even ensure University". that our own staff receive A new Executive post of Education and a decent living wage". "I think the Union is just Off · g e c s s fo th4 ;r Welfare icer was created at a barely quo- Although Union staff are prod ucin x u e r ~ paid by the University, they inactivity" said Mr. Bewsher, rate University Union Annual General Meet- are theoreu.cally employed by "It. is upb tot us·t too do,, some- • d ft the Union and are responsible ....._ th1n_g.:...__a_o_u__ 1~,_n_w_. _______________ 1ng yester ay a ernoon._, 1·he start of the meet­ to the President. All wage matters have ro go to the ing had to be delayed University Bursar via the Union. ' twenty minutes \Yhile the Mr. Perry, talking to quorum of 500 was Leeds Student, said: "The wages being paid tel some of reached. the shop staff are quite nitol­ erable. They compare very The meeting only lasted badly with tho TUC minin1um two hours and only half of of £25 per week or, for that the business ,va~ dealt wi'th matter, with the level of .before rthe quorum was chal­ student's grants. lenged and the meeting had to be adjourned until next "The wages scales of staff Tuesday lunchtime. in the Union do not relate to the work they do. Many could get more in similar jobs Union Council member dutside the Union". Neil Taggart, comn1enting on the low attendance said: .. The At the Union Council publicity for the meeting was meeting last Monday Deputy appalling. It is all indicative President for Services John of the dreadful lack of com­ Bisbrowne said the Union munication between the could not afford to increase Union and ordinary student the wages of all temporary members. We have got to staff,for which the Union are Paper trees on the Moor work harder at inspiring responsible. Our camerarnan, Ollie Milburn caught Anthony students to take a more ac­ tive interest in the Union." TORY BASH Pojuncr planting a tree on Woodhouse Moor last Wednesday. Among defeated motions The local education auth­ Eight trees bought by the UC MEMBERS was one elevating the post of ority of Gwent in Wales is University Union C()hserv­ RESIGN Publicity Secretary to Execu­ per cent challenging the Department df ation group with money tive status and another which Education and Science, and raised from the sale of old University Union Council proposed giving a £500 lec­ backing up the Grant's nc,vspapers collected in the members Pete Gillard, Mar­ ture fee to a miner's leader. Campaign, by proposing to Ex Union Council men1- abolish all parental means Union over the last few dn Lewton and Steve Smith OFF months were pla.'lted on the announced their resigoadon ber Pete Gillard said: "The tests and discretionary awards. moor. yesterday. barely quorate AGM is just All students in the area Mr. Henry Knight, Direc­ Mr. Gillard said: " I do another indication of the de­ are to be awarded full grants, tor of the Leeds Parks not feel I can continue to pressing position this Union regardless of the co1lege they Department, who attended serve on a body which has so is in. It reflects the total attend. The authority is also the planting ceremony, desc­ discredited itself in the eyes failure of the elected officers going to lobby \Velsh M.P.s ribed the grQllp's action as of the ordinary student mem­ to ~et through to the ordi­ to support them in tb~r stand. "most comendable". bership." nary student membership." ALL IMPORTED . ', . ' . '' . ·-- . ,· ~ . ' A week from today sees the National ment will be able to claim that it ls Justi­ BOOKS Grants demonstration in London. Uni­ fied. in perpetuadog the present system." versity Union NUS Secretary Sue Slip­ "I strongly advise and urge all students man has called for a "massive mobilisa­ to make a stand for their rights on Feb­ tion" of Leeds Students: "I hope we will ruary 8th and travel down to London and be able to send t,000 students to Lon­ demonstrate that they have had enough Monday - Friday Massive don", she said. of the present grants system." In addition to the oadonal demonstra­ The call for action has been backed tion the NUS ls also calHng for a lecture 4th - 8th February up by Union President Andy Jarosz. boycott on February 8th. Speaking earlier this week he said: "The turn out · situadon is now critical. There are only "If students do not feel lite making the a few things students can do to voice trip to London," said Sue Sliprnan, "I their dissatisfaction with the grants po­ hope they will at least boycott their lec­ sition and the oadooal demo next week tures as a token of sympathy for the vam­ Is a vital weapon which must be used to palgn. at demanded · its full potential. She continued: "The demo will prob­ taJdng I ably be place the day after the "The government is only going to ac­ mineworker's ballot on whether to take cede to student demands for a fair grants strike acdon in support of their wage if they see that the vast majority of the claim. This being the case the demo has for next total student population of 700,000 in th.is added. significance in the struggle to country are behincl their leaders in pres­ smash phase 3 of the government's wages sing for a higher grant.'' policy. 84 WOODHOUSE LANE "If we cannot mobilise 50,000 students "ll we do get the rise of the mandatory LEEDS 2 TEL:- 42483 Friday Eor the march in London the government award to £665 as wc have demanded we is not going to be impressed. It ls cssen­ will only be back to the position we were dal for students to realise that this ls a in during the mid-sixties. That was the crucial stage in the grants struggle. If only dme when our grants were on a par there is not a massive turn-out the govern- with the rate of infladon." 2 LEEDS STUDENT - Friday, February 1st, 1974 LEEDS STUDENT 155 WOODHOUSE LANE nts man SUS Not this sabbatical The 1,000 members of the Poly Union's sports clubs must examine carefully the value of a sabbatical to run • their affairs before voting on the motion at next Thursday's AGM. uitta There are already four sabbatical officers serving the Union. If, as Nick Marshall says, the time spent by the A University Union Ents steward found Union on the administration of sports clubs is negligible the way of overcoming the problem must be to redirect not guilty of ejecting a student from a hop some of the responsibilities of one of the existing paid has been suspended from duty for two weeks. officers towards sport. Assistant Chief Ents A sabbatical General Athletics Chairman would still Steward, Laurie White, be required to bear all the day to day responsibilities of £85 iust was suspended for two general union administration and the organisation of weeks fo llowing a Disci­ campaigns that rest on any members of the Executive. for a diary plinary Tribunal meeting It is doubtful that he would get anymore work done last week. than a non-sabbatical Athletics Chairman because clubs Both he and fellow Ents University medical students ~teward Robert McCarron will be less likely to organise themselves, as they do at are considering withholding were accused of forcibly ejec­ present, when they know a paid member of the Union payment of their annual sub­ ting politics student Kevin Executive is on hand. scription to the British Medi­ P rior fro111 the Jeff Beck In any case a man is already being employed full time cal Students Association. concert in the University to administer sports in the Union and he is making a 1'his wa~ decided at a Union on January 12th. meeting last week following Mr White was found not very good job of it. an increase in the subscrip­ guiltv but request5 were made Touched up by Andrea tion from 9 pence per head that he should be suspended to 15 pence. from duties for two hops Pictured above is second year English student A crippling cut backi President of Leeds Medi­ since he admitted acting irres­ Andrea Waind touching up her depiction of student cal Students Representative ponsibly.