IN REPLY to the excellent article, “bully” managers (TESS, March 10) could I say that reality in Scottish FE is certainly represented by the results of the Educational Institute of Scotland survey? The result of the tokenistic exercise carried out for the Scottish Further Education Funding Council was frightening in its absurdity.
However, I would, once again, draw to Ronnie Smith’s attention the abject failure of some EIS branch officers to represent their membership, and their apparently complete conversion to furthering the cause of management cost-cutting measures.
So much so, that the EIS branch officers in one central belt college requested management to consider a restructuring that will almost certainly lead to joblosses among their own membership. They then proceeded, with management, to discuss this request and formulate recommendations over a five-month period without ever consulting their branch.
As a direct result of these actions being made known to the membership of the branch invol-ved, in the past week there have been a significant number of
resignations.
I hope that the union’s full-time officials will now establish policies and plans to combat these attacks on their members. If they immediately mount a rigorous campaign to challenge management inequities they may still be able to prevent the EISCollege Lecturers’ Association from crumbling down around them.
Les Sinclair
Western Road, Kilmarnock
