ST news at GU December 2024

Remember: If you have general questions regarding employment conditions or your ST membership, it’s easiest to contact ST Direkt at 0771–555 444 or stdirekt@st.org. If you have more local questions, contact us at st@gu.se and we will respond as soon as we can. You can also talk to our workplace and faculty representatives. Please note: The GU section’s operations are limited over the holiday season, so it may take longer for us to reply.

Ongoing salary negotiations

Salary negotiations began in late November and take place at four faculties before the end of the year, with the remaining faculties at GU after the New Year. The final negotiation week is scheduled for week 8, which means the new salaries will be paid with the March salary.

Starting next fall, new general agreements on salaries and benefits will be signed, and work on this has already started at a central level at Fackförbundet ST. After the New Year, both members and local union representatives will have the opportunity to give feedback to the union on which issues should be prioritized in the negotiations. This could include working hours, remote work, and a wage agreement with fixed salary increase figures. Keep an eye on your e-mail for more information from the union!

Annual Meeting of the GU Section on March 26, 2025

The GU Section’s annual meeting will take place on March 26 from 11:30 AM to 1:00 PM. At the meeting, the board, auditors, and nomination committee for the next period will be appointed, and the section’s members will also decide on upcoming activities, the budget, and the wage policy program. All members can submit proposals in the form of motions to the annual meeting; these must be submitted by March 4. A light lunch will be served after the meeting. An invitation to the annual meeting will be sent via e-mail by February 25.

Coffee with your union representatives (“Fika med facket”)

If you want to discuss employment conditions, salaries, or work environment, or maybe just learn more about what the union does, come to “Fika med facket”. Both ST members and other GU employees are welcome, so feel free to invite a colleague or two. Here are the scheduled dates for spring, we hope to see you there!

• Wednesday, 5 February, 4:00 PM to 5:00 PM, ST’s office at Karl Gustavsgatan 12B, floor 4.
• Wednesday, 5 March, 4:00 PM to 5:00 PM, ST’s office at Karl Gustavsgatan 12B, floor 4.
• Wednesday, 9 April, 4:00 PM to 5:00 PM, Theme: Salary Negotiations 2025. On Zoom (link will be published later).
• Wednesday, 7 May, 3:30 PM to 4:30 PM, ST’s office at Karl Gustavsgatan 12B, floor 4.
• Wednesday, 4 June, 3:30 PM to 4:30 PM, ST’s office at Karl Gustavsgatan 12B, floor 4.

Opinion piece: “Break the trend: Give the HEIs a larger share of the funding”

The government's research policy means that even more teachers and researchers will face precarious employment. Britta Lejon, Chair of Fackförbundet ST, and Sandra Hellstrand, member of ST’s Department in the University and College Area, address this in an opinion piece in Curie magazine (in Swedish). Up until 2028, government funding for research and doctoral education will increase by a total of 6.5 billion kronor. However, the majority of the funding will not go to the higher education institutions. For every additional krona invested in the HEIs, three extra kronor will go to the government research funding bodies. This means that teachers and researchers are increasingly trapped in the never-ending struggle with grant applications and project descriptions.

“It is time that we fix the skewed funding system! This would strengthen academic freedom – a cornerstone of our democracy – while also creating the best conditions for new and expanded knowledge. Fair conditions for our teachers and researchers will give tens of thousands of people better opportunities to plan their lives, contribute to scientific breakthroughs, and provide critical solutions to major societal challenges”, the authors argue.

New report: Four out of ten teachers and researchers face threats and harassment

The Swedish Secretariat for Gender Research at the University of Gothenburg, in collaboration with SULF and SUHF, has conducted a survey on threats and harassment against teaching and research staf f in higher education institutions. The findings reveal that four out of ten teachers and researchers have been victimized at some point. Students account for the majority of the harassment, while a slightly smaller portion comes from colleagues in research and teaching. Female teachers are the most affected – primarily by students. The most common form of harassment is threatening e-mails. Teachers in the humanities and social sciences report the highest levels of threats and harassment, but no academic field falls below a rate of 30%. These problems risk leading to self-censorship, ill health, and drawing attention from productive work. Ultimately, harassment poses a threat to democracy and academic freedom.

Fackförbundet ST takes this situation very seriously and, together with other unions, will actively work to follow up on the report and demand action. Read more about the survey and download the report here: Threats and harassment common in Swedish Academia

Work environment at Swedish universities – report from MYNAK

A recently published report f rom the Swedish Agency f or Work Environment Expertise’s (MYNAK) also analyzes the work environment for research and teaching staf f in the Swedish higher education sector. The results highlight both risk and health promoting factors – work is perceived as satisfying due to autonomy and flexibility, but there are challenges such as high workload, lack of time, and insufficient social support and recognition. Read more (report in Swedish, with a summary in English): Arbetsmiljön på svenska universitet och högskolor

ST and the union work for climate transition

Climate change is one of the greatest threats to humanity and requires collaboration and engagement from all sectors of society. ST will take an active role in climate transition issues in the workplace and has established a new union representative role as climate coordinator in the board. If you have an interest in climate issues and want to know more, contact us in the ST section board.
Read more (in Swedish): Klimatomställningen | Fackförbundet ST