EIS FELA Membership

It appears that the EIS FELA maybe looking to widen its recruitment to include previously excluded FE staff, namely staff employed as "Instructors" and "Associate Lecturers"

It is our understanding that EIS-FELA previously rejected the inclusion of Instructors and Associate Lecturers as members on the grounds that staff delivering and assessing curriculm courses and programmes should be employed as Lecturers on Lecturer salaries, terms and conditions!

Concern was expressed about declining EIS-FELA membership and recruitment at last year's conference.... see below...

More on this to follow!

CONFERENCE RESOLUTIONS 2013  ...... Carried….

Resolution 21

“That this EIS-FELA Annual Conference notes that a significant number of longstanding EIS-FELA members, including former branch secretaries and other experienced reps, have left the sector over the last few years as a result of voluntary severance schemes. In many colleges, where these teaching posts have been replaced at all, it has been with part time, temporary staff who are often younger and may be harder to recruit to the union for a variety of reasons including the short term, uncertain nature of their employment and the practical difficulties of reaching part time staff in the workplace.

Conference further notes that teachers in the schools sector receive free EIS membership during their probation year, to encourage them to join the union from the outset of their careers, and to ensure that the majority of new teachers are union members.

This Conference resolves to:

· encourage reps in all colleges to actively approach newer members of staff, including part time and temporary staff, to ask them to join the EIS.

· request that the EIS produce recruitment material specifically targeting this demographic group.

This material should highlight the reduced subs for those working part time.

· investigate alternative recruitment strategies targeting this demographic, including the use, where appropriate, of social media.

· request that the EIS offer comparable membership terms for new members in the Further Education sector where there is no probationary year, i.e. the first year of membership being free.”

Where is EIS FELA with this resolution?