Trade Unions Information
Our Approach
The University is committed to fostering constructive and collaborative relationships with both its officially recognised trade unions and other employee representative bodies. All UWS employees are entitled to join one of these trade unions and will not be discriminated against on the basis of race, gender or gender identity, sex, sexual orientation, age, record of offences, marital status, refugee or asylum seeker status, nationality or place of origin, family status, or disability.
We engage meaningfully with union representatives at the earliest opportunity, in line with our Joint Negotiation and Consultative Committee (JNCC) arrangements and in full compliance with relevant employment legislation and codes of practice.
UWS formally recognises three trade unions:
We also engage with a number of other trade unions and representative bodies which reflect the wide diversity of both our staff and our educational programmes. For example, UWS is a major provider of nursing and health-related degree courses and regularly consults with the Royal College of Nursing to ensure our employment policies and approach take cognisance of good practice in the sector, particularly as females make up the majority of their members.
We consult, inform and negotiate with each union on matters that directly affect their members. Our approach is grounded in the principles of partnership working, with an emphasis on sharing challenges, co-developing solutions, and reaching consensus through open dialogue and mutual respect.
UWS is committed to fair working practices and supports the Scottish Government’s Fair Work Policy which aims to enhance the lives of people in Scotland and boost economic growth by improving employment terms and conditions. Our People and Wellbeing team have a range of policies and initiatives which support the ideals of fair work, trust and inclusion in which people feel supported, engaged and relate to each other in a professional way. These include flexible working and carer’s leave procedures. The university is currently working with its recognised trade unions to produce a fair work joint statement which will guide our approach to balancing the rights of employees and the institution.
UWS also has an employee forum, made up of staff representatives from across all areas of the University, as well as representatives from our recognised trade unions and a non-recognised trade union (UCU). The demographic of representatives includes a range of ethnicities and genders, and all colleagues are encouraged and have the opportunity to nominate themselves as employee forum reps. The Employee forum also includes representation from an EDI specialist to ensure that equality issues are given due consideration within this forum.
UWS remains committed to transparency and continuous improvement in our employment practices. We value the contributions of staff and our trade union partners in shaping a fair, inclusive, and supportive working environment for all colleagues.
UWS and Labour Rights
UWS recognises the trade unions listed above and fully abide by statutory labour laws, including freedom of association and collective bargaining for all staff regardless of race, gender or gender identity, sex, sexual orientation, age, record of offences, marital status, refugee or asylum seeker status, nationality or place of origin, family status, or disability.
We support the provision of paid or unpaid time from an employee’s normal role to undertake trade union duties and activities as a trade union representative on campus for our recognised trade unions. Employees who are union members can request representation and support from trained union representatives and full-time officials as well as expert legal advice in support of their Labour Rights. The unions listed represent staff during the collective bargaining of pay award negotiations though our agreement with JNCC.
Last updated: 13/10/2026