The Union exists in order to support the “advancement of education of students at UCL for the public benefit” and, in order to do this better, there’s a simple step it should take: hire more students.
As a student officer this year, it’s been my job to hold the Union accountable to that objective and to ask how it might do so even more effectively. There are several reasons why employing more student staff would help, so I’ve broken them down into five parts.
Firstly, students aren’t just beneficiaries of the Union — they’re one of its greatest resources: intelligent, thoughtful and strategic individuals who bring a range of specialist knowledge, skills, and backgrounds with them.
For instance, while Zero Food Waste (ZFW) received funding last year for a community fridge on campus, the fridge has faced severe delays due to staff concerns about compliance with food and health regulations. The students in ZFW have been working on issues like this for years now, and they have all the answers to these concerns, but staff are reluctant to include them in the working group. When I bring these concerns to ZFW they swiftly suggest solutions, but staff are often too slow to follow through on these suggestions.
Secondly, students need jobs with better wages and security, and the Union can offer this.
I’ve got plenty of friends who work in catering or retail, often paid well below the London Living Wage. The Students’ Union is located on campus, offers flexible working hours, and pays above the London Living Wage. The Union employs more than 170 full-time staff, yet, out of UCL’s more than 50,000 students, only 250 work for the SU. Naturally, there are some positions which must be carried out by full-time employees, but from what I’ve seen this past year, there is scope to employ a lot more students. Many student volunteers undertake meaningful work, like ZFW. By employing these students and integrating these projects into the staff system, the Union and its student projects would be significantly strengthened.
Thirdly, the job market students are stepping into after university is more competitive than ever. It’s no longer enough to graduate with a degree; students need more work experience.
The Union should create more opportunities like these for students. For instance, writing policy memos and long-term strategies or leading exciting projects. Opportunities like these are highly relevant for students interested in careers in public policy and adjacent fields. Moreover, student officers can gain invaluable insights by working alongside students studying different courses. For instance this year, when renegotiating UCL’s socially responsible investment policy, input and advice from an economics student would have been hugely helpful.
Fourthly, students are ambitious and progressive. I want a more inclusive, driven, and forward-thinking Students’ Union and, in order to achieve that, it is important to involve more students directly in decision-making.
I’ve seen this in the way students approach meetings: for instance, rather than simply advocating a reduction in UCL’s investments which are connected to the fossil fuel industry, students advocated for an absolute ban (and were successful). Similarly when reviewing food prices or setting the Union’s stance on political issues, students’ progressiveness and ambition is much needed. The easiest way of ensuring this ambition is simply to employ more students in the Union.
Finally, Union democracy will be better for it. The more students actively involved in the Union, the stronger and more representative it becomes.
Students who are already engaged with the Union are more likely to run for leadership positions, and it’s important that those taking on Officer or Sabbatical Officer roles already have experience working in the Union, so that they can be as effective as possible. The more experienced and effective the Union’s student leaders are, the more influence the Union will have with UCL and the more serious student concerns will be taken.
The bottom line is simple, the Union works best when it’s truly student-led, and one of the easiest ways to ensure that is to hire more student staff. It’s a win-win-win-win-win.
This article was featured in CG98.