Updated Advice on Appraisal and “MyAppraisal”

This is a brief update on the issue of Appraisals and “MyAppraisal”, UCL’s new system.

At the branch meeting last week, an overwhelming majority of members present voted for the motion calling on members to boycott the “MyAppraisal” system which has not been agreed with UCU or even consulted on. UCL management and HR have been informed of the Union’s objections, and further meetings are planned.

Please do not complete your appraisal using the platform “MyAppraisal” if possible.

Actions we are asking you to do:

• For all non-professorial staff, please use the relevant “old” online form. A complete set of the UCL agreed forms are archived on our website for staff to download. (Some forms were last updated less than a year ago.) When submitting the forms to your appraiser you may also include this UCU email. 
• For professorial staff, the advice is to use “MyAppraisal” despite its problems. This is because there is no recent ‘old’ Appraisal form. The Professorial Appraisal Review (PAR) process has also been different from the standard appraisal scheme for more than a decade, it introduced a performance assessment element, and appraisals have been managed online for most of that time.
• For staff who have completed their appraisal on “MyAppraisal”, our advice is twofold. First, you should review whether your Appraisal Objectives are appropriate. Second, it is wise to ask your department to ensure your appraisal data will not be used by UCL for any new purposes except in tracking appraisal completion.

Why have UCU members voted to ‘boycott ‘MyAppraisal’?  

The problems are several:

• Non-negotiated. The new system is not negotiated with the trade unions. We were not even consulted about it. This is the source of the problems we outline below.
• Data Protection. The new system processes and shares data in ways which are unclear, which staff have not been asked to permit, and which your union objects to. The old system kept data local, and staff did not give their permission to UCL to aggregate or further process their personal data – the new system has no such limitation.
• Principles of Appraisal. The new system is based on an externally-sourced platform called “Thrive”, designed for commercial performance assessment reviews. This is why there are repeated references to ‘SMART’ objectives and a ‘PERF’ (performance) category of objective. By contrast, UCL’s Appraisal Policy explicitly states (paras 1-5) that it is not a capability or probation policy, but it is meant to be developmental. Appraisals are intended to be conversations for agreeing medium-term aspirations and goals, rather than near-term targets.
• Consistency with Existing Policy. There appear to be other aspects of the new system which are not compatible with the agreed UCL Appraisal Policy. 
• Complexity. The new system is excessively complicated, whereas the old form is simpler and less ambiguous regarding what should be completed or not! The appraisee completes Part A, Part B is completed jointly in the meeting, and then you both agree Part C.
• Not Designed for Research Staff. UCL is already accepting that they will need to do more work to make the system work for research staff. In fact, a similar criticism could be levelled at its appropriateness for other categories of academic and academic-related staff.
• Not Equality-Proofed or Monitored. There has been no attempt to evaluate whether using this new system leads to indirect discrimination against particular groups of staff. 

Needless to say, it is frustrating to have to issue this type of advice at the last minute. 

Branch officers have met with UCL Organisational Development to discuss the new system, and have agreed to meet again after Easter, but it is clear that right now staff are up against a deadline. 

Where staff are at the top of UCL Grades 8 and 9 and in line for an additional increment, pay will not be affected by the appraisal mechanism at this time. UCL has said in their most recent communication (3 April) that all staff except those within the capability or disciplinary process will have the increment awarded. 

The Appraisal window has now been extended until the end of May.

UCL UCU Executive Committee
https://ucl-ucu.org.uk/