In July 2022 BIMM Institute was granted its official university status, being one of the most popular music universities due to its accessibility, previously the colleges awarded their degrees under the University of Sussex’s name but now when receiving a qualification it will be rewarded by BIMM University — doesn’t sound right.
In the closing weeks of BIMM’s second semester something felt off, an unease between staff as far as students were concerned, until a petition brought to light a restructuring process that would supposedly be in benefit of students and reflective of the new university status.
But it’s clear from the outrage coming from; staff, freelancers, students and alumni that this isn’t in the benefit of anyone except the people earning from these chops. Not only have the university not issued any statement in an attempt to acknowledge the situation but jobs for BIMM are being advertised as this is being written. This restructuring process has already been an emotionally distressing period for staff and freelancers alike, with staff being told that they have the choice of reapplying for their old job — if it still exists — a new lesser paying role, or redundancy. In the middle of a cost of living crisis.
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The ones who seemed to have initially brought the issue to attention go by the name Justice For BIMM, having a chance to ask the anonymous account some questions briefly they said “The root of the problem is having no Union representation. I believe we should have union representation because then our staff will be safe and guaranteed a job.
"It’s okay though, don’t worry because BIMM clearly knows what they’re doing — toying with people’s lives and what not..."
The past couple of years has seen the rise of resistance between employers and unions, particularly from the likes of nurses, railway staff, and royal mail staff. BIMM refuses to recognise the University and College Union, making it easier for them to change contract terms for workers. Speaking on the situation the UCU said “Members who are course leaders have reported being presented with a choice between applying for new roles, which are substantially similar to their existing ones but with, in many cases, worse pay and conditions or accepting redundancy. This appears to be a misuse of redundancy procedures as the roles aren't actually disappearing — this is more a forced variation of contract.”.
In tandem the university intends to slash the amount of student support staff alongside lecturers, contradicting their statement that this will be in benefit for the students entirely. With less support staff, that burden is going to fall on the shoulders of lecturers that do not specialise in supporting students in the same way. It’s okay though, don’t worry because BIMM clearly knows what they’re doing — toying with people’s lives and what not.
It’s a complete disregard for the significance of the quality of staff and students’ mental health. In 2022 Students Minds conducted a survey that found 57% of participants reported having an issue with their mental health, and 27% had a diagnosis. In addition, the UCU reported in 2021 that over half of university staff that participated in a survey, spanning across 146 universities in the UK, showed signs of depression.
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Whilst freelancers are seemingly unaffected in this situation, their presence is an uneasy one at BIMM already. With one freelancer saying “Being freelance means we are essentially on a 0 hour contract, so they can drop us at any time, which worries me a lot, it also puts us pretty low in the pecking order, so we haven’t been given any official information about our future as of yet.”. Being freelance is hard enough, it’s an uncertain future, ready to erupt at any moment and it’s growing scarcely close to that moment. They finish with “Emotionally it's been pretty harrowing. For some campuses more than others, some of the staff members have been working there for years and have suddenly been told they may either be made redundant or made to fight for their jobs with less pay.” putting this situation into perspective for everyone, echoing the severity of the loss of income for these workers.
Speaking further on the broad situation the UCU had this statement to provide “UCU would like to engage in productive dialogue with management in order to represent the views of members and make BIMM a better and more successful place to work; this would be of benefit to the whole company; the current situation demonstrates the limitations of top-down management as opposed to productive dialogue with staff.”
"The staff are what make BIMM so special"
When something so drastic is happening like in this situation it makes you wonder who is making all of these final decisions, gaining university status could be a factor yes but, who? Well it doesn’t take long to find out that the COO of the company has questionable credentials in providing valuable decisions towards music related education, he’s a big ol’ finance man. In fact one of his main selling points from the biography that BIMM has for him is that he used to work for a pharmaceuticals company — makes it sound comically like a big pharma conspiracy. But conspiracy aside, why are people without prior experience within the music industry being employed to make major decisions for a university that prides itself on providing the best for young people seeking a career in the industry. Again it ironically calls back to “in benefit of students”.
The staff are what make BIMM so special, they’re the ones who teach us, provide people with incredible opportunities, and ultimately give students their first glimpse of the industry. I worked my first major press event through BIMM, it’s the sort of thing that gets your mouth watering to commit to the music industry. Those opportunities are the ones that give you the first high that you’ll keep on chasing. Unfortunately the powers at be — the greedy goblins in charge — have other ideas for the future of BIMM.
If you’re compelled to support BIMM staff in any way possible you can sign the petition from Justice For BIMM, follow them on Instagram for updates and join them at their next protest.
Sign the petition: justice-for-bimm-staff
Justice For BIMM Instagram
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