As agreed at the BUIRA 2020 Annual General Meeting (AGM), the Birmingham stewardship team are introducing ‘BUIRA Fellows’. BUIRA fellows will sit alongside existing honorary members, and will expand the number of individuals that can be recognised.

A BUIRA Fellowship can be awarded to those who have made an outstanding academic contribution to industrial relations scholarship, as well as demonstrating a significant contribution to the community in the field and within BUIRA. Should an individual be granted a BUIRA Fellowship, it will be viewed as an ‘award’ that Fellows can put on their CVs/websites. It will not come with any financial perks (e.g. free conference attendance).

Please read carefully the details below.

Nominations can be made here: https://bham.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_b7KdsGNsu8F7Lzo Nominations close Friday 10th June 2022 at 5pm (UK time).

The outcome of this process shall be announced at the forthcoming 2022 AGM.

 Criteria for Fellowship

For the sake of clarity and transparency, an explanation of these criteria is set out below. Fellowship candidates qualify for nomination by virtue of their accomplishments the criteria below. They must also have been members of BUIRA for at least three years.

Candidates must have exhibited a substantial and original contribution to the intellectual pursuit of the field of industrial relations by developing new insights, new methods or substantial empirical achievements. This contribution should reflect sound theory, scientific method and relevance. Examples of this contribution include, but are not limited to, the following:

•            Outstanding thought leadership, and high impact/quality publications from a variety of industrial relations outlets e.g. books, peer-reviewed articles, major reports

•            Pedagogical research that has led to a demonstrable impact on the practice of industrial relations education.

Normally nominees must have had a significant role within BUIRA.

This contribution should be, or have been, active and sustained. It can be evidenced by, for example:

•            Membership of the BUIRA Stewardship or Executive Committee (current BUIRA Stewards and Executive Committee members are ineligible for nomination whilst holding these roles)

•            Contribution to the leadership of BUIRA Study Groups

•            Contribution to BUIRA’s Doctoral workshops

•            Engagement with BUIRA’s publications

Nomination Process for Fellowship

i) Nomination

1.           Nominations to open annually between January and the BUIRA Conference in June/July. Each application must have a nominator, as there are no self-nominations.

2.           The nominator must secure the prior agreement of the nominee before nomination.

3.           Nominators and nominees must be BUIRA members.

4.           Nominators should complete the official nomination form (online) and follow these instructions.

ii) Screening

1.           The Stewardship Team will carry out an initial screening of the nominations with a view to securing completeness of the nomination. The President and Secretary may request additional information or clarity of the case from the nominator prior to consideration by the Executive Committee so that all cases are given the best chance of success.

2.           All nominations will be considered by the Executive Committee with a view to confirming the prima facie case for Fellowship. If the case is not confirmed, then further information will be sought, and detailed feedback and advice provided.

iii) Voting

1.         The Executive Committee will receive the cases for voting. The EC will vote to either a) approve the nomination; or b) object to the nomination (citing reasons).

iv) Decision

1.         If the case is approved, the nominee shall be offered a BUIRA Fellowship. If accepted by the nominee, this will be conferred at the next BUIRA AGM.

2.         If the case is objected to, the objection must be of a serious nature to prevent progression to Fellowship e.g., evidence of professional misconduct or of a serious risk to the Academy’s reputation. Any rejection at this stage can be subject to appeal.

3.         An appeal of the decision must be made by the nominator on behalf of the nominee within 3 months of the date of the original nomination. This appeal must contain the detailed grounds for the appeal e.g., process and/or content. The appeal will be considered by the EC in a timely manner. Appellants should expect to receive a detailed explanation of the decision made by this group. The results of this appeal will be final.