The Association of University Teachers (AUT) was the trade union and professional association that represented academic (teaching and research) and academic-related (librarians, IT professionals and senior administrators) staff at pre-1992 universities in the United Kingdom. The final general secretary of AUT was Sally Hunt. AUT also had branches in a number of post-1992 universities (the ex-polytechnics and other institutes that have become universities since 1992) and in university colleges, although the main union representing academic staff in these institutes was the National Association of Teachers in Further and Higher Education (NATFHE). On 2 December 2005 the results of a membership ballot on a merger of AUT and NATFHE was announced. The merger was supported by 79.2% of AUT and 95.7% of NATFHE members who voted. The two unions amalgamated on 1 June 2006, and after a transitional year, full operational unity was achieved in June 2007. The new union is called the University and College Union (UCU). History The formation of AUT (1909-1919) In 1909, Douglas Laurie, a young zoology lecturer at Liverpool University called a meeting "To consider a proposal to form an Association for bringing together the members of the Junior Staff more into touch with one another and with the life of the University" At this time an increasing number of non-professorial staff were being employed. These Junior Staff or Assistant Lecturers were poorly paid, did essentially the same duties as professors and had few promotion prospects. In addition they had no representation on the bodies governing the Universities. Although the society formed at Liverpool was formally a "dining and discussion society" from an early stage it was clearly a new pressure group. At first its aims were local and in 1910 it won a campaign over representation on the faculties but on learning that similar groups had been formed or were in the process of formation they invited representatives of the junior staff from Bristol, Sheffield, Birmingham, Cardiff and Manchester for a dinner. In 1913 the junior staff at the Victoria University of Manchester (now the University of Manchester) presented a request for improvements in pay and grading to their University Council. This included a suggestion that the starting pay should be substantially increased. The Council replied that while it agreed that eventually there should be an increase, at the current time there was insufficient money to pay for this. By 1917 inflation had rapidly eroded