International
UK University Workers Commence Strike Over Working Conditions
UK University workers have commenced a strike action over their working conditions.
Eko Hot Blog reports that university workers in the United Kingdom (UK) under the aegis of University and College Union (UCU) commenced a strike on Thursday over “attacks on pay, working conditions and pensions.”
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According to the union, more than 70,000 staff at 150 universities across the UK are involved in what it described as “the biggest in the history of higher education.”
The three-day strike action will continue on Friday, November 25, and end on Wednesday, November 30.
The university workers said staff will be picketing the entrances of every university each day of the action.
“The strikes come after UCU members overwhelmingly voted ‘yes’ to industrial action last month in two historic national ballots over attacks on pay and working conditions as well as pension cuts,” the union said in a statement.
“The results are the first ever successful nationally aggregated ballots in the education sector since the Tories introduced anti-trade union laws in 2016. Despite the results, vice-chancellors have not made any improved offers.”
The UCU said the National Union of Students has backed the strike action, which could see over 2.5 million students impacted.
“In the pay and working conditions dispute, the union’s demands include a meaningful pay rise to deal with the cost-of-living crisis as well as action to end the use of insecure contracts and deal with dangerously high workloads,” the statement reads.
“Employers imposed a pay rise worth just 3% this year following over a decade of below inflation pay awards. On average university staff do two days additional work unpaid per week, whilst a third of academic staff are on some form of temporary contract.
“In the pension dispute, UCU is demanding employers revoke the cuts and restore benefits. The package of cuts made earlier this year will see the average member lose 35% from their guaranteed future retirement income. For those at the beginning of their careers the losses are in the hundreds of thousands of pounds.
“The UK university sector generated record income of £41.1bn last year with the 150 vice-chancellors facing action collectively earning an estimated £45 million. UCU said the sector can more than afford to meet staff demands.”
Commenting on Thursday’s strike action, UCU general secretary Jo Grady said 70,000 university staff have “turned out like never before, defying bullying tactics from management to show they will no longer accept falling pay, pension cuts, brutal workloads and gig-economy working conditions.”
“If vice-chancellors doubted the determination of university staff to save our sector then today has been a rude awakening for them,” she said.
“We have been overwhelmed by the support of thousands of students who have joined us on the picket lines. They recognise that vice-chancellors are wrecking the sector for staff and students alike and are determined to stand with us and fix it.
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“Our members deserve a proper pay rise and the money is there to deliver it. Vice-chancellors now need to urgently address the concerns of staff otherwise our 70,000 members will escalate this dispute into next year.”
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