UPDATE: Eight Days of Strikes at the University of Southampton Announced by UCU

Following threats of strike action over pension disputes in July, the University and College Union (UCU) have announced an eight-day strike period between Monday 25th November and Wednesday 4th December as part of a protest over rising pension costs, poor working conditions and low pay. The strike will affect sixty universities, with the University of Southampton being one of them.

In a ballot for UCU members last week, 71% of UCU members at the University of Southampton voted for industrial action over changes to the USS pension schemes, whilst 67% voted for strike action following poor working conditions and rates of pay.

As well as changes to the already-controversial USS pension scheme, members will also be striking as a result of their concerns of universities’ failures to make improvements on pay, equality, casualisation and workloads.

In addition to the 8-day strike period, UCU members will begin ‘action short of strike’ once they return to work. This includes not rescheduling missed lectures, not covering for sick colleagues and working strictly to contract only.

UCU general secretary Jo Grady said:

Strike action is a last resort, but staff have made it quite clear that enough is enough and universities can be in no doubt about the strength of feeling. The first wave of strikes will hit institutions later this month unless universities start talking to us seriously about how they are going to deal with rising pension costs and declining pay and conditions.

This latest wave of strike actions comes over a year after a historic 14-day strike hit the University over similar concerns.

UCU have warned institutions to act fast and engage in discussions about what needs to change if they want to prevent any disruption. It remains to be seen if the University will partake in such discussions in order to prevent the strike.

Dr Mary Morrison, President of the Southampton branch of UCU commented:

Taking industrial action is not something that any of us do lightly, but this national vote has given a strong mandate for action. Staff report increased workloads leading to longer and longer working hours, weekend working and increasing stress, as pay and pension expectations have declined. Working under those conditions your teachers are not going to be able to give their best for you, their students. But strike action is not inevitable, UCU wants meaningful negotiation with the employers to bring about real changes to address these issues.

However, the University seem unwilling to re-engage in negotiations, claiming that recent national changes to the pay and pensions system was enough. A University of Southampton spokesperson said this:

The prospect of local industrial action at Southampton alongside a minority of universities across the country is very disappointing. Our priority is to provide a world-class education for our students and the University will do everything possible to minimise disruption to teaching and learning. We believe that the recent national outcomes on pay and pension contributions deliver the best benefits that can be achieved for both our own employees and for the ongoing financial sustainability of our University. We know that all of our colleagues care deeply about the education of our students and the wider activities of our University, and we will work to mitigate the impact of any action on our community.

A full list of UK universities affected by the strike action from 25th November can also be found below: