By Gabriel Princewill-
University staff across the UK are set to stage a series of walkouts in an acrimonious and escalating row over pensions, it has been announced.
Members of the University and College Union (UCU) have agreed to stage a number of walk outs, starting with a two-day walkout next month unless the tense dispute is not resolved, the union said. The Union announced that 88% of members who voted backed strike action, while 93% backed action short of walkouts.
University employers have described the prospect of industrial action was “disappointing” whilst talks over the pension scheme continue.
A two-day walkout on February 22 and 23, followed by prospective three, four, and five-day strikes in future weeks appears to be set in stone. One UCU member anonymously told the eye of media.com ” what the UCU want is a balanced approach that maintains the pension package of University staff. The employer body University has not forwarded a proposal to address our vital concerns”. The aggrieved UCU group has been balloting members enrolled in the scheme since November
After the higher education committee summoned a meeting, the UCU said it will be staging 14-days of escalating action if the row was not resolved soon . The last round of talks are scheduled to take place on Tuesday , and the eye of media.com will be keeping a close eye on this dispute and how it is resolved.
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Lectures, classes and exams at approximately 61 universities are expected to be affected by the strike, if UCU pushes ahead with industrial action. First semester exams at many Universities began in the first and second week of January and many are scheduled to finish in the first week of February. Disruptions to those examinations could be consequential for both students and lecturers who will be forced to adjust to the external disturbance stemming from the
The raging dispute is about a suspected deficit in the proposal for lecturers pensions, and the methodology used to calculate it. Strong adherents of the University College Union say the pension of lecturers should be guaranteed and not subject to stock market conditions , thereby compromising the security of lecturer’s pension. Under current arrangements. employers and employee share a percentage of the recommended pension, but UCU members accuse Universities Uk of attempting to renege on their agreement and the standard expectations required of them by University College Union Members.
The union circulated an announcement earlier on Monday that its members had overwhelmingly backed action over proposed changes to pensions covered by the Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS) in an industrial ballot.
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The aggrieved UCU group has been balloting members enrolled in the scheme since November, 2017. The body announced that 88% of members who voted backed strike action, while 93% backed action short of walkouts.
University employers said the prospect of industrial action was “disappointing” as talks over the pension scheme continue.
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Other action scheduled to hamper the usual academic processes at affected universities include members opting to stick inflexibly to their contract requirements at the expense of the flexibility that often allows them to cover classes.
Hundreds of thousands of university workers are enrolled in the USS pensions scheme, with most institutions comprising the group having been established before 1992.
UCU general secretary Sally Hunt said in a statement : “Universities will be hit with levels of strike action not seen before on UK campuses if a deal cannot be done over the future of USS pensions.
“Members have made it quite clear they are prepared to take action to defend their pensions and the universities need to work with us to avoid widespread disruption.”
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