UCU Begins Unprecedented Strike Action
The University and College Union (UCU) has begun a fresh wave of strike action across the UK, affecting 150 higher education institutions including the University of Leicester.
As with previous strike action, the University of Leicester will remain open on these days, though some teaching may be cancelled.
The full list of dates is as follows:
- Week 1 – Wednesday 1 February
- Week 2 – Thursday 9 and Friday 10 February
- Week 3 – Tuesday 14, Wednesday 15 and Thursday 16 February
- Week 4 – Tuesday 21, Wednesday 22 and Thursday 23 February
- Week 5 – Monday 27 and Tuesday 28 February and Wednesday 1 and Thursday 2 March
- [No action week commencing Monday 6 March]
- Week 6 – Thursday 16 and Friday 17 March
- Week 7 – Monday 20, Tuesday 21 and Wednesday 22 March
With over 70,000 UCU members expected to walk out, these will be the largest strikes in UK university history. The UCU’s demands include a pay rise to keep pace with inflation, an improvement in working conditions, and a revocation of cuts made to pensions.
UCU general secretary Jo Grady said: ‘The university sector in the UK has over £40bn sitting in reserves, but instead of using that vast wealth to deliver a cost-of-living pay rise and reverse devastating pension cuts, university vice-chancellors would rather force staff to take strike action and see campuses shut down.
‘There is a clear route out of these disputes, but at present vice-chancellors lack the political will to take it. They are failing staff who want to get back to work, and students who want to get on with their studies’.
These strikes represent the latest activity in an ongoing dispute between the UCU and universities which in recent months has been exacerbated by the cost-of-living crisis.
In the most recent poll conducted by Leicester Student’s Union, 62% of 324 verified voters voted in favour of supporting the strike action. The Student’s Union will therefore once again be standing in solidarity with the UCU.
If you have any queries or concerns regarding the strike action and its impact on your studies, we would urge you to contact either your School, Student Support Services or the Student’s Union Advice Service.
22 | Leicester/Coventry
