Industrial action by University and College Union (UCU)

24 Nov 2021

Message from Adèle MacKinlay, Director of People and Organisational Development

Dear colleagues,

On 16 November 2021, we received confirmation from the UCU that it will be taking industrial action in the form of strike action on 1, 2 and 3 December 2021 and action short of a strike continuously from the 1 December 2021 ending no later than 3 May 2022.

The industrial action at our University is in respect of pay and employment conditions, where the UCU vote just exceeded the legal 50% threshold for action (50.4%). In total, 728 staff voted in favour of such action. We have more than 12,500 staff across our University.

We recognise the right of colleagues to take this action, but are extremely concerned about the impact on our whole community, particularly on our students who have suffered so much over the past 20 months. We will do everything we can to minimise any impact on their teaching, learning and wider experience.

We have also created a StaffNet site to guide our staff through this period. This guidance explains what industrial action involves, how and when staff need to report taking part in action and details of any pay to be withheld as a result.

Taking part in industrial action is a personal choice, whilst some UCU members will take part, others may choose not to. Any member of University staff who is not a member of the UCU is expected to carry out their contractual duties as normal during periods of industrial action.

If you have any questions, please contact your HR Partner.

Adèle MacKinlay
Director of People and Organisational Development