Find out what your pay would be if it had kept up with inflation -- and vote for industrial action today

If you currently receive a salary in higher education, this modeller tells you what your salary would be if it had kept up with inflation since 2009.

The modeller also tells you how much you are being underpaid given the amount you actually work. We know that staff in HE are hugely overworked. This modeller puts a price on the exploitation that is taking place. 

Last year's 'offer' from employers was 0% -- a pay freeze. This year's is 1.5%. Given the current rate of inflation, the cumulative loss of pay relative to inflation since 2009 is 20%. 

Do you, your colleagues, and your future colleagues deserve another ten years of this? Or do you want to take action to make universities invest in their staff? 

Casualisation and our Four Fights demands 

While those of you receiving a salary use the modeller, bear in mind that 41% of teaching-only staff are on hourly paid contracts, and the proportion of academic staff in the sector who are hourly paid has increased in recent years. 

Hourly pay varies widely throughout the sector -- and for some staff their actual hourly rate, based on the time they take to prepare teaching and support students, is below the minimum wage. 

That is why our demands to employers include a £2,500 pay rise for all staff, with an equivalent increase to hourly rates -- and a plan to move hourly paid staff on to fractional contracts. 

Remind yourself about our demands in the Four Fights dispute by looking at our infographics covering each of the four issues:

• pay
• casualisation
• workload
• equality.

You can also read the full claim which we lodged with employers before the beginning of this dispute. 

Those of you whose institution is also in the USS dispute may wish to put the amount of money you would be earning if employers hadn't cut your pay into our USS pension modeller, and see how it would transform your retirement benefits -- especially if employers worked with us to protect benefits rather than engaging in another round of cuts. 

These ballots are a sprint, not a marathon 

UCU's higher education sector conference and higher education committee resolved to ballot as soon as possible so that branches would be in a position to commence industrial action before the end of this term. 

You need to post your papers back as soon as possible. The latest you can safely post your papers is next Tuesday, 2 November. 

If you need to order a replacement for any reason, including a change of address, use this form to do so no later than 5pm this Thursday, 28 October. 

Jo Grady
UCU general secretary