UCU members overwhelmingly reject UCEA pay offer

• Over 30,000 voted in electronic poll conducted over four days 
• UCU says strike action to resume next week unless much improved offer is made

Members of UCU have voted by 80.4% to reject the latest pay offer from employer body UCEA. The electronic ballot was open for four days with tens of thousands of UCU members backing UCU's position to reject the offer. 

The offer made by UCEA was 5%, equating to another significant real-terms pay cut. Over a decade of low pay awards from employers has caused staff pay to fall 25% behind inflation.

The union has confirmed that strike action will resume next week and continue through February and March unless a much-improved pay offer is made alongside commitments on workload and casualisation. 

UCU general secretary Jo Grady, said: 'Earlier this week UCEA laughably claimed support for strike action was isolated. The only people isolated right now are them. 

'My message is very simple: our members have seen through your pleas of poverty as you sit on over £40bn of reserves. Students have seen through your poor attempts to cause division. And even the media has seen through you for not having the courage to turn up for TV interviews. Get serious and make a proper offer - or get out of the way.'