Industrial action on at 67 universities

By working to contract, staff will refuse to undertake extra duties or work outside their contracted hours. A recent survey revealed that lecturers work an average 55 hour week and the union said that universities depend on staff goodwill.
 
The dispute is about changes to the Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS) pension scheme - the second largest private scheme in the UK. Scheme members are furious that changes they vehemently opposed were imposed on 1 October. Those changes will see them pay more to work longer with less protection should they lose their job.
 
The union has warned that if the initial work to contract action does not force negotiations then the action would escalate to rolling strikes and a boycott of student assessment.
 
The 67 institutions affected include all the Russell Group universities and over 1 million students could be hit if the action escalates. The union has been frustrated by the employers' negotiators' steadfast refusal to negotiate and says it does not believe that hawkish stance is shared by all universities.
 
UCU has said it would review the work to contract action at universities that publicly call on the employers to negotiate and do not subject members to punitive and unfair salary deductions.
 
In two referendums over 90% of scheme members who voted, voted against the changes and in the industrial action ballot over three-quarters (77%) of UCU members backed the sustained industrial action campaign. Full details on the dispute, what work to contract means and how the action may develop can be found at USS pension dispute briefing
 
UCU general secretary, Sally Hunt, said: 'Despite out best efforts to resolve this dispute, we cannot negotiate with an empty chair. Our action will start today and will see thousands of UCU members at universities across the country stop going the extra mile.
 
'We are keen to resolve this dispute as quickly as possible with minimal disruption and hope those universities keen to avoid unnecessary confrontation and disruption will start to apply pressure on those refusing to talk.'