UCU members in pension strike

Around 400,000 union members from five trades unions will be on strike in protest at government plans to make them pay more and work longer for smaller pensions in retirement.
 
The unions involved and areas hit by the action are:

• University and College Union (UCU) - lecturers in further education colleges and modern universities
• Public and Commercial Services union (PCS) - staff across the civil service including job centres, border posts and tax offices
• Unite - health workers and civil servants across the UK including health visitors and Ministry of Defence firefighters
• Northern Ireland Public Services Alliance (NIPSA) - civil servants in Northern Ireland
• Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) - sailors in the Royal Fleet Auxiliary

UCU general secretary, Sally Hunt, said: 'College and university staff are already seeing the impact of the government's pension changes on their pay packets and will lose hundreds of pounds every year in return for reduced pensions when they retire. It is simply not fair for ordinary families to be bearing the brunt of the government's cuts while those at the top get tax cuts.'