Strike action announced at four Yorkshire universities

students at four universities in Yorkshire face disruption during 14 days of strike action in a row over pensions.
The University of Hull's Cottingham Road campus. Picture: Terry CarrottThe University of Hull's Cottingham Road campus. Picture: Terry Carrott
The University of Hull's Cottingham Road campus. Picture: Terry Carrott

The Universities of Hull, Leeds, Sheffield and York, will be affected in the action, which will begin with a five-day walkout from Thursday February 22.

The dispute centres on the employers’ representative Universities UK’s proposals to end the defined benefit element of the Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS) pension scheme, which UCU says would leave a typical lecturer almost £10,000 worse off a year in retirement. UCU general secretary Sally Hunt said staff felt let down by vice-chancellors “who seem to care more about defending their own pay and perks than the rights of their staff.”

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She said strike action had not been seen on campuses on this scale before “but universities need to know the full scale of the disruption they will be hit with if they refuse to sort this mess out.”

UUK has said their priority is to put USS on a “secure and sustainable” footing. A spokesman said the problem would not go away if ignored, adding: “Without reform now, universities will likely be forced to divert funding allocated from research and teaching to fill a pensions funding gap. The option of no reform is a dangerous gamble.”

The University of Sheffield said they were encouraging the employer and trade union to return to the table for further talks.

A statement added: “Industrial disputes in higher education are always challenging for university staff, who are committed to their students, work colleagues and research activities. We will, however, do our utmost to ensure our students are not affected by any potential industrial action and that any disruption is kept to an absolute minimum.”