University's lecturers to hold three days of strike action

The University and College Union (UCU) will also hold a rally at Leeds University as part of its protest.

The one-day strikes will be held on Thursday, February 25; Tuesday, March 2; and Thursday, March 4, while the demonstration is set to take place on either March 4 or the following day.

Leeds University is cutting jobs as part of a review of its Biological Sciences department and has also launched a major cost-cutting programme aimed at saving 35m by 2011 which the UCU fears could lead to up to 700 redundancies.

The union has called on Leeds University's management to rule out compulsory job losses as part of this process but Vice Chancellor Prof Michael Arthur has said this is impossible. The university has also dismissed the 700 job loss figure as speculation.

UCU members voted for strike action last week with a record turnout as two-thirds of members took part in a ballot. Talks aimed at averting industrial action between the union and Leeds University also broke down last week.

Leeds UCU president, Professor Malcolm Povey, said: "UCU continues to believe a negotiated solution is possible and we, once again, call upon the university to return to the bargaining table for further direct talks aimed at avoiding a damaging dispute. While we prefer dialogue to conflict we are determined to protect our members' jobs and the long term future of the university we helped to build."

A Leeds University spokesman warned industrial action would not resolve the funding crisis facing higher education. He also said talks between the university and the UCU are set to resume next week.