University lecturers strike over pension changes

by James Harding

University lecturers continued industrial strike action this week in the midst of a disagreement about pensions and pay. Lecturers at the University of Kent engaged in a strike on Tuesday, and Ian Bruce told me that it was in the hopes “of forcing the employers back to the negotiating table.”

In an exclusive interview he explained to me that the protest is a last resort. “How can we do this to send a message to our management that they need to re think and discuss further a change that they’d like to impose because we don’t think it’s right … not just for us but for the system, without hurting the students?”
Mr Bruce is a lecturer at the university and also acts as the representative to the University College Union (UCU), which looks after the interests of lecturers nationwide.

 With government funding in the educational sector being cut in a nationwide effort to reduce the country’s recession deficit, this latest phase in the tightening of the proverbial belt has led to uproar in the academic community.

According to Mr Bruce it’s not only lecturers who are up in arms about it. Students at Kent joined in with the protesting and picketing today in order to lend their support to their teachers.

In any industry, strike action results in the employees damaging to delivery of the product they’re involved in developing. Mr Bruce insists that in this case he anticipates minimal impact on students. There had been fears that lecturers on strike would be unable to mark final year students’ coursework.

Mr Bruce insists that the Union is not apposed to change necessarily. “We encourage change,” he says, “but it must be fair and productive.”

The discussion is likely to be taken before Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS), who will act as an intermediary body and help to reach an agreement.

Elsewhere, staff at Christchurch University are due to strike on Thursday.