THE FOUNDER February 2022
Staff Working Conditions = Student Learning Conditions
ABRA HERITAGE | EDITOR IN CHIEF
O
n Monday 14th February, University and College Union industrial action began at Royal Holloway, University of London. Staff strikes from the 14th February to 23rd February and then from Monday 28th February to Wednesday 2nd March will witness a withdrawal of labour including cancelled lecturers and classes, non-attendance at meetings, absence from core duties such as work on IT projects and HR processes, and with striking staff unavailable to email or meet with students. These strikes follow continuous Action Short of a Strike that has been in place since Wednesday 1st December. RHUL staff strikes are part of a national effort with 68 universities joining the action and over 50,000 staff expected to walk out. This industrial action is in response to multiple pay and working conditions. The first week of the strike was
Index
motivated by the Universities Superannuation Scheme pension dispute. With employers refusing to withdraw cuts to the USS or accept UCU’s compromised proposals, university teaching staff across the nation are set to see a 35% cut from the guaranteed retirement income. The second week of the strike is in response to both the pension dispute and the poor pay and working conditions dispute. The latter dispute is in pursuit of the Four Fights claim, which ‘calls for solutions to the persistent sector-wide issues of workload, casualisation, inequality and falling pay’ (RHUL UCU). The third week of the strike is in regard to the pay and working conditions dispute only. The final day of industrial action will coincide with the student strike (Wednesday 2nd March) organised by the National Union of Students. NUS are supporting UCU’s strike, calling for both better working conditions and
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Source: Oli Mould
and improved pay and pension From this, the SU have protection for staff. pledged to support UCU in A preferendum through RHUL their communication directly Students’ Union revealed that to students, and to ask the 78% of voting students would university to develop an action like the SU to support UCU’s plan to address concerns current industrial action and and reach an agreement with its stance in its entirety, up to the UCU. The SU have also and including any further strike pledged to offer support to students running activities in action.
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support of the UCU. It is imperative that students stand in solidarity with striking staff if real, positive change is to be achieved through this industrial action. Missed classes, delayed email replies, and staff non-attendance is
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