Brighton University staff walk out over pay rise row

Members of the University and College Union (UCU) at Brighton University will join picket lines today demanding a £2,500 pay rise.

Brighton is one of 24 institutions hit with strike action today, joining 44 universities, including the University of Sussex, that walked out last week.

A total of 68 UK universities will be affected by the walkouts, which are expected to leave millions of students without academic support.

UCU general secretary Jo Grady said: "While the university sector continues to bring in tens of billions of pounds each year, the staff who make it work have been forced to endure 13 years of real-term pay cuts and the indignity of trying to make ends meet on exploitative and insecure contracts.

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"Vice-chancellors on eye-watering salaries have serious questions to answer as to why they have allowed staff pay to fall by over 25 per cent since 2009, further exposing them to the cost of living crisis.

"Staff aren’t asking for the world, they want secure contracts, decent pay, manageable workloads and for employers to end their vindictive attacks on pensions.

"But instead of listening to the longstanding concerns of their own workforce, employers have pushed them to breaking point and now half are reporting signs of depression.

"During these strikes the support of students has been overwhelming.

"In their thousands, they have lobbied their vice-chancellors and we are proud that on Wednesday 2 March they will be taking UK-wide strike action alongside staff.

"It’s high-time this world-leading sector stopped dining off the good will and dedication of its staff and started treating them with dignity."

Staff at the University of Brighton are currently on strike

A Brighton University spokesman said: "We understand that students will be worried about potential disruption to their learning and teaching as a result of the strike action announced by the UCU.   

“We expect the majority of teaching across the University to go ahead as normal. Where this is not the case, our priority is to minimise any impact on students, many of whom have already experienced disruption to their studies as a result of the pandemic.  

“While we are extremely disappointed at the course of action taken by the UCU, we will always continue to engage in open dialogue with our unions and try to work constructively with them on all matters that they raise.” 

Furious universities disrupted by the strike action warned they would cut staff pay by up to 100 per cent if they carried out “action short of a strike”.

Some universities have said they would make what the union described as “arbitrary and punitive” pay deductions, allegedly ranging from 25 per cent to 100 per cent for staff who continue to work during the strike but take action short of a strike.

This can include not covering for absent colleagues, marking boycotts or refusing to take part in voluntary activities.

The University of Brighton have been approached for comment.