University staff overwhelmingly back strike action in USS pensions row
22 January 2018
Sixty-one
universities (see list below) could face widespread disruption next month after
UCU members overwhelmingly backed industrial action in a row over changes to
their pensions in the Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS).
Overall, 88% of UCU
members who voted backed strike action and 93% backed action short of a strike.
The turnout was 58%^. A full breakdown of the results by institution is
available here.
The union's higher
education committee is meeting now to discuss the results and plan an
industrial action strategy should talks about the future of the scheme fail to
deliver a solution. Those talks are currently scheduled to finish tomorrow
(Tuesday).
Universities UK
(UUK) wants to transform the scheme from a defined benefit scheme that gives a
guaranteed retirement income to a defined contribution scheme where pension
income is subject to changes in the stock market.
Independent
modeling of the proposals show that a typical lecturer would lose
£200,000 in retirement if the UUK plans were imposed. Last
week the vice-chancellors of Warwickand Loughborough universities
broke ranks to criticise UUK for failing to guarantee retirement incomes for
USS members.
The union said it
hoped that the overwhelming mandate for strike action would focus universities'
minds and that more vice-chancellors would publicly pressure UUK to agree a
deal. UCU said it was happy for talks to be extended in an attempt to resolve
the issue without strike action.
The union said that
two rounds of cuts in USS benefits since 2011 have already left USS members with
pensions worth less than those of school
teachers and academics in the sector's other pension
scheme, the Teachers' Pension Scheme.
UCU general
secretary Sally Hunt said: 'UCU members have made it quite clear that they are
prepared to take sustained strike action to defend their pensions.
'USS already offers
worse benefits than other schemes available in universities, and UUK's
proposals would make matters worse. I hope more vice-chancellors will pressure
their negotiators to work with us to resolve the matter without strike action.'
Aberdeen, The University of
|
Aberystwyth University
|
Aston University
|
Bangor University
|
Bath, University of
|
Birkbeck College, University of London
|
Bristol, University of
|
Brunel University
|
Cambridge, University of
|
Cardiff University
|
City, University of London
|
Courtauld Institute of Art
|
Cranfield University
|
Dundee, The University of
|
Durham University
|
East Anglia, University of
|
Edinburgh, University of
|
Essex, University of
|
Exeter, University of
|
Glasgow, The University of
|
Goldsmiths, University of London
|
Heriot-Watt University
|
Hull, The University of
|
Imperial College London
|
Institute of Education
|
Keele University
|
Kent, The University of
|
King's College London
|
Lancaster, University of
|
Leeds, The University of
|
Leicester, University of
|
Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine
|
Liverpool, University of
|
London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine
|
Loughborough University
|
Manchester, The University of
|
Newcastle University
|
Nottingham, The University of
|
Open University
|
Oxford, University of
|
Queen Mary, University of London
|
Queen's University Belfast
|
Reading, University of
|
Royal Holloway, University of London
|
Royal Veterinary College, University of London
|
Salford, The University of
|
Senate House, University of London
|
Sheffield, The University of
|
SOAS, University of London
|
Southampton, University of
|
St Andrews, University of
|
Stirling, The University of
|
Strathclyde, University of
|
Surrey, University of
|
Sussex, University of
|
University College London
|
Scottish Association for Marine Science (University of the Highlands
and Islands)
|
Ulster University
|
University of Wales
|
University of Warwick
|
University of York
|
^ The overall
figure includes institutions that are required to secure a 50% turnout to be
able to take action (universities in England, Scotland and Wales). Queen's
University Belfast and Ulster University do not require a 50% turnout.
Members in all 68 branches that were balloted voted for action. Of those, seven
did not achieve the 50% turnout required.
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