Pay and pension disputes among concerns of academic staff from two universities in Brighton might escalate if negotiations are not made in the coming weeks. Classes of the students are already being affected and might lead to further class actions against the two universities.
Teaching staff staging a 14-day protest
Academic staff from Brighton University and Sussex University are conduction a 14-day walkout as a sign of protest to irregularities on their pay and pension conditions. The protest is expected to start on February 20 and will end by March 13 or earlier once their demands are heard.
Teachers from Sussex are a bit frustrated over disputes on their pension policies. Teaching staff are giving higher contributions during their tenure but are expecting to receive less once they retire.
As the strike at Sussex is expected to cause trouble with the operations of the school, the university administrators are offering students that feel violated and distressed once the protest progresses a chance to apply for an “ex gratia” settlement. It will provide $130 as compensation for any stress and discomfort on the student’s part.
Pay and pension disputes
In Sussex University where teaching staff is protesting over pay and pension dispute, they offer damage policies for their students that undergo stress and inconvenience within university premises. Tuition at Sussex is around $12,000.
Most walkouts in U.K. universities are being instigated by the University and College Union (UCU), a more recent one was an eight-day strike last year in December. Strike action in U.K. universities has now affected 74 universities from 60 last year.
In Sussex, around 30 percent of its total workforce are members of the UCU. The UCU has declared the walkout to start on Thursday and assures that it will be the biggest walkout in the U.K. and with a longer time frame.
Members from the University of Brighton will also join the protest starting at 8 am daily at the Falmer campus along with staff from Sussex University and the Institute of Development Studies.
According to UCU regional officer, Mike Moran:
It’s quite disappointing that UCU members should resort to protest in order to be heard. University administrators’ failure to communicate and negotiate with the demands of academic staff regarding pay and pension disputes leads us here.
