UCU members on strike at Soas university in January 2022 (Picture: Guy Smallman)
All modern language courses at Leeds Beckett university are set to close in the latest assault on university education. The UCU union described the timing of the announcement while workers are not teaching as “cynical”.
It said the move will leave, “staff completely uncertain of their futures and knowing that their chances of seeking other employment is severely impacted”. Languages at Leeds Beckett have been a key part of the institution since the late 1970s.
Meanwhile, staff at Roehampton university in London are facing a fire and rehire attack that will see university bosses cull over 200 jobs.
The university of Huddersfield and the University of Wolverhampton also said there would be cuts to arts and humanities courses. These cuts are ideological and a reflection of a Tory government that continues to devalue certain subjects.
A much larger fight is needed to stop these attacks. Last month the UCU confirmed it would ballot its members across Britain for more industrial action. Strikes that include more university branches could stop the onslaught.
Activists in the UCU must fight hard to make sure there is massive vote for strikes in the coming term over pay, pensions, jobs, contracts and equality.
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An example to other workers
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