University workers battles as job cuts bite

UCU union members at the University of East London (UEL) plan a two‑day strike from Monday.

Workers are fighting a savage scheme to impose job cuts. They are set for three more days of strikes in March if bosses don’t back down. 

The action comes as several other universities, including Leeds, Leicester, Reading, Liverpool, Goldsmiths and Dundee, are in dispute over attacks on jobs.

Molly Andrews from UEL spoke about the dispute at the UCU’s online annual congress last Saturday. 

“This is the third round of redundancies in four years,” she said. “In the summer they announced that 441 staff members were at risk. Since this time, 87 have been pushed out.” 

Molly said the attacks on jobs were a national issue and called on the union to do more to resist them.

“Our fight is connected to redundancy battles around the country,” she said. 

“We need much, much more national support.”  

• The UCU held its annual congress online last Saturday and Tuesday.

Voting on motions was set to take place after Socialist Worker went to press.

Go to socialistworker.co.uk for updates.

• UCU members at Solent University in Southampton have pushed bosses back on compulsory redundancies after voting overwhelmingly for industrial action. 

Workers had voted by 94 percent for action over compulsory redundancies. 

The UCU said that following the vote, it has secured an agreement with bosses.

It is recommending that members accept the suspension of the dispute. 

The agreement commits “to no compulsory redundancies between the date of the agreement and 1 February 2022”. 

• The UCU has attacked what it has called “opportunistic” job cuts at the University of Hull.

Bosses there have sacked the UCU branch president, Keith Butler.

They also plan to axe modern language courses, putting more workers at risk of redundancy.

The UCU said that if bosses don’t rule out compulsory redundancies it will register a formal dispute.