A widespread debate on the cost of living crisis has scattered around the UK for a few months now. In October, Universitetsläraren reported from a union rally in Brighton, organized by The University and College Union, UCU.
UCU, with around 120 000 members, have now set three dates for nationwide strike actions. As of November 24, around 70 000 members at all 150 UK universities will leave their workplaces unattended for two days.
Protests in London
In addition, strikes will continue for a third day on November 30, aiming to gather as many UCU members possible in London for “massive” demonstrations, according to UCU General Secretary Jo Grady.
“We are gonna protest ahead of our talks with the employers. The job of every single UCU member now, is to build the strike”, she said in a clip posted on UCU official social media.
Union demands for pay increases depend on what is claimed to be major cuts in pension funds over the years, as well as pay cuts of up to 25 per cent over a 12-year time span.
Collaborative campaign
Protests are part of the union collaborative campaign “Enough is Enough”, organized by UCU. The campaign is fuelled by mentioned pay and pension cuts and topped off by an accelerating inflation rate.
All together leading up to the largest cost of living crisis that the UK has ever seen.
Other unions have either already gone on strikes or are planning to do so. That includes Communication Workers Union, The National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers och The Social Workers Union.
