After 5 years of pay restraint workers in Britain’s universities have suffered a cumulative cut in real earnings of more than 13%. Over the same period the pay of the self enriching management elite has increased exponentially with a majority of Vice Chancellors receiving pay and benefits packages in excess of £242,000 per year. Universities are sitting on a cash mountain of £2bn reserves so the modest joint union claim of a pay rise matching inflation (currently 2.7%) is clearly affordable. No surprise then that UCU, UNISON and Unite received strong mandates for industrial action in recent co-ordinated ballots leading to today’s first joint pay strike since single table bargaining was introduced in the higher education sector. Check out the
UNISON website for details of lunchtime rallies:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-24726743
