London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Wednesday, Oct 29, 2025

University staff to go on strike this month

University staff to go on strike this month

University lecturers and other staff across the UK will strike this month over pay, pensions and working conditions, the University and College Union (UCU) has said.
Strikes will take place on 24, 25 and 30 November at 150 universities.

The UCU claims 70,000 staff members will strike.

Universities say they are "well-prepared" to "protect students' education".

Students - some of whom have supported previous strike action by university staff - could face lectures being cancelled or rearranged.

Staff will also start industrial action short of a strike from 23 November, UCU said, which could include things like refusing to cover for absent colleagues.

The walkouts are partly over pensions - a dispute that, having rumbled on for nearly a decade, was reignited by what the UCU called a "flawed valuation" of the Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS), a pension fund used by university staff.

And they are partly over pay. A 3% pay increase was proposed for staff this academic year, with 9% for those on the lowest pay grades. But UCU members want a pay rise to take the rising cost of living into account - much like unions in other sectors that have pushed for strike action in recent months.

Inflation - the rate at which prices rise - is the highest it has been for 40 years. That means workers' living costs are rising faster than their wages, leaving them worse off.

UCU general secretary, Jo Grady, criticised vice chancellors' salaries, comparing them to UCU members who were on "low-paid and insecure contracts".

"UCU members do not want to strike but are doing so to save the sector and win dignity at work," she said.

Universities UK (UUK), an organisation representing 140 institutions, said: "We appreciate this could be a difficult time for students, who may be anxious about possible disruption to their learning.

"Universities are well-prepared for industrial action and will put in place a series of measures to protect students' education, as well as other staff and the wider community."

The National Union of Students (NUS) is supporting the walkout.

Its higher education vice president, Chloe Field, said struggles students face such as high rents, large tuition fees for international students and real-terms cuts to maintenance support are happening because the university sector "has put profit above staff and student well-being" - which has also caused "huge workloads" for staff.

Raj Jethwa, chief executive of the Universities and Colleges Employers Association (UCEA), which represents university employers across the UK, said there would be "disappointment" across the sector.

He said the UCU needed to give its members "a realistic and fair assessment of what is achievable", adding that all higher education institutions "want to do more for their valuable staff but any increases in pay puts jobs at risk".
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Bill Gates at 70: “I Have a Real Fear of Artificial Intelligence – and Also Regret”
Elon Musk Unveils Grokipedia: An AI-Driven Alternative to Wikipedia
Saudi Arabia Unveils Vision for First-Ever "Sky Stadium" Suspended Over Desert Floor
Amazon Announces 14 000 Corporate Job Cuts as AI Investment Accelerates
UK Shop Prices Fall for First Time Since March, Food Leads the Decline
London Stock Exchange Group ADR (LNSTY) Earns Zacks Rank #1 Upgrade on Rising Earnings Outlook
Soap legend Tony Adams, long-time star of Crossroads, dies at 84
Rachel Reeves Signals Tax Increases Ahead of November Budget Amid £20-50 Billion Fiscal Gap
NatWest Past Gains of 314% Spotlight Opportunity — But Some Key Risks Remain
UK Launches ‘Golden Age’ of Nuclear with £38 Billion Sizewell C Approval
UK Announces £1.08 Billion Budget for Offshore Wind Auction to Boost 2030 Capacity
UK Seeks Steel Alliance with EU and US to Counter China’s Over-Capacity
UK Struggles to Balance China as Both Strategic Threat and Valued Trading Partner
Argentina’s Markets Surge as Milei’s Party Secures Major Win
British Journalist Sami Hamdi Detained by U.S. Authorities After Visa Revocation Amid Israel-Gaza Commentary
King Charles Unveils UK’s First LGBT+ Armed Forces Memorial at National Memorial Arboretum
At ninety-two and re-elected: Paul Biya secures eighth term in Cameroon amid unrest
Racist Incidents Against UK Nurses Surge by 55%
UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves Cites Shared Concerns With Trump Administration as Foundation for Early US-UK Trade Deal
Essentra plc: A Closer Look at a UK ‘Penny Stock’ Opportunity Amid Market Weakness
U.S. and China Near Deal to Avert Rare-Earth Export Controls Ahead of Trump-Xi Summit
Justin time: Justin Herbert Shields Madison Beer with Impressive Reflex at Lakers Game
Russia’s President Putin Declares Burevestnik Nuclear Cruise Missile Ready for Deployment
Giuffre’s Memoir Alleges Maxwell Claimed Sexual Act with Clooney
House Republicans Move to Strip NYC Mayoral Front-Runner Zohran Mamdani of U.S. Citizenship
Record-High Spoiled Ballots Signal Voter Discontent in Ireland’s 2025 Presidential Election
Philippines’ Taal Volcano Erupts Overnight with 2.4 km Ash Plume
Albania’s Virtual AI 'Minister' Diella Set to 'Birth' Eighty-Three Digital Assistants for MPs
Tesla Unveils Vision for Optimus V3 as ‘Biggest Product of All Time’, Including Surgical Capabilities
Francis Ford Coppola Auctions Luxury Watches After Self-Financed Film Flop
Convicted Sex Offender Mistakenly Freed by UK Prison Service Arrested in London
United States and China Begin Constructive Trade Negotiations Ahead of Trump–Xi Summit
U.S. Treasury Sanctions Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro over Drug-Trafficking Allegations
Miss USA Crowns Nebraska’s Audrey Eckert Amid Leadership Overhaul
‘I Am Not Done’: Kamala Harris Signals Possible 2028 White House Run
NBA Faces Integrity Crisis After Mass Arrests in Gambling Scandal
Swift Heist at the Louvre Sees Eight French Crown Jewels Stolen in Under Seven Minutes
U.S. Halts Trade Talks with Canada After Ontario Ad Using Reagan Voice Triggers Diplomatic Fallout
Microsoft AI CEO: ‘We’re making an AI that you can trust your kids to use’ — but can Microsoft rebuild its own trust before fixing the industry’s?
China and Russia Deploy Seductive Espionage Networks to Infiltrate U.S. Tech Sector
Apple’s ‘iPhone Air’ Collapses After One Month — Another Major Misstep for the Tech Giant
Graham Potter Begins New Chapter as Sweden Head Coach on Short-Term Deal
Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa Alleges Poison Plot via Chocolate and Jam
Lakestar to Halt External Fundraising as Investor in Revolut and Spotify
U.S. Innovation Ranking Under Scrutiny as China Leads Output Outputs but Ranks 10th
Three Men Arrested in London on Suspicion of Spying for Russia
Porsche Reverses EV Strategy as New CEO Bets on Petrol and Hybrids
Singapore’s Prime Minister Warns of ‘Messy’ Transition to Post-American Global Order
Andreessen Horowitz Sets Sights on Ten-Billion-Dollar Fund for Tech Surge
US Administration Under President Donald Trump Reportedly Lifts Ban on Ukraine’s Use of Storm Shadow Missiles Against Russia
×