Industrial Action Update - 13 March 2023

We would like to remind you about the remaining strike dates that are still scheduled for this week and next week: Wednesday 15, Thursday 16, Friday 17, Monday 20, Tuesday 21 and Wednesday 22 March 2023.

The Universities and College Union (UCU) are continuing to meet with the national employers representative body (UCEA) facilitated by the conciliation service ACAS.  The next scheduled meeting is on Tuesday 14 March.  We do not know what the outcome of this meeting will be, and we will keep you updated if there is any change to the previously notified dates.

On each strike day some members of academic staff are likely to refuse to attend work or perform their duties – which may result in some cancelled sessions. The University will, however, be open and operating otherwise normally, including the Main Library, all study spaces and other support services across the campus. 

We will make every reasonable effort to contact students in advance about any changes or cancellations and, where possible, this will be communicated to you via your School/Department. As academic staff who strike do not have to inform the University in advance that they are striking, we will not always be able to inform you that this is going to happen.  We nevertheless expect that the vast majority of timetabled sessions will continue as normal, and that many students will see no disruption to their studies.

We will continue to provide students affected by the action with alternative support activities and online materials. Your School/Department will make every effort to make alternative arrangements for any cancelled events, including lectures, seminars, individual appointments, lab sessions etc, and will be putting mitigations in place to cover any lost learning sessions.

Everyone in the University community would wish to see an end to this dispute through reasonable negotiation and resolution.  While many students will not be affected, we recognise and understand the concerns of those students who may be impacted and we will continue to do everything we can to minimise any disruption – including keeping you informed throughout the period of the dispute.

Further information is available on our webpages and we will continue to update these regularly as well as providing information to any affected students through your School. 

Thank you for your understanding and patience.