Industrial action among Newcastle University academics reached its 25th day on Thursday with three Labour MPs and unions pledging support.
Unionised Newcastle University academics have been on discontinuous strike since March, protesting over the institution’s target to slash its wage bill by £20m, equating to around 300 jobs. Now, although the University has achieved the majority of its target through voluntary severance, campus bosses are pushing ahead with attempts to cut, through redundancy offers, 38 more roles.
To mark the 25th day of industrial action, the University and College Union (UCU) held a rally outside the University’s Kings Building. Guest speakers included the Northern Chair of the Trade Union Congress David Pike and Karl Wager of the Fire Brigade Union.
Mr Pike read a statement of support from Blyth and Ashington MP Ian Lavery to the crowd. MPs Kate Osborne and Mark Ferguson also pledged their support to striking UCU members.
Mr Lavery’s statement read: “Your strike needs unwavering support and I call on all my fellow Labour MPs and all trade unionists to get behind you. The UK’s future very much depends on having a strong and thriving higher education sector, but that is being hampered by a broken funding system of which you are the victims.
“This needs urgent repair or the whole country will suffer as we cannot be prepared for the industries of the future without you. It is madness to think we can expect the best academics to stay in the UK or to come here from abroad with headlines screaming job cuts and insecurity.”
The statement continued: “The secretary of state for education must bring this dangerous lunacy to an end without delay.”
David Bates, Newcastle University’s UCU branch secretary said: “The main point is the strength of the numbers we are getting on the picket line is testament to the strength of the feeling of the staff. There is anger, there is defiance, the fury that people are being targeted in this way.
“That senior managers have ruled themselves out of pay reductions or redundancies and they are making people further down the chain suffer for decisions that they have made and mistakes they have made.
“We believe there is no need for any redundancies and we urge them to think again.”
A Newcastle University spokesperson said: “Like many universities across the UK, we are seeking to reduce our staff costs to safeguard our long-term future as a globally leading university. We have achieved the majority of the savings needed through a voluntary severance scheme.
“Our proposals for further savings will preserve the breadth of our research and education, avoiding subject closures, and we are consulting with our trade unions to avoid compulsory redundancies wherever possible.”
In September last year, the Local Democracry Reporting Service revealed Newcastle University was facing a £35m blackhole in funding due to a national decline in international student numbers.
