5 November 2021
Low turnouts and patchy ballot results show limited support for a pay dispute
Raj Jethwa, UCEA's Chief Executive said:
"UCEA has read the low turnouts in the UCUs’ ballots* of their members over the 2021-22 pay award as a clear indication that the great majority of university union members as well as wider HE employees understand the financial realities for their institution. These disaggregated ballot results are disappointing for UCU and their HEC now faces awkward discussions and has very difficult decisions to make regarding strike action. The low ballot numbers follow a six-month period of delay since UCEA’s pay offer for UCU to prepare and campaign for strike action clearly targeting students during the autumn term.
"UCU has just 54 results from their 146 separate ballots supporting a national dispute over the outcome of the 2021-22 JNCHES pay round. While UCU members in these 54 institutions could technically be asked to strike against their individual institution, this would be causing damage to both union members and to students in an unrealistic attempt to force all 146 employers to re-open the concluded 2021-22 national pay round and improve on an outcome that is for most of these institutions already at the very limit of what is affordable.
"For the institutions where UCU members have voted in sufficient numbers to support industrial action, it is unclear how they can possibly pursue UCU’s national pay dispute.
"It is now three months since employees covered by the national pay negotiations received above inflation base pay increases of between 3.6% and 1.5%, plus progression pay for 51% of academics **. It is clear that the great majority of the 325,000 colleagues in UK HE institutions covered by the collective negotiations on the base pay uplift understand the financial realities for their institutions."
Notes
* UCU’s disaggregated ballot results saw just 52 out of 146 UCU branches meeting the required 50% turnout, plus two in Northern Ireland who are not required to meet 50%.
A 50% turnout is required by UK law in all jurisdictions except Northern Ireland.
** At the time of implementation CPIH inflation was 1%. In addition to the base pay increases for all of between 1.5 and 3.6%, over half of the employees covered by these negotiations were eligible to receive progression pay increases averaging 3%.
UCEA’s website hosts full details of the 2021-21 Pay Negotiations, including the Final Offer in full: www.ucea.ac.uk/our-work/collective-pay-negotiations-landing/2021-22-nj-round/
The UCU’s USS pension strike ballots are separate to their pay ballots. These ballot results relate to a separate dispute and have been separately counted and reported.
Contact Universities UK for comment relating to the outcome of the USS ballots.
ENDS
For further information: Please contact Andy Fryer, Head of Communications and Membership (a.fryer@ucea.ac.uk) or Marc Whittaker, Communications and Events Manager (m.whittaker@ucea.ac.uk). Call 020 7383 2444.
Low turnouts and patchy ballot results show limited support for a pay dispute
Raj Jethwa, UCEA's Chief Executive said:
"UCEA has read the low turnouts in the UCUs’ ballots* of their members over the 2021-22 pay award as a clear indication that the great majority of university union members as well as wider HE employees understand the financial realities for their institution. These disaggregated ballot results are disappointing for UCU and their HEC now faces awkward discussions and has very difficult decisions to make regarding strike action. The low ballot numbers follow a six-month period of delay since UCEA’s pay offer for UCU to prepare and campaign for strike action clearly targeting students during the autumn term.
"UCU has just 54 results from their 146 separate ballots supporting a national dispute over the outcome of the 2021-22 JNCHES pay round. While UCU members in these 54 institutions could technically be asked to strike against their individual institution, this would be causing damage to both union members and to students in an unrealistic attempt to force all 146 employers to re-open the concluded 2021-22 national pay round and improve on an outcome that is for most of these institutions already at the very limit of what is affordable.
"For the institutions where UCU members have voted in sufficient numbers to support industrial action, it is unclear how they can possibly pursue UCU’s national pay dispute.
"It is now three months since employees covered by the national pay negotiations received above inflation base pay increases of between 3.6% and 1.5%, plus progression pay for 51% of academics **. It is clear that the great majority of the 325,000 colleagues in UK HE institutions covered by the collective negotiations on the base pay uplift understand the financial realities for their institutions."
Notes
* UCU’s disaggregated ballot results saw just 52 out of 146 UCU branches meeting the required 50% turnout, plus two in Northern Ireland who are not required to meet 50%.
A 50% turnout is required by UK law in all jurisdictions except Northern Ireland.
** At the time of implementation CPIH inflation was 1%. In addition to the base pay increases for all of between 1.5 and 3.6%, over half of the employees covered by these negotiations were eligible to receive progression pay increases averaging 3%.
UCEA’s website hosts full details of the 2021-21 Pay Negotiations, including the Final Offer in full: www.ucea.ac.uk/our-work/collective-pay-negotiations-landing/2021-22-nj-round/
The UCU’s USS pension strike ballots are separate to their pay ballots. These ballot results relate to a separate dispute and have been separately counted and reported.
Contact Universities UK for comment relating to the outcome of the USS ballots.
ENDS
For further information: Please contact Andy Fryer, Head of Communications and Membership (a.fryer@ucea.ac.uk) or Marc Whittaker, Communications and Events Manager (m.whittaker@ucea.ac.uk). Call 020 7383 2444.
