Students to face more disruption as union reveals new university strike dates

'Suspension of the strike action would be a huge relief to students ahead of the exam period'

Students face further disruption as a fresh wave of strikes over a bitter pension dispute has been announced by the union which represents university staff.

Industrial action will take place at 13 universities from April 16 - with further action planned for the remaining 52 universities set to follow later in the spring, the University and College Union (UCU) said.

It will mark the start of a second wave of university strike action set to hit students during their exam period.

Nearly 700 external examiners have already recorded their resignations in a UCU document following a bitter dispute over pensions with Universities UK (UUK).

Members of staff at more than 60 universities across the country went on strike for 14 days from February 22 to protest at changes to the Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS).

Tens of thousands of students have signed petitions demanding refunds for lost university lectures and classes over the four weeks that university strikes took place.

Strike action is expected to take place at all of the 65 universities involved - but not all the dates have been confirmed yet.

However, lecturers and university staff may not take part in additional strike action if UCU members vote to accept a second offer from employers.

The UCU higher education committee has decided to put the revised UUK offer to end the university strikes to all union members. Lecturers and university staff will be balloted next week.

Sally Hunt, UCU general secretary, said: “These latest proposals were won by the solid action of UCU members and now is the time for them to have their say on what happens next.”

UUK made the new deal after their first proposals were rejected by union branch members earlier this month.

The row centres on proposals that would change the USS from a “defined benefit” scheme, which give workers a guaranteed income in their retirement, to a purely “defined contribution” scheme, in which pensions are subject to fluctuations in the stock market.

UCU has warned that changes could lead to members losing £10,000 every year of their retirement.

A spokesperson for Universities UK said: “Today’s decisions will lead to union members being consulted on whether to support the establishment of the Joint Expert Panel.

“This panel will help to build confidence in the valuation process and assumptions. It will also give time to pause, to reflect and to rebuild the trust that has been damaged over the past few months.”

“Employers have indicated their support for this proposal, however, this is conditional on the suspension of industrial action.

“We expect the union to provide urgent clarity on the action planned for the week of the 16 April. Suspension of this action would be a huge relief to students ahead of the main examination period.”

Here are the strike dates:

16 to 20 April (five days)

Brunel University

University of Cardiff

Cranfield University

University of Dundee

University of Leeds

Loughborough University

University of Manchester

University of Oxford

Ruskin College

University of Salford

University of Southampton

University of St Andrews

16, 17 and 19 April (three days)

Bangor University