Lecturers’ strikes ‘could force students to repeat year’

THE next round of strikes by university lecturers means that undergraduates will miss so much of their courses that they will have to repeat the year, a student union has claimed.

Cardiff University’s student union president said he had not told his peers about this so as not to “cause panic”.

The University and College Union (UCU), which represents lecturers and non-academic staff, plans to strike for 14 days, starting next Thursday.

The industrial action, affecting 74 universities across the UK, is part of a long-running row with employers over pay, working conditions and pensions.

UCU members at 60 universities walked out for eight days in November and December last year, in action that affected around one million students.

Jo Grady, the union’s general secretary, has threatened further strikes next academic year if the disputes are not resolved.

An email chain between 70 student union presidents, obtained by The Tab, revealed that Cardiff undergraduates may not be able to graduate if the strike action goes ahead.

Jackie Yip, president of Cardiff University’s student union, sent an email that said: “Confidentially, further strike action will mean some of my students will have missed so much content that they will not be able to graduate this year, even if there are mitigating actions put in place. We have not told students this as we do not want to cause panic and behind closed doors, I am doing everything I can to protect my students. I am sure this may be the case in some of your unions.”

Cardiff University said its “number one priority is to support our students throughout the strike action”.

A spokesman added: “We continue to work alongside our academic schools to manage the forthcoming dispute. As part of this work we need to plan for the worst possible outcomes in order to avoid them.

“We are deeply appreciative of the academics who have supported us in this endeavour and will carefully monitor the situation in the forthcoming weeks. We continue to urge UCU to engage constructively with ongoing and continued discussions in order to avoid further strike action.”