Union relents over marking boycott at universities

A UNIVERSITIES union has backed down on a strike that threatened to delay students’ graduations.

Last month, 41 branches of the University and College Union (UCU) backed a national marking and assessment boycott. It would include end of year exams and dissertations, making it impossible for students to graduate on time.

However, the national action has been abandoned after resistance from members. Now, only 20 universities will go ahead with industrial action, with the UCU’S executive favouring a local approach.

The University of Edinburgh and Durham University were among universities to pull out of the boycott last week. Durham’s UCU branch instead negotiated a payout of up to £1,000 for every staff member and commitments on pensions.

The retreat from national action suggests that enthusiasm for striking has waned since the dispute over pensions began in 2018.

The threat of a marking boycott was seen as a significant escalation from some university leaders, with Queen Mary University of London saying it planned to hire external markers from Australia.

Managers at the universities of Leeds, Dundee and Sheffield told staff they faced having 100 per cent of their pay docked if they took part in the boycott.

Raj Jethwa, the chief executive of the Universities and Colleges Employers Association, told The Guardian: “Higher education institutions have a duty to protect their students and they are legally entitled to fully withhold pay for this boycott.”

Jo Grady, the UCU’S general secretary, told members: “This is not about financial need. This is about the effects of marketisation.

“It is about the capriciousness of research funding allocations and unregulated student recruitment.”