USS strikes

Diverging financial pressures are putting untold strain on common pay and pension arrangements. As recent pay awards constrain richer universities’ ability to reward their staff as they see fit while pushing others into further strife, might a breaking point be close? Tom Williams reports 

Pension scheme members are entitled to ask why so much was lost and why the raw sewage continues to flow into rivers, says Bernard Casey

University pension scheme effectively writes off stake in ailing company that was worth £956 million two years ago

Body that negotiates on behalf of universities in pay talks to take on new remit from Universities UK

The pension scheme’s healthy reported surplus could allow us to put benefits and contribution rates on a more stable long-term footing, says Carol Young

Elitist, undemocratic activists’ revolutionary aspirations explain their enthusiasm for futile industrial action, say John Kelly and Adam Ozanne

Commons Education Committee exploring whether institutions should adopt ‘standardised method of mitigation’

Employers and members likely to save considerable sums sooner than expected as changes sped up due to improving finances

As the cuts to the USS scheme are reversed, the UCU’s battle for better pay and conditions goes on. Members must vote ‘yes’ to more action, says Jo Grady

Five-year long campaign to protect staff benefits wins union an offer worth up to £200,000 for average USS member

I’m externally funded to do research but I help colleagues by teaching on top. How can it be right to punish me for partial performance, asks Philip Moriarty

Bill Galvin receives overall pay packet of £790,000, one of 212 pension fund staff paid more than £100,000

Employers might find it easier to reach agreement with a less politically skewed membership body, says an anonymous academic 

Improving benefits and lowering contributions must not mitigate against the pension scheme’s ability to better ride out future storms, says Kate Barker

Funding assumptions for 2023 valuation confirm rosier outlook for UK’s largest higher education pensions scheme after years of pain

The Nottingham Trent vice-chancellor discusses using data to support students, avoiding strike action and why diversity conversations are too focused on Oxbridge

Union says at least 5,000 students will not graduate this summer, but employers’ poll suggests disruption is ‘isolated’ and ‘limited’

Interventions from universities urging a restart of talks struggle to move the dial, with hopes of preventing summer of disruption fading

Lawyers consider bringing joint claim over breach, but pension fund says no evidence personal information stolen during Capita attack is circulating widely

Increased contributions to the Teachers’ Pensions Scheme will require cuts to student support services, warns Graham Baldwin

‘Reassuring’ analysis reveals that sector is in surplus when pension provision changes are excluded from financial accounts

Only two of the 24 members of the Russell Group recorded a surplus for the 2021-22 academic year, Hesa figures show

Union attempts to rally members behind potentially game-changing action despite threats of 100 per cent wage deductions

Academics to refuse to assess students’ work for an indefinite period, posing threat to this year’s graduations

Using Twitter to call people out has landed Jo Grady in potential legal trouble, but will a combative communications strategy force leaders into making concessions?

Mechanisms to determine university leaders’ salaries are opaque and unreliable. We need more meaningful metrics, says Adrian Furnham

Major governance reform ‘desperately needed’ despite improving financial health of UK’s biggest higher education scheme

UCU leadership criticised for making ‘unilateral’ decisions as academics scramble to get back to work

All sides hail significant progress, with phasing-out of zero-hours contracts and higher wages for lower paid to be discussed in two-week talks

Labour deputy leader promises to raise staff concerns about pay deductions with shadow education secretary 

The ‘sector’ may be able to afford more than the current offer, but many individual universities cannot, says Peter Sloane

Another 18 days of strikes to hit universities across the country in February and March, with UCU promising ‘most disruptive action ever’

Leaders warn more universities likely to face financial difficulties in coming months as pay stretched to ‘limits of affordability’

Union calls 18 days of action in February and March ahead of crunch meeting in pay talks

Rising Universities Superannuation Scheme provisions mean three-quarters of institutions report deficits, with losses totalling £3.6 billion

Meeting between unions and employers ends with no new proposed wage increase presented

Union may have united membership again but 18 days of strikes could lead to support ‘withering away’, commentators suggest

UCU committee backs escalating action in February and March after rejecting employers’ initial pay rise offer

Union’s higher education committee meets to finalise next steps in campaign after messy debate

Jo Grady’s more gradualist approach to industrial action offers better prospects for success, say Jak Peake and Adam Ozanne

Union leader Jo Grady distances herself from higher education committee decision as key pay negotiations begin

Academics doubtful that universities will be prepared to offer increases seen in other UK sectors

RMT general secretary joins university staff in London rally on third day of sector-wide strike action

On the picket lines in Cambridge, union members insist this year’s 3 per cent rise is nowhere near enough to contend with spiralling living costs

Around 70,000 members at 150 UK universities set to walk out in disputes over pay, working conditions and pensions

Higher education committee says walkouts should be followed by marking boycott and ‘escalation’ of action if settlement cannot be reached on pay and pensions

Jo Grady sets out six-month-long strategy of ‘phased escalation’ after securing historic mandate for further action

Walkouts set to hit 150 universities but experts unconvinced action will lead to breakthrough on pay

Union passes 50 per cent threshold in aggregated ballot for first time since trade union laws introduced in 2016

Although available information on USS finances is patchy, scope appears to remains for restored benefits or reduced contributions, says Michael Bromwich

Head of UK higher education’s biggest pension scheme to depart once successor is appointed

Biggest sector fund believes it is £1.8 billion in the black, after fears of multibillion-pound deficits led to cuts to benefits

Dramatic change in context could help union secure mandate for broader action but scale of challenge remains daunting

But rising inflation means that the pension scheme’s recently reported funding position is likely to be over-optimistic, says Bill Galvin

Head of university employers’ body talks upcoming industrial action, cost-of-living crisis and future of collective bargaining

Only 17 per cent of those enrolled in UK’s largest higher education pension scheme reported positive relationship after changes to retirement benefits

In-depth look at scheme’s finances confirms deficit has shrunk since last valuation but ‘volatile market’ means benefits cannot be improved, yet.

Academics’ pension fund adds famous holiday camps to growing portfolio of assets as it seeks to shore up finances post-pandemic

Principal says institution not able to ‘take new students onto programmes where staff refuse to deliver the promised education’

Consultation opens into the terms, scope and structure of the review, which aims to identify ‘meaningful and implementable’ changes