In anticipation of our upcoming industrial action, and in light of communications sent from our employer, we have been getting lots of queries. In response, we have compiled a list of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs). It’s a long list, and we will keep adding to it as more information is available.
If you don’t find your answer below, please contact the branch office or check out the more extensive list of FAQs on the UCU website.
1. When will industrial action take place?
2.When we take strike action, what am I expected to do?
2a. What is our branch position on Action Short of a Strike (ASOS)?
3. What about my students?
4. Do I have to tell my employer that I am taking industrial action?
5. If I have external commitments on the day(s) of industrial action; should I attend them?
6. I am not a UCU member; can I take part in industrial action?
7. How late can someone join the union and still take part in strike action?
8. I am not a UCU member; can I refuse to cross the picket line?
9. I am academic-related professional services (ARPS) staff; what do I do with regard to industrial action?
10. I am a researcher and my salary is fully funded by external bodies but do not wish to cross the picket line; what should I do?
11. I am a postgraduate/PhD student/researcher but do not wish to cross the picket line; what should I do?
12. I am a clinician and a UCU member, and I have clinical commitments on a strike day; what should I do?
13. I am an agency worker; what should I do?
14. I am on probation; can I participate in striking?
15. I am on sick leave or health-related absence during the strikes; what should I do?
16. I am on study or research leave during the strikes; what should I do?
17. I am booked to be on annual leave during the strikes; what should I do?
18. I will be working outside the United Kingdom during the strike; what should I do?
19. I am precariously employed or on a casualised contract; what should I do?
20. I am retired or retiring soon; what should I do?
21. I am a member of staff applying for indefinite leave to remain (ILR) or a Tier 2/5 visa holder or a Tier 4 visa holder. What is the law regarding industrial action for migrant workers?
22. What is the law on picketing?
23. What is the so-called ‘virtual picket line’ or ‘digital picket line’?
24. I don’t know if I can afford to strike, is any financial support available?
25. Where can I get updates and news about the industrial action?
26. Can you suggest what I should put in my Out of Office reply on the days that I am on strike?
27. What does “removing uploaded materials related to, and/or not sharing materials related to, lectures or classes that will be or have been cancelled as a result of strike action” involve?
1. When will industrial action take place in 2023, and what does it include?
The full strike dates are:
Wednesday 1 February 2023 (one day)
Thursday 9 February and Friday 10 February (two days)
Tuesday 14 February, Wednesday 15 February and Thursday 16 February (three days)
Tuesday 21, Wednesday 22, Thursday 23 February (three days) strike paused
Monday 27, Tuesday 28 February, Wednesday 1, Thursday 2 March (four days) strike paused
Wednesday 15 March, Thursday 16 March, Friday 17 March (three days) additional day
Monday 20 March, Tuesday 21 March, Wednesday 22 March (three days)
Staff will also continue action short of strike at institutions in England, Wales and Scotland.
Action short of a strike (ASOS) will consist of the following until further notice:
- working to contract
- not covering for absent colleagues
- removing uploaded materials related to, and/or not sharing materials related to, lectures or classes that will be or have been cancelled as a result of strike action
- not rescheduling lectures or classes cancelled due to strike action
- not undertaking any voluntary activities.
Please note that the higher education committee (HEC) has not yet called for a marking and assessment boycott as part of action short of a strike.
For details on ASOS and what it covers, please see the UCU FAQs and our branch position on ASOS.
2. When we take strike action, what am I expected to do?
Your union only takes strike action once every other avenue of influence has been exhausted and when the democratic decision-making bodies of the union believe there is no other way to make employers change their position.
It is a very serious sanction and that is why we ask that every member observes the strike. Every member who does not observe the strike is directly undermining the union’s bargaining power and making it harder for the union to protect all its members. Every member who does observe the strike is helping to advance the interests of all staff throughout the sector.
When we call a strike, we ask that members do not do any work for all of the days specified by the union. This includes, for instance, time before 9am and after 5pm, and includes any activity which is part of your work such as teaching, administration, meetings, emails related to work, marking, research or conferences where you are directly or indirectly representing your employer. It also means not doing any preparation for work that you are due to do when you return to work after you strike. In a nutshell, if you are employed at one of the institutions on strike, do not do any work at all on strike days. This includes travelling for work.
Volunteer with your branch. Our branch has a plan for action, and we welcome volunteers to help with the strike organising activities. Please email us if you would like to help organise the strikes at UEA. There are also resources on UCU Rising’s page and a series of national online and in-person events. Please pay attention to communications from UCU’s campaigns team and attend these events.
Spread the word. One of the simplest and most helpful things you can do is email or message (e.g. Signal/Telegram/WhatsApp) 5-10 UK-based colleagues in your professional network, asking them if they are aware of the union’s UCU Rising campaign and industrial action, and urging them to participate. You can also use social media—for example Twitter, Facebook, Instagram—to spread the word, but one-to-one personal contacts are the most effective means of increasing participation.
Picket. On strike days, the best possible thing you can do is contact your UCU branch and volunteer to help at the picket lines—and ask colleagues in your department to join you. Picketing is a vital opportunity to demonstrate to the employer the scale of the disruption that the union is able to cause, and get support for your action from students and other colleagues.
2a. What is our branch position on Action Short of a Strike (ASOS)?
We have made the position of UCU on 100% deductions for ASOS very clear to management. UCU does not accept that the ASOS called for in this action constitutes a breach of contract and certainly does not constitute action that would legitimise deducting 100% of a member’s salary. Any attempt by UEA to deduct 100% of a member’s salary for activities taken (or not taken) in accordance with the ASOS called as part of this action will be met with an immediate ballot for local strike action and an academic boycott of UEA by UCU nationally. In conversations with management, all concerned have expressed a desire to avoid this outcome.
It is our understanding that managers have been instructed to force staff to reschedule teaching, with time re-allocated from future projects to cover this work. If you are a UCU member and also a line manager, we would strongly urge you to reconsider whether this does constitute a “reasonable management request” and to advocate that other line managers respect the industrial action that is being taken. To be clear, UCU UEA does not support and will actively resist any attempt by management to penalise members of staff who refuse to reschedule teaching. We understand the obligations UEA faces to “mitigate” the impact of strike action under guidance from the OfS, but it is clear from historic action that this can be achieved without rescheduling teaching. Any attempt by the employer to “double-dip” members, by deducting for strike action and then deducting again when colleagues refuse to reschedule work lost to that strike, will be resisted in the strongest terms.
For a more detailed exploration of ASOS with regards to the uploading or removal of materials, please see the separate guidance below. If you have any doubts about actions you should or should not undertake as part of ASOS, please contact the branch.
We understand that the rhetoric used by management concerning ASOS can be alarming, but it is important to note that these threats have been made in previous actions (including those in November) and members have resisted these without deductions. National UCU is reporting that a number of universities are using these threats as a tactic to discourage action and to diminish the strength and power of our protest. It is important that we fight back against these tactics and encourage UEA to “Do Different” by avoiding the hawkish tactics being encouraged by UCEA and UUK.
Any member threatened with deductions under partial performance as part of ASOS should contact the branch immediately.
3. What about my students?
As education professionals we know that you do not relish taking industrial action that affects our students, to whom you have dedicated so much of your energy, even during extremely challenging conditions like the Covid-19 pandemic. It is the same for many public services—doctors and nurses for instance.
However, if you take industrial action, you are making a case for greater investment in or defence of the quality of the education and research you provide. In the case of job cuts and rampant casualisation, for example, the union rightly argues that our students are hurt far more by management’s actions than by our own. Participating in an industrial action ballot and observing industrial action are defending the interests of staff and students alike—staff’s working conditions are the students’ learning conditions. Undermining the ballot and strike action might feel like the right thing in the short term, but will only serve to embolden management and staff and students will all suffer even more in the longer term.
Formally, it is university management’s responsibility to explain to students if classes are to be cancelled on strike days. However, you can talk to your students before any industrial action, explaining why the union is taking this step and ask them to write to university management to voice their concerns. You can also discuss some of the practicalities which your students may not be familiar with—in particular, the fact that when you go on strike you will not be paid by your employer, or the fact that legal, official industrial action is preceded by a statutory industrial action ballot of trade union members. We have prepared a webpage with some FAQs for students.
The National Union of Students’ (NUS) vice president, Chloe Field, has issued the following statement on Tuesday 8 November 2022: ‘Students stand in solidarity with the 70,000 university staff across the UK who will strike later this month. Staff teaching conditions are students’ learning conditions, and we must fight together for a fairer, healthier education system for everyone who works and studies. Universities and employers must come to the table and take meaningful action to end these disputes‘.
4. Do I have to tell my employer before I take industrial action?
No. Management may send out emails/letters demanding that you declare in advance whether you will be taking industrial action. You are under no obligation to inform management in advance as to whether you will be taking part in strike action or action short of a strike. Your obligation is to report any action taken at the earliest possible opportunity after the fact. This means that you should inform your line manager of your strike action on the next day you are back at work. It is important that all members taking part in action report their participation. This is not only a legal requirement that ensures you cannot be penalised for unauthorised absence, but also ensures that the true strength and depth of our action is felt and understood by management.
If you are asked about whether you are participating in ASOS you should respond only in terms of what action you have taken/are currently taking, but not answer about future intentions regarding ASOS. This will mean that university senior management will need to keep checking for confirmation as to whether you have participated in ASOS and what forms of ASOS you have participated in and when. If you are asked directly whether you participated in ASOS in the past, or are participating in it now (whatever the timeframe, be it last week, yesterday, or today) you should respond truthfully, but you should not declare your intentions regarding future action.
Some members will choose to inform colleagues or students of their intention to take industrial action. This can be an effective tactic that encourages support for our action whilst maintaining institutional level disruption. If you do engage students on your decision to take action, we’d strongly encourage you to signpost them to the resources we have curated specifically for students on our website, particularly the template email to the VC asking him to end the dispute by lobbying for a reasonable settlement for our demands. Some colleagues may also wish to put on an out of office email. This is entirely an individual choice. If you are considering doing this, you may wish to use the template on our member FAQs page as a starting point.
When considering whether to make these more informal declarations, you should balance the likelihood of these actions to instil and generate good will amongst those who might be encouraged to rally behind our cause, with the likelihood of those declarations being seen and used by management to introduce mitigations (such as cover for events) that will undermine your action.
5. If I have external commitments on the day(s) of industrial action; should I attend them?
If your external commitments arise from your employment with UEA, whether they are offline or online, then you should not fulfil them. For example, if you were due to attend a conference in your capacity as a lecturer you should not go.
6. I am not a UCU member; can I take part in industrial action?
On strike days, we would like everyone to respect the picket lines and not go into work. Non-UCU members who take part in legal, official industrial action have the same rights as UCU members not to be dismissed as a result of taking action. However, our strong recommendation is that you join UCU so that you have the protection of a trade union before you take part in industrial action.
If you have recently joined UCU and have provided the details requested on the UCU member application form, your UCU membership will be active from the date of application. This means that you are able to take part in any strike action while awaiting your membership number. You can join UCU online now!
7. How late can someone join the union and still take part in strike action?
Individuals can join UCU at any point up to and including on the picket line on the day of strike action and lawfully participate in the strike.
8. I am not a UCU member, but I am eligible to be; can I refuse to cross the picket line even if I don’t join?
We would like everyone to respect the picket lines, whether they are a member of UCU or a member of another union. If you are eligible to join UCU we recommend that you join the union, on the picket line if necessary, and do not cross the picket line. The union will support any member who is subject to disciplinary action for refusing to cross a UCU picket line.
9. I am academic-related professional services (ARPS) staff; what do I do with regard to industrial action?
Academic-related professional services (ARPS) staff who are UCU members are also called to participate in industrial action. On strike days, this will involve the concerted stoppage of all work. For the duration that the union has called for action short of a strike (ASOS), UCU has produced a separate FAQ/guidance for academic-related professional services (ARPS) staff taking part in ASOS.
10. I am a researcher and my salary is fully funded by external bodies but do not wish to cross the picket line; what should I do?
If you are a researcher—for instance a postdoctoral research assistant (PDRA), research associate or research fellow—although your funding might be from an external body, your contract of employment is usually with the university. In this case you should join the industrial action. If you are directly employed by an external funding body or with a body that is not part of the USS pensions or the pay and working conditions disputes, you should not take action but try to arrange to work from home. If you need further advice, please get in touch with us.
11. I am a postgraduate/PhD student/researcher but do not wish to cross the picket line; what should I do?
You can legally take part in industrial action (striking or action short of a strike) for research, teaching, and other paid work that you do outside of being PGRs/PhD students (e.g. if you do paid work as a graduate teaching assistant, research assistant, or professional services at or above grade 6). If you do not undertake such work for your institution, you cannot legally take part in industrial action from your postgraduate research work, however you can and should still support this action and work from home if you can.
UCU believes that postgraduate researchers should be considered as staff for all their work. Please see the PGR as staff campaign; further updated guidance for PGRs and industrial action will be released soon.
12. I am a clinician and a UCU member, and I have clinical commitments on a strike day; what should I do?
We fully understand and respect that clinical staff including medics and psychologists have professional commitments to provide clinical cover. Clinicians are advised not to withdraw from any commitment to direct clinical care and activities. Any clinician concerned about the definition of these terms is advised to contact their own professional defence organisation, and ask them to liaise with the relevant professional body (e.g. the General Medical Council) on their behalf. A clinician who intends to strike should be aware that this will only count as lawful action as part of the UCU strike and if they are a UCU member.
13. I am an agency worker; what should I do?
If you are employed to work at a university through an agency, then you are not be covered by the industrial dispute and cannot legally take part in any industrial action. However, there are still ways you can support your colleagues:
- send messages of solidarity to striking colleagues
- explain to agency colleagues the reasons for the dispute and why you support it
- visually show support e.g. badge wearing, posts on social media
- work from home / alternative venues if you can on strike days and join the pickets before work
- do not work outside of your contract or take on work you are not trained to do to cover the work of any staff on strike
- do not volunteer to cover teaching or other work for others undertaking industrial action if approached
- do not engage in voluntary activities outside the formal requirements of your contract
- if you are able, make a donation to the UCU fighting fund.
14. I am on probation; can I participate in striking?
University staff, regardless of probationary status, have the right to participate in official, legally sanctioned industrial action. It should have no negative impact on employment or ‘confirmation in post’. If your employer or manager has threatened to fail your probation as a result of participating in official, legally sanctioned industrial action, please contact your UCU branch and/or the relevant regional office.
15. I am on sick leave or health-related absence during the strikes; what should I do?
If you are on sick leave or health-related absence during the strikes, you should continue your recuperation at home. If you are under pressure from your employer or management to return to work from sick leave or health-related absence early in order to cover for striking colleagues, please get in touch with us.
16. I am on study or research leave during the strikes; what should I do?
If your leave is unpaid, you have no labour to withdraw and cannot join the strikes. If your leave is paid, you should join the strikes.
17. I am booked to be on annual leave during the strikes; what should I do?
If your annual leave is essential, you should take it as planned and consider donating to the fighting fund. If your leave is not essential, you may wish to move it so that you can participate in industrial action alongside colleagues.
18. I will be working outside the United Kingdom during the strike; what should I do?
While the legal position varies depending on where you will be, UCU’s advice is that, if you are working outside the United Kingdom on a strike day, you should work normally and donate to the fighting fund. If you are due to travel as part of your work on a strike day, you should not do so.
19. I am precariously employed or on a casualised contract; what should I do?
UCU has released updated guidance (November 2022) to strike and action short of a strike (ASOS) for members on casualised contracts. This guidance looks at how our members who are precariously employed can support current industrial action in higher education, but it is aimed at all members and branch activists.
20. I am retired or retiring soon; what should I do?
If you are fully retired, and you have no contract of employment with UEA or any higher education institution, then you have no paid labour to withdraw and do not participate in industrial action. You can however support striking university staff in the following ways:
- send messages of solidarity to striking colleagues
- visually show support e.g. badge wearing, posts on social media
- do not volunteer to cover teaching or other work for others undertaking industrial action if approached
- if you are able, make a donation to the UCU fighting fund
- you may also wish to consider applying for UCU’s retired membership.
If you are retiring in the future or planning your retirement, but you are not yet fully retired, then you continue to be an employee at your university (holding a full or partial contract of employment). You should therefore participate in industrial action to support your colleagues. There are no ‘exemptions’ from striking for staff who are near retirement.
21. I am a member of staff applying for indefinite leave to remain (ILR) or a Tier 2/5 visa holder or a Tier 4 visa holder. What is the law regarding industrial action for migrant workers?
In recent years, UCU has won important protection for staff on visas so that they could take lawful strike action without affecting their visa status. However, UCU recognises that many members who want to support the union have ongoing concerns about the issue and so the union has produced a separate briefing/FAQs which explains your legal rights if you are a staff member or student on a visa or who may apply for an indefinite right to remain in the UK. UCU is committed to supporting all our members in industrial action so if, having read the briefing, you are still concerned about the impact of the strikes upon your immigration status, please contact the UCU national head of equality and policy or our UEA branch office.
22. What is the law on picketing?
The purpose of the picket is to persuade members peacefully not to cross our picket lines i.e. not to go into work. Picketing is a legal activity and picketers should wear an armband indicating that they are on duty.
Picketing should be carried out at or near an entrance or exit from a site at which the pickets work; placards and posters should be displayed stating ‘OFFICIAL PICKET’. When others who are not in dispute come into work or use these entrances or exits, pickets must not interfere with them. Please be sensitive towards students who may not be familiar with trade unions, industrial disputes, or picket lines. Note that it is a criminal offence for pickets to use threatening or abusive behaviour to people crossing the picket line. You can read UCU’s picketing guidance here.
23. What is the so-called ‘virtual picket line’ or ‘digital picket line’?
On strike days, UCU members will be involved in the concerted stoppage of all work–this includes any online or electronic work carried out via email and the internet (e.g. checking/answering work emails, planning lectures/teaching, any online administrative activities, delivering/attending work-related webinars/training sessions, online research, writing papers and processing applications).
As social media engagement has become a major part of higher education, on strike days, many UCU members may also cease publicising anything work-related or promoting any activities at their institutions on social media (e.g. not sharing any university news, events, research, teaching, publications, grants, projects, job openings). This is sometimes referred to as a ‘virtual picket line’ or ‘digital picket line’.
24. I don’t know if I can afford to strike, is any financial support available?
All members will need to make a personal decision about their participation in action. We understand the sacrifices that members have made over the past four years in defence of our pay, conditions, and pensions. With the largest mandate in our recent history, and action taking part in every eligible UCU branch across the HE sector, this action has the capacity to achieve results that our previous action has not. However, it will only do so if we manage to cause more disruption to our employer than any previous action we’ve taken. To do that we need each of our members to act.
In recent action, our casualised members have often been the bedrock of our picket lines, striking to save a pension scheme that many are unable to contribute to. For those of us on permanent, full-time contracts, the upcoming strike action represents less than 5% of our annual salary, with the potential to return that to us several fold if that action secures an increase on the pay offer we negotiate, or if it sees the return of the roughly 35% we stand to lose from our pensions if current cuts in benefit are maintained.
- be paying subscriptions at the correct rate (if any subscription is payable);
- have participated in official strike action for which officers have agreed to make funds available; and,
- provide evidence of deduction from your salary or loss of earnings for strike action.
25. Where can I get updates and news about the industrial action, locally and nationally?
We will be sending emails with details about the strike action to the email you have on record with UCU. You can update your contact information on the My UCU website.
You can also follow us on Twitter @UEA_UCU and follow the main union Twitter account @UCU.
26. Can you suggest what I should write in my email out-of-office reply on the days that I am on strike?
You can use the following template for the out-of-office email reply:
The University and College Union, UCU, is currently taking industrial action, having secured the largest democratic mandate of any education union since the 2016 Trade Union Act. UCU members at almost all UK Universities are involved in industrial action today. I am joining that action because I believe my students and my colleagues deserve better and because I believe in the public value of higher education.
For more information or to support the strike https://www.ucu.org.uk/supportthestrikes
27. What does “removing uploaded materials related to, and/or not sharing materials related to, lectures or classes that will be or have been cancelled as a result of strike action” involve?
Members refusing to add further to the resources that were already available prior to ASOS commencing will be covered by this ASOS, so once the ASOS begins members should refrain from uploading teaching materials for teaching sessions that will be or have been cancelled due to strike action. Members should not upload new material for use in relation to a specific lecture, tutorial etc which is cancelled due to strike action, and which the individual member would normally upload for use by students on that day if it were not for the fact the member was on strike.
The situation regarding removal of materials already on a Virtual Learning Environment (Blackboard, in our case) or similar university system before the ASOS commences will vary; whether such materials can be taken down from a university system will depend on several factors including ownership of the materials and, for example, whether ownership rights are explicitly covered in staff contracts of employment. If in doubt about removal of teaching materials present on university systems before ASOS begins please contact your branch reps for advice.