Strike action looms across London colleges

by Anna Davies

Staff at colleges and universities across London are considering industrial action on May 5 as huge funding cuts threaten their jobs.

Action will only take place if  members of the University and College Union (UCU) gain a majority vote in a ballot. UCU members at the University of Westminster and University College London have voted to strike.

Meanwhile at the UAL lecturers in the UCU are also due to be balloted in a dispute over job losses and course closures.

If these staff were to strike it would lead to huge disruptions during one of the most important times of the year for students – when exams, degree shows and exhibitions are taking place.

In a statement to Arts London News, a spokesperson for the university said: “UAL is keen to avoid the threat of industrial action and is open to further discussions with UCU to avoid it.”

The decision to ballot came after UAL management failed to meet the UCU’s demands for withdrawal of compulsory redundancies and a new redundancy policy, as well as reversing course closures.

The UCU has been threatening to ballot for industrial action since the university announced last July that 200 jobs at the UAL could be at risk.Since then a total of 49 staff members have been given redundancy notices and nine combined honours degree courses have been discontinued at the LCC.

These staff redundancies and course closures are all part of what UAL calls its ‘efficiency programme’ after the university was forced to cut at least £7 million from its budget in the last year alone.