Wednesday 22-01-2014 - 17:57

Strikes in January and February 2014- a new statement from your elected Officers

Trade Unions have declared a series of strike actions over January and February 2014. These strikes follow on from the earlier strikes in October and December 2013.

The strikes are due to take place:

• Thursday 23 January 11.00am-1.00pm
• Tuesday 28 January 2.00pm-4.00pm
• Thursday 6^th of February all day
• Monday 10 February 9.00am-11.00am

Again, these strikes concern the rejection of a 1% salary increase this year and the cumulative 13% pay cut university staff have faced since 2008.

By now you will know that some LJMU staff are expected to take part in this strike. However, as far as we are aware, LJMU management will try to keep the university open as much as possible. This means that you are able to attend your classes as normal, unless you have been specifically informed that a class has been cancelled.

What this decision does mean is that many students will want to cross picket lines to get to their classes. Whether you choose to cross these picket lines or not is up to you. The unions will ask you not to do so, so that you are showing LJMU that you support them. However they should always do so in a calm and considerate manner. Unfortunately, any students choosing not to cross picket lines may find that this impacts their attendance record.

LiverpoolSU believes that there are clear benefits to students when pay is at a level that attracts excellent staff, meaning better teaching quality and an improved overall student experience. We want to support the maintenance of a happy and motivated workforce. We support the rights of all staff to challenge what they have democratically deemed to be unfair practices, including salary offers.  

However our first concern is for the wellbeing of our members, yourselves as students. We have been involved with meetings with the university and the unions to discuss and minimise the disruptive impact this will have on students. We feel that strike action should always be a last resort and we implore both sides- the unions and LJMU- to resolve this issue immediately.

LiverpoolSU will only support the trade unions as long as students’ progression through their course is not disrupted. Any serious disruptions to students’ ability to pass their course will result in LiverpoolSU withdrawing support from the unions. If any affected lectures are not rescheduled, or any of your assessments are disturbed by these strikes please let us know ASAP. You can contact us via studentsunion@ljmu.ac.uk or Facebook or Twitter.

If any students have any questions or comments about the strike or this statement please contact studentsunion@ljmu.ac.uk. This includes if there are any issues with the picket line.

Curtis Reid - President

Sam Davys - Vice President Activities

Dan Cole - Vice President Community Engagement